Dreams for a Big Future

“Never throughout history has a man who lived a life of ease left a name worth remembering.”

-Theodore Roosevelt

Over five decades ago, an aggressive trade union leader, George Fernandes, was tired and famished after leading a day-long agitation of taxi drivers. It was around midnight and there were no decent eateries open. Walking around the historic Girgaum Chowpatty area, he saw a small stall selling Mumbai’s favourite street food paav-bhaji (soft bread with mixed vegetable) and fruit juice. Paav-bhaji is a spicy preparation with a mixture of vegetables, either whole or mashed, a generous dose of fresh tomatoes, a dollop of butter, optional toppings of cheese, dry-fruits or fresh fruits, eaten usually with warm bread gently or crispy fried in but-teran all-time favourite with Mumbaikars. As he ravenously munched on the tasty paav-bhaji served promptly by the young owner Suresh Poojari, Fernandes relaxed. He later became a regular at Sukh Sagar, the joint that had served him the wonderful paav-bhaji, and always made it a point to have a word with Poojari even when he went on to become an important leader in Indian politics. George Fernandes was defence minister in the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) Government (1998-2004).

For Poojari, now 73, who came to Mumbai from Padukone village of Udupi, Karnataka, with dreams of making it big, boasting friendship with Fernandes in those days was a big achievement. Around 1962, Poojari saw a spark which ultimately lit his dreams for a big future. A distant, aged relative asked him to help out with a small juice and snack centre opposite Naaz Cinema on Lamington Road, the country’s electronic hub. This is where Poojari picked up the nuances of entrepreneurship and that same year, he plunged into it independently. With a shoe-string budget,he placed a tiny wooden table, erected a hand-operated juicer and started selling fresh orange, pineapple, watermelon and sweet lime juice. There was a small handwritten board, Sukh Sagar (“Ocean of Happiness”) in front of his stall.

"Decades after society gave him employment at four rupees a month, Poojari is now giving back in ample measure to children by providing them educational help"

Suresh Poojari

Later, this became a registered brand name. “It became a hit as a majority of my middle or lower-middle-class customers wanted value for money and comprised nearly two-thirds of (the then) Bombay population who ate outside for a variety of reasons,” Poojari explained. Over the next few years, Poojari hosted and rubbed shoulders with Amitabh Bachchan, late scamster Harshad Mehta, top film and glamour world personalities, politicians, government and police officials and top industrialists who visited Sukh Sagar and eventually became regulars.

As years went by, Poojari himself became a legend credited with bringing respect and dignity to Mumbai’s favourite street foods like ‘paav-bhaji’ or ‘puri-bhaji’ which was once consumed at corner carts. Poojari transported them into four and five-star international ambience! Over the next two decades, the old single table was replaced by 20 Sukh Sagar restaurants in India and the Middle East, an ice cream factory, a shopping mall and a 50-room three-star hotel in Bengaluru, altogether employing more than 1,000 people.

Besides the all time favourite paav-bhaji, Sukh Sagar now offers pure vegetarian fast-food fare in South Indian, Punjabi, Gujarati, Jain, Continental, Chinese, Mexican, Thai, Italian and other cuisines, apart from ice-creams, sweets and savouries, at its various outlets, depending on local popular demands. In Bengaluru, Poojari set up the city’s first full-fledged four storey Food Court with es-calators, and even started the city’s first bakery for fresh bread for the ‘paav-bhaji’!

“Years ago, when I started Sukh Sagar in Benga-luru, nobody could provide freshly baked bread in the desired quantity. So, I had to import this daily from Mumbai by train. As business soared, local bakers were ready to bake bread for me. Then, I decided to set up my own bakery and later a small milk dairy for the milk-shakes and ice-creams,” Poojari said. In 1976, Poojari married Santoshi, and the couple has three sons—Dhanraj (handling international operations), Siddharth (Indian operations) and Bharat (Mumbai operations).

When asked about toughening competition with international fast-food giants setting up shop in India, Poojari waved at his full restaurant at an off-peak hour. “Show me, where is the threat? The market is big enough for all to survive. But we shall give the best quality and yet charge reasonable prices,” he declares. Poojari is currently making efforts to open additional outlets in Mumbai, Bengaluru and Delhi, other parts of Karnataka, as well as in the US and Canada, besides penning a coffee table book on his life story to inspire future generations.

Decades after society gave him employment at four rupees a month, Poojari is now giving back in ample measure to children by providing them educational help in his native Padukone village. He has constructed a free community hall and reimburses the medical bills of all his staff, besides giving them generous paid leave, loans to needy employees to help them start their own hotel businesses, conduct marriages or for other requirements.