Screengrab from a video showing the lit up Empire State Building.
Credit: X/@TheVikasKhanna
New York: In a historic moment, Michelin-star chef Vikas Khanna lit up the iconic Empire State Building here in green to highlight the cause of fighting hunger.
“What an honour! Today I lit up the world’s most iconic building -- The Empire State,” 52-year-old Khanna said in a post on X Tuesday.
“In honour of @CityHarvest and our culture. Every year 100 people light up the building and being one of them is like being a part of the history,” he said.
At the special ceremony to light up the popular NYC destination in partnership with non-profit organisation City Harvest, Khanna, dressed in a pastel green Kurta, said he is “honoured and privileged” to light up the Empire State Building “representing my own culture, at the same time integrating into the culture of New York City”.
City Harvest, a non-profit organisation founded in 1982, is the world's first food rescue programme and New York City’s largest food rescue organisation.
Khanna emphasised that City Harvest is an institution that stands apart and through its work, makes “everyone feel that they're not left behind and we do care”.
“I feel it is so important for us that as we thrive in the city, the city gives us opportunities, we do not leave anyone behind. It is necessary for us to step into the shoes of the legends and the people who have created paths for us,” Khanna said.
As an immigrant living in New York City for almost 25 years, Khanna said the Empire State Building is the most iconic landmark that highlights the aspirations and resilience of the city, which is home to landmarks and institutions like City Harvest.
On the occasion, Khanna recalled his years when he was “on the receiving end” of the city and expressed gratitude for now being in a position to be able to give back to the city.
The Empire State Building has a tradition of changing the colours of its lights to “recognise important occasions, holidays, and organisations throughout the year”.
“Shining green tonight in honour of the 'Share Lunch Fight Hunger' Campaign @CityHarvest,' the Empire State Building’s post on X said.
City Harvest “rescues perfectly good, nutritious food that would otherwise go to waste and delivers it for free to New Yorkers experiencing hunger”, the organisation said on its website.
Over the past 40 years, City Harvest has rescued and distributed over one billion pounds of food for NYC neighbours across the five boroughs who are struggling to put meals on the table.
With its network of more than 400 food pantries and soup kitchens across the city, City Harvest works to help feed the nearly three million New Yorkers struggling to make ends meet, the organisation said.
The organisation said that nearly 1.2 million New Yorkers are struggling to feed themselves and their families and one in five children in the city do not know where their next meal will come from.
During the devastating Covid-19 years, Khanna’s massive food drive ‘FeedIndia Initiative’ had provided meals, rations and other essential supplies to millions of people across India.
Khanna, an acclaimed author, filmmaker and TV personality, helms his flagship restaurant ‘Bungalow’ which opened in the city in March this year.