MIRA KULKARNI: THE ALCHEMIST OF LUXURY AYURVEDA

From soaps in a small pond to a billion-dollar global beauty house, the founder of Forest Essentials has crafted more than skincare — she has built a philosophy of purity, patience, and purpose

On a crisp evening in Delhi, Mira Kulkarni sits surrounded by fragrant oils, ancient Ayurvedic manuscripts, and jars of ghee infused with herbs. She speaks softly, her words measured yet resolute, as though each sentence carries the weight of lived wisdom. “If you cannot eat it, do not use it on your skin,” she says, her eyes glinting with conviction. This principle, once an eccentric personal belief, has since become the foundation of one of India’s most successful beauty brands — Forest Essentials.

What began in 2000 with a few handmade soaps, crafted in small batches and sold to family and friends, is today a $1-billion global luxury house with stores across India, London, Dubai, and Kuwait. And yet, Mira insists she never set out to build an empire. “It wasn’t a business plan. It was simply a search for authenticity — and quality that I could not find in India at the time.”

 

The Accidental Entrepreneur

At 20, Mira’s life looked very different. Married young, she moved from Delhi to Chennai, returning years later with two children. By her own admission, she felt “unaware, unexposed… in a little pond.” Soap-making was not part of any grand design. Rather, it was curiosity — and the observation that wealthy Indians were importing foreign bath products despite India’s heritage of oils, herbs, and rituals.

“I always wondered why we weren’t making that quality of soap here,” she recalls. Her experiments in cold-pressed oils, ghee, and hand-poured soaps led to her first small batch. A serendipitous order from the Hyatt Regency in Delhi changed everything. Suddenly, this small-scale soap venture had its first prestigious client — and the beginnings of a luxury story.

By 2005, sales had already crossed ₹6 crore. In 2008, global giant Estée Lauder took a minority stake in Forest Essentials, a milestone that validated Mira’s instinct that Indian traditions could be reframed as aspirational, modern luxury.

Climbing the Ladder with Integrity

Unlike many entrepreneurs chasing growth at any cost, Mira charted a slower, steadier path. She avoided contract manufacturing, preferring to control every detail of production. Her factories in Uttarakhand are built amidst pristine Himalayan forests, where water is left under moonlight, and Sanskrit chants are recited during preparation.

It may sound mystical, but to Mira, ritual is science. “The molecule is the same — but the energy you put into creating something changes the way it works.”

Every Forest Essentials product undergoes a rigorous four-step evaluation: performance, safety, sourcing, and environmental impact. And the brand has been uncompromising about what it won’t do: “I don’t believe in chasing fads. Aloe vera, snail mucin, bakuchiol — trends will come and go. Ayurveda is timeless.”

This blend of authenticity and modernity — luxurious textures, lighter formulations, elegant packaging — positioned Forest Essentials as the luxury skincare brand of India.

Faith, Destiny, and Dreams with Wings

For all her business acumen, Mira often frames her journey in spiritual terms. “Life has been a series of the most amazing coincidences. When I think something is destined to be, I try not to fight it. You just have to accept some things.”

It is this quiet acceptance — paired with a fierce eye for detail — that defines her leadership. She works long hours but insists her work relaxes her. She meditates, practices yoga, and makes time for weekly rituals with Forest Essentials’ ghee-based Tejasvi Brightening Emulsion. “It’s not just skincare. It’s a ceremony.”

There is also humility in her reflections. “By the time you realise you are capable of doing things, so much of life would have passed you by,” she muses, speaking of her early years. Yet she wears that delay as armour rather than regret, proof that timing matters less than conviction.

Numbers Behind the Narrative

Today, Forest Essentials operates over 170 standalone stores across four countries, with distribution in more than 500 luxury hotels including Taj, Oberoi, and Hyatt. E-commerce now contributes 25–30% of total revenue, with products shipped to 120+ countries. International markets are projected to contribute up to 20% of revenue within five years.

The brand has maintained an enviable 40% CAGR over the past three years, and in 2024 crossed the $1-billion valuation mark. Yet Mira remains wary of growth for growth’s sake. She calls it “slow luxury” — expanding with intention, preserving soul.

The Covent Garden Moment

If there was one defining milestone, it was the opening of the flagship store in Covent Garden, London, in 2022. For Mira, it was more than geography. “It felt like a natural progression. We had covered India fairly extensively. To stand shoulder to shoulder with the world’s finest luxury brands — that was a moment of arrival.”

The store, a sensorial space of brass, wood, and fragrance, signalled India’s luxury heritage reclaiming its rightful stage. “Make in India,” Mira smiles, “is not just a slogan. It’s a responsibility.”

Wisdom for the Next Generation

As much as she has built a brand, Mira has also built a legacy. Her advice to younger women is pragmatic:“Start caring for your skin early. In Ayurveda, there’s the concept of yuvati — around 12 or 13, when girlhood turns to womanhood. If you start then, you carry that health for life.”

And on entrepreneurship?“Quality above all. Trends fade. But if you stay true to what you believe in, and are uncompromising in quality, people will eventually come to you.”

Beyond Business, a Life Well Lived

Mira now divides her time between Delhi and the Himalayan foothills. She speaks fondly of her gardens, her grandchildren, and her daily rituals. Success has not hardened her; it has softened her into gratitude.

“Work is not work for me. It is meditation. It keeps me alive.”

Her story is less about chasing fortune, and more about creating with faith. From a ₹2-lakh experiment to a billion-dollar legacy, Mira Kulkarni embodies the rarest kind of success: one that is deeply personal, purpose-driven, and eternal.