Shows
Founder ThesisNishith Rastogi (Locus) shares the engineer's guide to SaaS scale upFrom a $10,000 first customer to multi-million dollar contracts, hear the incredible growth story of Locus!In this episode of the Founder Thesis podcast, Founder and CEO Nishith Rastogi shares key strategies on how a shift from B2C to B2B helped fuel its success in the on-demand economy. Gain key insights into their go-to-market strategy, AI integration, and the importance of building strong customer relationships. Get actionable insights for your own entrepreneurial journey!Akshay Datt, a serial entrepreneur who has run ventures in employability training and hiring, hosts the Founder Thesis podcast. He has...
2025-03-062h 02
The SpotlightAjay Singhania (Epack Durable) on building a Rs 3500Cr empire from near bankruptcyFrom losing their biggest client to building a ₹3500 Cr manufacturing powerhouse, hear the inspiring journey of Ajay Singhania, MD & CEO of Epack Durable!In this episode of "The Spotlight", presented by the Founder Thesis podcast, learn how resilience, strategic pivots, and a commitment to "Make in India" fueled Epack's rise from near collapse to industry leadership. Discover actionable insights for aspiring entrepreneurs on building, adapting, and scaling a successful business.Akshay Datt, a serial entrepreneur having run ventures in Employability Training and hiring, is the host of "The Spotlight", presented by the Founder Thesis podcast. He...
2025-03-041h 05
The SpotlightAmit Mehta's (Asha Ventures) Path to Impactful InvestingIn this episode, Amit Mehta, Managing Partner at Asha Ventures, a venture capital and private equity firm highlights key lessons from his successful investments and the evolving Indian VC landscape. He discusses Asha Ventures' focus on sustainability, healthcare, and inclusion in its investment strategy, as well as the importance of governance and vision in selecting impactful startups. Tune in to explore Amit's insights on building scalable businesses that create positive change.Akshay Datt, a serial entrepreneur having run ventures in Employability Training and hiring, is the host of "The Spotlight", presented by the Founder Thesis podcast. He...
2025-02-251h 13
Founder ThesisYamini Bhat (Vymo) on Empowering Sales teamsYamini Bhat is a rare breed - a female founder of a tech startup, but beyond that her achievements are simply phenomenal - Vymo is a global Saas company doing double digit million in ARR, and has raised $45mn till date. In this episode of the Founder Thesis podcast Yamini Bhat recounts her fascinating transition from McKinsey consultant to the founder of Vymo, a cutting-edge sales automation platform. Learn about the challenges she faced, the lessons learned, and the breakthroughs and strategies that helped her scale the company globally. Akshay Datt, a serial ent...
2025-02-211h 12
The SpotlightSahil Anand (Cedar IBSi Capital) on the massive B2B Fintech opportunityIn this episode, join Sahil Anand, founder of Cedar IBSi Capital, as he shares his entrepreneurial journey, exploring the evolution of Cedar Consulting and the unique challenges of launching a fintech investment fund. Learn about the consulting landscape, Cedar's execution-heavy approach, and the promising future of fintech in India.Akshay Datt, a serial entrepreneur having run ventures in Employability Training and hiring, is the host of "The Spotlight", presented by the Founder Thesis podcast. He has interviewed 500+ founders to date.Connect:Sahil Anand: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sahil-anand-0669a689/Akshay...
2025-02-191h 27
Founder ThesisArvind Parthiban (SuperOps) on The Power of Product MarketingIn this episode, we dive into the entrepreneurial journey of Arvind Parthiban, CEO & Co-Founder of SuperOps, a $50M SaaS company. Arvind highlights the critical role of product marketing in startup success and emphasizes the importance of purpose-driven entrepreneurship.Akshay Datt, a serial entrepreneur who has run ventures in employability training and hiring, hosts the Founder Thesis podcast. He has interviewed 500+ founders to date.Connect:Arvind Parthiban: https://www.linkedin.com/in/arvind-parthiban/ Akshay Datt: https://www.linkedin.com/in/akshay-datt/Founder Thesis: www.founderthesis.com
2025-02-151h 16
The SpotlightUnravelling the Threads | Ankit Jaipuria @ ZYODDive into the world of fashion manufacturing with Ankit Jaipuria, Co-founder of ZYOD! Discover how ZYOD is disrupting the B2B fashion industry with a cutting-edge supply chain, learn about the rise of fast fashion, and explore opportunities in India's growing market. Whether you're a fashion enthusiast, a business owner, or an aspiring entrepreneur, this episode is packed with valuable insights into the future of fashion .Akshay Datt, a serial entrepreneur having run ventures in Employability Training and hiring, is the host of "The Spotlight", presented by the Founder Thesis podcast. He has interviewed 500+ founders to date.
