Brewing a cultural wave

TWO CHILDHOOD FRIENDS FROM RANCHI ARE SEEKING TO REWRITE INDIA'S RELATIONSHIP WITH COFFEE

- ANEES HUSSAIN

FOR EIGHT-YEAR-OLD Ayush Bathwal, growing up in Ranchi where tea reigned supreme in every household, the rich, roasted fragrance of coffee that made its way from railway vendors, was his first whiff of rebellion. His parents, like most North Indian families, viewed coffee with suspicion. It was either too bitter, too foreign, or in the case of his grandmother's stern warnings, something that would "make him darker." Over two decades later, that same boy alongside his childhood best friend Anirudh Sharma would helm a ₹1,300 crore speciality coffee empire.

The cultural awakening began in a quaint San Diego coffee shop in 2013. Bathwal, then a Qualcomm engineer fresh from University of Illinois, expected bitter fuel for his late-night coding sessions. Instead, he discovered coffee that tasted like "guava and jasmine." "I was intrigued by how a black cup of coffee could be fruity, very clean, and sweet." More fascinating were the stories: baristas spoke passionately about visiting farmers, building schools in coffee-growing regions, and how "some bit of your cup goes back to them." This wasn't just caffeine; it was craftsmanship, storytelling, and human connection.