ISLAMABAD: The death on Friday of Pakistani-American chef Fatima Ali prompted an outpouring of grief, with fellow chefs, friends, foodies and fans paying tribute to the Top Chef alum who charmed audiences as a contestant on the reality TV show and embraced her cancer diagnosis with an uncanny sense of grace and effervescence.
The chef, popularly known as Chef Fati, was first treated for Ewing’s Sarcoma, a rare form of bone cancer, in 2017. But in October last year, Ali revealed that her cancer was back “with a vengeance” and she had one year to live.
On January 26th, Ali’s family announced in an emotional post on her official Instagram page that Ali had passed away at home, surrounded by family, friends and her cat Mr. Meow: “When someone as bright and young and vivacious as our Fati passes, the only metaphor that seems to fit is that of a star—a beacon in the darkness, a light that guides us, on which to make wishes, from which to weave dreams. For all the comfort and beauty they offer us, stars, too, are impermanent. This morning a great one was snuffed out.”
The appreciations of Ali’s work and her spirit came from all corners, including from celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay and top American talk show host Ellen DeGeneres who had invited Ali to her show last year.
“God bless darling and thank you for all your inspiration…. Gordon x,” Ramsay wrote in reply to the announcement of her death on Instagram.
“I was lucky to share this visit with Fatima. I wish I could have shared more,” DeGeneres said in a Twitter post to go with a photo of her and Ali. “Sending so much love to her family. I hope they find comfort in knowing how much light she brought to the world.”
I was lucky to share this visit with Fatima. I wish I could have shared more. Sending so much love to her family. I hope they find comfort in knowing how much light she brought to the world. pic.twitter.com/0xAbZSjzFr
— Ellen DeGeneres (@TheEllenShow) January 25, 2019
At age 18, Ali, a “fan-favorite” during her season of Top Chef, left Pakistan to study at the Culinary Institute of America in New York. She then went on to work at several restaurants including Cafe Centro, Macy’s Stella 34 and La Fonda Del Sol.
After her latest diagnosis in 2018, she said she wanted to spend her last days travelling around the world in search of fine food. A GoFundMe campaign raised over $95,000 and DeGeneres donated $50,000 courtesy of Shutterfly when Ali appeared on her show in November. Any remaining funds after her death go to the Sarcoma Foundation of America.
“What is my intention?” Ali wrote in a candid and vulnerable piece in Bon Appetit which was meant to appear in their March issue but was put out shortly after her passing. “To live my life. To fulfill all those genuine dreams I have … I’m going out to eat. I’m making plans for vacations. I’m finding experimental treatments. I’m cooking. I’m writing.”
Padma Lakshmi, the host of Top Chef and a close friend of Ali’s, posted several images of the two over the years and wrote an emotional tribute on Instagram:
“Goodbye lil’ sis. One of our brightest stars has fallen from the sky,” she wrote. “I have no words, but here are some of hers: ‘I dream of being better. I dream of being myself again, but I know I’ll never quite be the same, and that’s okay. I know I’ll be different, and, despite the worry that settles into me every time I wake up, I look forward to meeting that woman one day’.”
Many of Ali’s Top Chef colleagues and contemporaries in the culinary world too expressed grief.
“I will miss you Fati, and you will be in my heart forever,” her friend and fellow MasterChef contestant Bruce Kalman wrote on Instagram. “I’ll always remember the great times we had.”
Brother Luck, who like Ali was a contestant on Top Chef, wrote: “I’m at a loss right now of how much this sucks but grateful she’s no longer in pain. God is gaining another angel today and heaven will be full of laughter upon her arrival. She was a queen who carried a heart of gold and my prayers go out to her family.”
“Sweet dreams our Pakistaní princess, the pain is over,” Ali’s friend and chef Claudette Zepeda-Wilkins said.
Top Chef Season 15 winner Joe Flamm posted a photo of the two alongside a heartbroken message: “Thanks for gracing my life, meeting my son, being my friend, and letting me into your incredible existence, I’ll miss you more than you can know.”
In Pakistan, actress Ayesha Omar wrote: “RIP you beautiful, brave, talented soul. You inspired us so much and will continue to do so. You were too good for this world that you fought so hard for... you went too soon but you’ll live in our hearts and our minds forever.”
In the Bon Appetit piece released after Ali’s passing she wrote of her last days spent writing recipes, trying new cuisines and restaurants and spending time with family.
“There are days that I'm exceptionally afraid. There are days I sit alone and cry, because I don't want to do it in front of my family. And there are other days that we all sit down and cry together, because it is such a scary thing,” Ali wrote. “But at the same time, you can't let that fear cripple you. It's harder being miserable than it is to be happy.”
