RAJIV JAISINGHANI’S ‘MEATZZA’ IS RULING THE DINING TABLES OF MANY HOMES IN INDIA AND ABROAD; A REPORT BY: KHATIBAH REHMAT.
KHATIBAH REHMAT: Who were you before being an entrepreneur? State all about your birthplace, family and education.
Mr. RAJIV JAISIGHANI: Being born in a family of entrepreneurs in Delhi, we were four siblings and I was second amongst them. Everytime we used to sit together either on the dining table for dinner or lunch, there was just a conversation of doing business. Well, I did my schooling from Modern School Vasant Vihar-Delhi, then did my graduation from Delhi University, later went to the United States and worked there with one of the pioneers of West to East courier companies and my office was based in New-York and we even used to work from London to New-York. Then in the year 1991, I came back to India and started my export business with by brother as Darshan foods pvt. ltd. which we are still running. It’s been 26 years now to be into this business.
KHATIBAH REHMAT: How come this idea of Meatzza came into your mind? Also explain it’s details to all our readers and viewers.
Mr. RAJIV JAISIGHANI: While I was working in the US and London, then during that time I often used to pay a visit to India and I researched that there were none of the ready to eat products. If we speak about simple sausages, it was also missing from the Indian breakfast tables. Whereas, in the West it was a daily consuming food product. Hence, when I began my export business it was always behind the back of my mind that I have to do something with ready to eat products and that too not just for the elite class people but for the masses as well. So, in the year 1996 I started Meatzza as a Greenfield product and opened up a factory where all such things could be prepared. At that time I didn’t have much experience for all this but, I still wanted to continue so that I can see all this on Indian shelves.
Then we began to introduce our products to the hotels, at first they didn’t trust us that any such thing could be prepared in a factory. Though, they were using all this but in a very old fashioned and rustic way where, they used to get things from the butchery shop where the cost was low, so was the quality. When the hotels tried our products then they decided to pay a visit at our factory that how these things are made? Later, few of the hotels used to send their management graduates and the butchery chefs to us, so that they may learn an easier and organised way of making these ready to eat food. At that time it was very difficult to import these products from overseas markets and costing were equally at higher side.
KHATIBAH REHMAT: How far do you want to take your brand in near future? Is it fine for those gourmets as well, who go only with Halal cuisines?
Mr. RAJIV JAISIGHANI: Yeah, of course, I would like to see Meatzza on every dining table, whether it be kababs, biryanis, koftas or any other products of ours. Reaching to the common people is a real peace of mind. That will be the true position where I would like to find myself in near future.
We are presently certified with: FSSAC 22000 certified, we are certified Halal and certified export inspection agency. Jamaican ulema in Halal which gives Halal certification to UAE and Malaysia. So, people can feel free to consume any product of meatzza.
INTERVIEWED: Mr. RAJIV JAISIGHANI (MANAGING DIRECTOR, MEATZZA).
PICTURE COURTESY: TEAM MEATZZA
INTERVIEW TAKEN BY: KHATIBAH REHMAT (SENIOR JOURNALIST).
