Sangam Pai Dhungat, through Dhungat Hospitalities, speaks about his latest venture ‘Gharguti’ and his aspiration to publicise the lesser tapped section of the celebrated Goan Saraswat cuisine.
Originally an engineer by training, Sangam Pai Dhungat speaks about how he joined his father in their four-generation old hardware family business, nonetheless, soon his underlying passion for the Goan food and entrepreneurial spirit coaxed him into venturing into something different as a result of which he got into the food and beverages industry.
Sangam mentions the beginning of his journey with Dhungat Hospitalities with a vision to take the road less travelled, that being, the Goan Saraswat cuisine on the global platform; his premiere venture being ‘Voltaire’, a Saraswat specialty restaurant based at Reis Magos that he started in the year 2015.
Elaborating upon how ‘Gharguti’ happened, Sangam says, “Since the inception of Dhungat Hospitalities, our vision was to promote the relatively unsung Goan Saraswat Cuisine – snacks, sweets, savouries, pickles, etc. and combining it with the convenience to our customers.”
He further says, “The COVID pandemic led lockdown was the period during which I felt I could dedicate more time to my pet project which would offer convenience to consumers with respect to the much loved and authentic Goan Saraswat snacks that could be home delivered across various areas in the State, that too, absolutely free of cost.”
‘Gharguti’ meaning ‘home-made’ or ‘homely’ is a Goan brand venture that offers authentic Goan Saraswat styled snacks in the form of pickles, sweets, savouries and much more. All their products are crafted with superior quality ingredients and prepared as if at one’s own home using age old processes and recipes standardised by Sangam’s mother Sangeeta Pai Dhungat with insights from his grandmother Kalyani Agni.
As far as the commercial aspect of the venture goes, Sangam says, “When we started out, in phase one, somewhere around April 2020, we started our B2C business with the help of online presence and social media platforms for advertising and deliveries across Goa. In fact, we also succeeded in executing deliveries across the borders to major cities like Mumbai, Pune, Bangalore, Delhi, etc. Later, in during phase two, we added B2B tie ups with various stores, retailers and supermarkets across Goa.”
Speaking of Gharguti’s signature local Goan products or “Goychi khaanna”, Sangam mentions that the Tikhatshev, Phenoryo, Chakryo, Mayndolya Kelyachi Kaapa, Bharillyo Amlyo, Goan Saamaar, Khishichyo Tikhat Nevryo are the ultimate favourites. As far as the response towards their products is concerned, Sangam says that the feedback has been overwhelming over a short span of time, wherein their local customers have trusted them with their products and he feels that Gharguti has managed to secure this trust by delivering products that are very close to home, if not the same.
Through this unique venture, Sangam, through Gharguti, intends to target any foodie or food lover that has a taste and craving for authentic Goan Saraswat foodstuff and wants to opt for conveniently available ‘gharguti khaanna’ as their audience.
Sangam says that through Gharguti, he intends to make a mark in the local, national as well as global market with upgradation in their manufacturing process using state of the art processes and technologies in order to transport this sector of the Goan Saraswat cuisine across the globe. He further intends to engage in a tie-up initiative that could help in empowering the Goan youth, unemployed locals, thereby providing them with an opportunity to kick-start their individual entrepreneurial journeys which otherwise, would not be possible due to multiple obstacles.
While concluding with a brief message to his existing and prospective customers, Sangam signs off saying, “our customers, especially locals, must perceive ‘Gharguti’ as a Goan brand that offers convenience for consumption of a product made commercially, yet made at home with love as a highlighting feature rather than just existing as another product on one’s shelf!”
