Mother's Day 2025: How a mom’s passion for Gujarati delicacies became her creative escape

Mamta Mehta, who is an arts and craft teacher, turned to make Gujarati food for people during the Covid-19 pandemic. Photo Courtesy: Mamta Mehta

Mamta Anant Mehta has always been a creative person who taught arts and craft as a hobby to children and adults in her home in Andheri East. While she did it for more than a decade, the Covid-19 pandemic made it difficult for people to come to her home to learn more. While one would have been a little dejected, Mamta chose to build on her other hobbies. The momentary pause made the Mumbaikar rediscover her love for cooking at a time when people didn't have access to traditional home-cooked food.

She shares, "During the lockdown, we initially started selling ready-made khakra (crispy cracker-like delicacy). However, soon after, my neighbour asked if I could make something else for them to enjoy at home. That's when I started making theplas." Today, Mehta, who is from the city's Gujarati community, makes various types of theplas (soft Indian spiced flatbreads), including plain and methi varieties, as well as other flavours like achaari (pickled), baajri (made from bajra), dudhi (bottle gourd), and even garlic, to introduce people to long-forgotten flavours. She started with packets of 10 and has only grown since. What began with one neighbour quickly turned into a popular demand, with many others eager to taste her food.

Building on this, 50-year-old Mamata soon began exploring her love for food by not only preparing regular delicacies but also seasonal specials. She explains, "We are from the Gujarati community and enjoy eating undhiyu (a traditional Gujarati mixed-vegetable dish) during the winter season. Since neighbours often share whatever, we make with each other, I started making that too."

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But it didn't stop there - Mamata went on to make khandvi, which quickly became a hit. While some may wonder how one can be passionate about cooking, a daily necessity, this Mumbaikar is not driven by profit but by the joy of feeding people and treating it as a hobby. "I don't make daily tiffins because I work alone and don't have a helper. When there's a bulk order, a friend comes over to help me. I don't do it every day because it's a hobby, and I truly enjoy it," she says. Today, Mamata's unique Gujarati delicacies aren't just delivered across Mumbai and India - they've also reached places like Malaysia and the U.S., all thanks to word of mouth.

With such success, over time she has converted this hobby for cooking Gujarati food into a full-fledged business called Ruhi Homemade, an extension of her arts and craft enterprise called ‘Ruhi Art World'. Without a daily menu or weekly menu, she focuses on delicacies. "Now, I have also started making pickles including the likes of chunda and more."

Mamata is not only pursuing her passion for cooking beyond the home, but she's also open to teaching anyone interested in learning arts and crafts from her. Always eager to try something new, she even completed a short-term certificate course to teach others and thoroughly enjoys every aspect of the arts. "I believe there's no age to learn anything. I once had an aunty, around 60 to 70 years old, who used to learn fabric painting from me," says the Mumbaikar, a reminder that it's never too late to take on a new hobby.