2025-02-111h 18
Founder ThesisSimplifying global money transfer | Srivatsan Sridhar @ SkydoThe global cross-border payments market is on a remarkable growth trajectory, expected to hit $290 trillion by 2030. Amidst this booming landscape, discover how Srivatsan Sridhar successfully navigated the challenges and founded Skydo, a platform which addresses traditional pain points around high fees, delayed settlements, and compliance hurdles and makes international transactions hassle-free.Akshay Datt, a serial entrepreneur who has run ventures in employability training and hiring, hosts the Founder Thesis podcast. He has interviewed 500+ founders to date.Connect:Srivatsan Sridhar: https://www.linkedin.com/in/srivats80/ Akshay Datt: https://www.linkedin.com/i...
2025-02-072h 22
Founder ThesisDivakar Vijayasarathy (DVS Advisory Group) on Scaling Through Value CreationIn this episode, Divakar Vijayasarathy shares his inspiring entrepreneurial journey, from overcoming early struggles to building a global financial powerhouse. Tune in for invaluable lessons on scaling businesses, mastering tax dynamics, and creating lasting value in the professional services sector. Divakar is the Founder of DVS Advisory Group, a tax advisory, business advisory and PE firm that has grown to an annual revenue of $300mn and has 18,000 clients across 40 countries. He is a published author of 17 books related to Tax. Akshay Datt, a serial entrepreneur who has run ventures in employability training and hiring, hosts the...
2025-01-312h 00
The SpotlightRedefining Wealth Management | Brijesh Damodaran @ Auxano CapitalJoin us as we explore the inspiring journey of Brijesh Damodaran, Managing Partner of Auxano Capital, as he transitions from a corporate financial controller to a leading entrepreneur in wealth management. Discover his innovative "three-bucket strategy", insights into private market investing, approach to adapting to regulatory changes, and the importance of building trust through client relationships.Brijesh Damodaran is the Managing Partner of Auxano Capital, a venture capital firm investing in tech-enabled, next-generation businesses, focusing on Seed and pre-IPO stages.Akshay Datt, a serial entrepreneur having run ventures in Employability Training and hiring, is the...
2025-01-2946 min
Founder ThesisEVs, Energy, Water: Shailesh Vickram Singh's Thesis for the Next IPOsAre the next trillion-dollar companies going to be climate tech? Veteran VC-operator Shailesh Vickram Singh (Founder, Climate Angels) makes the case—and maps a founder playbook for India’s climate-tech wave.From UTI’s investments desk to SeedFund and then a full pivot to climate in 2017, Shailesh unpacks two decades of venture lessons and why “internet-scale” moats are shifting to resource-efficiency businesses. He explains Climate Angels’ ecosystem-first model (400+ corporate relationships via GoMassive/Massive Earth Foundation), where the real alpha lies in solving water, energy, mobility, and agri constraints—and why climate funds must distribute risk rather than chase winner-t...
2024-02-121h 24
Founder ThesisHow Responsive Automates Enterprise Deal Making with AI | Ganesh ShankarHow does Ganesh Shankar turn mind-numbing RFP chaos into revenue—and build a new SaaS category while he’s at it? Inside Responsive (formerly RFPIO), we unpack AI-powered Strategic Response Management (SRM), Fortune-100 adoption, and the hidden moats of enterprise sales tech.In this candid conversation with Akshay Datt, Ganesh traces his journey from product leader to CEO, the pain point that sparked RFPIO, and the evolution to Responsive as customers began using the platform far beyond RFPs—security/DDQs, emails, and more. He explains why their AI sits on curated enterprise content (not the open web), how go...
2024-02-021h 30
Founder ThesisFello's blueprint for gamifying GenZ savings - Manish MaryadaHow did Manish Maryada turn Fello into India’s go-to gamified savings app for Gen-Z—blending digital gold and P2P lending with prize-linked rewards? In this episode, we unpack the product, growth loops, and the future of fintech in India.Fello is reimagining how young Indians save and invest—turning habit formation into a game. In this candid conversation with Akshay Datt, Manish Maryada (YC W22) breaks down Fello’s mission, how prize-linked savings drive frequency, why digital gold (Augmont) and P2P lending (Lendbox) anchor early portfolios, and how the team scaled to hundreds of thousand...
2023-10-051h 09
Founder ThesisInside Beams Fintech Fund: How Sagar Agarvwal Picks India's Next Fintech UnicornsHow did a first-time fund manager build one of India’s most influential fintech-focused VCs in the middle of a funding winter? In this Founder Thesis Podcast episode, Sagar Agarvwal, Co-founder & Managing Partner of Beams Fintech Fund, shares his journey of creating India’s first pure growth-stage fintech venture fund and the playbook for spotting winners at the 100→1000 crore inflection point.With over 17 years in private equity and venture capital, Sagar explains why fintech is the backbone of every economy, how Beams carved out a niche in India’s crowded VC landscape, and what it takes to convince...
