Naman Shrestha
‘The Great British Bake Off’ is a long-running British baking competition show that follows a bunch of amateur bakers competing in different kinds of baking challenges in order to impress the judges and win the competition. Although there were several impressive contestants in the 15th edition of the series, Sumayah Kazi was not only the youngest out of the lot but also one of the most talented. Despite having the least amount of experience, she crafted unique and mind-blowing bakes in each round she competed, making a mark for herself in the competition.
Baking is More Than Just a Hobby For Sumayah Kazi
Young and ambitious, Sumayah Kazi took a gap year after graduating from Sherwood Primary School and chose to make it a productive one by taking part in ‘The Great British Bake Off.’ Scheduled to begin her dentistry studies in 2025, the 19-year-old Lancashire-based teenager was the youngest baker of the season. Given her passion for baking from an early age, she is a self-taught baker who is open to learning new skills and wishes to become better with each passing day. Talking about being a part of the competition, she stated, “Despite my disastrous audition, I had this inexplicable feeling that I would get into the tent, not because I was confident in myself but more a sense of impending fear.”
She admitted that, at first, she could not believe that she got in. “I remember hearing the news, and I felt so numb, I didn’t know whether to be excited or terrified. I still don’t know how to feel about it,” she explained. Through her baking, the self-taught baker ensures that she taps into her Bangladeshi heritage and adds unique flavors to her bakes by combining her knowledge of different techniques and recipes. At her aunt’s mehndi wedding celebration, Sumayah created a one-meter-tall macaron tower, which consisted of a total of 240 macarons in four different flavors and a flower swirl.
While Waiting For Her College to Start, Sumayah Indulges in Her Other Artistic Talents
Apart from satisfying her sweet tooth by baking unique and delicious desserts, Sumayah Kazi has various other hobbies, including sewing. In her free time, she enjoys sewing her own clothing and sewing some for her loved ones. The eldest of three sisters, she is also into designing jewelry. Besides her parents and sisters, she is also close to her rabbit named Reuben and a couple of ducks — Pato and Topo. Her creativity knows no bounds, as she even indulges in photography and painting. Her rabbit and ducks become a regular source of inspiration for her photographs and paintings. For instance, in September 2024, she turned a blank canvas into a colorful one as her two ducks became the subject of her painting.
She shared her art on social media, writing, “Painting inspired my duckies and their incessant need to scare away any other bird in the garden out of fear for competition of resources.” In the summer of 2024, being the baker in the family, she took on the responsibility of baking a cake for her cousin’s birthday and created the Fantasy Fish cake. Describing it, she wrote, “A kaleidoscope of colour inspired by the beautiful oceans with hand painted fondant fish swimming amongst a myriad of electric blues and soft pink.” Based in Preston, while waiting for her university days to come, 19-year-old Sumayah Kazi continues to bake regularly after the success and exposure she received due to her performance in the show.
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