The famous Dabbawalas of Mumbai, who deliver 350,000 lunch boxes or ‘tiffins’ from home to office in India’s megalopolis will be part of the Indian summer festival in Vancouver that opens next week.

Two representatives of the Mumbai Tiffin Box Suppliers Association will travel for the first time to Vancouver. 

Spokesperson Subodh Sangle, and Supervisor Kiran Gavande, will show a short film about their work, and share their stories, organizational methods, and tips for entrepreneurial success. 

Every day, 5000 Dabbawalas (or lunch couriers) deliver 350,000 lunches to their clients in stacked metal lunchboxes, mainly in Mumbai.

It is the lunchbox that gives these culinary couriers their name: dabba = luncbox and walla = worker. 

Each lunchbox is picked up at the client’s home (where it has been filled with home cooked food by a family member) and delivered to the office (still warm, in time for lunch). On this trip across the megacity, each lunchbox will pass through the hands of at least twelve Dabbawalas, travelling by bicycle, local train, and foot.

This in itself is an incredible enough operation, but what makes it truly remarkable, is the operation’s error margin – an unbelievably low 1 in 6 million. A 125 year old operation, the Dabbawalas have only recently shot to fame, with a Forbes Magazine article in 2002, which acknowledged them as having exceeded the criteria for Six Sigma certification. Then came a Harvard Business Study, and soon Richard Branson joined them for a full day, riding along on Mumbai’s overpacked local trains, to learn the tricks of their trade.

The festival kicks off on the evening of July 3 with the much-anticipated opening gala, being held once again in the spectacular Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Classical Chinese Garden. One of Vancouver’s most celebrated chefs, Vikram Vij, will curate a culinary tour of Asia, leading the tastebuds of attendees on a trip stretching from India to Iran, Bangladesh and Japan.

Opening weekend highlights include a talk by Commonwealth prize-winning author Rana Dasgupta on his new book Capital, a portrait of 21st century Delhi. There will be an outdoor film screening in Victory Square Park, with a Laughing Yoga class to warm up the evening, and food trucks to keep movie watchers going.

A major highlight of the first weekend is an evening of Sufi poetry and music headlined by American poet and interpreter Coleman Barks, the man responsible for making the 13th-century Persian poet Rumi the best-selling poet in North America. The performance, entitled ‘A Hundred Ways to Kneel and Kiss the Ground,’ will be held at St Andrew’s-Wesley Church and set to live music by renowned sitarist Mohamed Assani and barbat maestro Hossein Behroozinia, combining Rumi’s poetry with the music of Tajikistan, Iran and Turkey.

Day four of the festival features ‘Passages: Cultural Legacies of the Komagata Maru’ at the Museum of Vancouver. This evening of cross-media storytelling features The Neelamjit Dhillon Jazz Quartet and poets Phinder Dulai, Renee Saklikar and Priscila Uppal. Uppal, a renowned Ottawa-born poet of Brazilian and Punjabi-Sikh descent has been named “Canada’s coolest poet” by Time Out London (UK), and has found inspiration in everything from multicultural clashes to the aesthetics of Olympic sports. Her latest book, “Projection” was shortlisted for the Governor General’s Literary Award.

“Whether rooted in food, dance, music, literature, business, politics or social justice, Indian Summer is proud to host exciting dialogues concerning both the history and the future of Canada’s relationship with South Asia,” says artistic director Sirish Rao. “As always, there’s an abundance of stimulating and thought-provoking events, both free and ticketed, to keep Vancouverites and visitors busy throughout the 10-day festival.”

Mesmerizing visual art by graphic novelist Orijit Sen (nicknamed the Michelangelo of India) graces the Woodward’s Atrium for an entire month. His giant mural from the Moshe Safdie-designed Khalsa Heritage Museum in Punjab is on display for the first time in Canada. He will be in conversation with David Wong, creator of a graphic novel on the Chinese community in BC, and Michael Nicoll Yahgulanaas, visual artist and author of ‘Red’, which melds the traditional Haida art form with Japanese Manga.

In another Canadian first, London-based speakers series 5x15 comes to Vancouver through Indian Summer, featuring five electric speakers for 15 minutes each at The Fox Cabaret. Speakers include Zarqa Nawaz (creator of Little Mosque on the Prairie) and spoken word legend Ivan Coyote.

The festival culminates with slam poets, musicians and DJs at the Lit & Sound Cabaret on July 11 and the festival’s signature Dinner by Starlight held every year at a secret location on July 12.

More events will continue to be announced as the summer draws closer, and the full calendar will be available on the event website: www.indiansummerfestival.ca

Established in 2011, Indian Summer Arts Society is a Vancouver-based not-for-profit organization whose mandate is to foster cultural collaborations and dialogue between Canada and South Asia, and within communities in Canada.