This Ganesh Chaturthi, the vibrant streets of Maharashtra were not just filled with the echoes of festive songs and the fervent prayers of devotees, but also witnessed a modern twist in celebration practices, thanks to Zomato.
As the state decked up for one of its most beloved festivals, the food delivery giant rolled out a new feature enabling customers to order ‘Bappa cha prasad’ directly through its app, encapsulating the essence of the festival with a digital ribbon, as per a press release.
Within hours of the feature going live on the day of Ganesh Chaturthi, Zomato delivered over 2,000 boxes of prasad from famed mandals like Dagdusheth Halwai Trust across Mumbai and Pune. But the festive appetite didn’t stop at prasad. Zomato reported unprecedented sales of modak, a sweet dumpling that is synonymous with the festival. Searches for modak on the platform surged from 50,000 on 6th September to 125,000 on 7th September, with 58 modak boxes being ordered every minute at the peak of the festival.
Aligning with traditional practices, Zomato offered modak boxes in auspicious sets of 11 and 21, featuring over 10 varieties. Ukadiche Modak, a traditional steamed variant made from rice flour and coconut jaggery filling, was the crowd favourite, comprising 39% of the total modak sales. The digital platform saw a record-breaking order from a Mumbai customer who purchased 42 modak boxes totalling Rs 11,352 in a single day.
The festival also saw a spike in other traditional foods, with mithai and sweets orders growing by 240% compared to typical days.
Local favourites like pav bhaji, samosa pav, and vada pav also saw significant upticks, reflecting a blend of traditional and fast foods in festive consumption.
On a similar note, Swiggy made its mark this Ganesh Chaturthi with an equally innovative initiative.
Swiggy Instamart introduced an ‘Instant Modak’ dispenser on Mumbai’s bustling Carter Road. This unique machine, operational for two days during the festival, captured the hearts of many by dispensing over 1,000 modaks daily at no cost, dispensing around 142 modaks per hour.
The ‘Ghanti Vajwa, Mithai Milwa’ initiative allowed revellers to ring a bell and receive a freshly packed modak, blending technology with tradition to enhance the exhilarating festive spirit.