2023-07-1049 min
Founder ThesisThe Hard Truth About VC Funding — Venkat @ Inflexor VenturesHow did Venkat Vallabhaneni turn decades of entrepreneurial grit into building one of India’s leading deep-tech venture funds? In this episode, we decode the journey of Inflexor Ventures and the playbook behind spotting India’s most investable startups.Venkat Vallabhaneni, Managing Partner at Inflexor Ventures, has lived the full arc—Wall Street technologist, founder with multiple exits, scale leader at Bank of America India, and now VC backing some of India’s most disruptive companies like Atomberg, PlayShifu, Entropik, and Bellatrix Aerospace. In this candid conversation with Akshay Datt on the Founder Thesis Podcast, Venkat shares how his...
2023-06-2755 min
Founder ThesisShark Tank's Debt Secret & Founder Wealth | Bhavik Vasa (GetVantage)How do founders scale without giving away equity? In this episode of the Founder Thesis Podcast, Bhavik Vasa, Founder & CEO of GetVantage, reveals how non-dilutive growth capital is changing the game for Indian startups and D2C brands. If you’ve ever wondered whether debt could actually make you richer as a founder, this candid conversation is a must-watch.Bhavik Vasa is a fintech veteran who scaled ItzCash into a $150M exit before launching GetVantage in 2019. Today, GetVantage is one of India’s fastest-growing revenue-based financing platforms, backed by marquee investors like Chiratae and Sony Innovation Fund, with...
2023-06-1518 min
Founder ThesisFrom Gensol to BluSmart: Anmol Singh Jaggi's roller-coaster JourneyCan an electric ride-hailing startup take on Ola and Uber in India and actually reach profitability? In this episode, we uncover how Anmol Singh Jaggi is building BluSmart Mobility, India’s all-electric cab service, into a potential EV unicorn reshaping urban mobility.Anmol Singh Jaggi’s entrepreneurial journey began in college, scaled with a public IPO at Gensol Engineering, and has now pivoted to solving the toughest problem in ride-hailing: profitability. With BluSmart, he’s betting on an asset-heavy EV fleet model, charging infrastructure as a moat, and a no surge, no cancellations customer promise. In this candid...
2023-05-1957 min
Founder ThesisThe Licious Co-Founder on his big Petcare bet | Varun Sadana (Supertails)How did Varun Sadana go from building India’s most loved meat brand Licious to disrupting the fast-growing pet care industry with Supertails? In this episode of the Founder Thesis Podcast, we uncover the bold bets behind India’s first digital-native pet health and commerce platform.Varun Sadana, co-founder of Supertails and ex-co-founder of Licious, shares his fascinating journey from corporate roles at Hindustan Unilever and Snapdeal to building category-creating consumer brands. Supertails, founded in 2021, blends tele-veterinary care, pharmacy, and e-commerce into one seamless platform for India’s growing pet parent community. In this candid conversation with Akshay...
2023-03-081h 00
Founder ThesisHow Velocity Funds D2C & SaaS startups Without taking equity | Abhiroop MedhekarHow can founders fund growth without losing equity? In this episode of the Founder Thesis Podcast, host Akshay Datt sits down with Abhiroop Medhekar, Co-founder and CEO of Velocity, to explore how revenue based financing is changing the way startups scale in India’s booming D2C and SaaS economy.Abhiroop’s journey spans IIT Bombay, IIM Ahmedabad, five years at McKinsey, co-founding Taskbob, a stint as a VC at Elevation Capital, and finally building Velocity into India’s largest revenue based financing platform. In this candid conversation, he shares hard won lessons from shutting down Taskbob, insigh...
2023-03-0655 min
Founder ThesisAkshay Singhal on Building Log9 Materials: India's EV Battery BetHow did Akshay Singhal turn Log9 from a dorm-room nanotech experiment into a battery-tech player reshaping India’s EV future? In this Founder Thesis episode, we unpack the science, strategy, and hard lessons behind building tropicalized EV batteries in India’s heat and hustle—where battery packs can be 50% of an EV’s cost. From IIT Roorkee labs to Bengaluru’s IISc ecosystem, Akshay charts the shift from graphene R&D to fast-charging, long-life battery platforms built for Indian duty cycles. He breaks down lithium-ion fundamentals with vivid analogies, explains why LTO and LFP chemistries fit India better than NMC...
