India has long been a tea-drinking nation, but in recent years, a new wave of craft beverage brands has started reshaping the way the country drinks. Specialty coffee, kombucha, and premium mixers are carving out space in an industry dominated by mass-produced options. While the demand for high-quality, homegrown beverages is growing, breaking into this space isn’t as easy as it looks. Import duties drive up costs, fragmented supply chains make scaling difficult, and price-sensitive consumers often hesitate to pay a premium. Unlike mass-market beverages, where marketing muscle can drive sales, craft brands have to build awareness, educate consumers, and create demand from scratch. In episode #22 of “WTF Is” Podcast, Nikhil Kamath sits down with some of the biggest names in India’s craft beverage industry—Rahul Reddy (Subko), Matt Chitharanjan (Blue Tokai), Aneesh Bhasin (Svami), and Adithya Kidambi (Mossant). They share their journey of navigating regulations, shifting consumer habits, and competing with legacy brands to bring high-quality, locally made beverages to the mainstream. Resource doc: https://www.notion.so/Resource-Craft-Beverages-19d26a5adf3180b68f1adbbbd2eea2f5#NikhilKamath Co-founder of Zerodha, True Beacon and GruhasTwitter: https://x.com/nikhilkamathcio LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nikhilkamathcioInstagram:https://www.instagram.com/nikhilkamathcioFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/nikhilkamathcio#MattChitharanjan Co-founder of Blue Tokai LinkedIn: https://in.linkedin.com/in/mchitharanjan Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/matt_chit #AdithyaKidambi Co-founder of Mossant Fermentary LinkedIN - https://in.linkedin.com/in/adithya-kidambi-8866b1269 Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/kidambiadithya/ #AneeshBhasin Co-founder of Svami Twitter: https://x.com/aneeshb LinkedIN - https://www.linkedin.com/in/aneesh-bhasin-252b661/ Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/aneeshb/ Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/gentlemenlisten/ #RahulReddy Co-founder of Subko Coffee Twitter - https://x.com/rahulreddysc LinkedIN - https://www.linkedin.com/in/rahulgreddy/ Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/raah_hool Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rahul.gurram.reddy/ Time stamps:00:00:00 - Intro00:01:48 - Matt’s Intro | Childhood & Family 00:05:13 - Starting Blue Tokai & Career Journey 00:07:29 - Adithya’s Intro 00:14:13 - Building Mossant 00:17:54 - Challenges in the Industry 00:20:05 - How big is Blue Tokai?00:21:39 - Aneesh’s Intro 00:25:36 - Starting Career Path leading to Beverage Industry 00:27:38 - Rahul’s Intro00:39:26 - Building Subko 00:42:40 - How are Subko & Blue Tokai different?00:47:54 - Hacks for a 25 year old to Compete with Subko & Blue Tokai00:50:30 - Cafe Offerings of both Coffee & Food00:58:09 - Waves of Coffee - Shift to Coffee01:04:27 - How Big is the Craft Industry in India01:10:21 - How to Influence the Crowd at a Coffee Shop 01:12:31 - Difference between Good & Bad Coffees 01:18:13 - Difference in Coffee Culture of India and USA 01:24:11 - Opportunities in Tier-2 Cities01:28:59 - Recent Consumption Trends01:33:21 - What’s Kombucha?01:41:28 - Difference of Flavour Palette in India and Abroad01:44:01 - Consumption Patterns in India 01:49:24 - Awareness of Kombucha as a Product01:58:21 - Craft Beverage Taxation Policies02:05:47 - Mossant’s Journey 02:09:27 - East Asian Beverage Markets02:10:12 - Building a Global Indian Beverage Brand 02:19:12 - How to Compete as a New F&B Brand 02:21:57 - Svami’s Journey 02:30:20 - Differentiating as a Tonic & Non-Alcoholic Brand 02:31:59 - Is Quick Commerce Sustainable in India? 02:41:12 - Svami, Mossant vs Schweppes 02:47:32 - Effects of Coffee as a Commodity02:49:13 - Steps to Starting a Cafe 02:58:07 - Learning from Abroad Beverage Markets 03:01:12 - Favourite Coffee Shops, Kombucha Brands, Non-Alcoholic Beverages 03:14:59 - Beverage Industry as an Investor #WTFiswithnikhilkamath

