Illinois University alum Shashi Kumar is revolutionising the dairy industry in India

(August 21, 2022) What is the most innovative marketing tactic that you have heard? I came across one a few days ago during my interaction with dairy pioneer Akshayakalpa Farms and Food’s CEO, Shashi Kumar. An avid chess player, Shashi would go to chess tournaments in Bengaluru during the company’s initial days and give free milk samples to all the participants to market his products. Later, the entrepreneur even started organising chess tournaments, to give a boost to both the game and his product. Interestingly, their brand ambassador is Grandmaster Nihal Sarin.

Shashi Kumar, entrepreneur

Although many were not sure if Shashi was doing the right thing by leaving his well-paying job in the US and starting over in India, his dedication and hard work have made Akshayakalpa India’s first and the biggest certified organic milk company. “We do sales of about Rs 14 crore every month and most of our customers contact us via our app. When I and my partners started the company, we made a promise to never bribe any official and create an ethical and sustainable business model. I am very proud that we have been able to do that,” shares Shashi as he connects with Global Indian over a video call.

A farmer-turned-engineer

Born in a farming family, Shashi has always loved being in nature. However, while he enjoyed working on the farm, his father was determined to send Shashi to a city. “Farmers do not earn well, and my father also had to stop farming after a while because the income was not so good. So, he encouraged me to do engineering and leave our village,” shares Shashi.

Motivated by his father, Shashi pursued a bachelor’s in software engineering from Bangalore University and later went to the United State of America to pursue a master’s from Illinois Institute of Technology, Chicago. A specialised telecommunication engineer, Shashi soon joined Wipro Technologies. “It was a whole new world for me – so much to do, and so much to learn. Since I was a dedicated employee, my company rewarded me generously as well,” shares the entrepreneur. However, despite having a great job and loving family there was something amiss, which always bothered Shashi.

Akshayakalpa farm

“It is difficult to cut off from one’s roots completely. I loved farming and wanted to return to it, however, didn’t know what to do about it. Incidentally, I had other friends in the US who also wanted to return to the country, but found it difficult to come back,” informs Shashi. However, as they – where there is a will, there is a way. While his friends couldn’t return to India, they decided to support Shashi in his endeavours. The entrepreneur left his 17-year job at Wipro in 2010 to return to India to explore opportunities in the dairy industry. “My father was not too pleased with my decision. When I told him about my plans to start Akshayakalpa, he told me, ‘Are you going to feed me, or will I have to feed you,” laughs Shashi.

Taking the less travelled road

That the dairy industry can be a profitable avenue to invest in is no secret. However, Shashi did not want to do this the easy way by bribing officials and compromising the quality of his product – a principle he still swears by. “I started surveying around 200 villages around Bengaluru and found that most farmers have left villages and work menial jobs in bigger cities. So, I decided to approach one farmer from one village and help him run his business successfully. Incidentally, I didn’t have to look far. I found 20 auto-drivers in Bengaluru who were once farmers, and convinced them to give our sustainable dairy model a try,” he shares.

Shashi Kumar with Grandmaster Nihal Sarin

But what is a sustainable dairy model? “It’s one where the farmer doesn’t have to rely on any chemicals or pesticides. We ask farmers to start with dairy, as that can help them with daily cash flows. Cow-dung also works as a natural fertiliser for the soil, so it’s a win-win situation,” he quips. Once the farmer has a daily cash flow, the Akshayakalpa team introduced fodder into the existing operation so that farmer is not reliant to buy that from outside. “This also helps in producing organic and good quality milk that can be later sold in the market. We have very strict quality control on what farmers feed their cattle and how they are kept. We do timely inspections to ensure that those parameters are met. Meanwhile, the farmer can start cultivating any other crop on their land.”

What started with 20 people is a happy family of 700 today. Shashi and his team have been able to not only help the farmers build a successful business model, but also restore the soil health in the villages they worked in. The company collects milk at various centres across Karanataka and after carefully processing and packaging it, distributes the product to about 10,000 houses in southern states every morning.

However, Shashi is not just the CEO of India’s fastest-growing agricultural company. This FIDE-rated chess player loves to take part in tournaments from time to time. A vocal environmentalist, Shashi has also been dedicating time towards tree plantation drives. “I am also actively involved with several initiatives like recycling plastics generated from milk packets, and a tree plantation drive that includes adopting a two km stretch every year to plant as many saplings there as possible. I continue to tend to these saplings for at least four years,” shares Shashi as he logs off.

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