2023-03-031h 04
Founder ThesisA Masterclass on Building a Global Consumer Hardware Brand | Vivek Goyal (PlayShifu)"My first two attempts were my biggest failures... they were stepping stones."This is the core of Vivek Goyal's founder thesis. He believes that for a founder, failure isn't the end; it's the most valuable data you can collect. In this episode of Founder thesis hosted by Akshay Datt, he explains how the lessons from his "deadpooled" startup were directly responsible for building PlayShifu's global success on the first try.Guest BioVivek Goyal is the co-founder of PlayShifu, one of the world's largest and most innovative "phygital" toy companies. An alumnus of...
2023-01-201h 06
Founder ThesisThe Prop-tech Pioneer | Dhruv Agarwala @ Housing.com and PropTigerFrom being embroiled in controversies to becoming one of the leading companies in the real estate sector, this is the story of a remarkable turnaround!In this edition of Founder Thesis, Akshay Datt speaks with Dhruv Agarwala, CEO, REA India Pte. Ltd., a company that has Housing.com, Proptiger.com and Makaan.com under its umbrella.An alumnus of Harvard University, Dhruv started his entrepreneurial journey way back in 2006 with iTrust Financial Advisors which laid the foundation for his subsequent venture. In 2011, he started PropTiger.com, a one-stop real estate platform for homebuyers to search...
2022-04-261h 01
The SpotlightBuilding The Shopify For Philanthropy | Dhaval Udani of DanamojoIf anything has become omnipresent in recent years, it is using technology to simplify businesses.In this edition of The Spotlight, Akshay Datt speaks with Dhaval Udani, Founder and CEO, DanaMojo, India’s first exclusive online payments solution platform for NGOs.Dhaval is an alumnus of IIM Ahmedabad and has previously worked with Give India, both as a volunteer and the CEO. Banking on this experience, he started DanaMojo in 2016, intending to simplify and manage online payments for NGOs, thereby allowing them to focus on increasing their donations.Tune in to this episode to...
2022-04-2358 min
Founder ThesisDemocratizing Access To Wealth Management | Sandeep Jethwani @ Dezerv.inIn this edition of Founder Thesis, Akshay Datt speaks with Sandeep Jethwani, Co-founder, Dezerv.in. He is an alumnus of IIM Bangalore and has an extensive experience in the wealth management domain.Before starting his entrepreneurial journey, Sandeep worked with IIFL Wealth for more than a decade. In a bid to democratize access to investment expertise, he started Dezerv.in in 2021. This wealth tech platform integrates domain expertise and technology and creates high-performing long-term portfolios and provides exclusive investment opportunities for its members.Tune in to this episode to hear Sandeep speak about how Deserv...
2022-04-191h 00
Founder ThesisThe Mobility Pioneer | Rajiv Vij @ Carzonrent India Pvt. Ltd.In this edition of Founder Thesis, Akshay Datt speaks with Rajiv Vij, a person who became the Czar of rented cars in India. Rajiv is currently the Chairman and Managing Director of Carzonrent.An alumnus of FMS Delhi, Rajiv started his career at Hindustan Motors which gave him exposure to the taxi business at that time and at ITC’s International Travel House allowed him to interact with the best and the biggest car-rental brands in the world.Building on this experience, he started Carzonrent in 2000, with a seed capital of 29 lakh. And today, through nu...
2022-04-121h 07
Founder ThesisBuilding A Network For B2B Service Providers | Naman Sarawagi @ Refrens.comYou all must have heard – It is not the destination but the journey that matters. This is the same with entrepreneurship.In this episode of Founder Thesis, Akshay Datt speaks with Naman Sarawagi, Co-founder, Refrens.com, a Bengaluru-based venture that offers free invoicing, payments and expense management system.Naman started his journey as a product manager at Freecharge and then went on to work with multiple start-ups. In 2018, he started Refrens.com which is a SaaS product helping freelancers and small and medium businesses in managing leads, invoices and payments from a single dashboard....
2022-04-071h 12
The SpotlightRevolutionizing Online Shopping | Vipul Jain of DegpegE-commerce disrupted the way we shopped by moving countless people away from physical stores in favour of shopping online. Live commerce takes us a step further by combining online shopping with live streaming.In this edition of The Spotlight, Akshay Datt speaks with Vipul Jain, Founder and CEO, Degpeg. Vipul is a seasoned marketer who has worked with numerous companies before starting his entrepreneurial journey.In a bid to bring a new era of e-commerce, he started Degpeg in 2021. Degpeg is a cloud-based B2B social commerce platform that enables multi-streaming on various social platforms...
2022-04-0550 min
Founder ThesisThe Story Of Resilience And Recovery | Sumit Suneja @ Merlin BrandsEver heard of the Japanese proverb, “Fall seven times, stand up eight.” That is exactly the premise of the story of our guest on this episode of the Founder Thesis podcast.In this episode, Akshay Datt speaks with Sumit Suneja, CEO, Merlin Brands, a company that houses Rabitat (a parenting brand) and Headway (stainless steel drinkware brand) under its roof.Sumit is a serial entrepreneur who embarked on his entrepreneurial journey in 2010 with Reado, which was India’s first audiobook platform. While on one of the trips abroad, he realised that he has always been search...
