Breaking barriers with a ‘food delivery app’: Rural youth brings urban convenience to villages 

In an inspiring story of innovation and determination, a 30-year-old youth from Shikrapur, a semi-rural town located around 50 kilometres east of Pune, has taken a bold step to address a pressing need in rural Maharashtra — the lack of online food delivery services. Nandakishore Hire, once employed with a Pune-based private company, is now the founder of Maharashtra’s first rural-focused food delivery mobile application, aptly named ‘Ek Plate’. 

His journey from a corporate employee to a grassroots entrepreneur is a testament to the power of local solutions for local challenges. “Every time I visited home, I noticed something — even though people had smartphones and were familiar with apps, there was no way to order food online here,” Nandakishore shared. “Companies like Swiggy and Zomato didn’t cater to us. They stopped services at the city limits. Rural areas were just blank spots on their delivery maps,” he added. 

Frustrated by this gap, Nandakishore saw an opportunity. In 2021, after the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic, he left his job and returned to his hometown of Shikrapur, located on the Pune-Ahilyanagar highway about 30 km from Pune, with a plan to fix this void himself. 

Armed with basic administrative knowledge and a strong vision, Nandakishore started by creating a simple website with the help of a friend to test the waters. “Initially, I launched a website, took orders, picked them up from restaurants, and delivered them on my bike all by myself. It was tough, but every successful delivery felt like a victory,” he recalled. 

He did not just rely on assumptions. “I conducted a detailed survey in Shikrapur. I spoke to restaurant owners, villagers, and young people who were either unemployed or looking for part-time work. The response was overwhelming,” Nandakishore said. 

From these humble beginnings, the service has now evolved into a full-fledged mobile application, currently operational in two small towns and their surrounding villages, with plans to expand further. “Currently, we are providing services in Shikrapur and the Ranjangaon MIDC area. We are preparing to expand to Shirur, Manchar, and Narayangaon as well. Till now, we have onboarded more than 150 restaurants from all these cities in the rural parts of the Pune district,” he said. 

“The idea is not just to deliver food. It’s to create a sustainable model where rural youth can find employment, small eateries can grow, and people can enjoy the same conveniences as those in cities,” Nandakishore emphasized. Currently, over 20 youths from nearby villages are working as delivery partners for the app. 

With pilot areas proving successful, Nandakishore is now aiming higher. “We’re planning to take this service across the entire state of Maharashtra. Every district has untapped potential — people are ready; all they need is a platform.” His plans include launching a multilingual version of the app and offering digital training sessions for rural restaurant owners to help them come online. 

What sets Nandakishore’s model apart is its deep connection to the local ecosystem. “This isn’t a copy of the big players. Our pricing, our delivery system, even our customer service — it’s all tailored for rural Maharashtra. We speak their language, literally and culturally.”  

Restaurant owners and customers echo this transformation. Vinit Pawar, owner of a restaurant in Shikrapur, said, “Before this service started, our customer base was limited to people who could physically visit the restaurant. We had no idea how to go online or how delivery logistics even worked. Then Nandakishore came to us, not just with an idea, but with a complete plan. In the first month itself, we saw a 20–25% increase in orders, mostly from people in nearby villages who never had access to restaurant food like this before.” 

Sunita Jadhav, a schoolteacher and resident of a small village near Shikrapur, expressed how the app has changed daily life for many in her area. “Honestly, we never thought food delivery would be something we could use in our village. Earlier, if we wanted restaurant food, we had to go all the way to the town, which meant spending money on travel, waiting in long queues, and wasting almost half a day. But now, with this app, we can order meals just like people in the city do. “