Recognizing goodness

Dotivala Bakers and Confectioners of Surat picked up the "Times Food Award 2008” for Best Bakery at a function in the Ballroom of Hotel Grand Bhagwati in Ahmedabad on December 8, 2007. A total of 19 awards were presented on the occasion to restaurants and food outlets from Ahmedabad, Baroda and Surat.

"This award is a people’s mandate. We are very happy that after so many years there has been an acknowledgement for the work we do. In the different cuisines category (North Indian, Gujarati, South Indian, etc) restaurants in all three cities received the award but in the bakery category ours was the only one,” says Cyrus Dotivala. "We didn’t know of the award till one fine day the phone call came.” The function saw the release, for the first time, of the Times City Guide Ahmedabad and the Times Food Guide 2008 (by the Times Group), providing connoisseurs a comprehensive listing of restaurants, caterers and fast food joints in Ahmedabad, Baroda and Surat.

With a proliferation of eateries in Surat, there is a lot of competition, says Cyrus. "There are 80 bakeries who are members of our Bakers Association. There may be many more who are not members,” he asserts. "We have been in the bakery business for six generations,” his father Jamshed told the Ahmedabad Times of India, December 11. A picture of father and son receiving the framed certificate appears above the masthead of the Surat Times of India, December 11.

Jamshed (center) and Cyrus Dotivala receiving Times Food Award 2008 from Hina Shah

The Surti batasa, parwali khari biscuit and nankhatai are the most popular of their products, Cyrus says. Dotivalas make a range of Christmas, mava and sponge cakes, a variety of sweet and savory biscuits as well as sliced bread, rolls, buns, pizza base, etc. "Ours is a cosmopolitan crowd of customers. We try to develop and meet every demand. If a client wants kulchas, we make the kulchas as per order,” states Cyrus.

Dotivalas currently have three outlets in Surat — the oldest and most flourishing one called Dotivala Enterprise at Nanpura, C. S. M. Enterprise (named after the first letters of Jamshed’s sons Cyrus, Sharukh and Mehernosh) at Athwalines and Yashed Enterprise at Varachha Road. Outside of Surat, their products have their biggest sales in Bombay.

One of the problems besetting the bakery business is the variation in the quality of raw materials, but "our USP (unique selling point) is that we maintain quality to the best of our ability with personal care and attention,” asserts Cyrus.

Jamshed joined the family business almost 40 years ago and is active in the Rotary Club and community institutions. Cyrus joined his father in 1998. Sharukh is doing his Master of Surgery in orthopedics at Poona’s Sancheti Hospital, while Mehernosh is into his Bachelor of Dental Surgery internship at the D. Y. Patil Medical College in Nerul (New Bombay) and plans to do Master of Dental Surgery after August. Jamshed is keen the business continues to flourish with the seventh generation, when Cyrus’ sons Rustam (aged five) and Homyar (four) grow up and the family expands as his other sons find their partners.