Professional Goan diver plunges into the beverage industry

For 33-year-old Sushmeeta Vasta, it’s a plunge into beverage production from being a professional diver. Her track record in aquatics and diving has always been shining. A former international player who was part of Team India from 2005-2013, Sushmeeta played for India for the first time at the age of 14 in 2005. She represented India at Asian age group Championships, and at World Universiade Games in Bangkok Thailand, Tokyo Japan, Macau, China, Kazan, Russia. A national record holder, national gold medallist, national school games/university games gold medallist and All India Inter-University Gold Medallist, she was national individual champion for three consecutive years too.

Sushmeeta played sports for two decades, then worked as an assistant professor at Goa Multi Faculty College and subsequently opted for a corporate job, again in teaching. This time it was as a manager (learning and development) at Max Skill First, training people of all age groups. Sushmeeta worked there for three and a half years and won top awards.

A point came when she thought of investing her time, effort and skills creating something for herself in her own business, which would be more fruitful than working for someone else. And she quit the corporate job and enrolled at Bangalore Culinary Academy which is affiliated to City and Guilds London. The year was 2022-23. In less than a year at her diploma course in restaurant-based cooking, she scored the highest marks, was awarded for highest attendance and won the Best Student award at the academy.

With that she returned to Goa, to make an entry into the business world, to initiate a start-up. “I launched a food product named Toringo. It was peanut butter. During my time in the market, I figured out that there is a shift in the consumer's consumption pattern, and they were more interested in traditional products, something Goan and matching to their taste buds. This was the birth of Folk Tales,” smiles Sushmeeta, proprietor of Vasta Foods.

Folk Tales started for people to let them relive their childhood memories. The drinks she manufactures are the ones most of us enjoyed in our childhood, prepared by our loved ones. She thought of bringing back the homemade fruit juices from her childhood, served to her by her parents and her grandma, albeit in a professional manner and serving them to Goa and Goans.

Vasta Foods started in 2023 with peanut butter and the first series of drinks in five variants was launched in September 2024. The brand is of authentic Goan flavour, specifically curated to meet Goan taste buds. As Sushmeeta puts it, “Folk Tales is about the nostalgia that a person feels by just remembering one’s childhood. We want people to go back in time and reminisce about fond memories of the past. The idea behind these drinks is to bring back the taste of the drinks from our childhood, the ones our folks made for us while growing up.”

Starting with five flavours, Aamras, Kokum, Nimbu Paani, Apple and Litchi, new flavours like Jaljeera, Ginger Lemon, Jamun, Santra, Pineapple will be launched soon, she adds. The product is available across Goa in 250 ml size bottles priced at Rs 30 each.

Sushmeeta sources the fruit pulp from local farmers across the country. For this she had to travel extensively in search of quality fruits available in bulk quantity from different States. For example, she gets her litchi from Bihar which is famous for the sweet, juicy litchi and she has chosen Nagpur for the santra flavour she plans to add soon.

“It’s a start up and I have applied for a subsidy from the government, but yet to receive it,” says Sushmeeta who procured the licence from FDA after completing the required process. “Currently we bottle at the Desai Beverages Pvt Ltd at Sanguem and our raw material goes to the factory, where our quality control person monitors the manufacturing and bottling process. There is a higher percentage of pulp in the drink as the base, with slightly added flavour and preservative, as the shelf life is six months,” she explains.

Folk Tales are available at supermarkets, bakeries, wine stores, retail shops and restaurants. “I first tried keeping the drinks at my maternal uncle’s restaurant and got a very good response. The retail shopkeepers too came with news that their customers enjoyed our flavours. The sales are good. Excited by the feedback, I am confident that I can plan to expand and add more flavours. Talks are also on, with retailers from outside Goa too, so that this Goan product reaches to the neighbouring States,” shares Sushmeeta, who has proved that start ups work, if properly planned.

“My father was in government service, and my mother's family cames from a business background. They are in the restaurant industry. My younger sister Shalaka started her own hair dressing studio at Margao last year. And I am now an entrepreneur too. Goan youth should invest their energies into starting something of their own, be it small initially. Nothing is impossible, if one has the courage to face success and failures with the same spirit. Let me share with you the sweet tales behind each flavour,” says Sushmeeta.

“Do you remember the eagerness when mom or dad would come home in the evening with the first packet of mangoes? The first packet, the first bite of the mango, was always looked forward to. The time for that luscious first bite is now here with the Folk Tales Aam Ras. My grandma made aamras for us every season. Every meal included aamras. So, it was the first flavour I thought of,” says Sushmeeta

And ‘Kokum’ is on its way to become a favourite in Goan Households, she says. She remembers the time when her father used to stock Kokum in the refrigerator in a particular way, “Papa used to cut the fruit into two halves, put them in a glass jar, add salt and sugar and keep it stored in the refrigerator for it to release the juice. Then my sister and I used to keep going to the refrigerator, take some of the juice in a glass, add cold water and drink it up!”

Another favourite way this fruit was enjoyed in her family was by just adding salt to the ripe fruit. “The tiny cap of the fruit was taken out, which left an opening on top of the fruit. Then some salt crystals were pushed into it, and with the help of a small stick, one would rotate it a few times to mix the salt with the seeds of the fruit. Then one could suck the juice through the opening of the fruit. Only those who have tasted this can understand the sheer pleasure it gives,” she quips.

As for the Nimbu Paani, it has always been a Go-To drink on every occasion, recalls Sushmeeta. “The Sports Day energizer used to be the nimbu paani, when our water bottles used to be filled with it instead of water. That joy can be felt even today while sipping onto the Folk Tales Nimbu Paani. Back in the day, the best memory would be my Maa handing out a chilled glass of nimbu paani, after play time,” she remembers.

‘Folk Tales’ is about the nostalgia that a person feels by just remembering one’s childhood. “We want people to go back in time and reminisce about some of the fond memories of the past. The idea behind these drinks is to bring back the taste of the drinks from our childhood, the ones our folks made for us while growing up,” concludes Sushmeeta. For this former international sportsperson in the field of diving, this plunge has been a success too.