By Arjun Vaidya, CEO and 6th Generation Vaidya at Dr. Vaidya’s
Ayurveda is the traditional science of Indian healing using herbs and minerals available in nature’s bounty. The science of Ayurveda has been in the Indian sub-continent for more than 2,000 years (some say more than 5,000) basically, a very very long time. Sages like Charaka, Dhanwantri and Sushruta spent their lives studying herbs and creating formulations that stood the test of time. These formulations were passed down earnestly by “Vaids” or Ayurvedic doctors to be used extensively by our forefathers.
Somewhere along the way, the British came to India. While they brought us trains and cricket, they also brought with them, their form of Western medicine. With the 150 years of British rule, Ayurveda stayed in its corner peacefully (as is customary in India) while allopathy came to the fore. Ayurveda did not fight for her role but stayed relevant to those who cared till, slowly, the number of people who cared began to reduce. Still, Ayurvedic Vaids continued their practice with as much vigor and as little complaining as possible.
While India gained independence in 1947, most things that were Indian lost prominence. Independent India became obsessed with imported products and resented anything that was traditionally Indian. While India had a lot to offer in terms of culture and legacy, Indians became obsessed with imports. I grew up in this India where I was gifted a Japanese electronic sharpener for my 11th birthday and went to the stores that sold solely imported products. Of course, in this environment, Ayurveda was perceived as allopathy’s poor cousin – a science categorized by old school packaging, grandparents and something that was just not ‘cool’.
In 2009, I went to Brown University for my undergraduate education and saw the natural and organic products revolution in full swing in the Northeast. With the obsession towards stores like Whole Foods, I saw consumers actually paying much more value for products with natural ingredients rather than chemicals – something I had not seen as much in India. The yoga experience though was something that really got me thinking. Yoga mats, yoga pants, yoga gyms and Lululemon created a >USD 20b industry in the US. Basically, while we were sleeping, the West decided that yoga had some serious value. Genius, right? But something that we in India completely missed. Yoga is mainstream now and a household name around the world but, I am not too sure how much we had to do with it. Yoga became super ‘cool’.
I came back to a new India in 2013. An India where we had begun to appreciate our identity, an India where we were proud of our heritage and an India where we actually respected Indian brands. At this time, Ayurveda also woke up. The natural and organic revolution came to India and with it, Ayurveda was also going through a renaissance. The new government in 2014, created the Ministry of AYUSH (Ayurveda, Yoga, Unani, Siddha and Homeopathy)– a monumental moment for the industry. Brands were being created as urban consumers were demanding Ayurveda for the first time in India’s independent history. The large consumer companies in India who had traditionally stayed away from these types of products started launching completely herbal lines. Things were happening and times were very exciting. Yet, Ayurveda was missing a trick – Ayurvedic products were still boring, old school and poorly packaged. While urban India woke up to Ayurveda, Ayurveda still had to wake up to the needs of the urban consumer. What happened here, needed to happen with Ayurveda as well! Ayurveda was just not cool.
We launched Dr. Vaidya’s in October 2016 as a brand focused on “New Age Ayurveda”. While the science has huge demand and scope, products and offerings need to appeal to modern consumers and, this is our motto. We launched innovative products like LIVitup – Hangover Shield and Chakaash – Chyawanprash toffees to take 5,000 years of science to the 21st century. Ayurveda needed a gateway to modern consumers and from 2016 on, new brands have understood this need and created Ayurvedic offerings in the supplements, ready to eat, drinks and personal care space for modern consumers. Brands like ours have leveraged the power of online and data to spread the message of Ayurveda to places far and wide and give consumers access to high quality treatments and doctors in places Ayurveda has seldom been.
Ayurveda is now at a tipping point. The industry has scaled up to a size of >USD 4b and expected to grow at a rapid pace of 16% for the next 5-7 years according to a recent CII study. What’s more, consumers are now actually asking for Ayurveda. They want to know about the science and its offerings. This is a new phase for the science in India and globally. Yet, there is huge scope for expansion of Ayurveda. India’s Ayurvedic exports are ~USD 120m per annum and this is a very small number compared to its potential. The next phase for Ayurveda will definitely be to capture global imagination. While we are seeing seeds of this, Ayurveda has a very long way to go till we reach yoga. Brands, policy makers and the industry need to work together to make the science palatable to the global consumers. At Dr. Vaidya’s – this is our goal. Each one of our products wear the mark Proudly Indian and we will take this mark of India to the world.
