What do you get when you walk into the house of Areez P. Khambatta? Rasna ofcourse! After all, he is the owner of the soft drink concentrate major. His lovely wife Persis is a Pune girl, I have met her on a few occasions and always been greeted as warmly as if we were catching up on lost years. This time, I was looking forward to a visit to their home and meeting their son Piruz, his wife Binaisha and their three children.

"How are you?" bellowed Areez as he greeted me in his typical manner with a bear hug and the family gathered around us.

The Khambatta house is a bungalow  with a garden and patio with separate space for the family cars. As we made ourselves comfortable in the hall,  Areez took off almost instantly, "Ahmedabad is the best" he stated. "I am happy here, I like the Gujaratis and my staff, from manager to labourer are like family to me."

This grand old Parsi gentleman seated in front of me is someone India should be proud of, for it is he who spearheaded the soft drink revolution in India with his popular Rasna concentrate. On a lateral plane he would be responsible for pioneering the tetrapack revolution in the country too! "Did you know that at one time we were the sole suppliers of different flavours to big names like Rogers, Dukes, Turfs, Premiers, Brendans and Pallonjis? I always say that it’s the flavours that make the difference. I was king then", he says. I gently remind him that he is still in that exalted position since no one has made such an indelible mark in this industry.

Areez entered the market first with Jaffe in 1976, followed by Rasna in 1978. Lady Luck sure had a special niche for him as the brand crossed a turnover of a crore in the very first year!  "We had almost 500 people per shift, hand packing the drink and when the demand increased, we had to start a third shift," he informs. The USP of this brand was that it provided a good affordable drink to the common man and was available in every nook and corner of the country. Today, Rasna's operations are spread over 40 countries backed by seven factories in India. "This then is evolution", I say to him. "God has been very kind to me, I have done what he willed", he smiles, "now Piruz handles everything and he is better at it than I am" he says smiling indulgently at his son. "I look after the factory and the development angle".

Not many people know Areez was born in Karachi. "I am a Pakistani that way", he says. He first came to India when he was only two years old and thereafter came on frequent visits. He remembers the Parsis of Karachi as very forward in their thinking and reminisces about the 'housie' sessions he attended with his mother when he was just six to seven years old as he loved to watch them play.

Ahmedabad is where he grew up and it became his new home. He settled down here, with his petite wife Persis, with whom he had an arranged marriage. His wife wanted an arranged marriage, too. "He was the first person I met and fell in love with" she says shyly. "I had already seen and rejected about 50 girls by then" quips Areez.

This grand old Parsi gentleman recently had an eye surgery but it has not put him out of action. He goes about his daily chores, the only difference being the dark glasses he wears for protection. By his own admission, he cannot tolerate lethargy in any form.

At this juncture all eyes turn to little Avan, the one and a half year old daughter of Piruz, who has just awoken and carried into the room bathed and brushed, looking quite angelic. Their son Arzad prefers to play around with his cars and yes, he loves Rasna. As we chat, he has already had two flavours and is waiting for a third. "Wait until Arzin gets home from school then you can see all three of them together" says Areez with great pride. It is very apparent that India's soft drink concentrate 'king' is a soft family man and a doting grandfather.