Dabbawala facts for kids
Dabbawalas loading lunch boxes on a train
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| Occupation | |
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| Synonyms | Tiffin wallah |
| Manual labour | |
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Activity sectors
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Delivery (commerce) |
The dabbawalas are a special group of people in India, especially in Mumbai. They have a unique system for delivering hot lunchboxes from homes and restaurants to people working in offices. These lunchboxes are called tiffin carriers. Dabbawalas pick up the lunches in the morning, deliver them using bicycles and trains, and then return the empty boxes in the afternoon.
Contents
How the Dabbawala System Started
In the late 1800s, many people moved to Mumbai (then called Bombay) from different parts of India. There weren't many fast-food places or canteens back then. People left for work early and often went hungry for lunch. Since they came from different communities, they had different food tastes. Only home-cooked meals could satisfy them.
So, in 1890, a man named Mahadeo Havaji Bachche started a lunch delivery service. He began with about a hundred men. This service became very popular and grew quickly. In 1930, he tried to create a union for the dabbawalas. Later, in 1956, a group called the Nutan Mumbai Tiffin Box Suppliers Trust was officially started. Its business part, the Mumbai Tiffin Box Suppliers Association, was registered in 1968.
What "Dabbawala" Means
The word "dabbawala" literally means "one who carries a box." The word "dabba" means a box, usually a round metal container. "Wala" is a suffix that means someone who does or holds something. So, a dabbawala is a "tiffin box delivery man."
How Dabbawalas Use Color Codes
Dabbawalas use a clever color-coding system to make sure each lunchbox goes to the right person. This system helps them deliver thousands of lunchboxes every day without mistakes.
Marking the Lunchboxes
Each lunchbox is marked in several ways:
- Short codes for where the box was picked up.
- A color code for the train station where the journey starts.
- A number for the train station where the box needs to go.
- Special marks for the dabbawala who will deliver it, including the building and floor number.
Dabbawala Uniform and Rules
Every dabbawala has to contribute some basic items to the system. These include two bicycles, a wooden crate for the tiffins, a white cotton uniform (kurta-pyjamas), and a white Gandhi cap. Each month, the money earned by each delivery team is shared. Dabbawalas can get fined if they use alcohol or tobacco, are not in uniform, or miss work.
The Delivery Process
A dabbawala, usually on a bicycle, collects the lunchboxes from homes or from people who make the food. Many dabbawalas have limited schooling, so the boxes have special marks like colors or symbols. This helps them identify each box easily.
Next, the dabbawala takes the boxes to a sorting place. There, they sort the lunchboxes into groups. The grouped boxes are then loaded onto special train cars. These cars have markings to show where the boxes need to go. The marks include the railway station where the boxes will be unloaded and the final delivery address.
At each train station, the boxes are given to a local dabbawala. This dabbawala then delivers them to the correct office building. After lunch, the empty boxes are collected. They are then sent back to the homes using the same system, but in reverse. Dabbawalas also accept delivery requests through text messages (SMS).
Who Are the Dabbawalas?
Most dabbawalas are related to each other. They belong to a group called the Varkari sect in Maharashtra, India. Many of them come from the same small village near Pune. Every March, the dabbawala service stops for five days. This is because the dabbawalas go home for their annual village festival.
Traditionally, dabbawalas have been men. However, since 2013, a few women have started joining this job. A dabbawala can be a leader, called a mukadam, or a regular delivery person, called a gaddi. They usually start working between the ages of 15 and 20. While they are proud of their independence and working with relatives, the pay for their hard physical work is not very high. Because of this, they often don't encourage their own children to become dabbawalas.
A typical day for a dabbawala involves picking up tiffins every morning. They sort them once before loading them onto the morning train around 10 AM. The tiffins are sorted again inside the train's luggage area. At the destination station, the tiffins are put into carts. They are then dropped off in stacks at the entrances of different workplaces. After lunch, the same process happens in reverse with the empty tiffins.
The Dabbawala Association
The Mumbai Tiffin Box Suppliers Association first held meetings outdoors. In 1943, they got their own office space. Their main headquarters moved to Dadar in 1962. The office is a simple, large room on the first floor of a building. It has a big painting of Saint Dnyaneshwar with Vithoba. There are also pictures of important people like Bal Gangadhar Tilak and the association's founder, Mahadeo Havaji Bachche.
The association was reportedly formed after a dabbawala was treated badly by a customer. This made the dabbawalas decide to work together to deal with unfair situations or problems like funerals. The association also helps with legal issues, including disagreements between mukadams (leaders) and gaddis (delivery men). All disagreements are solved with the help of 20 mukadams, who are chosen every six years.
The Nutan Mumbai Tiffin Box Suppliers Trust is a charity group. It has nine members who are elected every five years. Its main job is to raise money for places where travelers can stay for free, called dharamshalas.
Studies About Dabbawalas
Many studies have looked at the dabbawalas because their system is so efficient:
- In 2001, Pawan G. Agrawal did his PhD research on how dabbawalas manage their deliveries and supply chain in Mumbai. He shared his findings on how efficient they are.
- In 2005, the Indian Institute of Management (Ahmedabad) created a case study about the Mumbai Dabbawalas. It looked at their system from a business and logistics point of view.
- In 2010, Harvard Business School added a case study called The Dabbawala System: On-Time Delivery, Every Time. They highlighted the dabbawalas' excellent service, low costs, and simple way of working.
- In 2014, Uma S. Krishnan finished her PhD research. She studied how the dabbawalas' unique ways of learning and communicating helped their business succeed.
Interesting Dabbawala Events
- In 2005, dabbawalas were invited to the wedding of Prince Charles and Camilla Parker Bowles.
- Around 2010, a company called Bharti Airtel chose dabbawalas to deliver advertising flyers. The dabbawalas earned a commission for each flyer delivered.
- On March 21, 2011, Prakash Baly Bachche set a Guinness World Record. He carried three dabbawala tiffin crates on his head at the same time!
- In 2011, dabbawalas went on strike for the first time in 120 years. They joined a rally to support Anna Hazare as part of the 2011 Indian anti-corruption movement.
- Over the years, many famous people have visited the dabbawalas. These include Charles, Prince of Wales, Richard Branson, and former US Commerce Secretary, Gary Locke.
Dabbawalas in Movies and TV
The 2013 Bollywood film The Lunchbox tells a story based on the dabbawala service.
The British TV show Top Gear had a special episode called Top Gear: India Special. In this episode, the presenters Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond, and James May tried to deliver lunches using their cars. They wanted to see if they could be faster and more accurate than the dabbawalas, who use trains and bicycles.
Images for kids
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A dabba, or Indian-style tiffin box
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Dabbawalas with colored and numbered boxes.
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Two typical dabbawala lunches
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See also
In Spanish: Dabbawala para niños
