Those who live in and around Versova need no introduction to Suraj Lama Momos. But for those who aren’t familiar, it’s heaven for those wanting to have the finest momos in Mumbai.
Owned and run by Lama, a celebrity driver turned entrepreneur, it offers over 65 types of momos, from tandoori momos to pahadi momos, achari momos, peri-peri momos, Lama special pan-fried momos, and many others, available in vegetarian, paneer, mushroom, chicken, and mutton options. Each plate carrying eight momos is served with three kinds of dips: a fiery red chutney, an orange peanut chutney, and mayonnaise. Those ordering their tandoori momos are also served a green mint chutney.
When we arrived at his outpost in Versova around 6 pm on a weekday, Suraj Lama Momos was bustling with activity. Lama was busy managing the cash counter while a group of young people—mostly from his village—were occupied packing orders for Swiggy and Zomato and delivering plates of steaming hot momos to customers waiting outside or dining upstairs. The pace of activity was so intense that it took Lama a full 30 minutes before he could excuse himself and sit down with us for a chat.
Going back in time
Suraj was 14 years old when he left his village, Mirik, in Darjeeling and came to Mumbai for better work opportunities. He took up a few odd jobs before finding a career as a driver—a job he did for nearly a quarter of a century, ferrying around actors like Shahid Kapoor and Sonakshi Sinha and working for production houses like Dharma.
“I worked with a lot of dedication and saw people I worked with as my own family, but sometimes I wasn’t seen as equal. It bothered me,” he shared, recalling the incident that acted as the final nail in the coffin.
“I drove an actor to the set. There was a child who wanted to take a photo with the actor and had been waiting for a long time. I thought of helping that child, but when I conveyed his wish to the actor, they refused. I didn’t feel good.”
Lama quit his job and even convinced his wife Vijayata, who was then working as a cook for the late singer KK, to quit as well, suggesting they would do something of their own.
“In hindsight, it was a big risk. We both were earning around Rs 30,000 each, spending half of it running our home and saving the rest. The gamble paid off, but it could have gone in another direction as well,” he said, adding that the reason he decided to enter the food space is because his wife is fabulous at it.
“I don’t tell her this often, but she is,” he said and burst into laughter before adding, “Momos, which are readily available back home, weren’t a common sight in Mumbai back then, so we thought of selling momos.”
Interestingly, months before this, he had once made actor Sonakshi Sinha and his family sample his wife’s momos; they loved them, too.
Determined, Lama also sold off his bike and got himself a cycle, modified to serve as an on-the-move pop-up stall. Starting March 2017, Vijayata would prepare about 15 plates of momos in two variants – vegetarian and non-vegetarian steamed momos, and Lama would sell them in and around the bylanes of Lokhandwala, Versova, and Seven Bungalows.
“In no time, people started queuing, and we started falling short on supplies. So a couple of months later, I set up a roadside eatery there,” he said, pointing at the space opposite his current brick-and-mortar store in Versova. “In fact, when I first asked the owner of our current store to lease the space to me, he said ‘aapke baski nahi hai (you won’t be able to afford it)’ and later, he himself reached out to me,” he added.
The rest, as they say, is history. Today, Suraj Lama Momos has two self-owned stores in Versova and Malad, and nearly half a dozen franchise stores across the city. He is also receiving requests from Pune, Nashik, and Gujarat.
“I can’t accept them now. It is important to maintain quality. Today, we have a central kitchen in Mumbai, overseen entirely by my wife, with a staff of 25, preparing about 16,000 momos daily across various options. It is these momos, cooked till about 90 per cent, that go to each store, whether run by us or a franchise. Until I can do that in another city, I won’t expand,” he said.
Going forward
What’s next for Suraj Lama Momos? “We are opening a store in Kandivali,” he said. But what’s the end goal? “To move back to my village and be with my children. They have always stayed there with their grandparents because my wife and I had full-time jobs. I visit them every three months, but at some point, I would like to live with them,” he added.
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