2022-03-3157 min
Founder ThesisBuilding Modern Tools For Sales | Abhijeet Vijayvergiya @ Nektar.aiAny technology aims to make it easier for its users and bring the best out of them. But in the case of sales professionals, it’s the other way round.In this edition of Founder Thesis, Akshay Datt talks with Abhijeet Vijayvergiya, Co-founder and CEO, Nektar.ai. He is an alumnus of IIT Kharagpur and a seasoned SaaS leader with more than a decade of experience in this field.It is well-known that organizing information about prospects is a challenging task for sales teams across the globe. These professionals painstakingly work towards maintaining CRM databases wh...
2022-03-2937 min
Founder ThesisBuilding The Pipes For FinTech | Aditya Kumar @ Niro“At the core of large-scale transformations lies a single innovation. We believe that embedded finance is one such innovation.” – Aditya Kumar.In this edition of Founder Thesis, Akshay Datt speaks with Aditya Kumar, Co-founder and CEO, Niro, a second-time founder, who is on a mission to transform consumer internet platforms into fintech.Before Niro, Aditya headed Qbera, a digital full-stack lending platform that was acquired by InCred in 2020. In his second innings as an entrepreneur, he is leading Niro, which aims to leverage the power of embedded finance and unlock the untapped potential for every custome...
2022-03-2450 min
Founder ThesisBuilding The Next-Gen POS Financing | Tushar Srivastava @ SkepsOne of the biggest impediments of the Fintech industry has been the way consumer loans are handled by large institutions. In the process of getting a consumer loan approved, an application flows from one lender to another and faces rejections. This hugely affects the credit score, and the consumer might end up with sub-par offers.In this edition of Founder Thesis, Akshay Datt speaks with Tushar Srivastava, Co-founder and CEO, Skeps. He is an alumnus of IIT Delhi and has extensive experience in the Banking and Financial Services sector.Founded in 2018, Skeps aims to solve...
2022-03-221h 23
Founder ThesisFrom Testing Pioneer to VC, Gireendra Kasmalkar on Building Ideas to Impacts and Pentathlon VenturesHow did Gireendra Kasmalkar build one of India’s earliest independent testing companies, exit to a global leader, and then reinvent himself as a B2B SaaS-focused VC from Pune? In this episode of the Founder Thesis Podcast, we uncover the playbook behind his 30-year entrepreneurial journey.Gireendra Kasmalkar is the Founder of Ideas to Impacts and Managing Partner at Pentathlon Ventures. His story spans from starting VeriSoft, India’s pioneering testing company later acquired by SQS, to creating Ideas to Impacts, a disruptive IT services firm that builds tech delivery centers in tier-2 and tier-3 towns unde...
2022-03-1546 min
The SpotlightSimplifying HR Via Blockchain | Kartik Mandaville of SpringworksIn this edition of The Spotlight, Akshay Datt talks with Kartik Mandaville, Founder and CEO, Springworks, a Bengaluru-based HR Tech start-up that is simplifying the HR function.An alumnus of Carnegie Mellon University, Kartik worked for Science, a US-based venture capitalist and private equity firm, before starting Springworks in 2014. Springworks is a unique Blockchain portfolio company, which is building a professional reputation network using AI and Blockchain technology to eliminate frauds from user profiles.Tune in to this episode to hear Kartik speak about how Springworks with its unique products is revolutionizing the HR landscape.
2022-03-121h 18
Founder ThesisHeralding The Evolution Of Banking-Tech | Mandar Agashe @ Sarvatra TechnologiesUnified Payments Interface or UPI enables instant and hassle-free fund transfer between accounts and has been one of the biggest disruptors of the Indian FinTech industry.In this edition of Founder Thesis, Akshay Datt speaks with Mandar Agashe, Founder and Vice-chairman, Sarvatra Technologies, a Pune-based company, which through its platform, has become the true enabler of India’s digital payments.Mandar started Sarvatra back in 2000 to bring the best banking services to the underbanked people in semi-urban and rural cities by providing tech support to the cooperative banks. And thanks to the digital boom and qu...
2022-03-101h 19
Founder ThesisBuilding NextGen Marketeers | Varun Satia @ KraftshalaMBA is the go-to postgraduate degree in India. But there are two major issues students face. On one hand, where a minor chunk gets selected to the top institutes, the irrelevant curriculum fails to prepare students for what lies ahead in corporate life.In this edition of Founder Thesis, Akshay Datt speaks with Varun Satia, Founder and CEO of Kraftshala, India's largest online learning platform for marketing and sales.Varun is an alumnus of FMS, Delhi and has worked at Nestle before starting his entrepreneurial journey. He started Kraftshala as a project in 2016 to help...
