Remember sharing a melted bar of chocolate with your friends after school? Lying in the depths of your school bag, smashed beneath books and somehow holding on within the confines of the packaging. Remember tearing it open only to have multiple forefingers appear out of nowhere to dig in, scooping up the liquified chocolate? Remember licking the foil afterwards – metallic taste and all. For millennials chocolate is a nostalgic throwback to childhood.
Cut to the current crop of brands and flavours making their way to the market and you can’t help but feel pride at how Indians have managed to make waves in the chocolate industry.
India’s chocolate market has grown considerably over the past two decades, moving beyond mass-produced bars. Introducing sophisticated creations with indigenous ingredients they also paid heed to the ethics behind farming and production. Global giants may continue to dominate store shelves, but these 5 home-grown labels focus on quality, innovation, and local sourcing
Soklet
This is India’s first first tree-to-bar chocolate brand. Meaning the entire process—from growing the cocoa beans to crafting the chocolate—is done in-house. Brothers-in-law Karthikeyan Palaniswamy and Harish Manoj Kumar started this brand in 2015 and the cocoa is grown on their own estate in the foothills of the Anamalai hills. Soklet focuses on small-batch, artisanal dark chocolate bars flavours like Bhut Jolokia, Rabdi, Hibiscus and Filter Kaapi.
Paul And Mike
Winning India her first gold at the International Chocolate Awards for their delectable Milk Chocolate Coated Salted Capers, the uniquely named brand offers fine-flavour chocolates using globally sourced and Indian-grown cacao. They emphasise fermentation techniques and have some interesting flavours like Masala Chai, Pumpkin Spice Latte, Tea Trunk Matcha Swirl with Almonds, Balkan Rose, Jamun and Brunost Cheese.
La Folie
Based in Mumbai and founded by Chef Sanjana Patel, La Folie began as a patisserie and later expanded into craft chocolate. It offers a range of single-origin bars, flavoured dark chocolates, and premium bonbons. Ingredients are ethically sourced directly from among the top 50 cacao farms and cooperatives around the world and the brand emphasises craftsmanship and high cacao content. La Folie chocolates are typically available through luxury food stores and online channels. Unique flavours include Intense Black Jaggery, Maple and Chunky Almond Butter and Creamy Coconut Milk.
Kocoatrait
Founded by L Nitin Chordia, Kocoatrait is the world and India’s first sustainable luxury and zero waste chocolate brand. Known for its sustainable practices, including plastic-free packaging and use of upcycled materials the brand offers a variety of dark chocolate bars using organic Indian cacao, along with vegan and allergen-free options. Popular flavours include Panakam Dark Chocolate, Malligai Dark Chocolate, Green Chilli Dark Chocolate, Dark Ginger and Cinnamon Chocolate, Desert Salt and Banana Dark Chocolate.
Chitra’m Craft Chocolates
Chitra’m Craft Chocolates blends the cultural and culinary richness of south India with premium chocolate-making. It uses cocoa grown in Tamil Nadu and Kerala and incorporates regional ingredients like filter coffee, jaggery, millets, and traditional rice to create bars with deep local flavour. Focusing on south Indian heritage and using minimal processing and natural sweeteners some of their popular and unique offerings are Peanut Puliogare, Pineapple Pepper Rasam, Beetroot Halwa and Caramelised Cashews, Crunchy Sakkarai Pongal with Bhimseni Camphor and Moringa & Lemon.
