perzen patel

Born in Mumbai, India, Perzen has spent equal parts of her life in both India and New Zealand. When she moved to New Zealand as a teenager, she was perplexed that most of her peers thought that Indian food started and stopped at butter chicken. At school, she remembers many of her lunches being described simply as “curry”.

After a stint back in India, where she ran an award-winning food blog and a successful catering business, she returned to New Zealand with her husband and two young sons, knowing that somehow her love for food would play a big part in her life.

As Perzen started making new friends, I encountered old conversations.

"Oh you're from Mumbai? I love having curry", they'd say.

or, "I love Dahl but sadly I can never get it right".

or, "I bought curry powder at the Indian shop but my curry didn't taste anything like the one I usually order. Not quite sure what to do with it now, aye".

It clicked that if she wanted her friends and those around me to experience the true taste of India, she had to do more than talk about it. Perzen had to bring those flavours into their kitchen. and show them how truly versatile they could be!

The time was right for Kiwis to go on a journey beyond butter chicken. And so, Dolly Mumma was born.

Dolly Mumma is a true family affair, with Perzen being the “Chief Eating Officer” and her husband managing the farmers’ markets and customer relationships. “We have both always had an entrepreneurial streak and want to show our kids you can have it all if you work hard. I also didn’t want them growing up thinking that Indian food is tikka masala and curry.

Stumbling across The Kitchen Project felt like serendipity. The program helped me dream big while helping me fine-tune my products. We dove deep into the licensing requirements, learnt about accounting and the importance of taking one step at a time.”

Dolly Mumma ready-to-cook Indian pastes are available across New Zealand nationwide through her online store (www.dollymumma.com) and also at various markets in Auckland.  Follow Dolly Mumma on Facebook and Instagram for ideas, recipes and market details.