Have you ever talked to your mother about her dreams and aspirations? While many mothers have given us the wings to soar, they often didn’t have the chance to fulfil their own dreams due to the circumstances and social norms of the time.
Take Nayana Mehta, for example. Born in the 1950s in Mumbai, she had an academic inclination and pursued a degree in science. Like many women of her generation, she eventually got married and dedicated her life to managing the household and raising her three children.
Throughout these years, the one activity that gave the septuagenarian great joy was cooking. Her culinary passion was ignited when she was a young girl of 13. After years of cooking for her loved ones, she got an opportunity to share it with a wider audience amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
As restaurants closed and people hesitated to buy packaged snacks, home chefs like Nayana stepped in to provide their favourite snacks and sweets. Coincidentally, she was also looking for a way to keep herself engaged and fulfilled during this time.
At 66, she embraced entrepreneurship by launching her venture, ‘Maami’s Munchies’ — where she sells snacks, pickles, sweets, and food boxes. Since 2020, this Mumbai resident has delighted over 2,000 customers with her culinary creations, all while being supported by her children Anjali, Purvi, and Harshal.
Now, as Diwali approaches, Nayana is busy preparing orders, tackling her tasks with the enthusiasm of a teenager. At 70, she is more eager than ever to share her passion for cooking.
From home chef to entrepreneur
Nayana, affectionately known as Nayana ben or aunty, cooked for the first time at the young age of 13. She learned the art of cooking from her mother and began experimenting with recipes as a teenager. Although she had always dreamed of starting her own venture, she had never had the opportunity to pursue it until now.
“We stayed in a joint family and I had my hands full taking care of everyone. I always enjoyed cooking and experimenting with new dishes. I especially loved making pickles, sweets, and snacks,” Nayana tells The Better India.
Nayana’s house parties became legendary for her delicious snacks, as noted by her daughter Purvi. “Ever since I remember, our house was filled with guests. She is a great host and made a wide variety of dishes during every party. Her dhoklas, idlis, farsan, ghughra, mohantal, besan ladoos are loved by everyone,” says the proud daughter.
However, Nayana’s talent remained confined within the walls of their home in Matunga, Mumbai, for over three decades. Her daughter explains that this was largely due to the societal norms of the time.
“We are a lucky generation as we grew up in liberal, progressive households. For my mother, unfortunately, things weren’t as simple. Their role largely remained restricted at home, and even though she wished to go outside more frequently, taking care of the house took priority,” acknowledges Purvi.
Purvi shares that she loved her mother’s cooking and would often sneak into the kitchen to watch Nayana create her dishes. In the back of her mind, Purvi always hoped that her mother’s talent and intelligence could be shared with a wider audience.
That opportunity finally arose when the pandemic struck. With everyone yearning for home-cooked meals, Nayana began preparing and delivering food to close friends and family. As demand grew, people encouraged her to start charging for her culinary creations.
“I was looking for a way to keep myself occupied after my husband’s death. The need to find a purpose increased especially during the lockdown when we couldn’t step out. What better way than following my passion for cooking? I started it just as a way to pass my time, but soon found immense satisfaction,” says Nayana.
The 70-year-old got her break during an exhibition a few months later. Meeting her customers face to face and receiving their feedback on her food gave her a newfound confidence. “I started enjoying my work. Everyone’s positive feedback encouraged me and made me realise that I could do something,” adds the entrepreneur.
“When the first order was dispatched and I earned money, I felt so proud. I realised that I too could do something. While I had dreams before this, they couldn’t fructify. They became a reality at 66 and I couldn’t be happier,” gushes the entrepreneur.
Seeing her happiness, her children encouraged her and set up a Facebook and Instagram page for Maami’s Munchies.
Family, flavour, and a dream fulfilled
Maami’s Munchies offers a range of Gujarati and Indian treats — including snacks like chorafali, chaklis, banana chips, and chiwda; sweets such as boondi ladoo, churma ladoo, mohanthal, and besan ladoo; and pickles like chunda, katki, and mango murabba. For travellers, they provide theplas, bhakris, and dhebras, along with convenient lunch and dinner packs.
Nayana operates the business from her home, with her son managing shipping and her daughters handling social media, orders, and digital marketing.
They’ve grown organically through word of mouth and are currently fully booked with Diwali orders until 5 November, 2024! Initially, they handled three to four orders per week, but now they receive at least three orders daily. They ship throughout Mumbai and across India, and their snacks even reach customers in Europe, Dubai, Oman, Australia, and New Zealand.
Nayana has two helpers at home but prefers to make the sweets and pickles herself. She works throughout the week and says that staying active with this work helps keep her fit as well. “When we started, we never imagined that it would be received so well. While I started it just for fun, the response has been phenomenal. I’m really enjoying myself,” says Nayana.
Entrepreneurship also gives Nayana the flexibility to take breaks and travel whenever she likes. Having served over 2,000 customers, many of whom are repeat clients, she is more motivated than ever.
Pursuing what you love is essential, no matter your age. Her children are immensely proud of her and fully support her aspirations.
“I feel that it’s very important for children to support their parents in whatever they want to do. Just be there for them and help them in whatever they need. My mother today is an inspiration to a lot of women; we have a lot to learn from her. Her humility, smile, and warmth helped her,” says Purvi.
Nayana plans to share her cooking with as many people as possible in the coming years, proving that age is just a number. She has an important message for every woman reading this:
“It’s very important to keep yourself happy. Age doesn’t matter. All that matters is the fire in your belly. If I can do it, so can you!” she remarks.
Edited by Pranita Bhat; Images Courtesy Purvi
No comments:
Post a Comment