Latest news with #Jhawar
Time of India
13-07-2025
- Business
- Time of India
Caviar is making its way to desi dinners and shop shelves as India develops a taste for the exotic
On a recent afternoon in Mumbai, shoppers at Food Square's Worli gourmet store paused to inspect the contents of a glass counter. There were tins of French caviar—sleek, chilled and ready to be scooped onto warm blinis or canapés. Not many moons ago, these translucent pearls of roe were not found in neighbourhood stores. They were confined to billionaires' banquets or the hush of first-class cabins. But now caviar—saltcured fish eggs, traditionally from sturgeon—is quietly crossing into India's retail stores. Paris-based Kaviari has landed in India with 30 gram-jars. Meanwhile, Bengaluru-based Caviar India promises two-day delivery across metros while Catch of Norway, also from the same city, claims it can drop fresh tins at a doorstep in Kerala or Karnataka by sundown. A 30 g jar of royal beluga caviar, the finest, costs over ₹20,000. As global luxury recalibrates to make space for the aspirational Indian consumer, caviar has become both a culinary curiosity and a discreet social flex. Demand has grown enough to spark exclusive import tie-ups, B2B partnerships with fine-dining restaurants and pop-up tasting events. 'The demand has remained robust, with a strong growth potential,' says Lalit Jhawar, cofounder and CEO of Food Square, the gourmet grocery store based in Mumbai. 'Our audience keeps expanding—culinary enthusiasts, chefs and individuals seeking a luxurious lifestyle.' Live Events FLYING FISH If there's one reason caviar is turning up on Indian dining tables and Instagram feeds, it's because importers and retailers have learned to package the old-world delicacy as accessible luxury. Instead of 250-gram tins reserved for private clubs, today's consumers can buy 10or 30-gram jars—just enough for a special dinner or a house party. 'We are seeing a growing demand for smaller tins,' says Jhawar. 'Customers want to indulge without the commitment of large quantities.' At Food Square, which began selling caviar soon after its launch in late 2023, smaller pack sizes and reliable cold chain logistics have been crucial. Rugved Vartak , category head at Food Square, says, 'In the past, caviar would arrive grainy or mushy because the cold chain was compromised. Now, we fly in new batches every fortnight and check every shipment.' The store lists Kaviari's 30-gram tins for around ₹8,000. They also stock mother-ofpearl spoons that are traditionally used to scoop caviar instead of steel or silver cutlery that could leave a metallic aftertaste. Vartak adds, 'We also work closely with chefs like Varun Totlani (Masque and Paradox), Hussain Shahzad (Papa's Cafe), Prateek Sadhu ( Naar ) and Will Aghajanian (Table), so the product reaches diners in some of the most creative formats.' Restaurants have played their part in familiarising diners with caviar. At Paradox in Mumbai, Totlani serves caviar in many ways: with warm cheese bread and herb dip, or in a cocktail called Cheap Date laced with caviar, or as 'caviar bump' where the roe is dolloped on the back of a guest's hand. Says Totlani, 'A lot of our guests are world travellers, so they have tried caviar before. But even those ordering it for a lark love it. Our tins are flying off the shelves.' Diners are increasingly curious about provenance and grade, asking chefs whether the tin contains the roe of beluga, ossetra or sevruga. 'People ask me which caviar I have,' says Manu Chandra, founder-partner, Manu Chandra Enterprises , which runs, among others, the Bengalurubased restaurant Lupa and the bespoke catering service Single Thread. 'They know that ossetra is high-grade and that provenance matters.' Vartak says his regular clients host caviar parties, sometimes pairing it with champagne. WALKING ON EGGSHELLS While there is demand, importing caviar into India is neither simple nor cheap. Every batch must carry paperwork from the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) to prove the sturgeon wasn't poached, a step that has grown stricter as the Caspian Sea populations dwindle. Wild beluga sturgeon is now classified as critically endangered. Most caviar sold in India comes from farmed stocks in Europe or China, where large aquaculture facilities have ramped up production. Strict cold-chain requirements to maintain texture and import duties can swell prices by up to 50%. 'The biggest challenge is ensuring the supply chain stays intact,' says Vartak. 