Mouth-watering startup attracts South Indian angels with Tamil treats

Thenkuzhal murukku. Photo credit: Wikimedia.

Tamil Nadu in South India has an ancient culture that is reflected in its variety of traditional foods. Most outsiders only associate Tamil food with the distinct sambar of lentils and vegetables laced with tamarind or the comforting staple of thair sadam – curd rice tempered with whole spices.

But for someone like me, who has lived there, there are a lot more mouth-watering prospects than sambar, thair sadam, or Chettinad chicken. Every region of Tamil Nadu, in fact, has its specialties. I grew up munching on murukku – a crunchy snack – and Tirunelveli halwa, a sweet recommended to anybody who visits touristy spots in Tirunelveli district.

You may find versions of these delicacies in Indian cities but they are nothing like the local ones. Even in Bangalore, which is only a few hours’ drive from Tamil Nadu, you would be hard put to find some authentic Tirunelveli halwa. But now there’s an online avenue to these goodies sourced from local vendors in Tamil Nadu – foodtech startup NativeSpecial.

Srivilliputhur, Pudupalayam, Nagercoil …

Screenshot from NativeSpecial.

NativeSpecial has an online portal to distribute traditional snacks and sweets from the region. It has raised an undisclosed amount of funding from the Indian Angel Network and Tamil Nadu-based Native Angels Network.

It provides hard-to-find delicacies like Srivilliputhur palkova, Pudupalayam Ragi murukku, and Nagercoil Nendran chips to Tamilians scattered across the country. Even the Tirunelveli halwa – a sticky concoction of wheat, sugar, cardamom powder, ghee (clarified butter), and water – finds its place in the portal. There are halwas of different kinds all over India, but this one derives its unique taste from the Thamirabharani river water – or so they say.

NativeSpecial is looking to expand beyond Indian shores with the funding. “The company senses a huge market potential among South Indians in the US where we had a trial festival sale,” says founder and CEO Baskaran Veluchamy. It uses an inventory-based model to avoid delivery hassles and aims to get certifications for its vendors and snacks to make customers comfortable with ordering their favorite Tamil Nadu snacks online.

The tier-3 city startup based in Karur, Tamil Nadu, has 42 products and 20 vendors on the portal as of now, but expects to expand soon. Another startup Place of Origin, incubated in Bangalore’s Axilor, has a marketplace for ethnic foods from all over India. It recently got acquired by Craftsvilla.