De Beers' Forevermark bets on India retail push as lab-grown diamonds surge

Published 16 July 2026 · local

Vaeshnavi reports on the business of consumption from Bengaluru, tracking how India shops, eats, and clicks. As a correspondent with Mint’s consumer economy team, she

Vaeshnavi reports on the business of consumption from Bengaluru, tracking how India shops, eats, and clicks. As a correspondent with Mint’s consumer economy team, she covers sectors ranging from retail and food and beverage to the rapid rise of quick commerce. She is a 2025 graduate of the Asian College of Journalism’s Bloomberg Business and Finance programme. She joined the Mint newsroom in May 2025 and this is her first stint in journalism. She holds a bachelor's degree in accounting and finance from the University of Madras. Vaeshnavi loves storytelling and breaking down complex jargon and numbers to bring out insightful yet simple-to-understand narratives. She is a Malayali but has spent most of her life living in Chennai.

During her school days, she was an avid debater and loved participating in anything that involved holding a mic and standing on stage talking to a room filled with people. A diehard SRK fan, she can be found vibing to Indie music and Bollywood songs in her free time. She is a self-confessed cold coffee addict who won’t let a day pass without one, and is always café-hopping in search of the city’s best brew. Sowmya Ramasubramanian Sowmya is a senior correspondent covering retail, FMCG, corporate strategy, and consumer technology, with a focus on how companies navigate demand, competition, and shifting consumption patterns across both urban and emerging markets.

She reports on business decisions through both breaking news and long-form stories. An alumna of the Asian College of Journalism, she has reported on a range of consumer-facing industries, including e-commerce, healthcare, and startups. Her work focuses on understanding how companies grow, compete, and adapt in a changing economic environment, as well as how broader trends translate into everyday consumption and business outcomes. She is particularly interested in how business decisions show up in everyday consumer experiences, and often looks at trends through the lens of how they play out on the ground. Prior to her current role, Sowmya was part of the editorial team at YourStory, where she covered startups and entrepreneurship.

She has also worked on longform stories at The Morning Context and reported on technology at The Hindu in Chennai, gaining experience across different formats and newsrooms. Her reporting aims to be accurate and accessible, with an emphasis on context and careful sourcing. She is particularly interested in stories that sit at the intersection of business strategy and consumer behaviour. Based in Bengaluru and always curious about evolving consumption trends, she is often exploring new coffee and kombucha spots, both as a personal interest and a way to observe how consumer preferences are taking shape on the ground.