The photographer offers to take only close-up shots since Gaggan Anand is dressed in shorts. "Nahin, nahin, take me as I am. This is who I am," he says, folding his hands as he strikes a pose. Dressed in a red tee and printed shorts over fluorescent yellow sneakers, he runs his hands through his shoulder-length mane.

Our congratulations on Gaggan, Bangkok-based restaurant which won two Michelin stars in the first edition of the Thailand Michelin Guide in 2018, are met with a grin. "A tyre company doesn't know how to judge," Anand says, adding, "It is evident they don't use Indian inspectors for my cuisine. Though I don't ridicule them, I don't respect it. I tried, but it didn't work," he tells us.