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What happens if you are away from home and are unable to fry an egg and
hate readymade noodles. Your next best option would be to eat out. But
with too many viruses doing the rounds, eating out everyday is not a viable
option either on your pocket or your stomach. Enter the ubiquitous
  .Ê
Ê
chough the country cousins of Mumbai  
, the  
of the
city have been the saviours for a major chunk of working executives and
students for a long time now. Most of the types who opt for these tiffins do
so because they are the cheapest option when you are away from family
and have an appetite for home food. Ê
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Meanwhile on the part of these  
, their offerings vary from a
Maharashtrian or a Punjabi menu to the more adventurous Indo-Chinese
and Jain dishes. SuhasUdpikar, owner of the New Poona Boarding House,
whose family has been in the tiffin business for the last 80 years, believes
that the business here is no match to the tiffin trade in Mumbai. He reasons
that not many in the business here have a good number of delivery boys.
"We on our part cannot manage employing delivery boys because it is a
very expensive proposition. Most of our customers have to manage their
own pick-up boys or office peons." says Udpikar. "In Mumbai, the expenses
on commuting is less with local trains or even buses around. Here, if I have
to deliver a tiffin to an office about 8-10 kms away, the rickshaw fare kills
me. Moreover, with no proper transportation it is difficult to get the
deliveries done on time," adds Udpikar. Ê
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^shraf u u,who owns Sampan Food House, and has been in the tiffin
service for the last three years feels that the tiffin service isn't a profitable
business anymore. He believes that business has been negatively affected
by the fast food corners mushrooming near all office areas, and also with
most big organisations opening their office-run canteens that serve
economic food. SantoshPatil,who runs Fresh and Eat, a small tiffin service
near the university also blames the quick-bite culture eating into the
business. "Most youngsters now prefer eating a pizza or a sandwich rather
than a four course meal. People are always on the run," he complains. Ê
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But for those who like their leisurely lifestyle, and who yearn for homemade
   , the tiffin service is something they just cannot do without! ^nd
the  
aren't complaining... Ê
 




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