She Started Filming on a Rs 7500 Phone in Rural Rajasthan — Now Her Home-Cooked Meals Are Loved Worldwide

Ever tried vlogging your trip or filming a recipe ‘just for fun’ — only to realise how tricky it is?

Getting the right angle, decent lighting, clear audio, and then spending hours figuring out how to edit, upload, and share, it’s no cakewalk. Now imagine doing all of that without AI tools, a ring light, a fancy camera, or even a stable internet connection. Just you, a basic smartphone, a patchy signal, and a big dream.

That’s exactly how Kaushalya Chaudhary, a 30-year-old from the small village of Kuri in Rajasthan, began her journey.

Armed with nothing but determination and a deep love for cooking, Kaushalya set up a makeshift studio in her village kitchen, learned video editing through handwritten notes, and spent nights on the roof just to upload a single YouTube video. 

Today, she’s not just a self-taught cook and beloved digital creator, but also the founder of ‘Sidhi Marwari’ — a clean food brand reviving traditional Rajasthani spices and cold-pressed oils, now reaching homes across the world.

But this isn’t just a story about food. It’s a story of dreams, grit, and staying rooted — like literally.

A childhood cooked in simplicity

Growing up in a humble farming family, Kaushalya’s life was like that of most girls in rural India: school in the morning, chores in the evening. “I used to go to the fields, feed the cows, then go to school,” she recalls.

As the eldest of four siblings, she often found herself in the kitchen, especially when her mother was busy in the fields. “When my mother came home tired, I would cook something for her. The joy on her face when she liked my food, that’s when I started falling in love with cooking,” she smiles.

Trapped by tradition but driven by purpose

Kaushalya had once dreamed of becoming a doctor. She studied science in Class 12 and was full of hope. But life had other plans — marriage came right after her board exams. “I suddenly found myself doing farm work like my mother. That’s when I asked myself: why did I study for 12 years if I was to end up here again?”

With few job opportunities in her village and social norms that didn’t permit daughters-in-law to work outside, Kaushalya, the only daughter-in-law of their home, felt boxed in. “My grandmother and mother-in-law thought that if I went out to work, then who would do the household chores? And who will take care of the guests coming to the house?” shares Kaushalya, highlighting the mentality of people coming from rural backgrounds.

But instead of giving up, she turned inward and decided, “I have to do something. Even if it’s within these four walls.” 

YouTube: Her saving grace

Her turning point came most unexpectedly — a news article about a five-year-old earning from YouTube. Curious and hopeful, she asked her husband, Virendra Kumar, what YouTube was. She didn’t even have a smartphone at the time.

But where most would stop at dreaming, Kaushalya leaped. “When I asked my father-in-law to get me a phone, he brought home a button phone worth Rs 3000 and said that he could only afford this,” she shares.

“Then I returned the phone, I had some savings of around two to three thousand. I took an additional three thousand from my mother, and I got a Samsung J2S for Rs 7500,” shares Kaushalya, and began filming recipes from her kitchen in 2017. 

Her first video? Besan Barfi. The one that went viral? A traditional winter favourite — Haldi ki Sabji.

The early days were tough. There was no tripod, just aluminium wires twisted into a makeshift stand. No studio lights, just bulbs hung around the kitchen. “Uploading videos was the hardest. There was no network, so I would climb to the roof and wait hours,” she recalls. 

She also had to learn to edit videos. “I used to watch every editing tutorial, make notes, and write them down step by step in a diary for future reference,” she adds. Her first payment of Rs 7,500 from YouTube took a year and a half to arrive.

To get her first pay wasn't easy. “Many asked my family members to stop me from doing what I was doing. They felt that making videos or being on social media is culturally wrong,” she says quietly. 

But Kaushalya’s husband has always been supportive of her endeavours. “While I only knew that if you put videos on YouTube, she would get money, I always stood by her and the decisions she wanted to take,” shares Virendra, who also faced criticism for living off his wife’s earnings.

The power of language and identity

Initially, Kaushalya made content in Hindi, but it didn’t take off. The turning point came when her grandmother-in-law watched a video but didn’t understand the ingredient names. “They asked me what turmeric and red chilli powder are. They asked me why Dhaniya was called coriander in my videos,” she recalls.

