At 98, Ahmedabad’s Prabhavati Bhagwati, fondly known as Prabhavati Nani, continues to run Nani’s Nashta, the home-based food venture she started at 91 in 2018. What began with a request to prepare homemade khandvi for a party gradually grew through word of mouth into a business that now caters to more than 200 families a week. Her offerings include Gujarati favourites such as khandvi, dhokla, thepla and bhakri, along with dishes such as vada pav, sev puri and pav bhaji.
The venture emerged after the death of her husband in 2017, when her daughters had settled elsewhere and her grandchildren had grown up, leaving her with fewer people to cook for. Her story later received wider attention after industrialist Anand Mahindra shared it publicly, calling her words a source of “daily inspiration”.
A New Beginning At 91
Cooking had been part of Prabhavati’s life for decades. She married at 22 and spent much of her life raising her three daughters and caring for her family. She also enjoyed experimenting with recipes and sharing food with relatives, friends and neighbours. But after her husband died in 2017, the rhythm of her household changed. Her daughters were settled elsewhere and her grandchildren had grown up, leaving the kitchen quieter than it had been for decades.
The turning point came through an ordinary request. At a gathering, her daughter’s friend tasted Prabhavati’s homemade khandvi and asked her to prepare it for a party, even insisting on paying her. Although starting a business at 91 was not something she had planned, the order gave her an opportunity to return to something she had always loved — cooking for others. What began as a single order eventually became Nani’s Nashta in 2018.
From One Order To Many
Nani’s Nashta did not begin with a large investment, formal marketing campaign or conventional business plan. Instead, the food gradually found customers through recommendations and word of mouth. As more people tasted her preparations, the small home-based venture grew into a business serving more than 200 families a week, according to reports.
Khandvi remains closely associated with the beginning of her journey, but the menu has expanded to include traditional Gujarati preparations such as dhokla, thepla and bhakri, as well as popular snacks including vada pav, sev puri and pav bhaji. Despite the venture’s growth, Prabhavati remains personally involved in maintaining its standards. Reports say she checks batches, tastes the food and approves orders before they are sent to customers.
Cooking With A Purpose
For Prabhavati, the venture became more than a way of selling food. It gave her a renewed sense of purpose after a period of personal loss and an increasingly quiet home. Her relationship with food also remained deeply connected to the way she had always expressed affection towards her family and community.
Reflecting on the change in her life, Prabhavati has said, “Earlier, I cooked for my family. Today, I cook for many families. I am not just someone’s wife or mother. I am a founder.” She has also expressed her determination to continue cooking for as long as she can, showing that the venture is as much about purpose and identity as it is about business.
Anand Mahindra Takes Notice
Prabhavati’s story received national attention after industrialist Anand Mahindra shared it publicly. His post referred to Harbhajan Kaur, another elderly entrepreneur whose story he had previously highlighted, and said he was pleased to see that her example was “not an isolated one”. He described Prabhavati’s words as a source of “daily inspiration” and highlighted her message that people can begin again at any age.
Mahindra’s post helped bring wider visibility to Prabhavati and Nani’s Nashta, but it is important to distinguish that recognition from the business’s growth. By the time her story reached Mahindra, the venture had already developed its customer base through its food, consistency and word-of-mouth recommendations.
A Different View Of Ageing
Prabhavati’s journey challenges the assumption that professional ambition or entrepreneurship belongs primarily to younger people. Her business did not emerge from a lifelong plan to become an entrepreneur; it grew from a skill she had practised for decades and an unexpected opportunity that arrived when she was 91.
Her story also highlights how meaningful work can take different forms at different stages of life. What began as cooking for a family became cooking for a wider community, while a once-quiet kitchen became the centre of a small home-based enterprise. For Prabhavati, age did not mark the end of her productive years; it became the backdrop against which she began something new.
The Logical Indian’s Perspective
Prabhavati Nani’s journey is a reminder that people should not be defined by their age or expected to stop dreaming simply because they have reached a certain stage of life. Her story shows how experience, skill and a sense of purpose can create new possibilities when people are given the freedom and encouragement to pursue them.
It also invites us to look beyond the usual narratives of ageing — from dependence and retirement towards dignity, participation and choice. What can we do as a society to make it easier for people to begin a new chapter, no matter how old they are?