2022-03-081h 26
Founder ThesisBuilding The Pipes For BNPL | Ramanathan RV @ HyperfaceIn the last five years, digital payments have picked up pace in India and our economy is witnessing a shift towards credit products.In this edition of Founder Thesis, Akshay Datt speaks with Ramanathan RV, Co-founder, Hyperface, a Bengaluru-based banking-as-a-service start-up that is helping companies in launching their credit cards.Ram is a serial entrepreneur and launched his first venture Juspay in 2012. Many wouldn’t know that he was the mind behind BHIM UPI app.While serving as an advisor for various neobanks, Ram knew that it takes around 2-3 years for banks to...
2022-03-031h 30
Founder ThesisThe Crypto Masterclass | Arjun Vijay and Vikram Subburaj @ GiottusIndia has a pretty strange relationship with cryptocurrency. Amidst bans, pandemics and whatnot, crypto companies continue to be bullish on the Indian market.In this episode of Founder Thesis, Akshay Datt speaks with Arjun Vijay and Vikram Subburaj, Founders, Giottus, the country’s leading crypto assets trading platform. Arjun and Vikram are alumni of IIM Calcutta and have worked in Vodafone and Amazon, respectively, before starting off with this venture.Working for customer-centric companies made Arjun and Vikram realise that the true success of the crypto industry depends on mass adoption for which an ecosystem ne...
2022-03-011h 36
Founder ThesisMaking Indian Exporters Win | Sanjay Bhatia @ FreightwallaThe international logistics industry is a critical enabler of global trade and commerce. In India, it is around 13% of GDP. However, in this era of technology and digitization, most of the activities of this industry are handled in traditional ways, which are not only time consuming but also prone to errors.In this edition of Founder Thesis, Akshay Datt speaks with Sanjay Bhatia, Co-founder and CEO, Freightwalla, a full-stack digital platform where businesses can plan, book and manage their international freight shipments online.Sanjay has previously worked with PWC as a strategy consultant. Here, he...
2022-02-2456 min
Founder ThesisScaling Last-Mile Banking | Ajeet Kumar Singh @ Save SolutionsFinancial inclusivity is the only way to improve economic growth and reduce poverty. While with the evolution of FinTech and newer technologies, things have certainly improved, still a lot needs to be done at the rural level.In this edition of Founder Thesis, Akshay Datt speaks with Ajeet Kumar Singh, Managing Director and CEO, Save Solutions Pvt Ltd.Founded in 2009, this Bihar-based venture is making strides in the Indian financial sector by building a network of business correspondents. Leveraging on this network, Save Solutions focuses on providing access to financial products and services through kiosk...
2022-02-221h 07
The SpotlightStrengthening The Cybersecurity Ecosystem | Pankit Desai of SequretekIt’s the worst nightmare for an enterprise if its systems are hacked. With more than 3000 cases of hacking per day, it becomes a huge business opportunity in India.In this edition of The Spotlight, Akshay Datt speaks with Pankit Desai, Co-founder and CEO, Sequretek, a Mumbai-based start-up that offers cybersecurity solutions for enterprises.In this digital era where any system is prone to hacking, security becomes the utmost priority for companies. Keeping this vision in mind, Sequretek was founded in 2013 by Pankit Desai and Anand Naik. It offers a unique suite of security services th...
2022-02-1947 min
Founder ThesisBuilding A D2C For Baby Gear | Kunal Popat @ R For RabbitThe most successful businesses are the ones that are built around solving a problem for others.In this edition of Founder Thesis, Akshay Datt speaks with Kunal Popat, Founder, R For Rabbit. Inspiration knocked at his door when he became a father and couldn’t find any certified and safe baby gear in India. He realized the massive potential this segment had and started R For Rabbit in 2014, along with his wife Kinjal. And today, R For Rabbit is one of India’s most loved and prominent baby products brands, with a strong base of 1.5 milli...
2022-02-1743 min
Founder ThesisMaking Fleet Management Smarter | Vidit Jain and Shridhar Gupta @ LocoNavWhen it comes to innovation, India has come a long way. But there is still a lot to be achieved!In this edition of Founder Thesis, Akshay Datt speaks with Vidit Jain and Shridhar Gupta, Founders, LocoNav. They have worked together at ClearTax before starting with their entrepreneurial journey.Intrigued by the complex nature of the fleet management business and to make the life of fleet owners easy, Vidit and Shridhar founded LocoNav in 2016, with a mission to democratise access to cutting-edge technology for commercial fleet management. And today LocoNav is operational in 25 countries and...
