SUBHA BALAKRISHNAN 
Meet the Founder
Some of my earliest memories live around food.
Sunday evenings meant walking along the shoreline of the Bay of Bengal, holding my mother’s hand, drifting past food stalls as dusk settled in. We never rushed. Food was something you approached slowly.
We always stopped at three places.
First, the corn cart. You didn’t peel the husk. You pressed the corn gently with your fingers, feeling for weight and softness. The right one took instinct. The hawker roasted it over open coals, then rubbed it with lemon, salt, and biting chilli. Smoky. Tangy. Spicy. A flavour that stayed with you.
Then raw mango. Sliced, rubbed with sour salt and chilli, sometimes finished with crushed peanuts. Sharp, salty, with just enough heat to wake you up.
And finally coconut water. You knocked the shell with your knuckle. Shook it. Listened. The colour of the husk mattered. The season mattered. When it was right, it was lightly sweet, clean, and deeply refreshing. The perfect drink to carry you through the rest of the evening.
My mother taught me how to choose ingredients, how to respect them, and how flavours work together. Cooking was never rushed. It was never careless. It was a journey.
I learnt early that when food is made with care, you feel it. In the smell. In the bite. In the way it stays with you.
Life in London
When I moved to London, I fell for it in much the same way
The energy. The pace. The mix of cultures. The food
London became home. I built a career in banking and financial services. Life moved fast. But food remained the constant. Friends around the table, long meals, recipes carried across continents. Biryanis, Fish curries, Crispy dosas, Indian barbecues that stretched late into the evening
The food kept evolving. It became bolder, more global, more expressive
The Moment That Stayed
I’d spent a lifetime around food
Somewhere along the way, I noticed the drink had been left behind
The glass beside the plate hadn’t caught up
That thought stayed with me
Why I Created Bodha
Bodha grew from a simple belief: drinks should belong where food belongs
I wanted drinks that refreshed the palate and kept flavours clear between bites. Drinks built with real botanicals and kitchen ingredients. Drinks shaped through tasting, balance, and care
And something joyful began to happen
People smile when they taste Bodha
They speak about memories
Places they’ve travelled
Flavours they recognise but haven’t tasted in years
What I wanted to create was a drink memory
Something familiar yet unexpected
A drink that stays with you, the way a good meal does
Follow my journey
Bodha - Built for the moments between bites.