By Saurav Mehra MasterChef India is one of India’s best-known competitive cooking reality shows. The Hindi-language programme gives talented home cooks an opportunity to demonstrate their culinary skills through challenging tasks involving Indian cuisine, international dishes, desserts, restaurant-style cooking and creative use of ingredients.
The Hindi edition of MasterChef India premiered in 2010 and is based on the international MasterChef television format. Over the years, the programme has aired on StarPlus, Sony Entertainment Television and SonyLIV. Well-known chefs such as Vikas Khanna, Kunal Kapur, Ranveer Brar and Sanjeev Kapoor have been associated with the judging panel. As of 2026, nine regular seasons of MasterChef India Hindi have been completed.
MasterChef India Winners List of All Seasons
| Season | Year | Winner | Runner-Up | Main Judges |
| Season 1 | 2010 | Pankaj Bhadouria | Jayanandan Bhaskar | Akshay Kumar, Kunal Kapur, Ajay Chopra |
| Season 2 | 2011–12 | Shipra Khanna | Salma Shazia Fathima | Vikas Khanna, Kunal Kapur, Ajay Chopra |
| Season 3 | 2013 | Ripudaman Handa | Navneet Rastogi | Vikas Khanna, Kunal Kapur, Sanjeev Kapoor |
| Season 4 | 2015 | Nikita Gandhi | Neha Deepak Shah | Vikas Khanna, Sanjeev Kapoor, Ranveer Brar |
| Season 5 | 2016 | Kirti Bhoutika | Ashima Arora | Vikas Khanna, Kunal Kapur, Zorawar Kalra |
| Season 6 | 2019–20 | Abinas Nayak | Oindrila Bala | Vikas Khanna, Ranveer Brar, Vineet Bhatia |
| Season 7 | 2023 | Nayanjyoti Saikia | Santa Sarmah | Vikas Khanna, Ranveer Brar, Garima Arora |
| Season 8 | 2023 | Mohammed Ashiq | Nambie Marak | Vikas Khanna, Ranveer Brar, Pooja Dhingra |
| Season 9 | 2026 | Ajinkya and Vikram Gandhe | Chandana and Saisri Rachakonda | Vikas Khanna, Ranveer Brar, Kunal Kapur |
MasterChef India Season 1 Winner – Pankaj Bhadouria
The first season of MasterChef India premiered on 16 October 2010 on StarPlus and introduced Indian viewers to the competitive MasterChef format.
The judging panel featured Akshay Kumar, Chef Kunal Kapur and Chef Ajay Chopra.
Pankaj Bhadouria, a schoolteacher from Lucknow who left her teaching job to participate in the competition, emerged as the first MasterChef India winner.
Jayanandan Bhaskar finished as the runner-up.
The season concluded on 25 December 2010. Pankaj received the MasterChef India title along with a ₹1 crore cash prize.
Her victory helped establish her career in the food industry, and she later became a television chef, author and culinary personality.
MasterChef India Season 2 Winner – Shipra Khanna
MasterChef India Season 2 premiered on 22 October 2011.
Chef Vikas Khanna joined Kunal Kapur and Ajay Chopra on the judging panel.
Shipra Khanna emerged as the winner of the second season.
Salma Shazia Fathima finished as the runner-up.
The season concluded on 1 January 2012, with Shipra receiving the MasterChef India trophy and ₹1 crore prize money.
Following her victory, she developed a professional career in food, television and culinary writing.
MasterChef India Season 3 Winner – Ripudaman Handa
MasterChef India Season 3 premiered on 11 March 2013.
The judging panel featured Vikas Khanna, Kunal Kapur and Sanjeev Kapoor, bringing together three prominent figures from the Indian culinary industry.
Ripudaman Handa emerged as the Season 3 champion.
Navneet Rastogi finished as the runner-up.
The season continued for 70 episodes and concluded on 9 June 2013.
Ripudaman received the MasterChef trophy and a ₹1 crore cash prize after successfully completing the final culinary challenges.
MasterChef India Season 4 Winner – Nikita Gandhi
Season 4 premiered on 26 January 2015 and introduced an important change to the competition.
The season was promoted as a vegetarian-only edition, meaning contestants prepared dishes without meat, fish or eggs.
The judging panel consisted of Vikas Khanna, Sanjeev Kapoor and Ranveer Brar.
Nikita Gandhi emerged as the winner.
Neha Deepak Shah finished as the runner-up, while Bhakti Arora was also among the leading finalists.
The grand finale aired on 12 April 2015.
Nikita received the MasterChef India title and ₹1 crore prize money.
MasterChef India Season 5 Winner – Kirti Bhoutika
Season 5 premiered on 1 October 2016 on StarPlus.
The judging panel included Vikas Khanna, Kunal Kapur and restaurateur Zorawar Kalra.
Young baker Kirti Bhoutika emerged as the winner of MasterChef India Season 5.
Ashima Arora finished as the runner-up.
Kirti impressed the judges with her baking skills, desserts and ability to adapt to different culinary challenges during the season.
The grand finale aired on 25 December 2016.
Kirti received the MasterChef trophy and a cash prize of ₹1 crore.
MasterChef India Season 6 Winner – Abinas Nayak
MasterChef India returned after a gap with Season 6, which premiered on 7 December 2019.
The judging panel consisted of Vikas Khanna, Ranveer Brar and Vineet Bhatia.
Abinas Nayak from Odisha emerged as the Season 6 winner.
Oindrila Bala finished as the runner-up.
Abinas gained attention for his creative approach to food and his ability to combine traditional Indian flavours with modern presentation.
The grand finale aired on 1 March 2020.
Abinas received the MasterChef India trophy and ₹25 lakh prize money.
