Who We Are
Abhishek Suresh
Cofounder,
Strategy & Operations
Abhishek Suresh is a chemical engineer from NIT Calicut and holds an MBA from IE Business School in Madrid. He started his career with Reliance Industries in manufacturing operations, later moving into consulting, and eventually joined eGov Foundation where he led digital product initiatives in public health. His work has taken him across India and several African countries where he partnered with governments and global organizations like WHO.
Abhishek's love for coffee has always been part of his life, but it grew deeper during his travels through Africa and Europe. His exposure to the variety of coffees in these regions, combined with meaningful conversations and brewing sessions with friends from Latin America during business school, helped him understand how deeply origin, soil, altitude, and processing influence flavor and hence each regions's taste will be different. He was struck by how transparently and passionately coffee was celebrated elsewhere, and how rare that level of traceability and storytelling still was in India.
That passion became the foundation for Lore & Roast — a specialty coffee venture that aims to bring Indian coffee to the world and global coffee to India, while celebrating each bean's journey. At Lore & Roast, Abhishek combines his systems thinking, global perspective, and mission-driven mindset to build a brand rooted in purpose, transparency, and taste.
Mihika Basu
Cofounder,
PR & Outreach
Mihika Basu is a Senior Editor and Lead Technical Writer with a rich background spanning journalism, public health communication, and technology documentation. She holds a Postgraduate Diploma in Mass Communication and a Bachelor's degree in English Honours from St. Xavier's College, Kolkata. Her career began in journalism with leading publications like The Asian Age, The Indian Express, and Bangalore Mirror, where she specialized in education, science, and public health reporting that influenced national policy discourse.
Transitioning into the tech sector, Mihika worked with Happiest Minds Technologies creating technical documentation for AI and ML platforms, before joining eGov Foundation as Lead Technical Writer. At eGov, she has led documentation initiatives for health platforms used across 5 African countries, benefiting over 12 million people, and contributed to DIVOC's digital certification system that processed over 2 billion certificates across multiple countries including India, Philippines, and Sri Lanka.
Originally a tea enthusiast, Mihika's relationship with coffee transformed when she moved to Bangalore, where the city's vibrant coffee culture opened her palate to new possibilities. Her travels to Vietnam and Turkey deepened this appreciation, exposing her to the distinct terroir and processing methods that make each region's coffee unique. These experiences sparked a realization about the untapped potential for bringing specialty coffee culture to India.
This journey from documenting global health initiatives to discovering global coffee traditions became the catalyst for Lore & Roast — a specialty coffee venture that bridges her expertise in storytelling, cross-cultural communication, and audience-focused content creation. At Lore & Roast, Mihika leverages her editorial background and global perspective to build a brand that celebrates transparency, origin stories, and the craft of coffee, bringing both Indian coffee to the world and international specialty coffee to Indian consumers.
Kiran Keshvala
Head of Partnerships,
Community engagement & B2B sales
Kiran Keshvala is a program and operations leader with over 12 years of experience across the UK, India, and Africa. She holds an MBA from the University of Warwick and has worked with organizations like the NHS, Apple, and various global NGOs. Her work has spanned health tech, digital transformation, and large-scale public health campaigns, where she’s collaborated with governments, global agencies, and communities across continents.
Her coffee journey started during her time in London, where cozy cafés became spaces for reflection, conversation, and creativity. But it truly deepened during her travels across Africa and Europe, where she experienced how deeply coffee is rooted in culture, history, and connection. She was particularly inspired by the way people celebrated the story behind every cup — from the soil to the farmer, the roast to the ritual.
That curiosity and love for storytelling became a natural bridge to Lore & Roast — a venture that blends purpose, people, and flavor. At L&R, Kiran brings her passion for building systems, organizing chaos, and creating impact, ensuring that every bean's journey is not only tasted but truly understood and celebrated.
Aswathy Ravi
Head of Marketing & Design
Aswathy Revi, a process engineer from Kozhikode now based in Canada. Growing up with kattan kaapi from her mother’s hometown in Idukki, she developed a lasting connection to coffee and its roots. With her systems-driven mindset and passion for authenticity, she helped shape Lore & Roast into a specialty coffee venture that sources from unique small plantations around the world and roasts in India — bringing traceable, authentic flavors to Indian coffee drinkers
Dr Sajeesh Sivadas
Consultant - Healthcare & Advisor
Dr. Sajeesh Sivadas is a senior consultant nephrologist at Aster MIMS with over 15 years of clinical experience, specializing in dialysis care and critical nephrology. He holds an MBBS, MD in Internal Medicine, and DM in Nephrology, and has managed high patient volumes across both outpatient and ICU settings.
A long-time coffee enthusiast, he brings a deep appreciation for quality and consistency, traits that mirror his medical practice. His understanding of discipline, precision, and health-focused habits adds a unique lens to the way Lore & Roast approaches product integrity.
As a Medical Advisor to Lore & Roast, Dr. Sajeesh supports the brand in shaping clean-label practices, and ensuring quality standards that meet evolving consumer wellness expectations.
