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Eying a late-career change? Worry not, as you’ve got company.

Gaurav Kejriwal spent 12 years working a corporate IT job, where his
core expertise was in networking and communications. During this
decade, he worked alongside clients from prominent businesses
such as ICICI Bangkok, PricewaterhouseCoopers and TATA Steel. As
an Indian expat living in Thailand, he thoroughly missed authentic
Indian vegetarian cuisine, craving familiar street avours and mithai.
Encouraged by his family, Gaurav had a career epiphany and decided to
change paths. So without any prior knowledge of the food industry, or a
clear vision of what the endpoint would be, Gaurav took on ful lling and
passion-igniting opportunities.

Gaurav is not your average restaurateur, nor is he simply an IT head.
The hardworking entrepreneur is now the owner of two Saras outlets,
and has launched his own company Modus that has several brands
under the group’s umbrella, namely, Mithai o ering Indian desserts,
Paak providing outdoor catering services and ChefZone selling
commercial kitchen equipment.

It has been seven years since he has forayed into this eld and Gaurav
doesn’t regret any prior career choices. After all, it was his former jobs
that gave him the necessary skills to pursue a proli c profession as an
entrepreneur. As he humbly says, “IT was and will always remain my rst
love.” With his sheer determination and perseverance, it seems there
isn’t any role Gaurav can’t master.

Why did you decide to venture into a di erent eld so late in your career?
I wanted to feel prepared before starting something I knew I would dedicate
all my time and e ort to. I wanted to take the best opportunity and do it at
the right time. Hailing from a traditional business family, I always knew I
wanted to pursue entrepreneurship. I did explore the option of venturing into
the IT domain, but the idea did not materialise. My desire for food developed
more when I moved to Thailand, as the choice of authentic vegetarian Indian
options was limited. I used to crave Indian street food and sweets, and my
family suggested that I bring those avours here.

You launched Saras in 2010 on Sukhumvit Soi 20. How did you come up
with the concept?
I wanted to o er a variety of street food with fair pricing that caters to all
age groups. It was convenient to bring something like Saras under one
roof, where you have a variety of regional Indian cuisines that span various
communities. We have rare specialties like Daal bati churma from Rajasthan,
Dosa from the South of India and Chaat chowpatty which is a popular street
food. This food concept was also not yet common in Thailand, so I thought it
would be new and interesting to introduce it.

So how does Saras stand apart from its many competitors such as
Dosa King and Sri Ganesha?
We believe in healthy competition and we would like to complement rather
than compete with each other. It is better to create an industry where we
have enough space for each one of us to share and grow. I have personally
been to Dosa King and liked their food, and Sri Ganesha is still one of my
favourite places where I have many fond memories. This was all before the
launch of Saras. Competition helps us set our benchmarks high and face our
challenges head on in our journey of self-improvement.

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