Background

The story of Bhojohori Manna began out of a garage space in Ekdalia, Kolkata, in March 2003. Five friends— Mr. Rajeev Neogi, Mr. Siddhartha Sankar Bose, Mr. Siddhartha Chatterjee, Mr. Goutam Ghose, and Late Ranjit Dutta Gupta, coming from diverse backgrounds with no formal F&B training but a shared passion for food and people, reckoned from their own experiences that there was a vacuum in Kolkata for simple ‘home-style’ Bengali food.

The name Bhojohori Manna was chosen from a popular Bengali film song rendered by the legendary singer Manna Dey. The humorous track “Ami Sri Sri Bhojohori Manna...” revolves around a widely travelled cook who returns to his native land with a signature culinary style. The business model was inspired by the charming old-world concept of ‘pice hotels’ and moulded to the requirements of the day.

Within a month of opening the first outlet, Bhojohori Manna struck a chord with the masses. A combination of filling the market vacuum, along with the food, the brand name, affordability, the simple environment, and a bit of media attention—all played a role in attracting crowds.

Thereafter, the story changed completely. By May 2003, we had huge crowds waiting outside our little outlet on weekends—it was overwhelming, and the time had come to think ahead. Over the next few years, market-driven demand resulted in Bhojohori Manna’s expansion across Kolkata. The team evolved into a more structured format across marketing, operations, and CRM.

Our customers—food lovers from across India and around the world, including celebrities from different walks of life—have contributed immensely to establishing Bhojohori Manna. The media also played a major role in strengthening the brand.

Bhojohori Manna expanded beyond Kolkata to Bengaluru, Siliguri, and Puri between 2009 and 2012, and the journey of expansion continues.