MasterChef India Season 7 Winner – Nayanjyoti Saikia
MasterChef India Season 7 premiered on 2 January 2023 after another long break.
The programme also moved from StarPlus to Sony Entertainment Television, with digital availability through Sony’s platforms.
The judging panel consisted of Vikas Khanna, Ranveer Brar and Garima Arora.
Nayanjyoti Saikia from Assam emerged as the Season 7 winner.
Santa Sarmah, also from Assam, finished as the runner-up.
Suvarna Bagul was another finalist.
The grand finale aired on 31 March 2023.
Nayanjyoti received the MasterChef India trophy and ₹25 lakh cash prize.
His journey became one of the season’s major stories because he entered the competition as a talented home cook and consistently impressed the judges with his technique and presentation.
MasterChef India Season 8 Winner – Mohammed Ashiq
MasterChef India Season 8 premiered on 16 October 2023 and was streamed on SonyLIV.
Vikas Khanna and Ranveer Brar returned as judges, while pastry chef Pooja Dhingra joined the panel.
Mohammed Ashiq from Mangaluru emerged as the Season 8 winner.
Nambie Marak finished as the runner-up.
Ashiq had previously faced disappointment during the audition process but earned his way into the MasterChef kitchen and eventually reached the final.
The grand finale was released on 8 December 2023.
Mohammed Ashiq received the MasterChef India trophy and ₹25 lakh prize money.
MasterChef India Season 9 Winners – Ajinkya and Vikram Gandhe
MasterChef India returned with Season 9 on 5 January 2026 on Sony Entertainment Television and SonyLIV.
Season 9 introduced one of the biggest changes in MasterChef India history. Instead of contestants competing individually, home cooks participated in pairs.
The season featured 12 pairs, representing 24 contestants.
Vikas Khanna and Ranveer Brar returned to the judging panel, while Kunal Kapur returned as a full-time judge after several seasons.
Paritosh Tripathi served as the host.
Brothers Ajinkya and Vikram Gandhe from Nagpur emerged as the winners of MasterChef India Season 9.
Chandana and Saisri Rachakonda finished as the runners-up.
The grand finale aired on 6 March 2026.
Ajinkya and Vikram received the MasterChef India trophy and ₹25 lakh prize money after completing the final series of cooking challenges.
Their victory made them the first pair to win a regular Hindi season of MasterChef India.
MasterChef India Judges Over the Years
MasterChef India has featured several of India’s best-known chefs and culinary personalities.
Vikas Khanna
Vikas Khanna has had one of the longest associations with MasterChef India. He joined the programme in Season 2 and has appeared as a judge across most subsequent seasons.
Kunal Kapur
Kunal Kapur was one of the original judges during Season 1. He continued through several early seasons, returned for Season 5 and again became a full-time judge in Season 9.
Ranveer Brar
Ranveer Brar joined MasterChef India in Season 4 and later became one of the programme’s most recognisable judges. He has appeared regularly in the more recent editions.
Sanjeev Kapoor
Veteran chef Sanjeev Kapoor judged Seasons 3 and 4 and brought decades of Indian television and culinary experience to the programme.
Other Judges
Other personalities who have served as regular judges include:
- Ajay Chopra
- Akshay Kumar
- Zorawar Kalra
- Vineet Bhatia
- Garima Arora
- Pooja Dhingra
Different seasons have also featured prominent chefs, actors and food personalities as guest judges.
MasterChef India Format
MasterChef India primarily features home cooks rather than established professional chefs.
Contestants are selected through auditions before entering the MasterChef kitchen. They then face different challenges designed to test cooking knowledge, technique, creativity and the ability to work under pressure.
A Mystery Box Challenge generally requires contestants to prepare a dish using a surprise collection of ingredients.
An Invention Test asks cooks to create an original dish within specific rules or using particular ingredients.
Pressure Tests usually place contestants at risk of elimination and may require them to recreate a technically difficult dish.
Team Challenges divide contestants into groups that must cook for guests or complete larger food-service assignments.
Contestants may also face challenges involving regional Indian cuisine, international cooking, desserts, restaurant service and dishes associated with famous chefs.
Judges evaluate food on factors such as taste, technique, creativity, presentation and use of ingredients.
The competition continues until the strongest home cooks reach the finale and compete for the MasterChef India trophy.
Junior MasterChef India
The franchise also produced a separate children’s version titled Junior MasterChef India: Swaad Ke Ustaad in 2013.
The programme was judged by Vikas Khanna, Kunal Kapur and Chef Jolly.
Sarthak Bhardwaj won the Junior MasterChef title, while Harshika Doshi finished as runner-up.
Since Junior MasterChef was a separate competition, its winner is not included in the regular MasterChef India Season 1 to Season 9 winners list.
Celebrity MasterChef India
Another spin-off titled Celebrity MasterChef India premiered in 2025.
Unlike the regular edition, it featured celebrities rather than ordinary home cooks.
Gaurav Khanna won the first Celebrity MasterChef season, while Nikki Tamboli finished as runner-up.
Celebrity MasterChef is a separate series and is therefore not counted as a regular MasterChef India season.
Final Words
MasterChef India has become one of India’s leading cooking reality programmes since its debut in 2010.
Pankaj Bhadouria became the first MasterChef India winner, followed by Shipra Khanna, Ripudaman Handa, Nikita Gandhi, Kirti Bhoutika, Abinas Nayak, Nayanjyoti Saikia and Mohammed Ashiq.
Season 9 introduced a new pairs format and produced the first joint team of champions when Ajinkya and Vikram Gandhe won the title on 6 March 2026.
As of 2026, nine regular seasons of MasterChef India Hindi have been completed, with Ajinkya and Vikram Gandhe being the latest winners.