At 5 she lost her parents, collected garbage for one meal and lived on the streets. Meet Delhi woman who is now a chef at a popular restaurant. Her journey is a reminder: ‘Have courage to move ahead in life’

Life isn’t always fair: things don’t go as planned, adversities send us spiralling, and unpredictability can throw us off guard. But brave are those who navigate through life’s challenges like a warrior, refusing to give up, no matter how rocky the road is. And sometimes, it is their resilience that carves their path of success. The story of Lilyma Khan from New Delhi is quite similar. Now practising as a successful chef at the Dear Donna restaurant in the National Capital’s Qutab Institutional Area, her journey was filled with roadblocks, but she moved through every hurdle with nothing but courage.

From loss and survival to finding a purpose

As per a report by The Better India, Lilyma Khan was born into a humble family in Delhi’s Taimoor Nagar. Her parents worked hard to support the family of 6, including her 3 siblings. But even then, Lilyma, who was 3, watched how lovingly her father cooked simple meals like dal, khichdi, and roti for everyone in the neighbourhood. But that happiness did not last long.


In 2001, Lilyma’s father passed away when she was only 5. 6 months later, her mother died from tuberculosis. When Lilyma’s older sister, grappling with marital issues, took her own life, her brother turned to substance abuse, overcome by a series of personal losses. He even sold their house to a neighbour for Rs 10,000 and found himself behind bars on theft charges.

When Lilyma’s aunt took her younger brother in her wing, she was left on her own. Although a woman from the slums of Taimoor Nagar sheltered her, she used to wake Lilyma and other children under her care at 4 am to collect trash from the streets of Friends Colony in exchange for only 1 meal. Still hungry, Lilyma and the others foraged through the dustbins of local dahabas and a McDonald’s outlet, eating leftover chicken or mutton bones and half-eaten burgers.

How cooking helped her rebuild her life

Lilyma’s life changed briefly at 11 when an NGO offered her help and gave her an education. But she returned to live with her aunt and younger brother, working at a shoe factory, only to be beaten up by her aunt, reported The New Indian Express. Later, she contacted activist Harsh Mander, who facilitated her enrollment at Kilkari Rainbow Home, an orphanage for girls in Kashmiri Gate. It was during her stay here that Lilyma found her passion for cooking.

In 2015, a regular visitor to the orphanage noted Lilyma’s cooking skills and helped her land a job at a fine dining restaurant. Her role involved preparing meals for the staff at a salary of Rs 7,000. Eager to broaden her culinary skills, the head chef taught Lilyma the basics of making silky smooth mashed potatoes and assembling burgers and salads.

In 2019, Lilyma joined Dear Donna as a Chef de Partie, progressing to Sous Chef after a year of dedicated effort. Today, she leads a team of 35 people and some of her signature dishes include risotto, ravioli, salmon gravlax, roulade and beef wellington. Lilyma’s story stands as a testament to the power of passion, strength and self-belief.