Chef Damu Dies at 72: Cooku With Comali Judge, Padma Shri Chef

Tamil television has lost one of its warmest faces. Chef K Damodaran, known across Tamil Nadu as Chef Damu and fondly called "Damu Appa" by viewers of Vijay TV's Cooku With Comali, died at a private hospital in Chennai on Sunday, October 25, 2026. He was 72.

Reports said he died after a brief illness associated with old age. He had been in poor health for some time and had been using a wheelchair in recent years after a hip fracture and knee surgery. He is survived by his wife Usha and daughter Akshaya.

From Hotel Kitchens to Every Tamil Home

Long before reality television made him a household name, Chef Damu was a respected figure in India's hospitality industry. He spent decades in professional kitchens, trained generations of young cooks and served as president of the South Indian Chef Association (SICA).

In 2004 he became the first Indian chef to earn a PhD in Hotel Management and Catering Technology, from the University of Madras, which is why many in the industry called him Dr Damu. He wrote a long list of cookbooks and recorded thousands of recipes, with a special focus on authentic Tamil cuisine that was in danger of being forgotten. He also worked on improving food quality in Tamil Nadu's school meal programmes.

The 24-Hour Guinness World Record

In December 2010, Chef Damu did something few chefs would even attempt. He cooked non-stop for 24 hours, 30 minutes and 12 seconds, preparing 617 different dishes with 190 kg of ingredients across six stoves, to set a Guinness World Record for the longest cooking marathon by an individual.

His original target was 480 dishes. Four assistants were allowed to prepare raw ingredients but could not cook, and ovens and microwaves were banned, so every dish was made by his own hand. Around the 12th hour he was hit by fatigue and muscle pain, and staff from Chennai's Savera Hotel kept his spirits up by singing and dancing through the night until he crossed the finish line.

Chef Damu: Life at a Glance

Damu Appa of Cooku With Comali

For a younger generation, though, he was simply the gentle judge of Cooku With Comali, the Vijay TV show that mixes serious cooking with comedy. Amid the chaos created by the "comalis", Chef Damu was the calm centre, tasting dishes with genuine interest, offering tips to contestants and laughing along with the jokes. Viewers began calling him "Damu Appa" (father Damu), a nickname that captured how families across Tamil Nadu saw him.

The show turned him into a social media favourite too, with clips of his reactions and cooking advice shared widely. For many viewers, he was the reason they first tried a forgotten village recipe at home.

Padma Shri and Tributes

In 2025, the Government of India honoured him with the Padma Shri for his contribution to hospitality and traditional Indian cuisine, a rare recognition for a chef.

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay expressed his grief in a post on X, saying Chef Damu had brought the art of cooking to the people through television, and recalling his record-setting cooking marathon and his Padma Shri. The Tamil Nadu Chief Minister's Office also conveyed condolences to his family, relatives, friends and fans. Tributes poured in on social media from chefs, food lovers and fans of the show.

A Legacy That Will Stay in Indian Kitchens

Chef Damu's real legacy lies in what he made ordinary people believe: that traditional Tamil food deserved the same respect as any global cuisine, and that a professional chef could be humble, funny and approachable. His recipes, his students and his many hours of television will keep that idea alive.

As one era of Tamil food television closes, the many cooks he inspired, in hotel kitchens and at home, will carry his work forward.

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