Arushi Agrawal: Building a luxury fragrance brand that funds cataract surgeries

(Jul 24, 2026) Guided by a belief that luxury can be both meaningful and mindful, Mumbai-based entrepreneur Arushi Agrawal founded SEVA Home to create a brand where elegant home fragrances meet craftsmanship, design and social impact. Every ten products sold help fund a cataract surgery, proving that a candle can illuminate lives beyond the home. 

Walk into a room scented with one of SEVA Home‘s candles and you encounter more than fragrance. Each hand-poured candle reflects careful craftsmanship, premium ingredients and a philosophy rooted in its Sanskrit namesake, seva, meaning selfless service.

Founded by entrepreneur Arushi Agrawal in 2019, the luxury home fragrance brand was built around a simple idea: beautiful products should also create meaningful impact. While each candle is crafted using natural soy wax and premium fragrance oils to elevate everyday living, every ten products sold help fund a cataract surgery through the Samta Foundation. “The model has already helped restore sight to more than 5,000 people, making generosity an integral part of the business,” Arushi shares with The Global Indian.

The art and science of luxury candles

“Candle-making is often perceived as a simple craft, but creating luxury candles involves a great deal of science,” says the Mumbai-based Founder and Director of SEVA Home who studied at Babson College in Massachusetts, United States. Every candle undergoes careful attention to wax temperature, fragrance load, wick selection, curing time and burn performance. “A candle is much more than fragrance. It’s an experience that combines light, scent, craftsmanship and emotion.”

Today, under her leadership, SEVA Home has grown into a design-led luxury home fragrance brand with an international customer base, while remaining anchored in the belief that luxury can be both beautiful and purposeful.

Discovering the opportunity

During the pandemic, while refurbishing her home, Arushi found herself searching for luxury candles that matched international standards in both design and performance. The choices were limited. “I wanted products that were clean-burning, aesthetically refined and thoughtfully made. When I couldn’t find enough options that met those expectations, I decided to create them myself.”

Apart from soy wax candles, the brand offers reed diffusers, room sprays, electric diffusers, oil burners and seasonal collections, each developed with meticulous attention to fragrance composition, burn quality and design. The entrepreneur believes in distinct storytelling to promote her brand, and makes use of collaborations not just as creative exercises but as strategic accelerators.

“Over the past few years at SEVA Home, one thing has become increasingly clear to us: when brands collaborate with artists and designers, the outcome goes far beyond aesthetics,” she says.

SEVA Home’s limited edition collaboration on the Maharaja Maharani Collection with artist and sculptor Suryakant Lokhande

Building expertise from scratch

Like most young brands, SEVA Home’s early years involved considerable experimentation. “Building technical expertise in candle-making, identifying the right raw materials, perfecting formulations and maintaining consistent quality required significant experimentation.”

The challenge extended beyond manufacturing. Luxury home fragrances were still an emerging category in India, requiring the company to educate consumers while developing products. The solution was simple but demanding: invest deeply in research, artisan training and uncompromising quality.

Craftsmanship without compromise

Over time, every detail—from wax formulation and wick calibration to fragrance balance was refined. Today, SEVA Home operates a flagship store in Mumbai’s Kala Ghoda, shop-in-shop formats in Mumbai and Kolkata, a growing online presence and an expanding international footprint.

Yet Arushi believes its biggest achievement is remaining true to the founding philosophy that luxury should create value beyond the product itself.

Empowering women through craftsmanship

Rather than outsourcing production expertise, Arushi chose to build it in-house. Women artisans were trained extensively in every stage of candle making, developing both the craftsmanship and technical precision required to produce internationally competitive products. “It creates sustainable livelihood opportunities while ensuring every product reflects the highest standards of quality and consistency.”

The science behind every candle

Luxury candles demand far more than attractive packaging. SEVA Home uses 100 percent soy wax, premium fragrance oils, carefully tested wick combinations and layered scent compositions to deliver a clean, long-lasting burn. Equally important is the design itself. Every product follows a minimal, timeless aesthetic intended to blend effortlessly into contemporary homes.

Growing up years and learning entrepreneurship at Babson

Arushi grew up in Mumbai in a family that encouraged curiosity, creativity and independent thinking. From an early age, she was fascinated by thoughtfully designed spaces, architecture and objects capable of transforming a home’s atmosphere. “I’ve always believed that surroundings influence how we feel, and that fascination eventually shaped my entrepreneurial journey.”

She went on to study entrepreneurship at Babson College in Massachusetts, one of the world’s leading institutions for entrepreneurial education, choosing the institution because entrepreneurship was treated not simply as an academic discipline there, but as a mindset built around experimentation, problem-solving and innovation.

Global exposure, lasting lessons

“My years at Babson exposed me to global perspectives on innovation, design thinking and business building,” says Arushi. Exposure to global design cultures strengthened her appreciation of candles as sensory experiences rather than decorative accessories.

Living away from home also taught resilience and adaptability—qualities she says every entrepreneur eventually needs. Another lasting lesson was that successful brands are built as much through emotional connection and storytelling as they are through products, a philosophy that continues to shape SEVA Home.

Social impact is embedded into SEVA Home’s business model rather than added as an afterthought. “We wanted impact to be embedded into the business itself. Restoring someone’s eyesight goes far beyond healthcare.”

India’s growing fragrance culture

Arushi believes Indian consumers increasingly view home fragrances as part of everyday wellbeing rather than occasional indulgence. “Candles, diffusers and home fragrances are increasingly viewed as tools for relaxation, mindfulness and self-care.” For her, every product should perform as beautifully as it looks.

Arushi’s ambition is to establish SEVA Home as a globally recognised Indian luxury lifestyle brand. The company plans to expand its retail presence across India while strengthening international markets, introducing new fragrance collections, artist collaborations and design-led lifestyle products.

Growth, she says, will also allow the company to create greater social impact by funding more cataract surgeries and generating additional livelihood opportunities for women artisans.

Creative influences

Travel remains Arushi’s greatest creative influence. Exploring architecture, boutique hotels, museums and design stores across the world continually shapes her approach to products and spaces. She also draws inspiration from interior design, contemporary architecture, art and nature.

Away from work, she enjoys reading and spending quiet time at home, reflecting on how fragrance, light, and thoughtfully designed spaces can enrich everyday rituals.

• Follow Arushi Agrawal on LinkedIn and SEVA Home on Instagram

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