Roohi Oomerbhoy Jaikishan

To The Gourmet Manor Born

Here is a woman born with a silver spoon, whose life is further encrusted with gold trimmings and gemstones. An heiress whose sound upbringing instilled in her, appreciation and gratitude to lead her charmed life with care and humility

Text: Farzana Contractor     Photographs: Ryan Martis

“Knock knock,” “Who’s there?” “Postman!” “Postman?? My favourite cookin’ oil, yeaaaa!” Except, Postman is now RRO. And we love this oil, just the same. Meet Roohi Oomerbhoy Jaikishan, heiress of a food empire, which began with Postman, a premium oil and went on to retail everything from pasta to olive oil to quality dairy products. A family business, making and retailing groundnut, mustard and sesame oils; a brand to reckon with. Trusted by housewives all over India, this cooking medium was a huge hotseller. Still is, under its changed avatar of RRO. Except, from the days of her grandfather, the company has grown and grown, first through her dad and later Riyad, her brother, and Roohi herself, who was the moving spirit in the marketing department of her company.

Roohi has been involved for over two decades with running the family-owned business, how does it feel? She begins to talk softly, “Firstly I feel blessed that I was born where I was. I couldn’t have asked for a better life. Or better parents, or grandparents… I am most fortunate that I have such a wonderful balance in life. Riyad, my brother is younger than I am and we share a great rapport, personal and in our work place, so it all works well.”

I believe it is Roohi’s dynamism and vibrant energy and her brother’s inherent business acumen that is responsible for the duo creating an enviable reputation in the world of the food industry. As a team they are pretty formidable in the FMCG business world. I remember when the UpperCrust Show was launched 20 years ago, RRO broke new ground. It was they who introduced pasta into the Indian market. A product which was soon going to change how we ate. They tied up with a good Italian brand, Barilla, went on to do a price correction, made it affordable to all and went on to storm the market. There was no looking back from that point. Every year the RRO booth got bigger and bigger until we, as organisers, actually put an embargo on the size of the booths! She remembers that and laughs at the memory, “Ya, we really loved to hog the space, the bigger, the better! What can we do, we are a company that lives and breathes fine food. But I must tell you, RRO is not centred on just business and bottom lines but also on finding ways to contribute to the well-being of society – through education of children and adults, with a focus on nutrition, health and holistic living.”

From the days of Barilla, Roohi’s company now distributes a wide range of dairy products which certainly help enhance how we eat; Burrata, Scamorza, Ricotta, Bocconcini, Mozzarella, sour cream, ghee, paneer, shrikhand...

Roohi’s sense of natural creativity is rather compelling. That’s what helps her move through life, a sense of aesthetics that guides her in everything she does, a girlish energy that propels her in the diverse fields that are her domain. Be it as a wife, mum, pet parent, friend or even boss. She is quite the society darling, too. Plays the field with aplomb. Her celebrity parties are talked about, as also her sense of style and fashion, which is pretty phenomenal. So, let’s get talking about that.

“Look, I come from a stock where entertaining well and dressing well was the norm. To be honest, my mother was the real fashion icon, not I. I just follow my mood, dress easy. It may look like I slog over my looks but I don’t. I am also a quick dresser. I don’t pre-meditate on clothes to be worn. But my mum, she was at another level. As a kid, I was so conscious about how she dressed. Not like other mummies. I was awkward, even embarrassed when she came to school wearing not a sari but smart western outfits, trousers, if you please!” exclaims Roohi, rolling her eyes.

What she does appreciate is that she was lucky enough to inherit some great fashion accessories which belonged to her mother. She says she wears her clothes, even her shoes since they are the same size. “I don’t really need to shop. I still wear her Zandra Rhodes outfits. And believe me, her collection of evening bags is the envy of my friends. I have a number of them, some with the old logo of Gucci! I have never bought an evening bag of my own, ever. Don’t need to, won’t need to, either!” says Roohi, merrily. I learn that Roohi’s mum’s chiffon saris were the stuff dreams are made of. Hand-embroidered, they were created by a then very famous establishment called Carosh, situated at Malabar Hill. Says Roohi, “They made very good stuff. And mummy would source some great sequins from France so they could use them in her saris. I was too young then to know, but now realise just what a fashion statement that was.”

Roohi learnt the art of entertaining from her mother, yes, but more so from her paternal grandmother who she called Ma. Her granny, Khatija Sattar Oomerbhoy, was the one who brought up Roohi in the joint family that they all lived in, in South Bombay, near Chowpatty, in a building owned by them. Her face literally lighting up, Roohi informs, “Oh my God, my grandmother was a stunner and her lunches and dinners were legendary. I was really close to her. In fact, it was she who raised me, pampered me. My parents were quite the travellers. Daddy was away most of the time on business trips and mummy would accompany him. But living with Ma and Abba (grandfather), my many chachas, chachisand any number of cousins always around, helped. None of us were ever at loss for company.”

