Quick to prove she was much more than just a pretty face, Indian-American model, author and celebrated TV host has made an impact with her openness and advocacy of multiple issues.
By Nichola Marie
Padma Lakshmi is that rare creature who makes news simultaneously for seemingly polar opposite achievements – if she is making mouths water with her version of Tamil Nadu’s famous manga curry in her kitchen, she is making eyes pop with her photo spread in the iconic Pirelli 2025 calendar. All in a day’s work for the stunning, intelligent IndianAmerican fashion model, television personality, and author best known for her role as the host of the cooking competition show ‘Top Chef’ and of the food and travel series ‘Taste the Nation’.
She is prone to making impish declarations, such as: “Foods are like men: some are good, some are bad, and some are okay only in small doses. But most should be tried at least once.” (‘Love, Loss, and What We Ate: A Memoir’)! However, beyond the frivolity, she is a trendsetter, role model and activist, known for her advocacy of immigrant rights, the independent restaurant industry, and women’s rights. More importantly, her openness about sensitive personal issues from being molested at age seven, to battling a debilitating condition, has marked her as a voice of significance and impact.
The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) ambassador for immigration and women’s rights, she has also been a critic of skin-lightening creams marketed to people of colour and has also spoken about the colourism she has experienced while living in India and the United States. Padma Lakshmi is a trendsetter, role model and activist, known for her advocacy of immigrant rights, the independent restaurant industry, and women’s rights.
Appointed United Nations Development Programme Goodwill Ambassador in 2019, she maintained that her main mission was to “shine a spotlight on the fact that inequality can affect people in rich and poor countries alike. Many nations have greatly reduced poverty, but inequality has proved more stubborn.” She pointed out that inequality is further compounded by gender, age, ethnicity, and race. “It especially affects women, minorities, and others who face unimaginable discrimination in the societies in which they live.” In December 2021, she was the recipient of the Advocate of the Year award by the United Nations Correspondents Association (UNCA).
An active philanthropist, her diagnosis of endometriosis in 2006 saw her co-founding the nonprofit organisation Endometriosis Foundation of America in 2009, which is dedicated to the disease’s research and education. The foundation was instrumental in the opening of the MIT Center for Gynepathology Research in 2009, where she gave the keynote address.
Lakshmi is also vocal about body positivity and embraces her changing figure over the years despite her struggles with her metabolism. In May 2023, she posed in a bathing suit for ‘Sports Illustrated’, and even though she said she was “nervous” about doing the photoshoot at 52, she said she wanted to show her fans that “beauty is so vast and broad of a spectrum.” She maintained, “I love where I am in my life and know my body is not perfect by any means, but I feel beautiful. I feel like I have a very lucky, fruitful, productive life. My thighs may have been leaner… but I have never felt better about myself. …When young women see this, I hope they see that they have a long life to live and that experience and wisdom and going through stuff actually makes you more interesting and enriches you as a person, both physically but also inside.”
Back To The Beginning
Born September 1970, in Chennai, India, at age 4 she moved to New York City in 1974 to join her mother, Vijaya Lakshmi, who had emigrated two years earlier after her divorce from Padma’s father. While Lakshmi grew up spending the school year with her mother, first in New York City and later in Los Angeles, her summers were spent in Chennai with her extended family. After graduating from high school in Los Angeles, she went on to attend Clark University, in Worcester, Massachusetts.
Her break in modelling came in 1992, while she was attending a study abroad programme in Madrid, Spain. Here, she was introduced to a booker at a model talent agency, which led to her securing representation and work as a model during the rest of her time in Spain. As the work proved lucrative, even after returning to Clark for her graduation, she continued to pursue a career in modelling first in Los Angeles, and later in Milan and Paris. At the time, she gained a reputation for being ‘exotic’ in some circles due to her complexion. The prominent scar on her right arm, which was the result of an auto accident when she was 14, also drew attention. While she initially had trouble securing routine work, working with legendary fashion photographer Helmut Newton opened the gateway to success. She went on to enjoy a fruitful career as a high-profile fashion model in Europe, over several years. Working for some of the biggest designers like Armani, Versace and Ralph Lauren, she also appeared on the covers of ‘Cosmopolitan’, ‘Harper’s Bazaar’ and ‘Allure’, to name a few. Of her time modeling, she has said, “I was the first Indian model to have a career in Paris, Milan and New York. I’m the first one to admit that I was a novelty.”
