‘Kolaveri’ Composer Anirudh Ravichander Joins VS Mani & Co. As Cofounder, Brand Ambassador

Bengaluru-based filter coffee and snacks brand VS Mani & Co. has roped in music composer Anirudh Ravichander of “Why This Kolaveri Di” fame as cofounder and brand ambassador. 

With this partnership, the company will leverage Ravichander’s popularity in southern India to strengthen its brand’s presence across regions and drive revenue growth.

“Not only will VS Mani leverage Anirudh’s social media reach and concerts to build brand awareness among its consumers, it will also capitalise on this collaboration to build long-term relationships with the trade and send a strong message of commitment to its core market of Tamil Nadu and Karnataka,” the startup said in a statement. 

Anirudh, who is superstar Rajnikanth’s nephew, has composed music for Tamil, Telugu and Hindi films. 

He debuted with the viral song ‘Why This Kolaveri Di’, and Shah Rukh Khan-starrer Jawan and Rajnikanth’s Jailer are among his recent high-profile projects. 

Founded in 2020 by GD Prasad, VS Mani & Co. is a South Indian filter coffee and snacks company that gained popularity with its appearance in the reality TV show Shark Tank India Season 2. 

In 2021, Prasad’s fellow Dentsu Webchutney alumni Yashas Alur and Rahul Bajaj came on board as cofounders to handle operations and growth as the brand scaled. 

The startup sells its products online and offline, as well as through quick commerce apps. On the retail front, it has a presence in over 1,000 stores in Bengaluru, Chennai, Pondicherry, Coimbatore, Salem and other parts of Tamil Nadu.

The D2C brand is already backed by celebrity investors such as Shaadi.com’s Anupam Mittal as well as actors such as Sobhita Dhulipala, Rana Daggubati, Ranbir Kapoor, Disha Patani and Huma Qureshi.

To date, VS Mani & Co has raised a total of $1.5 Mn including a $900K pre-series A round led by Kettleborough VC, with participation from Lets Venture, Hyderabad Angels, Supermorpheus, and others. 

Going ahead, the company plans to increase penetration across major towns in Tamil Nadu.