Blue Tokai Coffee Roasters, India’s largest specialty coffee brand, on Friday said that actor Deepika Padukone, has joined hands with the company as its latest investor. The investment is part of the company’s Series B funding round. This adds Deepika Padukone’s investment entity Ka Enterprises to its portfolio alongside A91 Partners, Anicut Capital, 8i Ventures, DSP Blackrock, Negen Capital, Mauryan Capital and White Whale Ventures.

In a statement, Deepika Padukone, Founder, Ka Enterprises, said, “As someone who is immensely passionate about homegrown brands and deeply values authenticity and transparency, investing in Blue Tokai was an evident choice. We have followed the brand’s growth very closely over the past decade and observed their vision and commitment to quality and innovation and are therefore thrilled to partner with them on their journey of making Indian specialty coffee accessible, delivering unparalleled coffee experiences and putting it on the global map.”

Matt Chitharanjan, Co-Founder and CEO, Blue Tokai Coffee Roasters, said, “We are glad to welcome Deepika and Ka Enterprises to the Blue Tokai family! Their thorough understanding of the D2C space and strategic investments are a testament to their strong business acumen and we are excited to have them join us on our next phase of growth. This year, we are taking experimentation, quality, accessibility and convenience a notch higher and the current growth metrics are a true indication of the success to follow.”

At present, the brand operates in India and Japan with 4 roasteries, over 80 physical outlets across major Indian cities and regions including Delhi NCR, Mumbai, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Chandigarh, Mohali and Pune as well as regular pop-ups in Tokyo. It also has strong B2B partnerships with the country’s marquee retail outlets, luxury hotels & restaurants, top corporates and co-working spaces amongst others.