I would not be wrong in saying that I have literally started from zero. www.mughaldarbar.in I basically belong to a chef family. My father Ghulam Ahmad Grustoo and uncles used to work as chefs. We have been very proud of our profession. My grandfather used to serve to Maharaja Hari Singh. We have been better known as Maharaji Waaza. I have not studied much. My family was too poor to afford my studies. I did go to a school at Maharaj Gunj initially, but poverty didn't allow me to continue with it. I was the only male child among five children of my parents hence I had a lot of responsibilities to shoulder. I worked at a number of places initially and was earning Rs 2 to 20 a month. My mother would spin charkha (wheel) and I would work in small restaurants and later on in big hotels to fend for myself and my family. We were residing at Sheikh Mohalla, Maharaj Gunj those days. My father died when we were in abject poverty.

       What supported me?

I and my mother have struggled a lot to sustain. I started working in a restaurant in 1960 with a meager monthly salary of Rs 15. I would wash utensils there. After that I worked in slightly bigger restaurants with slight increase in salary. And then I went outside along with an hotelier and worked in a few restaurants at Punjab and Delhi and was earning up to Rs 400 a month. I worked hard day and night. And there I learned the art of preparing Chinese and Continental dishes. Then I went to Jammu and there I worked in a couple of good hotels where I was earning Rs 600 a month. Later on, I came back to Kashmir and here also I worked in some good hotels and would earn up to Rs 1400 a month. In this way I gained a lot of experience. Interestingly, I gained some popularity among the hoteliers and whenever anyone among them had to launch a new hotel, I would be invited. People would consider me lucky for their venture. Gradually the financial condition at our home started getting slightly better and I married my sisters off. I too married in 1979. My then owner provided me some financial help for the weddings.

       Why Mughal Darbar and not something else?

Once a friend of mine, Ghulam Rasool Shora, told me that he didn't find the name Jhelum Restaurant catchy enough. He then told me about his plan of establishing a hotel, for which he had chosen the name Mughal Darbar. Then and there I decided to change the name of my restaurant from Jhelum Restaurant to Mughal Darbar. Next morning, I did the same and got the board of my hotel replaced with new with crown of Aurangzeb inscribed on it. The restaurant evoked good customer response. We would serve tea, snacks, Hareesa and all types of Wazwan at very affordable rates there. This restaurant worked for around three years at Zero Bridge and finally I sold it off at Rs 80,000.

       Shift to the Residency Road

We shifted to Residency Road in 1982. During those days there used to be a Raina News Agency at the same place in a building in the first floor owned by a Kashmiri Pandit. I wanted to purchase a hall in the building for my restaurant and for that I had to pay rupees one and a half lakh. Since I could not afford that much of money then, I purchased the hall in partnership, plus I raised loan from J&K Bank. I started the restaurant on a small scale, but I worked very hard for its success. I would personally remain in the kitchen from seven in the morning till twelve in the night. The restaurant became so famous that it remained swarmed with customers all the time. Not only the local customers visited us, the foreigners and VIPs would make a beeline. Then came the days when Bollywood starts ordered food from our restaurant from the hotels they were staying in the Valley. Let me tell you ours was the only restaurant in the town that would remain off on Sundays, because of the heavy rush on other days. But unfortunately in a fire accident in January 1996 the restaurant was gutted and suffered huge losses.

      Bakery and Confectionery

We gradually increased the space of our restaurant. And then, we went for the bakery section in the ground floor in 1992. There also I really worked hard and now you know there is an overwhelming customer response to our bakery.

      Other Ventures

I have got three outlets at Dalgate, one at Residency Road, one at Bye-pass, one at Bemina, one at Zabarwan Park, one at Tangmarg and one in the Sulaiman Complex. Then we have the Grand Mughal Darbar Restaurant at the Residency Road. We are providing employment to over 250 employees presently whose salaries vary from Rs 3000 to Rs 10,000 and more. We have a factory unit at Khonmoh. We have bagged Best Cook of India certificate. I have myself done a diploma in preparation of English, Continental and Chinese foods. I always continued with my cooking job and I myself analyze the food before serving it to the customers. I believe a kitchen is the heart of a restaurant or hotel. The owner himself should be expert in handling the kitchen. And the hard work I have put in has really paid. We have received the appreciation certificates from the IGP Kashmir, State Protocol and so on. We have got registration from the J & K Tourism in 1982. Then we are also the members of Kashmir Hotel and Restaurant Association since 1982. And then, we are the members of the Kashmir Chamber of Commerce and Industry and All India Hotel Association for the last three years. <<Go Back....
Besides, we have received several other certificates for the best food, the best quality and the best service. Wherever there is a VIP function, be it in or outside the state, our food is always preferred.

       Future Plans

We are planning to have more outlets in future, so that we can provide the employment to more and more people because there is a lot of unemployment in the state. Infact, I have a few places in mind, where I can have my new outlets. I also want to open an outlet at Delhi for selling bakery, for there is a huge demand from the tourists coming to Kashmir that they should have our bakery available in other parts of India. Besides, I am planning to construct a hotel in March next year. <<Go Back....