Q&A: Padma Lakshmi donates to provide equal opportunities

By GLENN GAMBOA
AP Business Writer

Padma Lakshmi’s career is filled with highlights, from creating the Hulu series “Taste the Nation” to hosting “Top Chef” to writing a best-selling memoir and numerous cookbooks. But one of her life’s “seminal moments,” she says, was decidedly lower-profile. When Lakshmi visited Shanti Bhavan, a boarding school in her home state of Tamil Nadu in India, in 2012 and found herself surrounded by 250 of its students, it was a moment that still moves her today. The school says it’s grateful for Lakshmi’s personal donations and the corporate donations she seeks for its many impoverished students. Shanti Bhavan is celebrating its 25th anniversary, and Lakshmi said she’s committed to supporting the school and its approach to education.