Athena Protein raises pre-seed round from Campus Fund for INR 75 protein yogurt
What's the deal? Athena ProteinDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, a Bengaluru-based high-protein food brand, has raised a pre-seed round led by Campus FundDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →. The company sells a clean-label Greek yogurt with 22g of protein in a 200g cup for INR 75 — a price meant for daily rather than occasional eating.
Why the product matters: Comparable premium chilled protein servings retail at INR 125 to INR 150. Athena hits 22g using ultrafiltration, milk protein concentrate, and added milk solids, with no isolates, stabilisers, preservatives, or added sugar in flavoured variants. Most global players stop short of 17g.
The traction: Since launching in June 2025, Athena has built a 40 to 45% returning customer rate, with about 70% of revenue from prepaid subscriptions. Its launch day drew roughly INR 1 lakh in sales from a single organic Reddit post that reached 1.1 million views.
Where it's expanding: Athena is live in Bengaluru, Hyderabad, and now Chennai, and plans to grow from two cities to five or six over the coming year, with Pune and Mumbai to follow. The capital will also fund quick-commerce onboarding on Blinkit and Zepto, stronger manufacturing and cold-chain capacity, hiring, and new products.
Why Campus Fund backed it: "Several of us at Campus Fund were paying customers before Athena arrived as a deal," said Richa Bajpai, founder and chief executive officer of Campus Fund. "That is not something a diligence process can manufacture."
Who's behind it: Athena was co-founded by Adarsh Humne, who leads technology, growth, and finance, and Siddhant Humne, who leads product research, cold chain, fulfilment, and operations. The pair bootstrapped the business entirely on personal savings, with no borrowings and no prior external capital.
The signal: Indian consumers want more protein from familiar food they can eat daily, not powders or bars. "We wanted to make something people look forward to eating, with enough protein to matter and at a price that makes daily consumption possible," said Adarsh Humne. Athena is betting affordability and a reliable perishable supply chain can turn high-protein dairy into an everyday habit.
Read more: businesswireindia.com
Image credit: Jose C Silva
