The Success Story of a Popular Indian Chef: Mrs. Tarla Dalal

A Legendary Chef + Technology = a New Evolution of Gourmet Cooking

Tarla Dalal, the most beloved Indian food writer, cookbook author, host of cooking shows and of course the Chef. She begins her career from cooking classes at home in 1966 then published her first cookbook in 1974 and a TV series in 2007. Tarla Dalal is credited with introducing foreign cuisines to the Indian masses. She was popular for her vegetarian version of many non-vegetarian dishes.

Being a cooking lover, I have been following Mrs. Tarla Dalal since my college days. Whenever I wanted to try something new I used to open the website taradalal.com and my answer will be there. My best moment was when the Tarla Dalal Recipe App was launched for the first time.

Imagine you can have the entire collection of recipes in your pocket? No need of searching on Google, again and again, I am talking about the recipe app launched by the legendary chef Tarla Dalal. The app has all the recipes that a normal person needs with video integration in it.

This blog is a written version of my interview with the present owner of Tarla Dalal app; Mr. Sanjay Dalal (son of Late Mrs. Tarla Dalal). Mr. Sanjay has calmly described the entire journey of Tarla Dalal app from the idea to the launch.

The Idea Behind the Tarla Dalal Recipe App Development

I always wanted to know where does this amazing idea came into the mind. Sanjay told me that they were already very popular on Tarladalal.com but they were looking for a medium which is more convenient. In Jan 2012, he got the idea of developing a Tarla Dalal Recipe app which will have all the recipes along with the videos. They were already popular and had this huge database of recipes created over 30 years to capitalize on. So, this will be a great way to utilize it.

About The App

The App Was launched on 19^th June 2013 for iOS and for Android it was 15^th Jan 2014. Sanjay told us: “Actually, we want to see how our fans are reacting to the Tarla Dalal Recipe app, so we launched an iOS app at first. To my surprise people loved it. We got so many downloads and feedbacks. Later on, we opted for an Android version of the app”. The Recipe app has a huge collection of recipes and each recipe has a YouTube Video as well.

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What Was Your Approach to This Application?

To this question, Sanjay told us that “It’s much easier for a user to use Recipe app. There are no distractions and your audience will be in a dedicated cooking zone.” Further, he added they want to serve their audience with a medium which is common for everyone and mobile application is the right option for it. Today, everyone has a Smartphone with loads of application in it; they wanted to give a medium which is easily accessible.

Contribution Of Mr. Sanjay Dalal In The Idea Of The App Development

Sanjay told us that he has worked on the Tarla Dalal recipe app development from conceptualization stage the execution stage. He makes sure that the application has the best UI/UX design. For him, user experience was the priority.

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The Business Profits and Feedback from the Audience

Mr.sanjay told us that people love the Tarla Dalal recipe application because of its variety of recipes. Sanjay said: “Feedbacks are good, Those that use it love it.” for the profit part Sanjay told us that he wasn’t into the earning thing through the mobile app, although ads can be a way of revenue.

The Most Useful Thing In The Tarla Dalal Recipe App

Firstly, the category based listing. The mobile app has recipes based on the categories which help the users to get what they are really searching for. Along with the categories is a searching tab at the top of the app, the user can search for any recipe.

Secondly, It’s a dynamic app. The app gets real-time updates on an hourly basis. The app gets immediate upgrade whenever a new recipe is added to the mobile app or any changes are added to the recipe section or to any feature of the app.

Thirdly, “We have integrated adding recipes you have loved to a cookbook which you can create. So say you have your favorite 25 soups and create a cookbook on our website or from the app, they can be synced together. So if you are traveling or know that you want to make say a Protein-Rich Soup, all you do is open the mobile app and go to the Soups cookbook you have created and choose the recipe you want to make. No need to search for it. You can here check your favorite soups and change your mind based on what there is in your house. I suggest you try the feature and give me feedback.”

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Mobile Application Versus Facebook and YouTube

I wanted to know the experience of connecting with fans from Facebook or answering to their on YouTube is different from that of application. For this Sanjay said: “Facebook and YouTube are completely different ways of communicating. Our Facebook community has quick food & recipe videos and our fans are connecting with us from the Facebook Page. Facebook is helping as a guide to direct our users to the website and mobile app. YouTube is only for uploading food & recipe related videos. There are loads of questions we answer every day from fans. The questions are always like why or how do I do this or what did you mean.”

Future Plans for Upgrading the Application

I was curious to know how the team will be leveraging technology to serve their users better. Sanjay said “The recipe app is updated about 3 to 4 times already and the content is reviewed on a daily basis. For the technology perspective, We have already integrated ask Amazon Alexa with tarla dalal app, for any recipe and Alexa will assist the users in the cooking. Another feature can be Ingredients and recipe search from a live dish using augmented reality. You can search for the recipe of a dish served to you at a restaurant, café or any place.”

That was the interview of Mr.Sanjay Dalal the present owner of Tarladalal.com and Tarla Dalal mobile app. Stay Connected to get more such informative interviews.