'Even minor temperature fluctuations can ruin a tin.' Improvements in cold chain facilities have made premium brands more confident about entering the Indian market. However, ethical questions remain. According to animal welfare organisation Beauty Without Cruelty, production of caviar almost always involves killing the fish. Large aquaculture facilities that supply most of the world's caviar are trying to allay these fears. They promise traceability and less impact on wild stocks with controlled breeding tanks and highlight sustainability certifications on tins, noting details such as farm of origin, ethical harvesting practices and traditional malossol (low-salt, preservative-free) curing. Importers say these labels have become a selling point for discerning buyers. Even farmed caviar is highly regulated, tightly rationed and eternally expensive—a reason why caviar cannot truly be a massmarket luxury. MAKE IN INDIA? If importing caviar is complicated, producing it domestically is even more improbable—at least for now. Yet the idea persists in India's culinary circles: what if the country could someday farm its own sturgeon and sidestep the costs and uncertainties of global supply chains? Globally, aquaculture is the only scalable way to produce caviar without driving wild sturgeon to extinction. China has sprawling tank farms while French and Italian producers have invested heavily in recirculating aquaculture systems. In India, this possibility has flickered to life in policy discussions. The National Fisheries Development Board has funded feasibility studies and pilot projects on sturgeon farming. Jhawar believes the model is technically viable: 'Globally, the caviar industry is embracing recirculating aquaculture systems, and that approach could work here too.' But the reality is different. Sturgeon are slow to mature, often taking 7 to 14 years before they yield roe suitable for harvesting. They require cold, clean, spring-like water conditions—far from typical Indian aquaculture environments. Regulatory hurdles are steep, with strict controls on importing live sturgeon or fertilised eggs for breeding. Even as caviar becomes more visible, it remains among the most expensive delicacies in India's food ecosystem. Chandra, who occasionally serves ossetra roe by the tin, describes caviar as a costprohibitive, perishable indulgence that few diners request more than once: 'It's still a high-luxury product, and prices have never really rationalised in India.'
Business Insider
01-06-2025
- Automotive
- Business Insider
Investec Sticks to Their Buy Rating for Bajaj Auto Limited (BAJAJ.AUTO)
In a report released yesterday, Aditya Jhawar from Investec maintained a Buy rating on Bajaj Auto Limited ( – Research Report), with a price target of INR9,480.00. The company's shares closed last Friday at INR8,607.00. Confident Investing Starts Here: Jhawar covers the Consumer Cyclical sector, focusing on stocks such as Bajaj Auto Limited, Tata Motors Limited, and Eicher Motors Limited. According to TipRanks, Jhawar has an average return of 5.1% and a 68.18% success rate on recommended stocks. In addition to Investec, Bajaj Auto Limited also received a Buy from CLSA's Basudeb Banerjee in a report issued on May 30. However, yesterday, UBS maintained a Sell rating on Bajaj Auto Limited (NSE:
Business Insider
31-05-2025
- Business
- Business Insider
Investec Reaffirms Their Hold Rating on Samvardhana Motherson International Limited (MOTHERSON)
Investec analyst Aditya Jhawar maintained a Hold rating on Samvardhana Motherson International Limited (MOTHERSON – Research Report) today and set a price target of INR140.00. The company's shares closed yesterday at INR153.12. Confident Investing Starts Here: According to TipRanks, Jhawar is a 3-star analyst with an average return of 5.9% and a 77.27% success rate. Jhawar covers the Consumer Cyclical sector, focusing on stocks such as Tata Motors Limited, Bajaj Auto Limited, and Eicher Motors Limited. Currently, the analyst consensus on Samvardhana Motherson International Limited is a Moderate Buy with an average price target of INR154.67. Based on Samvardhana Motherson International Limited's latest earnings release for the quarter ending September 30, the company reported a quarterly revenue of INR276.68 billion and a net profit of INR8.8 billion. In comparison, last year the company earned a revenue of INR232.94 billion and had a net profit of INR2.02 billion
Hindustan Times
23-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Hindustan Times
Building a case for online premiere of films on YouTube
Eight weeks after its release in theatres in June, Aamir Khan Productions' new feature film Sitaare Zameen Par will be available for pay-per-view on YouTube, according to The Hollywood Reporter. The film will skip its debut on traditional OTT streaming services (Netflix, JioHotstar or Prime Video) after its release in cinemas -- a route Bollywood has been taking so far. Aamir Khan has often red-flagged Bollywood's broken business model and the shrinking window between theatrical and streaming debut of new films that keeps audiences away from theatres. Besides, OTT platforms are no longer paying dearly for buying new films on account of cost cuts and fiscal discipline. They are also shy of sharing viewership data which makes an even greater case for Bollywood to give YouTube a shot, said media and content strategists. India has the largest number of YouTube users in the world at 491 million, according to Statista, an online portal providing statistics and business intelligence data across industries. 