From feeding the soul to selling food for survival

FOR comedian Hindravel Chandrabose, laughter gave way to a more serious matter of survival when the Covid-19 pandemic hit Malaysia last year.

Rather than tickling his audience’s funny bone, Hindravel now tries to satisfy their hunger pangs to make ends meet.

For the funny man, the pandemic dealt him and his family a double blow. Apart from his skits, Hindravel was also working at Golden Peacock Travel and Tours, a business started by his father 17 years ago.

He has a lifelong passion for making people laugh and that opportunity to turn his desire into reality came in 2015 when he came across an advertisement for an open mic event (an open call for aspiring comedians and talents) at the Crackhouse Comedy Club in Taman Tun Dr Ismail, Kuala Lumpur.

His idol was George Lopez, so naturally, he tried to emulate the American comedian and actor.

Crackhouse Comedy agreed to give him the stage for three nights a week.

“Naturally, I was nervous at first but my wife Nanthini urged me to give it a shot,” he told theSun.

Nanthini never missed any of his performances and it built his confidence.

Unfortunately, the Covid-19 pandemic hit and laughter came to a halt at the comedy club.

At the family’s travel agency, conditions were no better. “With the airports closed, no one was coming,” he said.

Rather than dwell on their misfortune and wait for help, the Chandraboses assessed the situation and eventually decided to return to an old family business, selling nasi briyani, a favourite lunchtime meal for Malaysians.

“We named the business ‘Mr Bose Briyani’, which is my father’s nickname,” Hindravel said.

“It made sense since our friends address him as ‘Mr Bose’ (which incidentally sounds like ‘Boss’).”

The family began by focusing on taking orders online or through WhatsApp for delivery.

“It was difficult, but we gave our best each day,” Hindravel said.

However, the movement control order (MCO) made delivery difficult.

“That was when we looked into the food truck concept,” he said.

Since August last year, the Mr Bose Briyani food truck has been a favourite stop for nasi briyani lovers.

The day begins at 5am when every member of the family helps out cooking the rice and dishes. The food is then loaded onto the truck at 9.30am for Hindravel to start making his rounds.

His food truck is usually located in Section 14, Petaling Jaya by 10am on weekdays.

He goes to Brickfields during the weekends, and before trading hours were limited to 8pm by the MCO, he could be found in Bangsar, Kuala Lumpur.

He said the business has been doing well despite the many challenges. The food is sold out almost every day.

Apart from the food truck, the family continues to do takeaways and deliveries.

The family recipe caters to those who love it spicy and also for those who cannot take it too hot.

“If you want something not too spicy, try the Bose Chicken Briyani. The chicken is cooked in a mixture of rice and spices. Another favourite is the Bose Chicken Salna, a curry that comes with the briyani. This one is special because it’s my father’s recipe,” Hindravel said.

For those who like it spicy, there are the Chicken Varuvel and Bose Mutton Chukka.

To complete the meal, his sister has introduced Salted Coffee and Salted Chocolate drinks.

The Chandrabose family still takes orders through WhatsApp at 012 345 1144 or via Facebook.