By now you must have heard about Rotimatic – a US$999 (approx S$1400) machine that churns out one piece of roti within 90 seconds.
The Singaporean in you might scream inside your head and tell you not to be siao to even consider getting one because you can get 32 pieces of frozen roti for less than $8 at FairPrice!
So why would you need a thousand dollars roti robot that can make 30 rotis in an hour?
You might be surprised that the idea of letting a robot measure, mix, knead, flatten, cook, puff and serve fresh rotis (all in one) is indeed very romantic to some roti lovers.
Zachary, a 32-year-old executive in the media industry, is willing to spend his thousand dollar note on this game-changer.
“I would totally buy it for convenience and because it does not have preservatives, I will eat healthier! You can cook for the whole family within minutes so the $1,400 is actually worth the money in the long run…”
If you eat roti from rotimatic everyday for one year, it will only cost you and your family approximately $4 and that will give you 15 pieces of roti (based on 1 full flour container).
“It’s different from the roti sold outside…” quipped Mrs Chen, a 31-year-old mother of two kids.
“It would save me a lot of time making the roti and I like how you can make different kinds of roti – flat, puffy…you can even put in your own organic flour, multi-grain flour…you can make roti with no gluten, no sugar, less salt…healthier! But it’s just too expensive. I would buy it if it’s S$500.”
While it’s a really cool invention, not all are enthralled by it.
Benjamin, a 36-year-old writer, will “absolutely not” get his hands on rotimatic as he questions how many people have put the other fancy kitchen appliances (juicer, griller etc.) to good use.
“There are far too many devices in my kitchen that promise to help me save time and be more productive. All they have done is occupy space. I am not about to fork out another $1400 for yet another “convenience” which will probably end its life in a corner of my cupboard. Because of these devices, the price per square foot in my kitchen now costs more than my property.”
Rotimatic was founded by Singaporean couple Pranoti Nagarkar Israni and Rishi Israni, who wanted to meet the needs of Indian women and mothers who are traditionally expected to make hot food for dinner before everyone gets home.
The founders believed that an automatic roti-maker could help make life easier for busy working women as making chapatis is usually very time-consuming.
Sure, it saves time but not all things that boost productivity are truly necessary. So think thrice on whether there’s a real need for it – don’t let it turn into a white elephant!
