MAM
Going Nuts Over Coffee as Barista Brews a Pistachio Winter Treat
MUMBAI: If winter had a flavour, Barista Coffee Company has just bottled it or rather, brewed it. This festive season, India’s largest homegrown café chain is going green (and not just environmentally) with a campaign that’s as indulgent as it is inventive. Titled ‘Barista Stars’, the new menu is a celebration of pistachio, that little nut that packs a big punch of flavour and warmth, perfect for the nip in the air.
The festive spread, launched across 485 outlets in 165 cities, is an ode to indulgence meeting mindfulness. Think Pistachio Affogato, Pistachio Latte, Pistachio Cream Croissant, and even a Pistachio Kunafa Cheesecake, a Middle Eastern twist that’s as photogenic as it is decadent. And just when you thought that was nutty enough, there’s also a Valencia Orange Hot Chocolate in the mix, bringing a citrusy zing to the otherwise cosy affair.
The menu isn’t just a creative experiment, it’s a full-bodied experience designed around taste, texture, and balance. Each dish reflects Barista’s knack for blending international café aesthetics with Indian palates, marrying creamy indulgence with a hint of wellness.
Speaking on the campaign, Barista Coffee Company CEO Rajat Agrawal said the winter menu symbolises Barista’s evolving philosophy premium coffee culture with a conscience. “With the onset of winter, we’re delighted to launch our new festive campaign ‘Barista Stars’. Pistachio’s distinctive richness and warmth perfectly complement the season,” he said. “Our goal is to offer customers a wholesome yet indulgent experience, a celebration of flavour without compromising on quality or well-being.”
The menu, available across all cafés from 20 October 2025, extends beyond the cup, it’s a nod to craftsmanship and café culture as an experience rather than a pit stop.
Founded in 2000, Barista Coffee Company has long been synonymous with India’s early tryst with coffeehouse culture. Before latte art became Instagram gold, Barista was already pouring stories in ceramic mugs. Over two decades later, it remains the country’s most prominent indigenous chain, one that’s expanded across India and Sri Lanka, carving a niche between global giants and local favourites.
Today, Barista isn’t just selling coffee, it’s selling conversations, comfort, and community. Its cafés are as much about creative ambience as they are about caffeine fixes. With every menu refresh, the brand continues to redefine what “homegrown” can mean in an industry once dominated by imported tastes.
The new menu underlines a shift in consumer trends from pure indulgence to mindful luxury. Pistachio, often hailed as the “wellness nut”, fits right in. It brings a guilt-free edge to desserts and beverages, a theme that Barista has consciously leaned into as it strengthens its “premium yet health-conscious” positioning.
Every offering, from the buttery croissant to the velvety affogato, reflects an obsessive attention to detail not just in flavour profiles but in ingredient sourcing, presentation, and consistency across outlets. That consistency is what’s fuelled Barista’s expansion and made it a comfort brand for café-goers who crave familiarity with a twist.
In many ways, the ‘Barista Stars’ campaign is more than a festive menu, it’s a brand statement. As India’s café culture matures, Barista seems intent on proving that creativity need not come with a foreign accent.
The brand’s steady reinvention, whether through curated menus or customer-centric design, has kept it relevant in a crowded market where novelty often burns out faster than a coffee machine at rush hour.
And while pistachio may be the flavour of the season, the real takeaway is Barista’s ability to balance indulgence with intent, a blend as satisfying as a perfectly poured latte.
So, if you’re looking to sip something that tastes like winter wrapped in a velvet blanket, you know where to head. Because this season, Barista isn’t just brewing coffee, it’s brewing a mood.
Digital
Content India 2026 opens with a copro pitch, a spice evangelist and a £10,000 prize for Indian storytelling
Dish TV and C21Media’s three-day summit puts seven ambitious projects before an international jury, and two walk away with serious development money
MUMBAI: India’s content industry gathered in Mumbai this March for Content India 2026, a three-day summit organised by Dish TV in partnership with C21Media, and it wasted no time making a statement. The event opened with a Copro Pitch that put seven scripted and unscripted television concepts before an international panel of judges, and by the end of it, two projects had walked away with £10,000 each in marketing prize money from C21Media to support development and international promotion.
The jury, comprising Frank Spotnitz, Fiona Campbell, Rashmi Bajpai, Bal Samra and Rachel Glaister, evaluated a shortlist that ranged from a dark Mumbai comedy-drama about mental health (Dirty Minds, created by Sundar Aaron) to a Delhi coming-of-age mystery (Djinn Patrol, by Neha Sharma and Kilian Irwin), a techno-thriller about a teenage gaming prodigy (Kanpur X Satori, by Suchita Bhatia), an investigative crime drama blending mythology and modern thriller (The Age of Kali, by Shivani Bhatija), a documentary on India’s spice heritage (The Masala Quest, hosted by Sarina Kamini), a documentary on competitive gaming (Respawn: India’s Esports Revolution, by George Mangala Thomas and Sangram Mawari), and a reality-horror competition merging gaming and immersive fear (Scary Goose, by Samar Iqbal).
The session was hosted by Mayank Shekhar.
The two winners were Djinn Patrol, backed by Miura Kite, formerly of Participant Media and known for Chinatown and Keep Sweet: Pray & Obey, with Jaya Entertainment, producers of Real Kashmir Football Club, also attached; and The Masala Quest, created and hosted by Sarina Kamini, an Indian-Australian cook, author and self-described “spice evangelist.”
The summit also unveiled the Content India Trends Report, whose findings made for bracing reading. Daoud Jackson, senior analyst at OMDIA, set the tone: “By 2030, online video in India will nearly double the revenue of traditional TV, becoming the main driver of growth.” He noted that in 2025, India produced a quarter of all YouTube videos globally, overtaking the United States, while Indians collectively spend 117 years daily on YouTube and 72 years on Instagram. Traditional subscription TV is declining as free TV and connected TV gain ground, forcing broadcasters to innovate. “AI-generated content is just 2 per cent of engagement,” Jackson added, “highlighting the dominance of high-quality human content. The key for Indian media companies is scaling while monetising effectively from day one.”
Hannah Walsh, principal analyst at Ampere Analysis, added hard numbers to the picture. India produced over 24,000 titles in January 2026 alone, with 19,000 available internationally. The country now accounts for 12 per cent of Asia-Pacific content spend, up from 8 per cent in 2021, outpacing both Japan and China. Key exporters include JioStar, Zee Entertainment, Sony India, Amazon and Netflix, delivering over 7,500 Indian-produced titles abroad each year. The top importing markets are Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Egypt, the United States and the Philippines. Scripted content dominates globally at 88 per cent, with crime dramas and children’s and family titles performing particularly strongly.
Manoj Dobhal, chief executive and executive director of Dish TV India, framed the summit’s ambition squarely. “Stories don’t need translation. They need a platform, discovery, and reach, local or global,” he said. “India produces more movies than any country, our streaming platforms compete globally, and our tech and creators win international awards. Yet fragmentation slows growth. Producers, platforms, and tech move in different lanes. We need shared spaces, collaboration, and an ecosystem where ideas, technology, and people meet. That is why we built Content India.”
The data, the pitches and the prize money all pointed to the same conclusion: India is not waiting for the world to discover its stories. It is building the infrastructure to sell them.
