THE town where I grew up in India had limited electricity, a high crime rate and rampant corruption. I could have gone down the wrong path, but my parents inspired me to do otherwise. I had values and did well in school.

As a child, I asked my father why the police didn’t do more to stop the lawlessness, and he said there were too many of us in the country for them to accomplish much. At first, I thought I’d join the government and try to change things, but I also had an entrepreneurial bent. I wanted to have an impact.

In 1992, I enrolled in the Motilal Nehru National Institute of Technology for a bachelor’s degree in engineering. While there, I volunteered to be mess secretary of my dormitory. At home, my mother experimented and prepared tasty dishes, and that spurred my interest in food and cooking.

I managed the cafeteria and kitchen and took part in a friendly competition with other dorms to deliver the best-tasting food at the lowest cost. I hired the cooks, planned the menus and tried to add some new flavors, but it was a challenge. I found that even cooks can’t always make new dishes solely by reading cookbooks.