A bachelor’s in science with experience in metallurgical engineering services doesn’t predictably lead into coffee growing but that is how it went for the septuagenarian Pradipta Kumar Dash. A strong passion for farming pushed Mr. Dash to pool in his own life’s savings along with some borrowings from friends and family to establish the farm in 2001, despite strong discouragement from different quarters. While it took until 2008 for the first commercially viable quantity of coffee to be produced, Mr. Dash turned to intercropping the coffee with spices like black pepper, turmeric, black turmeric, ginger and herbs like safed mushli to keep the farm afloat. Mr. Dash’s primary philosophy throughout all these years has been on ensuring adequate nutrition for the coffee plants and maintaining balance between ‘what is drawn from the soil and what is returned to it’. This has translated to a very limited use of chemical fertilizers and greater focus on organic sources like cow dung cakes, neem cakes, and compost.