Right. Imagine walking into a Japanese convenience store and picking up a Maruti Suzuki Jimny. Not the off-roader. A vegetarian brown chickpea masala in a Jimny-shaped box.
This is not satire. Suzuki has partnered with Japanese restaurant group Torizen to launch a range of pre-cooked vegetarian Indian curries. Four different recipes. Each starring one of Suzuki’s machines. And none of them require a driver’s licence.
The idea began not in a boardroom but in a cafeteria. In early 2024, Suzuki’s Hamamatsu HQ started serving Torizen’s Indian meals to its staff. They were a hit. So, someone had the perfectly reasonable idea to stick them in a box, draw a car on it, and sell it to the public.
At ₹545 per 180-gram pack (¥918 in Japan), these ready-to-eat curry kits are now available via Suzuki’s official Japanese online store. Each one is labelled not just with ingredients but with a Suzuki vehicle illustration, and if you buy the entire set, the boxes align to reveal a hidden design.
So far, there are four flavours:
1. Brown Chickpea Masala (Maruti Suzuki Jimny)
2. Tomato Lentil Dahl (Maruti Suzuki Swift)
3. Daikon Sambal (Suzuki Hayabusa)
4. Green Vegetable Moong Dal (Suzuki V-Strom 1050 DE)
Suzuki says this is part of a broader effort to highlight Indian culture in Japan, especially since many of its Japanese-sold models—including the Jimny 5-Door, Fronx and WR-V—are exported from India. It's not just food for thought. It's food with intent.
According to Torizen CEO Yoshitaka Date, “The dish is filled with gratitude and love for overseas talent, including India.” Which is a lovely way of saying that your lunch now carries a whiff of diplomacy, history, and cumin.
Suzuki has hinted at more designs and curry flavours in the future. Perhaps we’ll get a Fronx-themed biryani next. Or a Swift Sport Sambhar with 129 bhp and 235 Nm.
Until then, this is possibly the only time you can say, “I ate a Jimny” without a seatbelt or airbags involved.
