Chandra Bhan Prasad is a businessman and dalit entrepreneur who founded Dalit Foods to fight the caste based discrimination practiced in the Indian food industry. He was born into a Pasi community in Uttar Pradesh and had experienced systematic prejudice against the Dalits. His mission was to promote food that were traditionally associated with Dalits—often dismissed as "poor man’s diet"—by rebranding them as high-quality, healthy and nutritious.

 

The Challenge: Dalit-branded food was not easy to sell in a caste-sensitive market. Due to this, Chandra Bhan Prasad faced a lot of challenges. Initially, there was a very slow growth with an average of just 10 orders a day. He empowered dalit women and involved them in production to dismantle caste biases. He also saw an opportunity to source ingredients from water-starved regions like Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, and Rajasthan.

 

The Breakthrough: Today, Dalit Foods sells different varieties of everyday products like turmeric powder, chilli powder, and mango pickle, ranging from ₹3,000 to ₹5,000 daily.  Part of the revenue earned from sales goes to the Dalit vendors, creating a sustainable economic model. This venture is more than just a business, it’s a social experiment to see if India has overcome their biases for food.