Latest news with #Dugar
Mint
05-08-2025
- Business
- Mint
The Success Code: Un-masque-ing India's culinary flavours with Aditi Dugar
In India's maximum city, Mumbai, is known for its vibrant, and often traditional culinary scene, Aditi Dugar, the brain behind the award-winning Masque restaurant, stands apart. To ask her if she considers herself a chef first or an artist first elicits an immediate response: 'An artist! I'm hardly a chef.' In the latest episode ofThe Success Code, a series of podcasts hosted by Rushank Shah, promoter of Hubtown, and presented by Mint, saw Dugar talk about how her passion became her profession and how Masque was born, her culinary influences and her views on everything food from the rise of home deliveries to sustainability in food. Some edited excerpts. Masque is one of India's only restaurants to be consistently featured in the top 100 rankings across the world. The fine dining venture has come to be defined as a space where food transcends mere sustenance and becomes a form of artistic expression – both in the way you see and taste it. 'I think food has a very everlasting memory. It's an emotion, it's nostalgia,' she says. 'You may forget the form or the drama of what's happening at the restaurant, but that memory of the dish stays'. This understanding fuels her approach to menu design, where each creation is not just a combination of ingredients but a careful selection of ingredients that will evoke an emotion or nostalgia from your childhood. The foundation of Masque lies in deriving inspiration from India's rich and diverse culinary heritage, where every part of the country has something unique to offer in terms of flavours and dishes. 'At Masque, we wanted to really explore the ingredients of our country and give that importance and focus,' said Dugar. This vision led to a 18-month journey across India, a quest to learn about the hidden gems growing in local backyards which people could be excited to eat. 'For example, we discovered sea buckthorn,hisalu berry andkafal berry when we travelled through Ladakh or Uttarakhand. Sea buckthorn was being used for making fences or a refreshing drink, or the berries were being served out of cones at a vegetable market. So we realised that there is this so much undiscovered, unique produce that needed a spotlight in maybe a fine dining setting. And I think that was the whole idea of how these dishes came together in the very beginning,' she said. Aditi Dugar in conversation with Rushank Shah Shah asked her why the choice of fine dining as the medium for this ingredient-forward exploration. 'You said you wanted to spotlight Indian ingredients in a fine dining space. So, why fine dining, considering fine dining itself wasn't common.' Dugar was quick to answer: 'I think that for me, I was fortunate enough to be exposed to so many different cuisines traveling with my parents or with my husband. For us, it was always about what food we were eating in every city – it could be a local or a fine dining restaurant. All the conversations growing up or on the table were always about food. And I think that obviously influenced the way I thought. I saw that there was a big gap in the market for fine dining. There was a lot happening all over the globe but I didn't want to do the known. I wanted to do the unknown.' The initial journey wasn't without its challenges. Early on, there were pressures to conform to the usual and have shorter three-course or six-course menus. People even suggested iterations to make it work. But Dugar stuck to her vision. 'At Masque, in the beginning years, sometimes it was difficult to even fill a table of four or table of six in the restaurant. Now, we have a waitlist and have served more than 1.22 lakh people till date. And, we are here to stay,' she said. The guiding principle at Masque evolved from a purely ingredient-driven approach to a more holistic understanding of seasonality and preservation. In fact, what has changed is the innovation around how the unique ingredients sourced from around the country are used – fresh when they have just arrived and later in pickled, or preserved or dehydrated formats. 'Of course, the menu still revolves around seasonality. In 2020, we started a project called Masque Lab, where we're able to use perishable ingredients in its prime, but also stretch the life of that ingredient through different seasons of our menus at Masque through pickling, fermentation or dehydration,' she explained. Dugar's own culinary journey has been largely intuitive, driven by a love for food and exposure to diverse dining experiences in different parts of the world on family vacations. She recalls going into kitchens of prominent restaurants out of curiosity in her early years. She assisted at several famous global restaurants and even at a street food outlet in Bangkok through her family's connections. Shah asked an important question: 'How is your kitchen better and what are the things that you picked up there that you felt you could improve on from a working standpoint, or just kind of differ from these kind of institutional restaurants.' Dugar shared her journey of evolution. 