Tiffin Carriers From Thane to V.T

Recently an old family friend visited us. They live in Baroda and sometimes in Mumbai. Uncle and aunty are so much fun to be with. They are very intelligent and articulate too. We call aunty "Lalloo aunty ' as she is a big fan of lalloo prasad yadav! One of the stories they recounted to us was about the dabbawallahs from Mumbai. And I listened with mouth agape!.. Truly this is one enterprise we can emulate. It seems they take the tiffin carriers from suburban homes and reach it in time to their respective owners. They also seem to have a 99.99% rating for accuracy from Forbes magazine. Thats one error in 10,000 deliveries!!!!! Mumbai has an estimated 5,000 tiffin carriers delivering about 175,000 lunch boxes daily.
To me this is truly an incredible feat. Here I am having to deal with small containers that people I know borrow with food but always fail to return. Surely its a direct route from me to the person who borrowed and back. But imagine these tiffin carriers travelling these distances.. and the percentage of error is so negligble too.. And how about looking out for some hot and fresh homemade lunch.. Even I would get up and goto work for that.
More than anything the sight of these tiffin carriers brings back pleasant memories. When we were small and school age we had an "Ayah". She was an elderly woman. Ofcourse for small children everyone might appear elderly ! This Ayah would carry a big round wicker basket and keep it on her head and walk to our school. This basket of hers would be filled with ... yes.. you guessed right.. Tiffin Carriers.. of varying sizes. Me, I got a small one. ITs a double decker. One dubba always had curd rice and one dubba some veg. My brother always had six dubba tiffin carrier. One for sambhar rice, one for curd ricem onr for Appalam. Speaking of Appalam he would never eat a meal without an appalam. And ofcourse my mother catered to his whims.. anyway another dubba of the tiffin carrier would have pickle and veg etc.. But that was always his. I am sure my mother would have given me the 6 dubba Tiffin carrier too but I never cared much for it. When school bell rings we would rush to the tree where lunch would be had. Our Ayah would be sitting with other Ayah's chatting merrily and putting betel leaf in her mouth. So we would then grab our tiffin boxes and run off to our friends groups and return the box only when we are done. That too on most days my brother would forget to return his. Then the Ayah would come searching for me to complain to me and I would pretend I did not have a brother. Till this day I remember telling my teacher I had no sibling as he always had his nose dripping !! UGH.. anyway I digress.. So these Tiffin Carriers brought back all those memories.. and the stainless stell shine.. hmm..nowadays we at home use only plastic. For me some I buy the cheapest because he is very quick in losing his so he gets the plain ones.. Dont you think it would be very nice to come to work and then around 11 look forward to our very own Tiffin Carrier delivered and opening to eat either steaming Idlis or Spicy Sambhar rice or garam garam rotis?

Dear Chitra,

Management techniques learn one must from the Dubbawallas of Mumbai. They work round the clock. Rain or no rain we can be sure of our lunch box reaching in time. Many of them are illiterates. yet they have their own code. Their coordination is best of a kind in the whole country.
No wonder some of our elite management schools are busy learning few tricks from grandma.
Unfortunately we needed one Prince Charles to motivate us to understand the age old system which has been a relief to many office goers.

I appreciate the attitude of our upcoming mangers. Good let the first lessons of management techniques be from one's own house.
It is high time we too discard those theories which has been discarded by the very west-Theories of their making. We have the best management techniques in Gita. Ask then you get.

Sorry, Chitra I have started deviating from the original issue.
Our dabbawalas are leaders par excellence. Hats off to them! kanaka

Amazing video of Indian Dabawalas
This amazing group of transporters bring lunch to thousands of office workers daily.
You can't fit a lunchbox on the crowded trains in India, so these guys do a good business delivering hot lunches all over the city.
They charge $8 a month to the householder and for that will pickup and return the lunch containers daily.
Watch it at:
YouTube - Amazing video of Indian Dabawalas





Hi AC

here is a video of this amazing band of workers. It was sent to me by my nephew.
I believe there was an article about them In Time or Newsweek about them a while ago.

Dear Ac,

Nice to read about the dabbawallahs again. In my previous office, my boss used to always quote this example for management sessions. Certainly we should learn a lesson or two from these people.

Thanks for bringing it our notice once again.

Dear AC,

These Dabbawallas came into existence in unfortunate circumstances. Most of them are families that were displaced when the Mulshi dam was built.

The govt. gave them a pittance & they were forced to take up alternate jobs. For the simple people, taking up the profession of dabbawalas seemed a respectable way to make ends meet.

Their management skills came in praise from none other then Prince Charles. For his wedding with Camilla, they sent him a set of a Maharashtrian groom's dress complete with Petha etc & for Camilla a set of Bridal outfit complete with Maharashtrian Nath & the customary Yellow saree.

Kanaka I agree with you, India has a lot to learn from her own storehouse of knowledge rather than look west.

Regards,

Corallux

Dear Corallux,


I wasn't aware of the displacement. I see. Marathi manush will know better. kanaka

Hi AC
you always have an apt topic to talk about. I too have seen them when in Mumbai and the dabba's is to be deliveried at the correct time and these people are not at all late for it. They have this even at night, I have brought from them so many times whenever use to feel bored to cook use to just give a call to them telling I want a dabba for 2 people and they use to bring and give at the door step. They are so hygenic too.

Kanaka Thank you for writing on management techniques...

Usha Thanks for the viedo.. will check it out shortly

Laloo friend maybe we can learn a thing or two..

Dear Corallux I was not aware of that displacement history.. Its now even more commendable how they are making their living in a honorable way!

Aruna friend You are quite right about the cleanliness factor too.. without which they would not be a success.

Dear Chitra,

Your posting made me nostalgic. Lakshmi's input regrading their displacement and the way they managed the crisis makes respect them more. Let some of our youngsters who can't face failures and commit suicide learn a lesson or two from these marvellus people who has carved an industry out of a very small job. Their job is worth emulating. No management theories, or schools can beat them. THEY ARE AN INSTITUTION BY THEMSELVES, Their school of thought contains only the basic elements of hard work, sincerity, unity and devotion. Feeding thousands of people in a metro by way of carrying their food pack is not easy. a marvellous job. More than that a humanitarian job.

Chitra Kudos to you. You know many of us have become sentimental after reading this post. Congrtas, Chitra. kanaka

Dear AC,
YES the dabbawallahs of mumbai are world famous..have seen them on national geographic too..imagine that efficiency with just symbols on each dabba..and i agree with u half the dabbas we give with tidbits do not come back...i have a friend who says i have your dabba ...but waiting to make something nice and then give it back to u.....and i would say oh dont bother and take that oppurtunity to take back my dabba...and YES it would be great i think to have a homemade lunch in a dabba atleast once in a while.... Nice to not know what is inside and then be pleasantly surprised with your fav dish...haha what wistful thinking...

Mindi