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Chef Damu dies at 72 in Chennai; Tamil Nadu CM Vijay calls it a major loss
Chef Damu, the Tamil TV cooking icon and “Cooku with Comali” judge, died in Chennai on October 25, 2026. He was 72. Chief Minister Vijay led tributes, calling it a major loss to the culinary field.
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Chef and television personality Chef Damu died in Chennai on Sunday, October 25, 2026, after a period of ill health. He was 72.
Born Damodharan Kothandaraman on September 3, 1954, he became one of Tamil Nadu’s most familiar food faces over three decades, moving from hotel kitchens to prime-time television and, later, to the role that introduced him to a new generation: judge on the Tamil cooking reality show “Cooku with Comali,” where viewers and contestants widely called him “Damu Appa”.
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Vijay was among the first political leaders to issue a condolence message. In a post on X, he wrote in Tamil that the death of K. Damodharan, popularly known as Chef Damu, was “மிகுந்த வேதனையளிக்கிறது” (deeply painful). Vijay said Damu had taken cooking to people through television with his skill and distinctive approach, adding that his achievements, including a Guinness record and a Padma Shri, would be remembered, and that his death was “சமையல் கலைத் துறைக்குப் பேரிழப்பாகும்” (a great loss to the culinary field).
From dishwashing to TV fame
Damu’s story was often told as an unusually steep rise through the food industry. He began his working life in hotel kitchens doing humble jobs, including washing dishes, before training formally and building a career as a chef, teacher and presenter.
Over time he became a household name in Tamil television through a run of cooking programmes on regional channels, where his easy manner, quick explanations and focus on everyday ingredients made him a recognisable presence beyond the restaurant world. That visibility later translated into a high-profile judging role on “Cooku with Comali” on Star Vijay, a show that mixed cooking tasks with comedy and improvisation.
The programme’s popularity also reshaped his public image. While older audiences knew him for recipe demonstrations and cookery instruction, younger viewers met him as a firm but affectionate judge who could deliver a critique without turning it into a put-down. The nickname “Damu Appa” stuck.
He also had a small on-screen presence beyond television food formats, with appearances in Tamil films including “Ulkuthu” and “Enna Solla Pogirai”.
Damu’s career was not limited to studio kitchens. He was among the early Indian chefs to hold a PhD in Culinary Arts, and he was described as the first Indian chef to earn a doctorate in hotel management from the University of Madras.
He also entered the record books with a marathon cooking feat: a Guinness World Record for preparing 617 dishes in 24.5 hours. The record, frequently cited in later profiles and tributes, became shorthand for both his stamina and his showman’s instinct for turning cooking into an event.
Away from television, he wrote extensively. He authored more than 20 books, many centred on traditional Tamil cooking, Chettinad dishes and other regional Indian recipes. For home cooks, those books served as a bridge between restaurant methods and family kitchens, with an emphasis on familiar flavours and repeatable techniques.
Reports published on Sunday also revived long-running public curiosity about his finances, with some estimates placing his net worth at around $4 million, or roughly Rs 33 to Rs 34 crore. No official financial documents were cited publicly to confirm those figures.
Tributes pour in
News of Damu’s death prompted messages from television personalities, chefs and fans, many of whom credited him with making cooking feel approachable and respectable at a time when celebrity-chef culture in India was still taking shape.
The Chief Minister’s statement focused on that public role: taking culinary knowledge beyond professional kitchens and into living rooms. In the years when Tamil television began building appointment viewing around food shows, Damu was one of the faces that made the format work.
His death also leaves a gap for “Cooku with Comali,” where he served as a steadying presence amid the show’s chaos and humour. No announcement was available on Sunday about memorial programming or how the show would mark the loss.
Damu is survived by family members, though further details were not immediately available in the material published on Sunday.
Funeral arrangements had not been announced at the time of writing.
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4 min
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