'I've done a couple of things just because I was curious about how things function and work. But the dots connected when I actually started helping my mom with Sage and Saffron, one of the most iconic boutique catering businesses in the country right now. It started as a home project – I was just helping her professionalise her setup to realise how much I actually love creating those experiences, and I can be the young energy creating that 360 degree experience for a guest,' she said. She opened Masque a few years later and then started TwentySeven Bakehouse addressing a different segment of the market, focusing on quality within the quick-service restaurant (QSR) space. Aditi Dugar She spoke about the food delivery space in India and its evolution after the pandemic. Today, you can get the best ramen from a dark kitchen, or access great Mexican food from someone running a home set-up. 'Our food space hasn't been more exciting. Food is more than just a biryani and butter chicken showing up on the delivery app. It's so innovative. When I ventured into TwentySeven Bakehouse, the whole idea was that QSRs still need to be quality, and there is a space for it. The idea was that you can make mass food but make it with high quality. It could be palatable, but still innovative, and it could reach a larger audience,' said Dugar. So, have the two experiences been different? 'It's very different, because when you have a low priced product, you're catering to a larger audience, so you are constantly solving for customer feedback. There are packaging issues, delivery issues, coordinating with apps, trying to create a loyalty program. There are so many more touch points. And it's definitely a harder business to focus on, but it's also extremely exciting because of the scale that can come about in a business like this,' she said. Several ventures down, ask her the magic recipe for whipping up a successful culinary venture and she feels conviction in the idea and the right execution are core to success. As a vegetarian, Dugar says she can see a plate of non-vegetarian food and tell whether it is up to the mark or not. She also has immense faith in her team. For her, food is not just about the taste. Shah asked ifan artist has a responsibility to the public – should food be good for you, or, should it only taste good. At this, Dugar underlined that sheholds a strong sense of responsibility towards the food she serves. When considering the ethical dimensions of food and the role of a culinary artist, she asserts, 'We will always be very conscious about the ingredients that are going into our product. We are not going to be using palm oil and cheap, low quality ingredients to cut costs. We are sticking to very high quality ingredients. When you're in a food business, you are extremely responsible for what you're feeding people. Masque is such an ingredient forward restaurant. So we're so conscious about how everything is made with so much precision, the way we, you know, use our ingredients and really derive the highest, nutritional value, also from the cooking process.' Looking into the future of this industry, Dugar recognises that 'Sustainability is a work in progress. I don't think any restaurant is 100 per cent sustainable. There are some restaurants that don't even have a dustbin – they can put all the wastage to some usage. All of us as food people have this responsibility.' This awareness underscores a commitment that extends beyond taste and presentation, embracing a more holistic and responsible approach to the art of food. Watch the full episode now: Note to the Reader: This article has been produced on behalf of the brand by HT Brand Studio and does not have journalistic/editorial involvement of Mint.
Time of India
19-06-2025
- Automotive
- Time of India
Mahaveer Finance raises Rs 200 crore led by Elevation Capital
L- R Deepak Dugar Mahaveerchand Dugar Praveen Dugar (TOI) BENGALURU: Mahaveer Finance, a Chennai-based NBFC focused on used commercial and passenger vehicle lending, has raised Rs 200 crore in a Series C round led by Elevation Capital, with participation from existing investors BanyanTree Finance and First Bridge Capital. The capital will be used to expand the company's branch footprint in South India, strengthen its proprietary credit infrastructure, and deepen lending to underbanked customer segments. Mahaveer currently manages over Rs 1,000 crore in assets and aims to grow its AUM fivefold by FY28. Founded in 1981, Mahaveer entered the used vehicle financing segment in 2001 and has built what it calls a valuation-led underwriting model that assesses vehicle price, usage history, and configuration down to 'ownership changes and body type,' according to CEO Deepak Dugar. 'A major challenge in used vehicle lending is price discovery. We tackled this by backward integrating into the resale business early on. That helped us build a deep grid-based model that powers our credit decisions,' Dugar told TOI. Since 2016, under the second-generation leadership of Dugar and CFO Praveen Dugar, Mahaveer has expanded its operations to 80 branches across Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka, and Puducherry. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Switch to UnionBank Rewards Card UnionBank Credit Card Apply Now Undo The company says about 70% of its borrowers are first-time vehicle owners or new-to-credit customers, typically aged between 30 and 45. Elevation's investment is seen as a validation of Mahaveer's growth strategy in a segment still heavily dependent on informal lending. 