By Jessica Mathiasz

Damayanthi’s hands move with the calm precision of someone who knows exactly what real sustenance looks like. By 3:00 AM, while the rest of Colombo is still asleep, her kitchen is already filled with the distinct, earthy aroma of freshly ground leaves, boiled grains, and simmering garlic.

By 7:00 AM, she, her son Yasiru and her sister have set up their small, temporarily structured hut on Keppetipola Road, right near Police Park in Thimbirigasyaya. They call it Healing Hut. For three years now, rain or shine, they arrive every morning to serve honest, homemade food before packing up around 11:30 AM.

In a world obsessed with quick fixes and passing wellness trends, Damayanthi’s philosophy is disarmingly simple… healthy food shouldn't be a fleeting trend that comes and goes. It should be an everyday trend of the way we live.

Here is their story, in their own words.

"I started with just three varieties."

Damayanthi: We used to live in the Police quarters. I was a housewife, and I simply wanted to do something to help my family financially. I thought, why not make the same healthy food I already prepare at home for my husband and three children?

I started with kola kanda, just three varieties at first. The feedback was so good that I expanded it to six: kurakkan, kithul piti, rulang, heenbowitiya, suduloonu, and traditional kola kanda. I picked each one because it targets specific health issues, from controlling cholesterol and diabetes to clearing phlegm.

Once Yasiru was old enough, he joined me. Now it’s the three of us- me, my son, and my sister waking up early every single day to make everything fresh from scratch.

"If I am the brawn, my son is the brains."

Yasiru: I used to work at an IT company, but after watching my mother work so hard, I realised that helping her grow this business was a much better use of my time, energy, and skills. Cooking is only half the battle. Taken together, we make a great team.

Damayanthi: If I am the brawn, he is definitely the brains! I know how to cook and create these nutritious recipes, but Yasiru’s tech savviness and outgoing personality took us to a completely different level. He talks to the customers and builds genuine relationships so they keep coming back. He designed our logo, posts videos on TikTok, and even set us up on Uber Eats and PickMe after some of our regular customers helped connect us with the right people.

Yasiru: We even get tourists now who find us purely through Google reviews. When people call us saying they can’t make it to the hut in person, I personally deliver the food to them when there is no rush at the hut. 

"No shortcuts. No compromises."

Damayanthi: You see a lot of places claiming to sell herbal teas or kola kanda, but many use commercial powders instead of real, fresh leaves. It’s the easy way out; it lets you make massive quantities cheaply, but it completely strips away the health benefits.

We don't take shortcuts. We make our kola kanda the traditional way, passed down through generations. Some vendors add cornflour to artificially thicken it. We would never do that; we only use red rice for thickness, and we grind five different fresh leaves into our brew.

I recognised that busy people default to short eats simply because they’re fast and accessible. I wanted to make clean, home-cooked food just as easy to grab. That’s why we expanded our menu beyond kanda to include kadala, kaupi, mungata, manyokka, string hoppers, and boiled vegetable cups.

Our kola kanda, suduloonu (garlic tea), and heenbowitiya sell the fastest. At LKR 150 a cup, it’s good quality, a solid portion, and real value for your money.

"It feels like I am fulfilling my purpose."

Damayanthi: I do this with complete honesty and integrity. My true calling is to help people live healthier lives.

We have regular customers who have been coming since day one, mostly office workers, people heading home from morning workouts, and athletes. When I see them walking up, I don't even ask; I just start pouring their usual order. We also keep sample cups ready so newcomers can taste test before deciding what they like best.

Over the years, people have come back to tell us how their health changed. We had a customer who suffered from daily numbness in her fingers, and after regularly drinking our heenbowitiya kanda, the numbness faded away. Others with high blood sugar saw their diabetes readings stabilise, and young women have told us their hair loss noticeably reduced after switching to a morning kola kanda.

Reading our reviews and hearing these personal stories... It makes me feel like my purpose in life is being achieved.

Looking Ahead

Operating out of a temporary roadside hut comes with its own daily anxieties, including navigating local authority permissions and the threat of being moved along. Yet, Damayanthi and Yasiru’s vision remains steadfast.

Yasiru: The current economy makes big moves tough, but our dream is to expand. We want to open a second permanent spot in Colombo, build our own delivery service, and eventually set up Healing Huts across the island.

Damayanthi: We’ve started doing bulk orders too, recently delivering kola kanda for post office staff and school swimming meets. I’d love to get a specialised processing machine to scale up production without losing quality, and eventually see our fresh kola kanda stocked daily in major supermarket chains.

More than anything, we just want to keep serving our community, one fresh cup at a time. 
Trends come and go, but good health is forever. Next time you’re near Police Park between 7:00 and 11:30 AM, drop by Healing Hut for a fresh cup; your body will thank you for it.