How Indu Ice Cream is turning desserts into a medium for brand storytelling

Marshall McLuhan may not have had ice cream in mind when he said, “The medium is the message.” But the idea rings true for Mumbai-based Indu Ice Cream. 

Over the past year and a half, brands across categories—from restaurants and skincare to handbags and dating apps—have turned Indu’s ice creams into a medium for storytelling and consumer engagement. And they’re doing it not just through the outlet's Bandra-based cloud kitchen, but also via its strong social media presence.

Saloni Kukreja founded Indu Ice Cream four years ago, driven by her desire to reconnect with her Indian roots through flavour. Kukreja spotted a gap in the premium ice cream space, which she felt leaned heavily towards gelato, leaving little room for high-quality ice creams inspired by Indian tastes.

“I chose ice cream because it felt like a blank canvas—something I could really experiment with in terms of flavours,” she says.

That creative flexibility, paired with Kukreja’s decade-long experience as a content creator, shaped Indu’s digital-first approach. With no physical outlet and operating solely as a cloud kitchen, social media became central to the brand’s growth.

“The key was showing up every day, being consistent, and building a solid digital strategy. Without regular, in-person customer interaction, building a strong digital presence became essential for us,” she adds.

That strategy has paid off. With nearly 94,000 Instagram followers, Indu has emerged as a popular partner for brands seeking to stand out online. In the last 18 months alone, it has partnered with 18 brands, including Kiehl's, Plum, Tinder and Miraggio.

“For many brands, especially where the activation is purely online, it ultimately functions as a social media campaign,” Kukreja explains.

“We try to maximise whatever offline impact is possible, but at the end of the day, it’s digital-first. Brands today are constantly looking for new ways to showcase and reposition their products, and collaborations like these offer a fresh way to shape perception.”

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Indu Ice Cream (@induicecream)

The brand’s first collaboration was with Burma Burma, which wanted to promote its boba drinks menu. For Indu, it was a natural fit. Diners at the restaurant got to sample exclusive flavours, such as brown sugar boba-inspired ice cream and strawberry gondhoraj sorbet. Another early collaborator was California Pistachios.

“It fit naturally with our product and worked as a marketing activity, whether through influencer gifting, creator collaborations, or content on my platform,” Kukreja says. “We helped build that entire ecosystem around the partnership.”

While food collaborations come easily, Indu’s partnerships with non-food brands stand out. Tinder India teamed up with the brand for its Move On campaign, creating playful, limited-edition flavours such as Dil Ka Falooda, Your Ex’s Tears, and Toxic Expresso. Plum BodyLovin’ followed with a Vanilla Caramello–inspired ice cream based on its body lotion.

For Kukreja, skincare collaborations are particularly interesting because of their reliance on sensory experiences. “In a crowded digital landscape, having a physical product that people can actually taste creates a very different impact,” she says. 

“It shifts engagement from something people consume on a screen to something they experience in real life.”

Product synergy is central to every collaboration. Earlier this year, handbag brand Miraggio launched Summer Scoop, a collection inspired by ice cream colours and textures. Indu complemented the campaign with matching flavours, such as Pistachio White Chocolate Matcha, Milky Chocolate and Saffron Mango. 

For Kiehl’s Calendula toner, the brand created a peach iced tea sorbet infused with dried calendula petals. And for Crocs’ Monsoon Blue campaign, which blended Indian and Korean influences, Indu developed Korean–Indian-inspired flavours as part of an offline activation.

“With desserts, especially ice cream, integration is much easier,” Kukreja says. “It’s a blank canvas that lets you play with colours, flavours and textures. That flexibility makes storytelling more immersive and memorable.”

She adds that collaborations aren’t category-specific but theme-led.

“It’s about deciding what the product needs to communicate. The R&D process is actually the most fun part. Skincare brands are more challenging, but figuring out how to translate their essence through ice cream is what makes it exciting.”

These partnerships are also a growth lever for Indu. Offline activations with brands like Crocs and Miraggio introduced the ice cream to new influencer circles, while extensive gifting with Plum expanded its reach and database.

“That kind of placement wouldn’t have been possible without brand partnerships,” Kukreja says. “Discovery usually starts there. And while social media matters, the real impact still comes when people actually taste the ice cream.”

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Indu Ice Cream (@induicecream)

Indu’s audience largely skews Gen Z, with the biggest cohort falling in the 26–34 age bracket, followed by 18–25.

“They really vibe with our flavours,” Kukreja says. “Filter coffee is a big hit, pistachio is very on-trend, and a lot of what moves fastest appeals to a younger audience.” 

At the same time, Indianised flavours, especially those launched around festivals and retained on the menu, resonate with older consumers who prefer familiar profiles. “So while we keep innovating, our flavour palette allows us to appeal across age groups. That said, Gen Z definitely shows up more consistently.”

Geographically, Mumbai leads Indu's social media audience, followed by Bangalore, with Delhi and Gurgaon emerging as key markets. 

The cloud kitchen operates out of Bandra, which means the delivery radius is limited, though customers often arrange pickups themselves. Indu also has an offline presence through a partnership with Benne Dosa, served at its Kandivali and Juhu outlets.

Looking ahead, Kukreja wants to deepen customer interaction. Working in small batches and with limited distribution makes experiential engagement even more critical. Opening a scoop shop is next on the agenda—one that would allow consumers to experience Indu beyond delivery.

“A physical space would unlock more immersive collaborations,” she says. “Right now, many partnerships are restricted to delivery-only formats. Having our own space would let us host experiences, like skincare sessions paired with ice cream tastings, on our terms. That’s something we’re keen to build towards.”