Majid Khan, the famous biryaniwalla’s success story: Here’s how his life changed

Remember biryaniwalla Majid Khan? The guy who we spotted working at a biryani shop in east Delhi became famous after we gave him a fashion makeover and published his pictures. HT City found Majid Khan working at a biryani shop in extremely difficult conditions. Majid worked for about 20 hours a day without a single day off in an entire month at a salary of Rs 7,000. He is the son of a daily wage labourer from Haldwani, Uttarakhand.

HT City gave Majid a fashion makeover and did a fashion shoot with him. A large number of news agencies in India as well as Pakistan followed Majid Khan’s story. It also helped transform Majid Khan’s life, and pull him out of extreme poverty. Strawberrifox, a leading modeling agency has signed up Majid. “Majid is a natural in front of the camera. He has striking looks and a great smile. We are going to groom him to be able to face the competition in the industry,” says Sunny Sapra, model coordinator, Strawberrifox.

Initially, Majid rarely smiled for the camera. His tobacco stained tooth made him very conscious. Leading cosmetic dentist Dr Ekta Chadha gave him a smile makeover by whitening and polishing his teeth. “Majid has a great smile. Tobacco had ruined it. I am glad that he has promised never to chew tobacco again,” says Chadha.

We also helped Majid put together a new wardrobe. Designer Dhruv Vaish gifted him a light burgundy pantsuit from his latest collection, along with some casual wear and shoes. “Majid seems to a promising model. I would like to shoot one of my catalogues with him,” says Vaish.

Majid has also been invited to cook at a food festival along with Masterchef India contestants, where he will be showcasing some of his specialities such as dum biryani, korma, shami kebab and seekh kebab. Chef Ashish Massey, a leading Delhi chef has also sent him a job offer. “We would be happy to employ Majid as a chef in our restaurant and train him further if he chooses to continue working in the food industry. We will also encourage him to take up modelling along with his food career,” says chef Massey.