Paro was founded by first-generation Pakistani American Umaimah Sharwani. Umaimah, a former employee at digitally-native brands like Glossier, Bravo Sierra, and Jet.com, always had an affinity for South Asian cuisine. When she decided to move to New York, Umaimah became homesick for her mom’s food and asked her mom to recreate her dishes in her new apartment. Together, she and her mom filled ziploc bags with the exact amount of spices and grains required to create specific South Asian dishes. Umaimah then only needed to add water and cook for 30 minutes to enjoy her mom’s food. When she started sharing these ziploc bags with her friends in New York, she discovered a need for an easier and more approachable way to access South Asian food. 

Over the next 3 years, Umaimah went through countless iterations of Paro’s products in order to perfect them, and she eventually felt ready to start something of her own. She named her South Asian comfort food brand after her mom, Paro, and launched the company with 3 initial products: boxed masoor daal, boxed kitchiri, and jarred tarka oil. These classic South Asian dishes can be whipped up in under 30 minutes and are designed to be shared with friends and family — because comfort food is meant to be shared.