'Around 35% of the market is unorganised. Our value lies in helping customers buy right by guiding them on vehicle pricing and keeping defaults low,' said Praveen Dugar. Mahaveer's in-house credit engine, Surety, combines customer inputs, asset data, and API-led KYC authentication to deliver near-instant loan offers at the branch level. The company claims field executive productivity has improved from three to four loan files per month, driven by reduced cash collections and tech-led assessments. Cash collections have declined from 60% pre-Covid to about 10-15% currently, allowing executives to spend more time on sourcing, Dugar said. Mahaveer is also evaluating secured MSME loans and potential entry into EV financing, although it expects the used EV market to mature only over the next few years. With over 40 lenders, including SBI and HDFC, on its books and a historically profitable track record, the company said it has sufficient capital for the next 12-18 months. While valuation and promoter stake details were not disclosed, the company has added new independent board members, including a former RBI CGM, as part of its governance expansion. Stay informed with the latest business news, updates on bank holidays and public holidays . AI Masterclass for Students. Upskill Young Ones Today!– Join Now
Time of India
17-06-2025
- Business
- Time of India
Dugar Finance raises $3 million from Symbiotics' Green Basket Bond to boost EV, solar loans
Dugar Finance & Investments Limited, a non-banking financial company (NBFC) working in solar and MSME financing, raised $3 million in debt from the $75 million Green Basket Bond issued by Swiss-based impact investment firm Symbiotics Investments . The fresh funds will help Dugar Finance expand its footprint in EV financing and rooftop solar financing , particularly targeting residential consumers, MSMEs, and housing societies in tier-2 and tier-3 cities. The bond is subscribed to by British International Investment (BII), the UK's development finance institution aims to accelerate renewable energy adoption across Asia and Africa. 'At Dugar Finance, our mission has always been to bridge financial inclusion with sustainability. This capital infusion is not just financial support, it's a strong endorsement of our efforts to drive clean energy access and uplift small businesses at the grassroots,' said Ramesh Dugar, Founder and MD of Dugar Finance. He added that the funding will help the NBFC to scale its offerings in regions where such solutions can be transformative. Dugar said so far it has helped over 1,200 customers adopt rooftop solar systems and purchase EVs, leading to an estimated reduction of 3,000 tonnes of carbon emissions and annual electricity savings of ₹2.96 crore.
Yahoo
11-03-2025
- Yahoo
Houston Rodeo carnival attack leaves teen hospitalized
Houston - A 17-year-old remains hospitalized with severe head injuries after being attacked by multiple people at the Houston Rodeo on Saturday night. The incident was one of multiple fights involving young people reported over the weekend, raising concerns about security at the annual event. What we know Joseph Dugar's mother, Nakkia Washington, spoke exclusively to FOX 26's Sherman Desselle. "It's hard. Turning on social media looking at my son... getting his head beat in," Joseph Dugar's mother, Nakkia Washington, said. "The way they were kicking him. He was helpless and y'all were still kicking him." Dugar is dealing with serious head and face injuries after the brawl near the Carnival grounds. According to Washington, the attack happened around 10 p.m. near the carnival grounds. Video of the incident, slowed down for clarity, shows an unidentified person removing Dugar's shoes while he lies motionless on the ground. Another individual is seen kicking him in the face. Lauryn Stanley, Dugar's girlfriend, was with him at the time of the attack. "About a minute later, someone came up from behind him, called his name and they just hit him. A whole bunch more boys came and started hitting on him," Stanley said. I just keep replaying and having to sit there and watch him." Dugar is being treated for severe head trauma in a local hospital. Washington, however, believes more needs to be done to protect attendees. "Big events like this, it needs to be more security around these kids. It's the protection of these kids. My son could've lost his life that night," she said. Washington said she is cooperating with authorities and has also received threats online since speaking out about the attack. What we don't know No arrests have been made in connection with the incident. A police report has been filed. What they're saying The Houston Rodeo issued a statement in regard to the incident: "The safety of our guests is our number one priority. We collaborate extensively with local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies, first responders, and private security firms to ensure protection throughout our events. As we enter spring break, we're working with the Houston Police Department to ensure Rodeo attendees have a fun and memorable experience." The Source Fox 26's Sherman Desselle spoke with Nakkia Washington, the teen's mother. The Houston Livestock Show & Rodeo also responded to the incident via statement.
