Noted Indian chef Tarla Dalal, who taught millions of Indians and people abroad the art of cooking delicious dishes, died of heart attack at her residence in Mumbai on Wednesday.
She was 77. She is survived by three children.
An announcement on her Facebook page by 'Tarla Dalal's Team' on Wednesday evening said: "We would like to thank all of you for your support and affection through the years of Mrs. Tarla Dalal's career. She is no more with us as she expired in the early hours of this morning. We thank her for all the happiness that her talent has given to us and our families."
She was born in Pune city in 1936. After marrying Naveen Dalal in 1960 she had moved to Mumbai.
Tarla conducted cooking classes from her home in Mumbai in 1966 and this led to the publication of her first cook book 'The Pleasures of Vegetarian Cooking' in 1974. The book was an instant success and sold over 1,50,000 copies.
She was known for hosting popular cookery shows "Tarla Dalal Show" and "Cook It Up With Tarla Dalal".
She had also wrote over 100 cookery books which sold more than 3 million books.
Tarla is credited for creating 17,000 recipes.
She was awarded the Padma Shri in 2007.
Mourning her death, Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi tweeted: "RIP Tarla Dalal. She lives on through the taste of her wonderful recipes. Condolences to her family."
Celebrity chef Sanjeev Kapoor posted on her Twitter homepage: "It's a sad day for indian culinary world today. We've lost the "First" MasterChef - Tarla Dalal. RIP."
Actor Anupam Kher said: "Sad to know that Tarla Dalal, the Original Master Chef of India is no more. Her cookery show & cooking was simple, authentic & delicious.RIP."
Actor Siddharth tweeted: "Tarla Dalal - synonymous with good cooking in the Indian household. Huge part of India’s culinary history. RIP chef."
