[Applause]
namaste my name is Vikram bridge and I’m
a chef and I’m here to talk to you about
food family and friends but first let’s
or as they call it on Instagram hashtag
food poor now why am I here to talk to
you about food and porn because it
bothers me to no end to see this social
media addiction is destroying a
beautiful relationship between food
this my friends is a weapon of mass
it’s coming in aware of her friendships
when Indians greet each other they say
namaste meaning I honor you you honor me
imagine how deeply connected we would be
with our family and friends if we
practice the meaning of namaste every
day of our lives just the way we are
right now I honor all of you you are
honoring me and our entire universe is
right here here’s a typical scene that
happens at my restaurants a lovely
couple comes and sits down and I
approach them with my menus and I go up
and say good evening welcome to vigils
can I offer you a glass of wine or beer
to start you off with and guess what he
does guess what the dude does he pulls
out his cell phone and takes a
photograph off the menu like the
pictures of the food on the menu he’s
something is wrong with that picture and
and what is she knowing she is so upset
she has a long face it’s longer than my
menu do you know anybody who takes their
phone to bed do you know anybody who
takes their phone to the toilet do you
know anybody who takes their phone and
okay just blink if that person is
sitting next to you and if that person
is you let me tell you something the
reason why this is called a cell phone
is because it’s put you in a Cell it’s
put you in a prison
and honestly posting on social media
and and posting on social media while
you’re socializing is like the most
like like imagine like imagine you go
home from work you’re tired you need a
little bit of love you need a little bit
of attention you open the door of your
apartment and even your bloody dog
look don’t do this right now but if you
search the word hashtag social media
addiction you will get 1111 hits how is
that possible there are more than 1,000
admitted folks admitting to your crime
I think they teach that to you in a
program and on the first day called
alcoholics I’ll keep the last name
do you know why
the chicken cross the road why did the
because it was tired of being
social media addiction is not a
victimless crime
the first victim is you because once
you’re hooked you cooked your toast you
actually think that every waking moment
of your day is a photo op you don’t even
music is the food of love and love of
food is love of life and I learned that
at a very young age from my mother and
my grandmother when we went to the
bazaars of India and we walked through
the aisles we would look at these
beautiful produce of onions and ginger
and garlic and my mom would pick up
these beautiful tomatoes she would look
at them she would marvel at them she
would smell them she treated them like
as if they were like pure diamonds she
would come home and make this absolutely
delicious and absolutely flavorful
tomato curry and she made it with so
much attention and love that the dishes
tasted lovely uh I was on ten years old
and I was coming back from a trip with
my father we were sitting in this
rickety old bus this was in war-torn
Kashmir so the buses were not fancy and
I’m sitting at this rickety old bus and
honestly the bus was so crowded there
were people who were fishermen and there
were people who were farmers on the bus
and the bus was so crowded you could
barely breathe I mean the body order
plus the
beautiful fumes of the buses were just
like wow but I couldn’t keep my eyes of
this older gentleman that was sitting on
my right-hand side and went on his lap
was this rusty old cage in that cage
were approximately like 50 live chickens
and they could barely breathe I felt so
bad for them I looked at my father and
said Papa can I please buy one of those
chickens vikrum this is a bus not a
bazaar I will buy you a chicken from the
bazaar and what are you going to do with
this live chicken Papa I just want to
put that chicken out of its misery let
me please buy it now to my surprise with
that typical Indian haggling my father
buys me this beautiful chicken and I get
this beautiful white chicken I put it on
my lap I stroke it I love it I’m coming
home and I bring it home it felt so good
from its misery now since you asked we
did have a delicious chicken curry for
dinner that night but we had it with
gratitude and love when my mom brought
that part of chicken curry in front of
all of us in the family and we lifted it
up all the aromas of the chicken bones
and the spices but just absolutely
delicious and heavenly and no I do not
regret not taking a photograph of that
that moment has been embedded in my head
that photograph has been embedded in my
head in my heart that photograph and
think about it they died so we can live
it doesn’t get any more holistic than
of course I acknowledge the fact that
social media plays a huge role in our
restaurants when people take a little
selfie they when they take a little you
know the right to review about you
people become raving fans they even want
to take selfies with me but what I’m
saying is that this social media
addiction is ruining the real essence
and soul of dining together with your
family and your friends look I’m not
but I can only do my small part next
time you go to a restaurant
keep your phone either in the car or at
and the first time you do it it’s going
to be so scary it’ll be like oh my god
but trust me the world war won’t break
out your friends in cyberspace will
still love you the world is not going to
end but the people that you’re dining
with and having fun and having a great
conversation and you’re giving them
attention will absolutely love you show
your gratitude to the plants and the
animals that have sacrificed themselves
for you show your gratitude towards the
person that has cooked that delicious
meal for you when that beautiful piece
of non bread comes in front of you take
a bite of it dip it in that sauce taste
it look at the person that sitting
we needed a law to tell us that texting
and driving is unacceptable
we needed a lot to tell us that smoking
is unacceptable in public spaces let’s
just make a collective effort and a
and do not allow anybody to take
photographs while they’re dining with
their family and friends let’s outsmart
this smartphone shall we [Applause]