Pujas too complex to arrange? Mangalbhavan.in lets you book your own puja, pandit and materials online

All of us have grown up watching our grandmothers or mothers doing pujas during festivals, celebrations and other special occasions. For larger celebrations, they would call a pandit or priest home to lead the puja. They made arranging for all the materials and pandits look easy. But when we tried it, it was difficult sourcing puja kits, authentic material, and pandits.

Delhi-based entrepreneur Amit Jain (34), an ex-Airtel employee, observed that these difficulties were hindering new generations from going ahead with pujas. He constantly saw youth feeling disconnected from the whole process because it was complex and time-consuming to arrange for material. Further, pandits would be unavailable at the last minute. Looking to solve this, Jain realised that if he brought all the elements of a puja online, he could make them easily accessible from one location.

Thus, the idea of Mangalbhavan.in was born. In 2017, Jain partnered with vedacharya Sadashiv Ameta (40) to launch the website and create a one-stop-hub for organising pujas/havans at temples or homes anywhere in India. Mangalbhavan makes available materials required for pujas either as puja kits, individual products, or puja services. Products can be purchased both online and offline through its partner retailers.

“We wanted to inform and educate youth about the spiritual and religious foundations behind pujas and other ceremonies,” says Amit Jain, Founder, Mangalbhavan. “Many times, the new generation  may feel pujas are superstitious and complex to arrange. Thus, we want to make the process easier and arrange pujas in a modern way.”

The website can be used to purchase all sorts of puja material and also book your own puja and pandit. Saket-based Mangalbhavan has pandits enrolled with it, and specialises in ‘last minute pandit availability.’

How it works

On the Mangalbhavan website, a customer can book a pandit for any puja required. Bookings can be done offline or on call as well. “Our pandit booking service is helpful because in many cases, other pandits who are sourced in regular ways could be unavailable for some reason. We offer a last-minute pandit service for cases where the puja must continue even if the previous pandit cannot make it,” Jain says.

The business has in-house pandits. “We are not an aggregator, but we have enrolled them in several ways. For example, we pay a fixed amount to some of them to be enrolled with us and be available when customers have a last-minute request,” he explains.

“Our last minute panditji availability in all languages and regions is appreciated by most of our users. Our pandits help them understand each process in detail, and hence boosts knowledge of the pujas.”

Mangalbhavan is bootstrapped, and the founders have invested around Rs 50 lakh into the business so far. “Our investments are ongoing and we continue to put in our money. Our finances depend on the purchase orders we get from our retail clients and customers,” Jain says.

“When we partner with retail chains like Big Bazaar, More, etc, their purchase orders will be around Rs 15 to 20 lakh. Therefore, we need to invest into the business first to source all the material and products to fulfill the order. This is why our investments into the company are ongoing.”

“Depending on the orders, we clock around Rs 10 lakh a month,” he says.

The business is always on its toes and relies on efficient teamwork to run things smoothly. ”We have an effective combination between the founders where our skills complement each other,” Jain says. “I handle all business development and product distribution, and Sadashiv, being a vedacharya, handles product/service quality and procurement.”

Milestones and challenges

Mangalbhavan originally started out as a puja service business and later diversified into products. “During the course of providing pandits for all type of pujas, we realised that for a puja, samagris are equally important,” he says. “Not many retail shops provide authentic items which are used as per the shastra. Thus, we took this opportunity and ventured into products.”

During Shivratri last year, Mangalbhavan delivered Shiv puja thalis with 11 essential items and fresh flowers to 2,000 Gurugram residents early in the morning. “We managed this with the help of grocery delivery providers and reached it to them before they left for the pujas at temples. This seems to be small number, but packing thalis with fresh flowers and ensuring timely delivery was a tedious task for a small team like ours. No complaints were received from the users and we were appreciated by the delivery partner,” Jain says.

“Since our company is into both service and products, we understand the entire process and this makes us different from our competitors. Most of them are mere aggregators or only sell products. Our unique founders’ combination and team structure makes us stronger than other players run by tech guys or individual experts,” he adds.

However, Mangalbhavan faces a shortage of pandits. “It is not easy to find a lot of pandits who are very knowledgeable and want to come onto our platform. Thus, we are working towards arranging formal education in the vedas across all districts of India,” Jain says. Mangalbhavan plans to expands its product line and supply chain this year, and also look forward for corporate tie-ups to make its products and services more accessible.

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