2022-02-1052 min
Founder ThesisBuilding The Used 2 Wheeler Stack | Sasidhar Nandigam @ CredR‘Karna hai, toh karna hai!’ – This is one mantra that our guest today lives by!In this edition of Founder Thesis, Akshay Datt speaks with Sasidhar Nandigam, Co-founder and CEO, CredR, an omnichannel platform for buying and selling used two-wheelers.With more than a decade of experience with various venture capitalist funds, his eureka moment came when he had an unpleasant experience in buying a second-hand bike. He, along with his co-founder, Nikhil Jain, started CredR in 2015, with a mission to make personal mobility reasonable and cost-effective, which today is the country’s most trusted marketpla...
2022-02-081h 00
Founder ThesisStrengthening The Digital-First Economy | Anurakt Jain @ KlubWith a huge market opportunity to grab, it’s a golden age for digital-first businesses. And with plans to accelerate growth for the digital-first economy is Klub.In this edition of Founder Thesis, Akshay Datt speaks with Anurakt Jain, Co-founder and CEO, Klub, a Bengaluru-based start-up that is pioneering revenue-based financing in India.Anurakt, a graduate of IIT Delhi and The Wharton School, has extensive professional experience as a venture capitalist. In his previous stint, he worked with InMobi, as a part of the founding team that established Glance and TruFactor. He founded Klub in 2020, who...
2022-02-0359 min
Founder ThesisStorytelling for Bharat | Ranjeet Pratap Singh @ PratilipiThe universe is made up of stories, where everyone is a storyteller.In this edition of Founder Thesis, Akshay Datt speaks with Ranjeet Pratap Singh, Co-founder and CEO, Pratilipi. He is an alumnus of FMS, Delhi and has worked with Vodafone before starting off with his entrepreneurial journey.Belonging to a modest background, Ranjeet has always been a voracious reader and preferred reading content in Hindi. However, he found it extremely difficult to get the books of his choice online, since most of the websites had English content.To bridge this gap, Ranjeet...
2022-02-011h 16
Founder ThesisHealthcare Meets FinTech | Chris George @ Qube HealthIt’s 2022! By now, everyone knows that FinTech has taken India by storm and fascinating things will happen when such disruptive technology finds its applications in other sectors.In this edition of Founder Thesis, Akshay Datt speaks with Chris George, Co-founder and CEO, Qube Health.A serial entrepreneur and an alumnus of NYU’s Stern School of Business, Chris started his entrepreneurial journey at the young age of sixteen. He briefly worked in the USA and came back to India to start his venture, something which he describes as his ‘Swades moment’. Through his personal experien...
2022-01-271h 15
Founder ThesisEmpowering Community Entrepreneurs | Nipun Goyal @ LikeMindsThanks to COVID, Creators’ economy has boomed in the past two years. Worldwide, there are more than fifty million creators. But most of them do not get paid.In this edition of Founder Thesis, Akshay Datt speaks with Nipun Goyal, Founder and CEO, LikeMinds. He is a serial entrepreneur who has worked in corporate before venturing on this journey.An alumnus of IIT Delhi, Nipun launched his first venture while in college. In 2014, he started Curofy, a networking app that enables the communication between doctors. Post its acquisition, he started working with community entrepreneurs and fo...
2022-01-2559 min
Founder ThesisMaking Robots Human | Nikhil Ramaswamy and Gokul NA @ CynLRIn this era of start-ups in India, invention, innovation, and disruption have become a reality.Founder Thesis presents you the journey of one such duo of techies who are on a mission to enable robots with human-like vision, which could unlock endless possibilities.In a candid conversation with Akshay Datt, Nikhil Ramaswamy and Gokul NA, Founders, CynLR, have taken us through their journeys. Nikhil was an urban boy inspired by tech revolutions while Gokul saw automation challenges at a farm & studied the impact of code on real life. After gaining experience at National Instruments, they...
2022-01-1359 min
Founder ThesisEko-ing Mass Financial Inclusion | Abhinav Sinha @ Eko IndiaIs first mover really an advantage!In this episode of Founder Thesis, Akshay Datt speaks with Abhinav Sinha, Co-founder, Eko India Financial Services, a company that envisioned the innovations FinTech brought in recent years, more than a decade ago.Eko started operations in 2007 with an aim to bring banking to consumers 24X7 through a network of business correspondents. After numerous pivots and adapting to the ever-evolving market, today Eko has a vast chain of merchant outlets to provide banking services, especially to the economically weaker sections of the society.Tune in to this e...
