A great inspiration, promoting cultural authenticity by delivering Maharashtrian food to the consumers. Jayanti Kathale connected with The Global Hues to talk about her entrepreneurial journey. From leaving a well-paying IT sector job to starting her own food chain Purnabramha, she excels in everything. The Founder Managing Director of Manaswini Foods Pvt. Ltd and the Brand owner of Purnabramha food chain is also a mom with 14 years of experience in the IT sector. She worked with companies like Infosys and later became a passionate entrepreneur and successful businesswoman. Jayanti holds a Master’s degree in Computer application.

She addressed the Chef’s Connect 2019, an annual event organized to encourage culinary creativity of new chefs, on October 15th, ITC Maratha, Mumbai. She was the recipient of the Prestigious Uncha Maza Zoka Award, 2019, and a TED talk speaker. Years of experience built her technical knowledge and analytical skills to design various systems. She has worked on various projects related to application development, application maintenance, and enhancement, technology transformation, new technology demonstrators, and proof of concepts. In her professional career, she has worked with people from various geographies including India, America, and Australia.

Experience turned to business

Jayanti lived in a big Maharashtrian family where every festival and special occasion was celebrated with the presence of at least 30 people. Every event turned into a beautiful carnival filled with cooking activities. In India, most households believe in the value of the nutrition of home-cooked food. Jayanti’s family is no different. Her upbringing helped her find the true passion and calling for Marathi cuisine. Eating outside was rare for her, which helped her conceiving the idea of starting her own food business. She learned her skills from her mother. Today, she owns a chain of eleven restaurants across India and Australia.

Another major factor that influenced her to start this unique food business was her time in Australia. While working with an IT firm in 2006 she shifted to Australia. One prominent thing that bothered her was the lack of Indian food availability. Jayanti had struggled due to her habit of consuming only homemade food. Her opinions grew, even more, stronger with the passing time.

She discussed her thoughts with some friends who shared the same dearth of Indian food. Jayanti created an Orkut account and started putting up online orders for her friends. She started with “Modaks” which is an Indian sweet dish made up of jaggery and coconuts in a dumpling form. In the spur of the moment, she got a really overwhelming response giving her business a kick start.

Purnabramha

The idea behind the Purnabramha chain is not only to provide traditional Maharashtrian food but also to create a cultural ambiance that is customer-friendly. Their range of food items contains a wide range of flavors varying from Dal ka Dulha, Sabudana Wada, Spicy Misal Pav to sweet dishes like Puran Poli and Srikhand Puri. The company believes that one of the finest, oldest, and most complete foods in the world is “Purnabramha”. With the same belief, they are constantly trying to bring forward the traditional dishes. They target consumers selling one of the basic requirements for a living- Food. It’s for anyone and everyone.

Building a strong taste and diversity in Cuisine from Maharashtra, with high quality and warm hospitality, the company is satisfying many customers. As Indians are relocating all over the world, Indian food has become an attraction. Purnabramha is filling thousands of stomachs that crave Indian food both within India and abroad. India is a cultural land, with many age-old beliefs that fuel mankind. One such practice is to sing sacred verses dedicated to God before having a meal. Purnabramha is bringing this practice in fine dine setups.

The food is presented in silver or metal Thalis and bowls placed on a raised ‘chowrang’, with guests sitting on floor rugs or wooden seats. The ambiance is decorated with beautiful Rangolis and auspicious patterns drawn with colorful powder around the Thali.

The restaurant chain that started in 2012 today holds three registered brands under its umbrella, “Purnabramha®”, “Dhekar®” & “The Bowl of Fulfillment™ aka (TBF™)”. The food chain running under the leadership of a strong woman is a strong believer in empowering women. Purnabramha Maharashtrian Restaurant currently holds 70% women employees in the company. All the Business Franchises are owned by women. The company is fast expanding with a vision to have 5000 units across the world.

They aim to have e-commerce stores of A to Z Marathi products and products from Maharashtrian organizations. Currently generating revenue of 10,00,00,00/year, Purnabramha Brand of Manaswini Foods Private Limited Purnabramha® is the Largest Authentic Maharashtrian Vegetarian Restaurant with 10 outlets in India. They serve food without any soda, flavors, colors, or artificial preservatives.

Helping hand in Covid-19

The Covid-19 pandemic struck the world in an unprecedented manner, taking a toll on many people. Innocent people suffered the most due to food scarcity and isolation. The entire globe came to a standstill. Mrs. Jayanti P. Kathale had supervision and intuition of what was going to happen in the next few months. She immediately gathered all the teams from other outlets in the Bangalore region to her main center in HSR Layout, Bangalore. She started having common meetings with her fellow franchise owners to get ready for the forthcoming catastrophe. Her prime concern was the Food, Shelter & Safety of her employees and she made all provisions for the same.

There were 40 above employees in her main outlet to whom she generously & unconditionally fed well for more than 160 days so far. She also got ready to beat the crises financially up to the maximum possible extent. Mrs. Jayanti Kathale has also made certain value additions for Purnabramha®. Purnabramha has served almost 1,00,000 meals free of cost to the needy with Atria Foundation as giving back to society. Under the leadership of Mrs. Jayanti Kathale, the company is growing fruitfully to new heights.

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