Ankeet Shah

I own and run a restaurant in Mulund. After lockdown, many people suggested that I should use the opportunity to increase my delivery business through food apps. But if I was going to deliver food, it was going to be for the neediest.

Initially, I volunteered in meal distribution at a Jain temple near my home. Later, I got to know about khaanachahiye through a friend. They were operating at a much larger scale. But it was a tough decision because I had to commute daily from my home in Thane to Bandra on my bike during the lockdown. Many people discouraged me since they thought that I was putting myself at risk. Even my mom was worried. But something made me persist.

My wish was to deliver food myself, but khaanachahiye doesn’t make deliveries on the bike. So I took up the job of managing their dispatch center in Bandra, where I coordinate deliveries from kitchens, packing, and loading for dispatch.

Enabling dispatch of ~9000 meals a day from one center was no joke. But I knew that it was all about planning. If you plan well in advance, then you can make sure that the food reaches people on time. Planning also helps in tackling new challenges. For instance, from 25th April, without any glitches, almost overnight, we started an evening shift for delivery ofnon-perishables and fruits for people fasting during Ramadan.

And you know what the best part is? This work is full of sweet surprises. Technically I didn’t have the opportunity to deliver food to people directly. Yet, I distribute food with my own hands to close to fifty security guards and daily wage workers who live around the dispatch center. They began visiting us after chancing upon our center. Just like that!

And oh! The smile on their faces when I hand them over hot, freshly cooked meals - Priceless!

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