Rita Mathur from Bhopal was crowned LG's 'Mallika-e-Kitchen' in the sixth season finale of the live cookery contest held here Friday.
The competition was held at a hotel here and Mathur was among 12 contenders from various states across India. Her preparations were jointly called Zaika-E-Hind, and she was honoured by celebrity chef and judge Nita Mehta.
Talking about her win, Mathur said: "I am extremely happy and honoured that I have won the title. Being a working woman, I hardly had time to prepare myself for it. But I had great support from my family because of which I was able to do it."
The standout factor in her preparation for the finale was the fact that it had "all the colours of the Indian flag", added Mathur, who received a door-to-door refrigerators.
Started Aug 25, this year's 'Mallika-e-Kitchen' cooking contest had 4,000 participants from 62 cities across India. The competition was conducted in three stages, which culminated in the grand finale here.
Mumbai-based Pushpa Chaplot and Chennai based Shajeeda were named as the first and the second runners-up respectively. They were awarded a water purifier each.
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The grand finale witnessed a challenge under which all the 12 contestants were asked to make their respective dishes in 90 minutes using a microwave. All of them attempted to lend a flavour of the region they came from.
Nita Mehta, who has been associated with the contest since its first season, told IANS: "Taste, texture and presentation are the three basic things I look out for. The new and innovative ideas that I saw in Rita's dish was tremendous."
Lauding the initiative, she added: "A woman is never rewarded and appreciated for her efforts in the kitchen. With 'Mallika-e-Kitchen', LG has presented a platform through which women can showcase her talent to everybody. Such efforts boost the confidence in women and empowers them to compete with the society."
Touted as one of the largest amateur annual cooking contests, the initiative by the electronic brand is aimed at empowering middle class Indian women to showcase their cooking talent.
Sanjay Chitkara, head (Corporate Marketing), LG India, said: "It's the biggest stage for amateur chefs. This season was another resounding success for us. We have got a tremendous response every time we have come out with such innovative ideas."