It Started With Her.
In loving memory ofLate Mrs. Renu Dhawan Marwaha
Before Imam Dasta became a brand, before there were packets, machines, stores, or customers, there was a mother, her kitchen, and a simple belief she lived by.
From her kitchen, to yours
The belief she lived by
Ladka ho ya ladki, sabko sab kaam aane chahiye — bahar ke bhi, ghar ke bhi.
Whether you are a boy or a girl, you should know how to do everything — inside the home and outside it.
I grew up watching my mother live by those words.
And somewhere between watching her cook and slowly learning to cook myself, her kitchen became my first classroom.
My First Teacher Was My Mother
I have been interested in cooking since childhood.
I would watch my mother cook with a kind of passion that was impossible to ignore. She didn't simply follow recipes. She understood food.
I still remember her old recipe notebook. It wasn't just a collection of recipes. It carried pieces of her curiosity — and countless experiments where she would try something new just to see how it turned out.
Maa's recipe notebook
- Bakes
- Spices
- Chutneys
- Achaar
- …and countless experiments
And whenever she made something at home, it rarely stayed at home. She would make something and distribute it among relatives, friends, and people around us.
There was always someone who would receive a jar, a packet, a box, or simply a portion of something she had made. She never needed a reason to share.
- a jar
- a packet
- a box
- a portion
“For her, making something for someone was itself a way of showing love.”
Watching her, I unknowingly learned the same thing.
From her notebook to Imam Dasta
Chapter 01 · 2013
The First Dish
One of my fondest memories is watching MasterChef with her. We would sit together, watch chefs create something new, get excited about trying it ourselves and then head straight into the kitchen. Neither of us seemed to get tired of experimenting.
In 2013, inspired by Chef Vikas Khanna, I decided to make my first proper dish: Paneer Lababdar. It was, honestly, a complete disaster.
But I still remember what happened next. My mother never made me feel that I had failed. She didn't complain that it wasn't cooked properly or that the dish hadn't turned out right. Instead, she started teaching me. Not just the recipe. The basics.
- How ingredients behave.
- How spices should be cooked.
- How to balance flavours.
- How to understand when something is ready.
And most importantly, how to create food with an authentic taste rather than simply following instructions. Little by little, I learned.
And almost everything I know about cooking today began with her.
Chapter 02 · 2017
She Had a Dream
My mother always had a dream of doing something of her own in the food business.
She wanted to make food products that people could trust — pure, homemade, and made with the same care that goes into food prepared for your own family. It was a dream she carried with her.
But in 2017, she left us.
The kitchen became quieter. The person who had taught me so much was no longer there to teach me the next recipe, correct the next mistake, or share the next experiment.
But there was one thing that didn't leave me. Her dream.
Chapter 03 · 2020
When Her Recipes Came Back to Life
Sometimes life brings you back to the beginning in ways you never expect.
In 2020, my sister was pregnant. With COVID-19, eating outside wasn't an option, and she was craving the kind of food she had grown up eating.
So I went back to the one place where I knew I would find the answers. My mother's recipe notebook. I opened it again. And slowly, our kitchen started coming alive with her recipes.
- Garam Masala
- Kadhai Paneer Masala
- Chhola Masala
- Nihari Masala
- Sauces
Things that had once been made by her were now being made by us. And somewhere in that kitchen, I realised something:
Her recipes didn't have to remain memories. They could become a legacy.
Chapter 04 · 2021
The Beginning of Imam Dasta
In 2021, we decided to take the first small step.
We started making the spices in small batches, just as they would be made at home. Our first five products were:
- Chai Masala
- Punjabi Garam Masala
- Meat Masala
- Kadhai Paneer Masala
- Chaach Masala
But there was one big question. What would we call it?
What would we call it?
We wanted a name that could represent
- Homemade quality
- The warmth of a mother's kitchen
- Traditional preparation
- The roots of Lucknow
And then we found our answer.
Hamam Dasta(okhli & musal)
The name came from the traditional hamam dasta — the okhli and musal — that we initially used to grind our spices.
Our first batches
40–50 g
Our batches were tiny. Sometimes just 40–50 grams.
We would make them at home and go from house to house, sharing and selling our spices.
It was small. But it was ours.
And just like my mother used to make things at home and share them with others, we were doing the same thing.
- Chai Masala
- Punjabi Garam Masala
- Meat Masala
- Kadhai Paneer Masala
- Chaach Masala
- Chhola Masala
- Nihari Masala
From 50 Grams to Something Bigger
As more people started trusting us, demand grew. We began supplying to HoReCa, and our little home operation started becoming something much bigger.
But growth brought us a challenge.
How do you grow without losing what made you special in the first place?
How do you make larger quantities while keeping the same taste, aroma, texture, and quality that someone would expect from a small batch made at home?
We chose not to leave our traditional approach behind.
Instead, we looked for ways to preserve it at a larger scale.
How we kept it homemade
Sun-drying
A traditional method we kept, even as the batches grew.
Hand-sieving
Sieved by hand, the way a small batch is at home.
Our own pulverizer
Our first customised pulverizer, designed to grind with care rather than speed.
Temperature & natural oils
Attention to heat, so the natural essential oils of each spice are respected.
“Spices should be ground with care, not simply ground fast.”
The scale changed.The philosophy didn't.
A New Chapter
On 14 February 2022, Imam Dasta opened its first retail store.
What had started with a mother's recipes, a small kitchen, and batches of just 40–50 grams had now found a place of its own.
And that was only the beginning.
Today
Today, Imam Dasta continues to grow. But at its heart, it is still connected to the same kitchen where this journey began.
- 01
The same belief in making things with care.
- 02
The same curiosity to experiment.
- 03
The same respect for traditional flavours.
- 04
And above all, the same instinct to share something good with others.
My mother may not have been here to see Imam Dasta grow.
But everything she taught me continues to live through it.
- Every recipe that is carried forward.
- Every spice that is carefully prepared.
- Every kitchen that uses our products.
- Every meal that brings people together.
This is my way of keeping her dream alive.
Her dream, alive
From her kitchen, to mine.
From mine, to yours.