A mother-daughter duo from Malappuram, Kerala, decided to sell ventha velichenna (virgin coconut oil) under the brand Purvina in 2020. Here’s their story.

It all started when Parvathy’s grandfather developed Alzheimer’s. An Ayurveda doctor suggested he consume traditionally prepared ventha velichenna twice a day as treatment.

“It worked. Since the disease is hereditary, my father and I also started taking 15 ml of oil every day,” Parvathy says.

The coconut needed for the oil was sourced from their own farm, as well as from other farmers of the locality.

At the time, her mother Jaya was in the process of starting a business selling organically grown spices from their farmland. She decided to add ventha velichenna to the list.

But the preparation of the oil was not easy, she recounts. “Only 10 litres of oil can be extracted from nearly 250 coconuts and the oil has a shelf-life of only one year.”

“Virgin coconut oil is an excellent non-greasy moisturiser and makeup remover, can prevent wrinkles, and can even be used as salad dressing!” she says.

Over time they built a business selling virgin coconut oil. Today, while Jaya takes on the work related to production, Parvathy markets the product, white labels it, and takes care of online sales.

The oil is priced at Rs 445 for 250 mL and the brand sells about 250 litres of oil per month.

Parvathy says that their dream is to educate people about the benefits of ventha velichenna as well, rather than just make profits.

“We want to build Purvina as a synonym of this magic oil,” she says.