The Story of Hitayu
Hitayu means “that which is beneficial to life.” It is the name we gave to a promise: honest, handmade care rooted in Ayurveda.
A grandmother's recipe book & a kitchen full of herbs
Hitayu started with a handwritten notebook of ubtan, soap and balm recipes passed down through three generations. When store-bought soaps left our skin tight and irritated, we went back to those pages: sandalwood paste, rose petals from the temple garden, neem from the backyard and oils pressed at the village ghani.
Friends asked for a bar, then their friends did too. Today we are a small team of makers, but the process hasn't changed. Every bar is still poured, cut, cured and wrapped by hand.
The Slow, Small-Batch Way
Infuse
Herbs like neem, avaram, tulsi and alkanet root are steeped in cold-pressed oils for up to two weeks.
Pour
We cold-process in batches of just 40–60 bars, so nutrients and natural glycerine stay intact.
Cure
Bars rest on wooden racks for 4–6 weeks, becoming milder, harder and longer-lasting.
Wrap
Each bar is hand-wrapped in recycled paper and labelled with its batch date.
What We Will Always Stand By
No Synthetic Foaming Agents
No SLS, SLES, parabens or artificial colours. Our lather comes from coconut, castor and natural glycerine.
Cruelty-Free, Always
Never tested on animals. We test on ourselves, our families and our very patient friends.
Plastic-Conscious Packaging
Recycled paper wraps, kraft boxes, cotton twine and compostable fillers. Even our tape is paper.
Milestones
The first batch of Sandal Rose soap is made in our home kitchen and shared with family.
@hitayu.handmade goes live on Instagram. Carrot Coco Glow and Neem Haldi join the family.
We move into a small workshop with proper curing racks, and launch Root & Rose lip balm.
10,000 bars handcrafted and delivered across India, still in small batches, still by hand.