Hyderabad's Haleem sovereign

If you are in Hyderabad and think haleem, the first name to pop up is Pista House. In fact, the delectable stew and the brand have gone on to become synonymous over time — all thanks to the man behind the brand, Mohammed Abdul Majeed. Apart from being a restaurateur who has built a strong name for himself by offering superior services across the country and abroad, Majeed has proudly pinned Hyderabad on the world map with his patent Haleem.

But how did it all start? In 1995, Majeed, a textile businessman, had realised that his struggling business was on the verge of dying. “One fine day, an idea struck me; it was about starting a food business. As a textile trader, I had no idea or skills to set-up a restaurant. I then travelled to different cities to learn the skill of baking and introductory foods. I hired the best chefs from different cities,” says the 54-year-old founder of Pista House, a chain of bakeries, sweetshops and restaurants.

The giant hiccup
With this thought process, Pista House was established on July 27, 1997 and the business soon started flourishing. Then, all of a sudden, came an unforeseen disaster in the form of a false article in a vernacular daily that took away all the charm of the business. “It resulted in a huge loss and debts to the family which later forced me to shut down the bakery. I had only '10 in my pocket and my second daughter, Muzeema, had 1040 C fever. I could not even take her to the hospital. I had no option but to sell whatever I owned in order to raise money,” says the first-generation restaurateur.

Unwrapping the challenge further, Majeed says, “When my bakery was in a crisis, I had the option to either live or die with debts. But when I realised I have to live for my six children, I gave my very best to face the world. I had the responsibility of my family, staff and customers; I had to take care of them. It’s a commitment that I always make and take back from them. That motivation kept pushing me forward!" Clearly, this one incident changed Majeed! In order to fight the deprivation, in 1998 he decided to venture into the haleem business. And who would have imagined that this signature dish of his would go on to become one of India’s most famous delicacies with a special geographical indication (GI) tag? “The journey of Pista House was not easy until it was awarded the GI status in 2010; it came after putting in a lot of efforts to maintain the standard quality,” shares Majeed.

And the Haleem lives on!
The dish, from the Nizam period in the city, is loved, relished and in demand round the globe. In order to make it available both across the world, the brand has tied up with Gati courier services. Interestingly, Majeed had earlier roped in the Indian postal department to distribute his famous Haleem across the state.
Pista House’s Haleem has steadily built a reputation as the number one choice even for the rich and famous. “We have clients right from Salman Khan and Shah Rukh Khan to Rana Daggubati, Prabhas and the likes of Dia Mirza, Sania Mirza and N. Chandrababu Naidu’s family, to name a few. Some order it home and a few have been seen even at the centre,” says Mohddis Ali, Majeed’s younger son.

A legacy in the making
Family dynamics mean heightened confrontation, but also greater loyalty. No wonder then Majeed’s sons are the face, and future, of his company. “The hurdles that I faced have made my sons very strong. My confidence in them has made our bond stronger and the result is that my elder son manages more than 100 workers alone at the production unit and my younger son is a sharp head in marketing. I have never pressured them to join the business,” says the Haleem ambassador.

Spilling the beans about the ingredients to make it big in the food business, 24-year-old Mohddis Ali says, “It’s easy to be creative when you don’t give yourself any boundaries or specific parameters for creating dishes.” 28-year-old Mohammed Abdul Mohsi, Majeed’s elder son, feels blessed to have learnt and worked under a man “who always treats us as his priority”.  “His style of experimenting with recipes, innovative skills, punctuality and emphasis on quality and hygiene motivated me to continue his legacy after receiving the best of his teachings,” says Mohsi. Over the years, this united family’s food business has grown from just one restaurant to 10 branches within the city and four outlets abroad.