Anushka Sharma ordered chole bhature for Virat Kohli; how it helped revive a ₹18 lakh-debt restaurant |
A 250-square-foot restaurant with three tables and nine seats was once close to shutting down. Today, Delhi Se claims to serve more than 3,000 plates of chole bhature every day across four outlets. The dramatic change began with one comedian’s Instagram recommendation, followed by an unexpected order from Anushka Sharma’s home for Virat Kohli.
A restaurant that was almost ready to shut
Brothers Jaspal Singh Khalsa and Mahinder Singh Khalsa started Delhi Se in Chembur on October 15, 2021. The small outlet was built around a simple idea: serve Delhi-style food in Mumbai.But the business struggled. Sales began falling from January 2022, and by September, the brothers said they had accumulated about ₹18 lakh in debt. Closing the restaurant seemed like the only practical option.“From January, our sales started declining. By September 2022, we were planning to close the restaurant,” Jaspal told Pinkvilla.There is something striking about that timeline. The restaurant’s biggest break did not arrive after years of careful expansion. It came just as the owners were preparing to walk away.
Then a comedian walked in
In September 2022, stand-up comedian Abhishek Upmanyu visited Delhi Se and tried its chole bhature. He later recommended the restaurant on Instagram.The brothers initially did not even know who he was. But the change was visible within days. Jaspal recalled that Upmanyu visited on September 13, and walk-ins started rising on September 14 and 15.That small social media mention eventually travelled much further than the owners expected.
Two plates became a turning point
Anushka Sharma was looking for Delhi-style chole bhature in Mumbai for Virat Kohli. After coming across Upmanyu’s recommendation, someone from Kohli’s home called Delhi Se and ordered two plates.Jaspal initially suspected a prank. The food cost only ₹120 a plate, while delivering it from Chembur to Juhu seemed more complicated than the order itself.The brothers eventually delivered the food on October 5, 2022. Anushka then posted about finding “ekdum-Delhi-jaise-Chole-bhature” in Mumbai and credited Upmanyu for the discovery.
The crowd arrived faster than the kitchen could handle
The response was immediate. Jaspal said a huge crowd gathered within half an hour. Customers began ordering six or even 10 plates at once, while the tiny restaurant struggled to keep enough ingredients ready.The brothers turned to people living nearby for help. They asked residents to soak chickpeas at home so they could collect them.Some customers reportedly waited more than two hours for just two or three plates.The scale changed rapidly. The restaurant went from preparing about 8 kg of chhole to 100 kg within three days.It was not simply a social media moment anymore. The kitchen itself had to change overnight.
From nine seats to four outlets
Delhi Se has since expanded to outlets in Chembur, Mulund, Andheri West and Vashi. Its website lists all four locations.According to the brothers, the business now sells more than 3,000 plates of chole bhature each day. They say they soak about 125 kg of chickpeas daily across the outlets, which expands to nearly a tonne after cooking.They also claim monthly sales have risen from roughly ₹1-1.5 lakh during the struggling period to around ₹2 crore. These figures come from the owners and have not been independently audited in the reports reviewed.The lesson in the story is not simply that a celebrity endorsement can change a business. The restaurant already had a product that customers wanted. What changed was its reach.Disclaimer: The sales, debt, production and customer figures mentioned above are based on statements attributed to Delhi Se’s owners in media reports. These figures have not been independently audited or verified.
