When a 9-seat Chembur restaurant was drowning in Rs 18 lakh debt: How one chole bhature order by Anushka Sharma for Virat Kohli changed its fate

A small chole bhature restaurant in Mumbai’s Chembur was considering shutting down after struggling with sales and debt when a comedian’s Instagram recommendation brought it unexpected attention. Soon after, an order from Anushka Sharma’s home for Virat Kohli put Delhi Se in the spotlight. The restaurant’s owners have shared the story of how those events changed their business.

Delhi Se restaurant was close to shutting down

Brothers Jaspal Singh Khalsa and Mahinder Singh Khalsa opened Delhi Se in Chembur on October 15, 2021. The roughly 250-square-foot outlet had three tables and nine seats, with a focus on Delhi-style food in Mumbai.

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Speaking to Pinkvilla, Jaspal said the restaurant’s sales began falling in January 2022. By September, the brothers said they were dealing with debt of around Rs 18 lakh and were considering closing the outlet.

“From January, our sales started declining. By September 2022, we were planning to close the restaurant,” Jaspal told Pinkvilla.

Abhishek Upmanyu’s Instagram post brings Delhi Se attention

The first major change came in September 2022, when comedian Abhishek Upmanyu visited Delhi Se and tried its chole bhature. He subsequently recommended the restaurant on Instagram.

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The owners told Pinkvilla that they initially did not know who Upmanyu was. However, they noticed more customers walking into the restaurant soon after his post.

“On September 13, Abhishek Upmanyu came to eat chhole bhature. We didn’t know him then. On September 14 and 15, our walk-ins started increasing. We were surprised,” Jaspal said, according to Pinkvilla.

Anushka Sharma orders chole bhature for Virat Kohli

The Instagram recommendation eventually reached Anushka Sharma, who had been looking for Delhi-style chole bhature in Mumbai for her husband, Virat Kohli.

Jaspal told Pinkvilla that the restaurant received a call from Anushka’s home asking for two plates to be delivered to Juhu. The brothers initially found the request difficult to believe, particularly because their outlet was a small Chembur restaurant.

According to Jaspal, the two plates cost Rs 240, with each plate priced at Rs 120 at the time. The delivery was eventually made on October 5, 2022.

Anushka Sharma’s Instagram post brings customers to Delhi Se

After discovering the restaurant, Anushka shared her find on Instagram, saying she had finally found “ekdum-Delhi-jaise-Chole-bhature” in Mumbai. She also credited Upmanyu for helping her discover the eatery.

The restaurant owners said the response was almost immediate. Jaspal told Pinkvilla that customers began arriving in large numbers and placing multiple-plate orders.

According to his account, the restaurant struggled to keep up with the sudden demand, with some customers reportedly waiting for more than two hours.

Delhi Se increased chole production after viral demand

The owners said they had to quickly increase the quantity of chhole being prepared. Jaspal told Pinkvilla that production rose from around 8 kg to 100 kg within three days.

The brothers also sought help from people living near the restaurant, asking them to soak chickpeas at home so the kitchen could keep up with orders.

Delhi Se now has four outlets in Mumbai and Navi Mumbai

Delhi Se has since expanded beyond its original Chembur outlet. Its website currently lists locations in Chembur, Mulund, Andheri West and Vashi.

The owners told Pinkvilla that the business now sells more than 3,000 plates of chole bhature a day across its outlets. They also said they now soak around 125 kg of chickpeas daily, which expands to nearly a tonne after cooking. These figures are claims made by the owners and have not been independently audited.

From Rs 18 lakh debt to claimed Rs 2 crore monthly sales

The brothers have also claimed that monthly sales have grown from around Rs 1 lakh-Rs 1.5 lakh during the restaurant’s difficult period to around Rs 2 crore now.

Those figures, like the daily plate count, come from the restaurant owners and should not be treated as independently verified financial data.

The Delhi Se story began with a small Chembur outlet, an Instagram recommendation from Abhishek Upmanyu and, shortly afterwards, an order connected to Anushka Sharma and Virat Kohli. What followed was a rapid increase in attention that helped the brothers expand their restaurant business from its original nine-seat outlet to four locations.


Disclaimer: The sales, debt, production and customer figures cited in this article are based on statements made by Delhi Se’s owners and reported in the media. The figures have not been independently verified or audited.