MUMBAI — The number of registered dabbawalas in Mumbai has declined from around 4,500 in 2018 to roughly 1,500 today, according to the Mumbai Tiffin Box Suppliers Association. The drop stems from sustained shifts in workplace habits and rising competition from digital food delivery services.
Dabbawalas, who deliver home-cooked meals in lunchboxes called dabbas, once formed a vast network across Mumbai, transporting up to 50,000 tiffins daily at their peak. Each dabba is marked with an alphanumeric code that guides its journey from home to office and back, a system developed in the late 19th century and formalized in 1890 by Mahadeo Bachche with about 100 workers.
The pandemic disrupted the dabbawala system when offices closed in 2020 and remote work became widespread. Even after workplaces reopened, hybrid and remote schedules reduced daily demand. "After the lockdown, work-from-home started. Some people now go to the office only two or three times a week. This had a big impact on Mumbai's dabbawalas," said Kiran Gavande, secretary of the Mumbai Tiffin Box Suppliers Association.
Simultaneously, online platforms like Swiggy and Zomato, along with cloud kitchens, have drawn customers by offering restaurant meals at low prices. Dabbawalas previously charged about 2,000 rupees ($21) per month for daily home-cooked deliveries, a model now struggling to retain clients.
Balu Bhagu Shinde, who worked as a dabbawala for 20 years, saw his customer count fall from 15–20 per day to just two by late 2020. He now drives a tuktuk and earns around 15,000 rupees monthly—less than his prior income. "There are no customers, no money - what should we do? We are struggling to survive. I am cutting down on household expenses, but I have three children whose education matters the most. At times I have had to borrow money," Shinde said.
Mauli Bachche, another two-decade veteran, now supplements his dabbawala work by collecting daily savings deposits from shopkeepers for a finance company. He works up to 15 hours a day and travels more than 100km (62 miles) across the city to make ends meet.