They always ate together. She recalls meal times were always special, “You know I never ate meals alone, ever. Breakfast, lunch or dinner. Breakfast was always laid out on the table from a certain hour and it was like being in a hotel, each of us would make it to the dining room in our own time, depending on when we awoke. We would order eggs to our liking the previous night and like magic it would appear when we sat at the table. The staff was so well-trained by Ma. She was amazing. Wanted us to eat well and be healthy, which in those days meant rich food! So malai was a constant, which we kids actually loved and would fight for, for there was only so much that the boiled milk would produce! It was always walloped up the fastest! Butter and jams were always home-made. The menu was fixed for different days of the week, but when there was leftover kheema from dinner, we loved it! Often there was paya for breakfast, too.” She feels blessed for the family and sentimental legacy she has been left with, way beyond the business one. “My Ma created such an atmosphere of love and affection. Subliminally, the joy of sharing food got to all of us, basically it came from her. Power lies in the hearth, right? Good food made from age-old unique recipes, the sense of abundance of food, the sheer joy of sharing, conversations… all get entwined into nostalgia and life-long memories.”

Roohi dips into her memory pool. “Believe me both Ma and my own mum were incredible hostesses. They could manage a huge dinner at the drop of a hat, just like that. And whenever there was one being held, there would be such excitement in the house; the menu-planning, the bazaar shopping, the clothes one would wear that night! The good thing is all of us are still in touch, the next generation and the next, the granddaughters and their daughters. This continuity is a gift.” Roohi has learned much from all her growing years of being around strong and confident women. She has used her upbringing well. Being associated with the global gourmet food business, she has excelled in hosting countless celebrity parties, using her well-honed skills and lessons learnt, from all her experiences. In turn, helping her take her business to greater heights.

Roohi thrived around family. Says it was pure joy to have lived in a joint family. That she misses it now. Kids today don’t know about the concept, therefore they don’t know what they are missing. Which includes her own children, now teenagers. Roohi is married to Chetan Jaikishan who also hails from a family involved in the food business from his mother’s side, the Mariwalas. “Actually my ma-in-law, Pallavi Jaikishan also comes from a large joint family, so when I was newly married it was very easy for us to connect and bond. We had immediately forged a great understanding, thanks to being in joint families.” 

Pallavi is a well-known and well-respected fashion designer. She also happens to be a great cook, who, though a vegetarian, excels at cooking non-vegetarian food, without even tasting it. It was thanks to her husband who loved eating good meat! She was married to the legendary music composer, Jaikishan of the Shankar-Jaikishan fame. Says Roohi, who can’t cook to save her life, “So strong was the kitchen memory of my parental home that after I was married to Chetan, I couldn’t have a kitchen of my own and frankly didn’t want one. So I just had a teeny weeny pantry.” But since the passing away of her much-loved parents, Roohi is now back, living in her Nana, Salim Baig Mohammad’s, utterly beautiful, sea-facing 100-year-old mansion, down the road from where she grew up. It was her mother, Noor, who grew up there and who looked after the heritage mansion with love and passion. It’s where Roohi now entertains and lives her gorgeous life, under God’s grace.

Roohi is a product of good convent education having studied at the Convent of Jesus and Mary, Fort. After being at Sophia College for a short while she went away to study History of Art at Sotheby’s, London. “I do love art in all forms. Visiting museums and art galleries has always been a passion,” says Roohi, who loves spending time in Europe. “That’s one reason London has been a favourite destination. As also Florence, where my children literally grew up, we went there that often. We all love going to the vineyards of Tuscany, spending weeks in the middle of nowhere!” Doing the complete opposite of her routine life is her idea of a holiday. Living in the slow lane, eating leisurely, going for long drives, “a bucolic slow-paced life” is a treat for her.

Where else does she like to travel? “Phuket, that’s a family favourite. We love going to Somerset too. Such a rural county of England. The reason I like to go there is to visit Hauser and Wirth, a wonderful art gallery. The Newt, a country estate with magnificent gardens and woodlands is indescribable! The Old Pharmacy is a haunt with us, such a fine relaxed café and bistro. There are very many amazing restaurants in Somerset.”

What about nearer home, The Middle East, now such a craze.  “Oh God, I travelled a great deal in this region, Beirut, Kuwait and other places in The Middle East where my dad had business, but I hated those places. Mind you, Dubai was not what it is today. It’s all changed!”

Any places that she wants to visit? “You won’t believe this, it’s bizarre, but I have never made it to Greece, though I have travelled all through Europe! I even have good friends in Athens, so that is one place I have to go to!” concludes Roohi.

And what is her favourite food? “I am a staunch miya girl at heart. Give me a good biryani and I am happy. If I could, I would eat it every day. I also like kheema, every way it is prepared; in lal masala, hara masala, with aloo, with palak and methi, with peas, you name it, I love kheema! And it’s all cooked at home. Never from out. I may not cook but I have trained each of my staff!”

And what else does the miyagirl do? Prompt comes the reply, “Oh, I pray, say the namaz. I also fast during Ramzan. I have learnt to read the Quran, even been canned a few times while at it, by the Janab. I have been on innumerable umrahs, though never on Hajj, unfortunately. And now as I get older, I feel a certain sense of claustrophobia so I don’t know if I will be able to join the vast mass of people at Hajj.”  Never mind, if the call comes, you will go, I think to myself.

Last, but certainly not the least, in the charmed existence of Roohi Oomerbhoy Jaikishan is a certain Hibiki, who I think completes the picture for me. The most darling Maltese ever. Adorable Hibiki (yes, named after the Japanese whisky) is the centre of Roohi’s life. Obviously he travels with her, first class, wherever Roohi goes. Last I know, he was happily peeing on a wall, off leash, at St. James’ Park, with Roohi walking languorously behind him.