Melding Of Interests
Lakshmi’s interest in and appreciation of food began when she was a child, as she grew up learning to cook Indian food with her grandmother, mother and aunts. “My grandmother, along with the other women in my family, gave me the foundation for cooking,” she has said. Her subsequent career as a model further developed her palate as she gained the opportunity to travel the world. In 1997, Lakshmi transitioned to television, becoming the co-host of the talk show ‘Domenica In’. The show, which was broadcast live, provided her the opportunity to sharpen her skills as a television performer. She also developed a knack for improvisation. When Lakshmi began landing acting roles, she snagged a part in the Italian miniseries ‘Caraibi’. The role required her to gain over 30 pounds. Later, after losing the excess weight, she published her first cookbook in 1999, a collection of low-calorie recipes taking inspiration from her Southeast Asian roots titled ‘Easy Exotic’. She continued to pursue a career in television after returning to the United States in 1999. The success of the book earned her entry into the world of food television, as she landed her own Food Network series titled ‘Melting Pot: Padma’s Passport’ in 2001. This led to a similar hosting job for the British series ‘Planet Food’ (2001), a series of food documentaries that blended travelogue with the cooking show format.
In 2006, she joined the cast of the reality competition programme ‘Top Chef’, in its second season, becoming the host and judge. ‘Top Chef’ is credited with introducing thousands of cable television viewers to haute cuisine, featuring as it did veteran restaurateur Tom Colicchio, food writer Gail Simmons, and appearances by celebrity chefs and food personalities such as Michelle Bernstein, Anthony Bourdain, Thomas Keller, and Emeril Lagasse.
After the finale of the show’s 20th season in 2023, Lakshmi, one of the biggest names in the food world, announced her decision to end the involvement as both host and executive producer of ‘Top Chef’. Breaking the news in an emotional statement on Instagram, she wrote, “After much soul searching, I have made the difficult decision to leave ‘Top Chef’. Having completed a glorious 20th season as host and executive producer, I am extremely proud to have been part of building such a successful show and of the impact it has had in the worlds of television and food.”
Prior to this, in 2020, she created and began hosting ‘Taste the Nation with Padma Lakshmi’. This series saw her travel to immigrant communities throughout the United States, exploring how local food cultures have influenced American cuisine. The show was a critical success, and its 2021 holiday special received the prestigious James Beard Media Award for longform visual media the next year.
As an author, besides ‘Easy Exotic’, she has also written several books across multiple genres. These include a second cookbook, ‘Tangy, Tart, Hot, and Sweet: A World of Recipes for Every Day’ (2007); ‘Love, Loss, and What We Ate: A Memoir’ (2016); the reference book ‘The Encyclopedia of Spices & Herbs: An Essential Guide to the Flavors of the World’ (2016); and the children’s book ‘Tomatoes for Neela’ (2021).
Staying Rooted
After living together for five years, Lakshmi and novelist Salman Rushdie married in April 2004. Three years later, the couple filed for a divorce. In February 2010, she gave birth to her daughter Krishna Thea with ex-partner, businessman Adam Dell.
As Lakshmi said a couple of years ago, “I am an open book. I have lived the life I’ve lived because there’s nothing that I have to hide. And I would like young women to know that, even if you have a late start, or even if you’ve been through stuff, it’s okay. You know, sometimes you just have to get up and dust yourself off and keep walking.”
Did you know ?
• According to ‘Celebrity Net Worth’, in 2024 Padma Lakshmi has a net worth of US$40 million.
• She speaks five languages: English, Hindi, Tamil, Spanish and Italian.
• An avid world traveller, she believes travel is the best thing for educating oneself and becoming a more sophisticated, cultured person. “It’s an amazing way to see the world through the eyes of others… It’s made me aware of parts of the world I would never have otherwise heard about, and more than anything, it’s allowed me to see myself in a new light.”
