Former techies write successful code for traditional snacks business in Srirangam

Srirangam-based Vaibavam Foods, that is earning accolades for its traditional sweets and savoury snacks, is the brainchild of S. Senthil and his wife Janani.

The Aadi wind is making its presence felt in this house-turned-showroom of Vaibavam Foods in Srirangam as visitors walk in to taste its wares.

With the strong wind whistling through the window grills, and a team of around a dozen sari-clad chefs in the process of cooking up at least 150 (and counting) varieties of sweets, savouries, readymix spice powders and pickles, all over the converted bungalow, it is a very different world from what Vaibavam’s proprietors, the married couple and former IT sector workers S Senthil and Janani, were used to, as recently as 2020.

Were they daunted by the already crowded snack food market? “Of course! But we were excited too, because we wanted to bring a taste of home that was missing in the huge commercial operations,” says Senthil.

The ‘taste of home’ keeps coming back into our conversation. For one, Vaibavam’s sweets and savouries are fried in ghee (clarified butter). “We know that oil is the most preferred medium by businesses, because it prolongs the shelf life of the food item, but those trans-fats are not healthy. We decided on ghee because that’s how we used to prepare our snacks at home,”.says Senthil.

The result is a wide range of goodies that hit the high notes with buttery undertones. Janani, who takes care of the product catalogue, whirls around setting the stoves up for Vaibavam’s signature range of murukkus, especially the best-selling ‘pulippu’ murukku (made tangy with a dash of lime juice).

In another corner, a small batch of nut cakes is pressed into round shapes and readied for packing. “Since we do not use glucose syrup, the cakes lose form and shine quickly. But they are still tasty. We are very reluctant to use additives and essences in our preparations, just to make them visually appealing,” says Janani.

Negotiating at least eight months of uncertain sales and learning the ropes slowly, the couple credits the support given by family and friends for Vaibavam’s success. “There were days when we’d feel very low, and miss the regular life of salaried work, but running Vaibavam has been worth all the teething problems,” says Janani, adding, “We’ve been fortunate to meet people who have offered to show us how to do things in a cost-effective way without compromising on the taste. One ardent customer invited us to stay at her home overnight and learn how to make pickles, which was a real eye-opener for us.”