Kavitha was born in Anantpur District of Andhra Pradesh and moved to Bangalore in 1999.
Growing up, she dreamt of becoming a doctor. When the time came, she gave the entrance and was allotted a good seat. But, the fees, despite the concession was exorbitant and the dream had to be abandoned. That’s when the words of her teacher reminding her of the power of prevention over cure inspired her to find a new passion- food science! She decided to focus on how food can influence health rather than how medicine can treat ill health.

Kavitha has completed B.Tech in Food Science and Technology from University of Agricultural Sciences, Bangalore. She followed this up with an M.Tech in Food Science and Nutrition with a nutritional specialization from National Dairy Research Institute, Haryana. Kavitha recalls enjoying the experience of her stay in the state and the opportunity it provided in having friends from diverse backgrounds including nationality!

Kavitha has carried out extensive research on the functional properties of Aloe vera. Post studies, she worked for Vimta labs as a food analyst for 2 years. The work seemed monotonous and unfulfilling. At the same time, she wished to work towards educating rural women about nutrition and health. She is of the opinion that, the issue in rural areas is not the lack of access to food as much as it is about the negligence in making proper food choices; women tend to think first about feeding those around them and not themselves. By making little changes in cooking practices like washing the vegetables before cutting them, rather than after can make a difference in preserving its nutritional value! It’s these little changes that she converses with rural women about. Her current role in Samvada’s Baduku Centre for Livelihoods learning as the co-convenor of Farmers’ Field School is giving her space to explore these interests.
During the pandemic, Kavitha was involved with Manmayee run by Baduku alumni- to help farmers market their produce.

Since her childhood, Gardening is something that brings her great joy! She has a garden at home with 11 different types of vegetables including brinjal, tomato and bitter gourd- that she grows with her partner. In fact, 5 days a week, the source of produce for cooking at home comes from her own garden. Kavitha is always busy formulating novel food products with traditional ingredients. Embroidery, quilting, tailoring, making products from coconut shells and other natural resources are some of her other interests.

Travelling is something Kavitha makes time for- travelling with friends and travelling to make new ones!