Around Town: South Bombay’s beloved Irani bakery Yazdani isn’t shutting down; baton to be passed on to 28-year-old Zyraa Zend

Perzon Zend represents the 3rd procreation inheriting the iconic Yazdani Bakery

Yazdani Bakery’s communicative dates backmost to the 1950s, erstwhile Merwan Zend Kabir, Perzon’s grandfather, acquired a stock successful an Irani edifice astatine the precise spot Yazdani present stands. Later, his elder son, Zend Merwan Zend—Perzon’s father—purchased the remaining share, and together, they established Yazdani Bakery & Restaurant, present a Mumbai institution.

However, whispers of closure gained traction successful caller years, peculiarly aft the Covid-19 pandemic. Since the passing of Zend Merwan Zend and his younger member Parvez Irani successful 2021—both of whom were iconic figures astatine the bakery—the Zend household hasn’t maintained a imperishable beingness astatine the bakery. Trusted long-time employees present antheral the counter, and eating services stay suspended. Adding substance to the speculation is simply a caller show-cause announcement issued to Yazdani and 286 different bakeries, mandating a power to cleaner, greener fuels specified arsenic energy oregon PNG. The announcement warns that non-compliance could effect successful closures.

“The Covid-19 pandemic led galore of our employees to instrumentality to their hometowns, and they ne'er came back. At Yazdani, we usage a peculiar custom-made blend of Irani beverage that requires precise brewing and a skilled hand. We would alternatively not service it than person it done poorly,” explained Zend, adding that the bakery’s ownership has precocious transitioned, present shared betwixt him, his brothers Zorast and Zyros, and his relative Tirandas, the lad of Pervez Irani.

He further elaborated connected the challenges posed by the authorities notice. “If the announcement is implemented, each wood-fired bakeries volition beryllium forced to unopen down. A one-month timeframe is acold excessively abbreviated for specified a important transition, and astir bakeries won’t beryllium capable to spend the caller ovens, particularly without authorities subsidies akin to those provided for star panels. The contiguous request is to get a enactment order, forestall bakery closures, and guarantee that the communal antheral isn’t deprived of his regular bread. We are assured that our governmental leaders volition find a win-win outcome,” helium said.

Foreigners enjoying mawa barroom astatine Yazdani Bakery

Highlighting the irony, helium added, “Across the world, radical are preserving these bakeries and celebrating them arsenic artisans, but we aren’t. We’re going backmost to wood-fired pizzas portion sidesplitting our ain practice bakeries.”

The beginning

Established successful 1950 astatine a tract that erstwhile housed a Japanese bank, Yazdani Bakery, with its sky-blue exterior and red-painted roof, though present peeling, stay iconic. Inside, the bakery retains its nostalgic charm with vintage posters, household photographs, a metallic Urban Heritage Award from 2007, and a timeless ambience. The blackboard paper extracurricular continues the tradition, presently promoting French bulb bites with the chiseled sweetness of caramelised onions. A caller summation is simply a partition adorned with artwork by assorted artists who person captured Yazdani’s essence and talented their creations to the owners.

“The reddish rafters you spot were ever here, possibly due to the fact that this was erstwhile a Japanese bank. As for the bluish walls, I’m not definite why, but I bash cognize that entity bluish was my father’s favourite colour,” shared Perzon Zend.

Legend has it that Merwan Zend Kabir, the laminitis of Yazdani, began his vocation arsenic an apprentice astatine the legendary Rising Sun Bakery adjacent Alexandria Cinema successful Golpitha. This bakery utilized accepted methods of bread-making, akin to sourdough. The method progressive kneading dough successful khamir, an Iranian method wherever a lump of dough from the erstwhile day’s batch acts arsenic a earthy ferment for the next.

“My gramps was a precise hardworking man,” said Zend. “He worked his mode up to go a inferior spouse astatine Rising Sun Bakery. After selling his share, helium cycled astir the metropolis searching for a abstraction to unfastened his bakery. That’s erstwhile helium recovered this spot.”

Baking has ever been a household contented astatine Yazdani, with each subordinate contributing to its paper implicit the decades.

Inside Yazdani Bakery

“My begetter created the jumbo sandwich bread, which was supplied to restaurants and hotels for their sandwiches. Parvez Kako invented the large ladi pav, portion their member Rashid Kako, a pharmacist by profession, introduced multigrain breadstuff 20 years agone on with gingerbread. Zyros, who studied baking astatine Sophia College and aboriginal taught there, developed focaccia bread, French rolls, baguettes, and luck cookies. I introduced olive and herb toast, rolls, and Brun toast,” Zend proudly shared.

The future

Will eating services resume astatine Yazdani Bakery, and who volition instrumentality complaint of the restaurant? “Dining volition restart. How soon? That, I can’t say,” shared Perzon Zend. He added that arsenic Zoroastrians, they worship fire, and their bakery, which uses fire, is akin to a spot of worship for them.

“Our bakery has ever operated, adjacent during the riots of the 1992-93 erstwhile the full metropolis came to a standstill. We ensured that nary 1 who came to america near empty-handed! That committedness is wherefore we told our begetter that this bakery should beryllium inherited by each of us, not conscionable 1 person,” helium explained.

Looking ahead, Zend shared his imaginativeness for the bakery’s future. While helium would emotion to sojourn Yazdani each evening to chat with customers—a contented helium and the generations earlier him enjoyed—the program is to walk connected the bequest to the 4th generation.

“My niece, Zyraa Zend (daughter of Zyros and the marque manager of Fortune Cookies India) has studied baking and is presently moving astatine a fine-dining edifice successful Goa (Marai by Malini Akerkar and her daughter, Amalia). She volition beryllium the 1 to transportation guardant the Yazdani bequest nether the mentorship of her begetter and masterbaker, Zyros,” Zend revealed.

Will the adjacent procreation sphere Yazdani’s old-world charm? “They amended do,” Zend replied firmly, his code underscoring his seriousness. “Things volition beryllium spruced up, but lone arsenic overmuch arsenic needed,” helium added.