Reliance Fresh and India Food Network conduct live lockdown cooking show

India Food Network (IFN), the digital food network, in collaboration with Reliance Fresh, concluded its first-ever live virtual cooking reality show, the ‘Live Lockdown Cooking Show’.

The live broadcast was simultaneous live-streamed from two kitchens, giving the viewer an experience of an actual live cook-along show, made even more relevant during the times of a lockdown.

The five-episode series from April 10-14, 2020, saw Chef Amrita Raichand interacting live with homemakers, professional culinary experts and even young students over delicious home-made food recipes, culinary hacks using food leftovers and thrifty cooking methods.

Reaching approximately 20 million unique consumers over five days and over five million completed views, this show created a platform for home chefs to showcase their skills, but most of all, at a time like this provide both comfort and entertainment.

Quick-fix dishes like veggie frankie rolls, burrito bowls, paneer bhurji, carrot muffins and unique beverages like pear and peanut butter milkshakes and water-melonade were prepared live before enthusiastic viewers, who shared their own versions of dishes through posts, photos and videos.

The show was also sprinkled with light-hearted conversations between Chef Amrita, winners and viewers around how citizens are managing their larger schedules during the lockdown, how families are cherishing this time by spending time with each other through enjoyable hobbies like baking with their children and overall tips and advice on how to combat the lockdown blues through common the joys of cooking.

Lalatendu Panda, Chief Marketing Officer (Reliance Fresh and Reliance SMART), said, “We are big believers in using new ways of connecting with our RelianceOne consumers both online and offline. For us, serving their needs is paramount to our existence. Our team has been working very hard to ensure that we continue to provide our customers with all the support they need to ensure an uninterrupted supply of food products and a safe environment in the stores. This first-ever Lockdown Cooking Show was another way to let consumers know that we are with them every step of the way, helping them make healthy, tasty and quick meals, all of which help them in whatever way possible. This show was also a first for us and the industry where two kitchens were streaming simultaneously and cooking. We hope to continue creating content that excites and inspires our RelianceOne loyalty programme customers.”

The show was creatively conceptualised and produced by India Food Network (IFN) for Reliance Fresh.  Rajeshree Naik, Founder, IFN, said, “Food content has clearly been a huge preoccupation both for comfort and practical reasons. Whether it be recipe videos, advice on quarantine cooking, how to stock your pantry or the increased interest in baking and bread, food content has seen an unusual spike in interest. This cooking show we did with Reliance Fresh was one of its kind because it was live in a way where it was two kitchens cooking together and also with larger audience participation. With food being both a need and source of distraction, we have been creating content that people will find very useful during times like this.”

Since its inception in 2012, with over 8,000 recipes videos, a community of over 1.5 million and a network of 200 food influencers, India Food Network produces digital culinary content space and has Live shows, intellectual properties such as The Mini Truck, Kissan Tiffin Timetable, live cook-along, among others. The platform works with some of the largest food brands in the country such as Nestle, Unilever, Tata Consumer, Saffola, Emmami Oils, Reliance Fresh, Future group and many leading food brands.