India’s craft beverage industry is on the rise, with brands redefining the way the country drinks. Specialty coffee, kombucha, and premium mixers are no longer just niche products—they’re part of a larger shift toward quality and innovation. As global trends in artisanal drinks take hold, Indian consumers are becoming more curious and willing to experiment. But building a brand in this space comes with unique challenges. In this episode, Nikhil Kamath sits down with Rahul Reddy (Subko), Matt Chitharanjan (Blue Tokai), Aneesh Bhasin (Svami), and Adithya Kidambi (Mossant) to explore the challenges and opportunities in India’s evolving beverage space.From sourcing the best beans to disrupting the beverage industry, they break down the art of brand-building, competition in this industry, and what lies next for craft beverages in India. #NikhilKamath Co-founder of Zerodha, True Beacon and GruhasTwitter: https://x.com/nikhilkamathcio LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nikhilkamathcioInstagram:https://www.instagram.com/nikhilkamathcioFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/nikhilkamathcio#MattChitharanjan Co-founder of Blue Tokai LinkedIn: https://in.linkedin.com/in/mchitharanjan Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/matt_chit #AdithyaKidambi Co-founder of Mossant Fermentary LinkedIN - https://in.linkedin.com/in/adithya-kidambi-8866b1269 Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/kidambiadithya/ #AneeshBhasin Co-founder of Svami Twitter: https://x.com/aneeshb LinkedIN - https://www.linkedin.com/in/aneesh-bhasin-252b661/ Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/aneeshb/ Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/gentlemenlisten/ #RahulReddy Co-founder of Subko Coffee Twitter - https://x.com/rahulreddysc LinkedIN - https://www.linkedin.com/in/rahulgreddy/ Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/raah_hool Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rahul.gurram.reddy/

In this conversation, we seem to be headed towards more questions than answers.. but perhaps questions that need to be asked. Most importantly... Where is Health headed?

In this episode of WTF is Podcast, we have Nithin, Prashanth, Jitendra, Seema and Bryan uncover many such questions/concerns, trying to determine what is next in this space of Heath & Longevity.

As AI progresses, I wonder if tomorrow, an algorithm is built to tell us how to live our life the best... would we accept that integration? How far are we willing to go to live longer or perhaps "forever"?

#NikhilKamath Co-founder of Zerodha and Gruhas Host of 'WTF is' & 'People By WTF' Podcast Twitter: https://x.com/nikhilkamathcio/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nikhilkamathcio/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nikhilkamathcio?utm_source=share&utm_campaign=share_via&utm_content=profile&utm_medium=ios_app Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/nikhilkamathcio/

#NithinKamath - Founder, CEO Zerodha, RainmatterInstagram - https://www.instagram.com/nithinkamath/Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/nithin.kamath/Twitter - https://x.com/Nithin0dhaLinkedin - https://www.linkedin.com/in/nithin-kamath

#BryanJohnson - Founder & CEO of BlueprintInstagram - https://www.instagram.com/bryanjohnson_/Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100089952947799Twitter - https://x.com/bryan_johnsonLinkedin - https://www.linkedin.com/in/bryanrjohnson/

#PrashanthPrakash - Founding Partner of Accel India, Founder BioPeak & Longevity India Twitter - https://x.com/prashanthpLinkedin - https://www.linkedin.com/in/prakashprashanth

#JitendraChouksey - Founder, FITTR

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/fittrwithjc/Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/jitendra.chouksey.7/

Linkedin - https://www.linkedin.com/in/jitendrachouksey/

Special Appearance - #SeemaKamath, Director at Zerodha

00:00 - Introduction 00:56 - Air Quality & Blue Zones 5:39 - Bryan’s Lifestyle 09:20 - Roundtable Introductions 12:14 - Future of Medical Innovations 16:25 - Understanding Bio Transformations, Enzymatic Reactions 19:03 - Bryan’s Early Days 27:20 - Bryan’s journey into understanding Longevity 32:18 - Understanding Health Supplements 43:10 - Thought experiment 1: the algorithm 46:13 - Thought experiment 2: the 25th century 54:30 - Thought experiment 3: enabling an intelligence 1:03:00 - WTF is ‘Don’t Die’? 1:20:28 - Testing & Supplementation 1:26:50 - Business Opps in Testing & Supplementation 1:35:17 - 10 years from now, what’s Bryan's goal? 1:38:37 - Food Break! 1:39:35 - Air Quality Index (AQI) - Massive Opportunities 1:46:05 - Lifestyle Management Opps | Fittr 1:50:00 - Consumer Diagnostics Opps | BioPeak 1:59:16 - Building India Focused Datasets 2:13:33 - Influencers in the Longevity space 2:20:53 - Cancer Recurrence Detection 2:34:12 - Health Gadgets 2:39:40 - Longevity Supplements Opps & Growth Hormones 3:06:55 - Regenerative Medicine 3:10:30 - Where’s the next big opportunity? 3:15:13 - Bonus Round: Women’s Reproductive Health 3:21:28 - If men live forever and women can't give birth beyond 35 - Where's the future? #WTFiswithnikhilkamath #PeopleByWTF