
Our story
Yoga Pops has been a true labor of love, collaboration, and passion for us. For the longest time, Anita had been encouraging Nalini to package and sell healthy, Ayurveda-inspired foods. Nalini resisted at first, believing that good food should always be enjoyed fresh. But years later, the idea for Yoga Pops found us quite serendipitously. Nalini started serving them at her Ayurvedic pop-up dinners across the country. When guests kept asking to take them home, we finally realized—well, why not?
With Nalini’s background as an Ayurvedic chef and Anita’s experience in building people-first cultures, we poured our hearts into making snacks with integrity, always striving to give back to the farming communities in rural India who made it all possible.
Now, we are deeply grateful and excited to step into our next venture together. We are taking everything we've learned about food, culture, and community to the Historic Lyndale Creamery. Located in Independence, MN—just 30 minutes outside the Twin Cities—this 132-year-old piece of Minnesota’s agricultural heritage is our new passion project. We are working hard to restore this historic industrial farmhouse into a welcoming, multi-sensory destination where history, deep physical restoration, and food culture can converge. We cannot wait to welcome you to this special space.
- About Us -

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Nalini Mehta
Nalini started teaching Ayurvedic cooking 25 years ago. She views food and the cooking process as a means to nurturing the soul - an experience for the mind, body, and soul.
She began as a culinary instructor at the Natural Gourmet Institute for Food and Health while she still worked in the fashion industry, buying and merchandising for Macy's, Saks Fifth Avenue and product development and sourcing for Target Corporations. Moonlighting in the food world, she did everything from catering private events, cooking at gourmet stores in New York as well as the kitchens of Candle Cafe and Hampton Chutney. She was a culinary instructor at the Whole Foods Culinary Center, the Institute of Culinary Education and The NY Open Center.
In 2010, she moved to San Francisco and founded Route To India, a culinary school rooted in her Indian heritage. She then expanded to organizing culinary trips to India and hosting weekend yoga-culinary retreats in Sonoma, California, and at the Art of Living Retreat Center in Boone, North Carolina.
Nalini has been a speaker at a range of institutions including San Francisco Asian Art Museum, Rubin Museum of Art, Princeton University, Baruch College and the United Nations. Nalini was the recipient of the James Beard Foundation Women In Culinary Leadership Grant.
Anita brings more than 30 years of global talent and culture expertise to her work as an executive, entrepreneur, and trusted C-suite advisor. Throughout her career, she has guided business transformation and leadership development for world-class organizations across the U.S., Europe, and Asia—including leadership roles at U.S. Bank, Hewlett-Packard, American Express, Novartis, and Deloitte Consulting.
Today, as an independent Talent Architect and coach, Anita partners with organizations ranging from early-stage startups to multinational corporations. Her approach focuses on building inclusive cultures, aligning leadership succession, and unlocking sustainable growth.
Having lived and worked in India, Singapore, the United Kingdom, Japan, Switzerland, and the U.S., she brings a deeply nuanced, global perspective to human connection and organizational development.
Anita holds a Bachelor’s degree in English Literature and Psychology from Mumbai University and a Master’s degree in HR/Organizational Development from the London School of Economics.

