This is India’s oldest soft drink brand, not Mukesh Ambani’s Campa Cola, Pepsi, Coca-Cola, it was started by…, name is…
However, long before these global giants entered the Indian markets, a local gas drink had already made history. Today, very few people know that India has their own soda heritage, which lasts for more than 150 years.
When we think about non-alcoholic beverages in India, brands such as Coca-Cola, Pepsi and the newly revived Campa Cola are usually coming to mind. However, long before these global giants entered the Indian markets, a local gas drink had already made history. Today, very few people know that India has its own soda heritage, which has been based on a period of more than 150 years, and started with a man named Ardeshir in Pune. According to reports, the journey of carbonated beverages began in 1767 when British chemist Joseph Priestley discovered how water was mixed with carbon dioxide. This invention gained popularity after being commercialized by the Schweppes brand in 1783. In the early 1800s, gas drinks became so popular that Bombay saw the opening of a ventilated water factory Rogers in 1837.
In the late 1800s, Ardeshir, a young man from Yazd in Iran, came to India. He just escaped from his homeland with RS 8 and finally settled in Pune. One evening, he witnessed a bar fight on the soda due to delayed supply. That chaotic moment caused an idea.
Ardeshir began to try carbonated water, sugar and flavors. In 1884, two years before the invention of Coca-Cola in 1886, a small rental barracks in Pune launched its own soda brand. Only the beverage, known as “Ardeshir”, became a local favorite and laid the foundation of India’s own soda culture.
Soon, Ardeshir’s soda was delivered between the cities from Quetta (now in Pakistan) to Pune, and multinational brands continued to renew people long before they entered Indian homes.
In contrast, Campa Cola – is now widely encouraged by Reliance – it has a much closer history. It was founded in 1977 by the Pure Beverages Group and was a home name in India in the 80s and 90s. However, Campa Cola lost its market share with the entrance of global brands. In 2022, he acquired the Reliance Industries of Mukesh Ambani and restarted it as part of the FMCG expansion in 2023.
