Kulcha with the capital’s K

Throw generous amounts of butter on a pan place the kulcha over and let the outside turn crispmdashekdum kadak laal just like you get on the streets of Delhimdashthen have it with the gravy of your choice Mazaa aa jayega it will be amazingrdquo television host and actor Samir Kochhar tells us while the kulcha hamper was on its way to usEven over a telephone call he is able to make this writerrsquos mouth water speaking from the heart one foodie to anotherKochhar turns food entrepreneur with his new venture KulchaBros which he launched recently with four of his school and college friends from Delhimdashactor and funny man Cyrus Sahukar FampB veteran Angad Chachra and entrepreneurs Vikas Khanna and Nikhil UppalSamir Kochhar and Cyrus SahukarAn idea that was born over long Zoom chats during the COVIDinduced lockdown has its roots in nostalgia ldquoFirst off KulchaBros doesnrsquot offer the Amritsari kulchardquo says Sahukar ldquoWe realised that Mumbai lacked the quintessential naan kulcha culture Itrsquos a Delhi thing Everyone there has a favourite matrakulcha guy whom they swear by We grew up eating it for breakfast lunch and during evening snacks too Itrsquos what filled our hearts and soulrdquo says Sahukar Kochhar agrees ldquoBack home yoursquod find these vendors outside schools colleges and offices where people queue up for matrakulcha I stayed in S block and Cyrus was a resident of E block and we had our own favourites Wersquod often argue about who had the better matrakulcha vendorrdquoSurrounded by food delivery options in the pandemic they thought of using a similar cloud kitchen platform to bring the most loved of north Indian foods to Mumbai and the rest of India Itrsquos been a long and slow journey because the actors admit they have no experience of ever having run a food business ldquoWe thought it would be easy Just get a chef who can make the kulchas But it has taken us time to understand how things work and get the right partners involved Thankfully Angad is a food consultantrdquo says KochharPaneer naan bombsThe four met in Delhi and sampled matrakulcha from more than 150 outlets to arrive at a favourite common taste profile ldquoItrsquos funny how boiled channa mixed with condiments can taste so different from one vendor to another We wanted to bring in a certain authentic simplicity of flavour the local taste that we all grew up withrdquo adds Sahukar The behind the scenes work took another year including lab tests to standardise texture and consistency then introducing naturalcoloured variants and experimenting with the concept of pocket kulcha stuffed with your favourite filling for those on the goOur parcel arrived in a newspaper bag just like how it is served on the streets of Delhi except that the paper was reimaginedmdashthe Kulcha Digest that carried a mix of fun articles information on the kulcharsquos history satirical snippets food themed crossword and more Therersquos a QR code too which when scanned delivers a personalised message from Sahukar and Kochhar thanking the customer for trying KulchaBros ldquoAll of us worked on the digest and ensured that this as well as the overall brand language was fun light and quirky We also plan to make four animated characters as the voices of the brand mirroring a variety of personalities We will be updating the digest content every couple of weeks keeping it animated relevant and engagingrdquo Kochhar promisesPocket kulchaFrom the vegetarian menu we tried the matra Rs 139 and pindi chhole Rs 159 and from the nonvegetarian list we sampled the butter chicken Rs 279 and ghee mutton roast Rs 379 With decent portion sizes good enough for two we thought the price point was reasonable ldquoThe idea was to have a premium product at affordable pricesrdquo says Sahukar Soft and spongy like bread the kulcha was a hit with the children at home who were quick to grab the coloured variant and the pindi chole hummus and kulcha chips Rs 179 We especially loved the snacky cottage cheese masala kulcha bombs Rs 159 and butter chicken kulcha bombs Rs 199 The flavours of the gravies were nonpretentious Sahukar tells us ldquoWe didnrsquot want to do fusion We wanted to keep it classic However we did intend to make it fun so we added beetroot juice to the dough to give it a red hue and spinach puree to make it green and turmeric to make a yellow version that way kids can enjoy it Of course therersquos the OG version We also have a glutenfree versionrdquoMeat lovers should try the bhuna mutton kheema Rs 329 and chicken tikka chaat Rs 249 versionsThe brand also offers drinks in old school glass bottles The thunderbolt coffee Rs 99 is Sahukarrsquos favourite They also stock a bubble gum falooda Rs 119 kala khatta Rs 79 and masala lemon soda Rs 79 all Delhi favouritesAdmitting that they are still learning to understand and manoeuvre the cloud kitchen business the four who are focussing on the Delhi and Mumbai markets have plans to take the kulcha panIndia Despite hectic personal work schedules both Kochhar and Sahukar seem handson with the brand and make time between shoots for the KulchaBrosrsquo team callsCurrently available through their website via WeFast Zepto Thrive and Dotco the kulchas are also available with delivery partners Swiggy and Zomato While the Mumbai rains havenrsquot helped the team here is trying to push out the orders in time ldquoWe are taking small baby steps and wersquore enjoying the processrdquo signs off KochharThings we learnt from the Kulcha Digest1 Kulcha is derived from an Arabic word and means pillowlike bread2 Invented by the Nizams it was the official symbol of the Asaf Jahi dynasty3 It even appeared on the Hyderabad state flag before it became a part of modern India4 The kulcha was made by using selfraising flour with raising agents such as baking soda it was easy to cook on a tawa or in a brick kiln making it accessible to the masses and royalty alikeTo Order wwwkulchabrosin