That’s when Kaushalya realised — millions of rural women had access to cheap internet since 2017, but hardly any content was made for them. So she started again. This time, in Rajasthani.

The response was overwhelming. 

“In one month, I had one lakh subscribers. Views were in millions. Our 10-day revenue was above Rs 1,00,000. What we did not earn in two years, we managed to earn in one month,” she shares proudly.

It was a reminder that our language and culture resonated with people and have value,” she says.

She not only shared recipes, but also proverbs and traditional practices — things people were slowly forgetting. “A Rajasthani living in the US messaged me saying watching the video made him feel like he was back home. That’s when I knew — this is my path,” she smiles.

From viral videos to MasterChef India

In 2023, an unexpected call from MasterChef India changed her life once again. At first, she thought it was a prank. “I asked my husband to answer the call because I did not understand why someone from Sony TV would like to talk with me,” she laughs.

Soon, she packed her bags for auditions in Jodhpur, Delhi, and finally Mumbai, becoming the only contestant from Rajasthan to make it to the top 12.

She proudly presented age-old dishes like Kachi Haldi ki Sabji, Kuga Roti, and Makhaniya Lassi, winning hearts (and taste buds) from judges and chefs from across the world. “I had no formal training, but I had the flavours of my culture — and that was enough,” she says.

Launching ‘Sidhi Marwari’: A brand born of belief

After MasterChef, Kaushalya realised the importance of having her platform, not just a social media page, but something she could build on her terms. “When TikTok was banned in India, I lost 15 lakh subscribers and the revenue that was generated out of the videos,” shares Kaushalya.

“I realised that my earning resource is via social media platforms like YouTube, Instagram or Facebook. If the platform is no longer there, what will I do for money?” Kaushalya asked herself. This gave birth to ‘Sidhi Marwari’, a brand rooted in purity and tradition in March 2024

The idea came from a simple problem: her relatives abroad often complained that they couldn’t find the same flavour in Indian food made with foreign spices and oils. She visited factories and found poor hygiene, artificial colours, and shortcuts.

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A post shared by Kaushalya Choudhary (@kaushalyaair)

“I thought, why not make what our grandmothers used to? Pure spices. Cold-pressed oils. No preservatives,” she says.

Her setup is delightfully old-school yet ingenious. “We make gathiyas (bundles of spices) just like our grandmothers did — by hand. We attach them to motors that rotate at the same speed as a woman’s hand. That way, the flavour stays the same.”

The first batch sold out. Orders for five to 10 kg started pouring in. Today, Sidhi Marwari has 15 outlets across India and ships globally. Deepa Choudhary from Jodhpur, Rajasthan, shares that products from Sidhi Marwadi are her grocery essentials. “I buy their products almost every month,” she adds.

“My favourite is her groundnut oil, and cooking with that oil is almost like cooking your food in butter. It’s very authentic and tastes phenomenal,” shares Deepa, who has also recommended the same for her sister-in-law and her uncle.

“While the business was started in 2024, she has been struggling for four years to build an app and a website as a lot of people took money from us, but did not provide the output,” explains Virendra, as someone who has seen her hardships first-hand.

A business built by women, for women

What makes Kaushalya’s journey even more inspiring is who she’s brought along with her. Her factory in rural Rajasthan, which is managed by her father-in-law and her uncle, now employs over 35 women from nearby villages.

“For me, it was clear. The women in our villages shouldn’t have to leave home for jobs. Let’s create employment right here,” she says. She now mentors other women to become financially independent. “I tell them, don’t wait for time. Make time. Even if it’s one hour a day, use it to work on your dream.”

Staying grounded, dreaming bigger

Despite all the fame and success, Kaushalya remains grounded. “I still want to be the same daughter-in-law, mother, and sister I’ve always been. I just want more women to realise their worth,” she says.

Her goal now? To help thousands of Kaushalyas rise from small villages, not just to seek jobs, but to build empires of their own. She’s working on a platform to help rural women start micro-businesses through the Sidhi Marwari model.

Her message to women is simple but powerful: “When you decide you want to do something, no one can stop you.”

You can follow Kaushalya’s journey and explore her food products here:

Website: sidhimarwadi.com; YouTube: Sidhi Marwadi Kitchen; Instagram: @kaushalyaair

Edited by Vidya Gauri Venkatesh; All images courtesy Kaushalya Choudhary