From ₹18 lakh debt to ₹2 crore: How Anushka and Virat's chole bhature order changed a restaurant's fate

A tiny chole bhature joint in Mumbai’s Chembur, once drowning in about ₹18 lakh debt and planning to shut, now clocks roughly ₹2 crore in monthly sales after a celebrity order and an Instagram post by Anushka Sharma.

Brothers Jaspal Singh Khalsa and Mahinder Singh Khalsa ran “Delhi Se”, a 250 sq ft outlet with just three tables and nine seats. Sales began sliding from January 2022, and by September 2022 they had accumulated around ₹18 lakh in debt.

“From January, our sales started declining. By September 2022, we were planning to close the restaurant,” Jaspal told Pinkvilla, adding they intended to clear last month’s groceries and rent before shutting down.

The comedian’s post that started it all

The turnaround began when stand-up comedian Abhishek Upmanyu visited on September 13, 2022, tried the chole bhature, and recommended the eatery on his Instagram Story.

“On September 13, Abhishek Upmanyu came to eat chhole bhature. We didn’t know him then. On September 14 and 15, our walk-ins started increasing,” Jaspal said.

That small mention soon reached Anushka Sharma, who was looking for authentic Delhi-style chole bhature in Mumbai for Virat Kohli.

“Where is Virat Kohli and where am I?”

Before Anushka publicly posted about the restaurant, the brothers received multiple calls from her home asking for two plates to be delivered to Juhu. Jaspal suspected a prank, especially when the caller asked for bank details for payment.

“I told Mahinder, ‘This woman is troubling me. She has called eight times and is asking for my bank details.’ Mahinder said, ‘What’s the problem? Give her the bank details.’ I said, ‘What if she hacks the account?’ Mahinder said, ‘The account balance is already negative. There is hardly any money in it,’” Jaspal recalled. 

Only after several calls did the caller reveal she was from Virat Kohli’s home. “I said, ‘Ma’am, please don’t say things like that. Where is Virat Kohli and where am I — a small chhole bhature shop in Chembur? How am I supposed to believe that you’re calling from Virat Kohli’s house?’” he said.

“Within half an hour, such a huge crowd…”

Anushka later posted on Instagram about finding “ekdum-Delhi-jaise-Chole-bhature in Mumbai”, crediting Upmanyu for the discovery. The impact was immediate. “After her post, there was a massive crowd at the restaurant. Within half an hour, such a huge crowd had gathered that we were completely blank,” Jaspal said.

Phones rang non-stop, and police even arrived as people queued outside. “Someone would order six plates, someone else would order 10. We didn’t have enough stock. We didn’t know this was going to happen,” the brothers said. They began sourcing soaked chickpeas from neighbours, with some customers waiting over two hours for just two or three plates. “Within three days, the quantity of chhole being prepared increased from around eight kilograms to 100 kilograms,” Jaspal said.

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From one outlet to a four-storey brand

Riding the surge, Delhi Se expanded from the original Chembur stall to four outlets across Mumbai and Navi Mumbai. The brand now claims to serve about 3,000 plates daily, soaking roughly 125 kg of chickpeas a day, which expands to nearly a tonne after cooking. Monthly sales, which hovered around ₹1–1.5 lakh when the business was barely breaking even, have scaled to about ₹2 crore, according to the owners.

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