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If you’ve lived in Navi Mumbai even for a short while, you have probably heard of Dum Biryani, a shop selling the most mouth watering biryani. Though the shop hasn’t been open for long, its awesome aroma has tickled most foodie noses. And its fan following is growing. Almost visible is the shop’s success story. Every time you visit it, it’s looks as though it has grown a little more.

The story of Famous Dum Biryani is story of the three brothers whose father was a government servant and who grew up in Mumbai. And like all Mumbaikars, they had a dream they were determined to fulfill.

Famous Dum Biryani is the brainchild of one of the brothers Mohammed Hafiz.

“We started Dum Biryani in 2000. Actually, I was a taxi driver; I wanted to get into some other business as well. I opened a mutton shop”, recalls Mohammed Hafiz, “Later I thought that I should open a restaurant. I thought that if it works it would be great, and I was well prepared for the risk. My brothers Rashid Mohammad Khan and Mohammad Rafique joined me in this venture and wet up two restaurants. One in Nerul and the other in CBD Belapur.”

“Initially it was a very small place. We had stated off the first day by selling 1Kg Chicken Biryani and today we sell 40 to 50Kg Chicken Biryani on a weekday and on weekends we sell 80 to 90 Kg in a day. Within 6 to 8 months, the business settled as we began to sell 5 to 6 Kg Chicken Biryani in a day.”

What is so special about the biryani they make? Says Hafiz, “We use a specific blend of spices for all our dishes and they are made specially and not told to anyone else.” Does the shop only target the non-vegetarians? “No, we do not target the non-vegetarians but also the vegetarians. We have a lot of vegetarian customers.”

The hot favourites in Dum Biryani are Chicken Biryani, Chicken Tawa, Chicken Afghani and Mutton Dilbara. Says Hafiz, “In Mumbai, there are only four places where you get Tawa items. In Navi Mumbai we are the only ones who make it.”

What are his expansion plans? “Well, we do have plans to expand but it becomes difficult for us to cope. But while you need to employ people, the point is that they do not work if I am not around.”

But nontheless for the three boys who grew up in the backstreets of Mumbai, the future looks good. What can we say? Bas, dam hai!

Shalini Vemuri