India’s television landscape has seen a dynamic evolution in cooking shows, with recent formats blending gastronomy and high drama to capture massive viewer interest. Shows like Celebrity MasterChef India, Kitchen Champion, and Laughter Chefs have turned kitchens into stages for celebrity rivalries, emotional storytelling, and laugh-out-loud antics, earning them impressive TRP ratings across channels and streaming platforms.
Laughter Chefs: Comedy + Cooking = Instant Hit
Launched in June 2024 on Colors TV, Laughter Chefs—Unlimited Entertainment innovatively combines celebrity duos, comedy sketches, and cooking tasks judged by Chef Harpal Singh Sokhi and hosted by Bharti Singh. It quickly became a TRP sensation, with its first season entering the top 10 in national ratings (achieving TVR ~1.9) while Celebrity MasterChef hovered near 0.6.
Season 2 followed in early 2025 and concluded on July 27, 2025, crowning Karan Kundrra and Elvish Yadav as winners in a final filled with fun, food, and celebrity drama. The show shattered viewership norms, drawing approximately 13.6 crore viewers across TV and digital platforms, a feat only matched by Bigg Boss and Fear Factor over the past decade.
Celebrities praised the show for its unexpected warmth and camaraderie. Ankita Lokhande and Vicky Jain reflected on the friendships they built and denied rumors of conflict with Rubina Dilaik, highlighting the familial feel of the set and fan love that kept the show vibrant even off-camera.
Celebrity MasterChef India: Drama Over Dishes
Sony TV’s Celebrity MasterChef India, which premiered in early 2025, tried to ride on the success of its original amateur format. But the emphasis on celebrity stories, emotional arcs, and theatrics overshadowed the cooking challenges, drawing criticism despite its star-studded lineup (Dipika Kakar, Tejasswi Prakash, Nikki Tamboli, and others).
Critics called it a “soap opera with some food on the side,” citing sob stories, scripted breakdowns, and uneven focus among contestants. BARC ratings underscored this disconnect; MasterChef registered around a 0.6 TVR in major weeks, far behind Laughter Chefs’ commanding ~1.7–1.9.
Kitchen Champion & Laughter-Filled Rivals
Earlier shows like Kitchen Champion, hosted by Arjun Bijlani, featured celebrities cooking for junior judges (kids), prioritizing playful interaction over culinary mastery. Another popular show, Turban Tadka with Chef Harpal Singh Sokhi, and Farah Ki Daawat with Farah Khan followed suit, blending celebrity charm with simple cooking tasks and humour.
However, none matched the TRP success of Laughter Chefs, which leaned into improvisation and unscripted fun. Viacom18’s own leadership hailed the show as the first family-friendly megahit comedy in a decade, outperforming many established formats, even topping The Kapil Sharma Show in ratings.
Why This Genre Strikes Gold
- Celebrity Charm with Real Kitchen Chaos
Celebrities learning, and often fumbling, in real time gives audiences a shared laugh. It’s far more relatable than polished pros, and fans tune in to watch mishaps and breakthroughs alike.
- Emotion + Friendship Over Fuss
Laughter Chefs created a space where on-screen relationships felt genuine. Stars like Ankita Lokhande and Vicky Jain credited the show for lasting friendships and viewer affection instead of scripted drama.
- Balanced Formats
Unlike MasterChef’s heavy emotional arcs and technical rigidness, Laughter Chefs prioritized entertainment, offering light-hearted cooking with flexible elements—ideal for integrations and brand tie-ins.
Spotlight: Show Examples
Celebrity MasterChef India
A celebrity edition of the MasterChef franchise featuring actors and digital stars. While it promised classic competition, critics noted it prioritized drama over culinary rigor, earning mixed reviews and modest ratings (~0.6 TVR).
Kitchen Champion
A fast-paced cook-off between TV stars judged by children, blending lighthearted competition and entertainment; it added another flavor of celebrity cooking without deep culinary focus.
Laughter Chefs (Unlimited Entertainment)
A landmark show merging cooking with comedy, pairing celebrities with an emphasis on spontaneous humour. The season 2 finale in July 2025 crowned Karan Kundrra and Elvish Yadav. The show consistently ranked among the top 10 in TRP charts and dominated viewership across TV and OTT platforms (~13.6 crore viewers).
What’s Next for India’s Cooking-Drama Wave
Bolstered by Laughter Chefs’ success, more producers may prototype formats blending performance, format twists, and star power into cooking contexts, moving beyond simple recipe shows. With cooking serving as a stage rather than the main act, viewers can expect more edutainment, emotional arcs, and branded content formats.
Final Bite
India’s cooking TV space is no longer just about techniques and recipes; it’s about stories, performance, and connection. While Celebrity MasterChef attempted to preserve culinary authenticity, it was Laughter Chefs, the unfiltered, comedic, and heartfelt format, that turned the TRP race into its stage. With rising viewer appetite for this genre, ‘dinnertainment’ may well define India’s next wave of kitchen-drama blockbusters.
By – Sonali