'It enjoys unparalleled reach among all video streaming platforms. On any other OTT service, a film would reach 20 to 50 million users. On YouTube that number could be 400 million,' said Siddharth Jhawar, country manager at global adtech company Moloco. A March 2025 Ficci-EY report on media and entertainment said that in 2024 YouTube dominated the landscape, capturing 92% of all online video consumption, while premium platforms—comprising ad-based video-on-demand (AVOD), freemium, and subscription video-on-demand (SVOD) services—accounted for the remaining 8%. However, 89% of time spent on YouTube was on mobile devices, while 9% was on connected TV (CTV). But that may change as CTV penetration increases. YouTube consumption on CTVs grew 132% between August 2022 and August 2024, the report added. YouTube's strength lies in its simplicity, discoverability, and omnipresence, said Vikram Malhotra, founder & CEO, Abundantia Entertainment. 'Media reports suggest, in FY 2024-25, it accounted for approximately Rs14,300 crore in revenue, capturing 37.7% of the total digital media revenue in the country,' Malhotra said. Jhawar added that YouTube's monetization models are far superior to other streaming services. It is evolving from a user-generated content hub to a platform for premium storytelling with strong stickiness and engagement, Malhotra said, highlighting its unmatched reach, data-backed insights and monetization models. So, will others use YouTube for film releases too? 'If it can offer reach, relevance and revenue for a particular title, we'd definitely evaluate it,' Abundantia's Malhotra said. However, he added that the OTT ecosystem remains relevant both for serialized, binge-worthy content and as a destination for movies. But the pay-per-view model allows for more flexibility and instant audience-led validation, he said. Jhawar said OTT platforms must add the TVOD (transaction video-on-demand) or pay-per-view layer to their AVOD and SVOD models which is currently being offered only by Amazon Prime Video and YouTube. Harikrishnan Pillai, CEO and co-founder of digital agency TheSmallBigIdea, spelled out the advantages of YouTube debut of films. First is the control a producer has over his film as it is reintroduced to the audiences after its run in the theatres. 'OTT services buy films but do not always prioritize them. On YouTube, you are in-charge of the release,' he said. Secondly, you can price it in a manner that is viable to you, Pillai said. However, he cautioned that premium subscriptions on YouTube is a thin sliver as Indians consume free content. The percentage of paying subscribers for OTT, too, is less than 15% of the total audience base. Malhotra said any new distribution model comes with its own set of challenges—foremost among them being consumer behaviour. In India, audiences are still transitioning from free and subscription-based viewing to paying for individual titles. 'The key will be in how the value is communicated—what makes a film worth that single transaction—and how seamless the user experience is,' he said. The Ficci-EY report said the TVOD opportunity has expanded with Amazon Prime Video enabling TVOD for its huge library and catalogue. Prime Video claimed that 60% of its 8,500 titles got rented each month. 'Smaller ticket sizes for pay-per-view content may be a model waiting to explode,' Pillai said. As for Aamir Khan's experiment on YouTube, 'the risk-reward pattern will emerge in due course but for now it is a disruptive but viable medium to try,' Malhotra said.
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Business Standard
26-04-2025
- Business
- Business Standard
PTC India appoints Manoj Kumar Jhawar as Chairman, Managing Director
Power trading solutions provider PTC India on Saturday announced appointment of Manoj Kumar Jhawar as Chairman & Managing Director of the company. Manoj Kumar Jhawar joined PTC Board as Whole time Director designated as Director (Commercial & Operations) on January 18, 2024, a regulatory filing said. He was given additional responsibilities of the post of CMD (PTC) from 13th June, 2024, till further orders. The Board of Directors of PTC India at its meeting held on Saturday i.e. 26th April, 2025 considered and approved appointment of Manoj Kumar Jhawar as Chairman & Managing Director of the company with effect from date of his joining subject to the Articles of Association of the Company, the filing stated. The term of his appointment shall be till the date of attaining the age of superannuation i.e. 60 years. Jhawar, 56, is Ph.D (Management Sciences) from Devi Ahilya University, Indore. He graduated in Mechanical Engineering from Government Engineering College, Ujjain and did his Masters in Industrial Engineering & Management from Devi Ahilya University, Indore. He is a qualified Cost Accountant from ICAI. The PTC India board also approved payment of interim dividend at the rate of 50 per cent (Rs. 5/- per equity shares of Rs. 10/- each) for financial year 2024-2025. The board has fixed May 5, 2025, as the "Record Date" for the purpose of ascertaining the name of members entitled to receive the Interim Dividend.
