Today we’d like to introduce you to Sonia Sandha.
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
Born and raised in Los Angeles, entertainment was naturally an industry I was drawn to. At the age of 12, I started modeling and was fortunate enough to travel the world and turn it into a fruitful career. Thanks to my wonderful agency, LA Models, I’ve had the opportunity to model for brands like Sephora, Ulta, Murad, Kohl’s, Gucci, Lexus, Walmart, Banana Republic, and more. But having grown up in a traditional Indian household, financial success was never enough.
I had to get straight A’s, be a good daughter, and struggle to balance it all without being labeled a disappointment. While I resented having to focus on my education at the time, I’ve grown to appreciate and value the principles my family imbued me with. And honestly… it gave me the work ethic and resilience I needed for the tough times that were ahead.
After my first dog of 18 years passed away, I fell into a deep depression. Starting around the age of twenty-five, I began to question everything —both professionally and personally— and fell into a dark place. Despite having a great support system, I felt stuck, lost, and confused. And luckily, I had my partner, Sunny Tripathy, by my side.
Sunny is very intellectually driven, and we are quite different in every way possible. He’s the kind of person who knows every random fact about animals, math, science and is simultaneously the most extroverted, uplifting person I know. But I’m going off topic. The point is – during my depression, he helped me figure out the next steps in my life. He helped me realize that sometimes we go through a life change where we feel complacent, dull, and depressed. And, sometimes, that can also mean it’s a good time to pivot careers, open new doors, and do something marked by purpose. To do something that makes us feel invigorated.
After months of therapy and self-growth, I began to discover my vocation and true calling in life. I finished my Bachelors at CSUN, I got my MBA during the pandemic, and I finished an online executive program from Harvard Business School. Truthfully, I was getting my confidence back, and I was finding myself along the way.
I used time during the quarantine to bond with my family and spent a great deal of time cooking with my mom who we call Mama Pam. We bonded, despite our differences, over our love for healthy eating. And we began competing to see who could make the best ghee — a type of Indian clarified butter.
My mom encouraged Sunny to try using it to lower his cholesterol, and within months, Sunny’s cholesterol levels dropped back to normal and his overall health improved. He ditched traditional butters and oils and began using ghee exclusively to cook, bake, and even make bulletproof coffee every single morning. I spent months perfecting my own version of ghee, and after testing it successfully with our friends and community, we realized we should share this secret recipe with the world.
Soon, Sunny started fusing his own mother’s recipes and traditions (like the specific Masalas in Western dishes), and we realized we were eating like royalty. All thanks to our mothers. After a long discussion and brainstorm, we realized the expression “Moms know best” indefinitely runs true. We found that, in our own culture, mothers often express their love through food, and more often than not, they are underappreciated in every way imaginable.
So, after a challenging pandemic, we decided to take what we had been working on and build a real business. As the response to our ghee grew in positivity and scale, we decided to think bigger and open the opportunity for other food products, all under the My Mama’s Foods label.
Ever since, our mission at My Mama’s Foods has become to curate authentic, wholesome foods that all moms would feel safe and comfortable for their children to be eating. And our vision is not only to sell ghee and spices but also bring worldly, health-forward sauces, dishes, and snacks while highlighting phenomenal mothers (and their unique traditions) along the way.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
It’s definitely been a journey trying to launch a company. We don’t have family in the food business or contacts who know how to do this stuff. Many days it was just Sunny and I, hauling around product and going to our commercial kitchen. But we’ve always had faith, and we’ve learned to problem solve quickly. Or at least much quicker than before. Given our commitment to sustainability and using eco-friendly containers and materials, we were nearly crushed when the pandemic drove up our costs by nearly 40%. Still, we stuck to our gut, found alternatives, cut corners, got resourceful, and found ways to power forward that ultimately worked out even better than we imagined.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I have been a model for about 18 years, but after a newfound passion, I am working towards living a great life in entrepreneurship! I am now CEO and Founder of My Mama’s Foods!
Can you talk to us a bit about happiness and what makes you happy?
Happiness is a hard choice to make. After I got out of depression, my partner and I decided to create a lifestyle change that would be better for the both of us. We wake up at 4am every weekday, exercise, journal, and walk our dog right before work. We make sure that we are mentally and physically fit to conquer each day. Of course, we are imperfect and many days feel like we spent all our time just putting out fires. But, luckily for us, we have our co-founder and best friend, our Yorkie-Shihtzu— Coco Puff, to keep us motivated. Especially on the days we are exhausted or feeling low. Honestly, nothing compares to a dog’s love. And sometimes, we’re doing it all for her.
Contact Info:
- Email: [email protected]
- Website: mymamasfoods.com
- Instagram: @mymamasfoods / @soniasandha
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mymamasfoods