2022-01-1144 min
The SpotlightPutting an E in Learning | Sarvesh Shrivastava of Eupheus LearningThe last two years have brought a lot of disruption that has led to massive innovation, especially in the education sector. We can definitely say that, what demonetisation did to FinTech, COVID did to EdTech. In this edition of The Spotlight, Akshay Datt speaks with Sarvesh Shrivastava, Founder and Managing Director, Eupheus Learning, a Delhi-based start-up that is helping students to gain access to better education using modern digital tools.A veteran in the Indian education sector, Sarvesh realised a gap in the way school teaches and the way students learn at home. He started E...
2022-01-081h 08
Founder ThesisCreating Paw-sitive Impact | Rashi Narang @ Heads Up For TailsPassion, patience, and perseverance are the ingredients to be a successful entrepreneur.In this episode of Founder Thesis, Akshay Datt speaks with Rashi Narang, Founder and Creative Director, Heads Up For Tails (HUFT), whose entrepreneurial journey is nothing but perseverance and grit.Rashi, an ardent animal lover, found her calling when she realized that the Indian market has nothing to offer when it came to pet care. She started Heads Up For Tails in 2008 and after numerous rejections from various retailers, today HUFT is the largest D2C brand in the pet care segment backed...
2022-01-061h 21
Founder ThesisCoining the Switch to Crypto | Ashish Singhal @ CoinSwitch Kuber‘To crypto or not to crypto?’ remains a burning topic for the regulators in the country, but for start-ups and investors, it is definitely a hot currency.Founder Thesis brings you the journey of one such founder, who is riding high on this crypto wave. In this edition, Akshay Datt speaks with Ashish Singhal, Founder and CEO, CoinSwitch Kuber, one of India’s largest cryptocurrency exchanges and the second venture to attain unicorn status in the cryptocurrency sector.A techie at heart, Ashish tried his hands at different innovations and participated and won various hackathons with his...
2021-12-231h 07
The SpotlightTech Enabling Corporate Finance | Mohan Krishnan of Global PayEXIn India, managing corporate treasuries is a task and many organizations still rely on heavy paperwork to reconcile their financial statements.In this week’s edition of The Spotlight, Akshay Datt talks with Mohan Krishnan, Founder, Global PayEX, a Mumbai-based company whose AI-powered cloud platform aids organizations towards optimizing the working capital.Mohan is an alumnus of IIM Ahmedabad and a serial entrepreneur who has extensive experience of more than three decades in the IT industry. He has previously served as a co-founder of the Indian IT services giant Mphasis. In his current stint, he is...
2021-12-211h 31
Founder ThesisThe Ten Year Itch | Amit Gupta @ Yulu‘Grind in your 20s… Hustle in your 30s… Retire in your 40s.’ Sounds like a perfect plan, right!Founder Thesis brings you the journey of Amit Gupta, the mind behind India’s first unicorn InMobi, who in his current avatar is heading Yulu, the country’s leading shared micro-mobility service provider.In a candid conversation with Akshay Datt, Amit harks back to his earlier days, when he aspired to start his venture at 30 and retire by 40. However, by the time he started approaching 40, he wanted to give back to society. In 2017 he founded Yulu, an IoT-based bi...
2021-12-161h 02
Founder ThesisAutomating CX | Raghu Ravinutala @ Yellow.AIPivoting is not the end of the disruption process but the beginning of the next leg of your journey. This is exactly the essence of the journey of our next guest on Founder Thesis.In this episode, Akshay Datt speaks with Raghu Ravinutala, Co-founder and CEO, Yellow.ai, a hardcore techie who has worked with Texas Instruments and Broadcom before charting his entrepreneurial path.In 2014, he met his now co-founder, Jaya Kishore Reddy, who was then, working on a product that aimed to bridge the gap between customers and enterprises, as a weekend project. They...
2021-12-0931 min
The SpotlightEldercare Reinvented | Saumyajit Roy of EmohaSenior citizens are the fastest-growing population segment in India and the COVID crisis has exposed the gaps in our medical infrastructure, putting a huge question mark on the access of health for the elderly.In this episode of The Spotlight, Akshay Datt speaks with Saumyajit Roy who with Emoha Elder Care is aiming to create a lifeline for India’s elderly. He is an alumnus of the Indian School of Business and has worked in the eldercare industry for over a decade before kicking off his entrepreneurial journey.It was when his parents faced a medi...
2021-12-071h 05
Founder ThesisAmazon for Farmers | Shashank Kumar @ DeHaatAgriculture is the primary source of livelihood for more than half of India’s population. And with more than 3/5th of land under cultivation, the scope of incorporating technology becomes even more evident.In this episode of Founder Thesis, Akshay Datt talks with Shashank Kumar, Co-founder and CEO, DeHaat. He is an alumnus of IIT Delhi and has previously worked in the management consulting domain before kicking off his entrepreneurial journey. Hailing from a farming background, he had a first-hand understanding of the issues faced by farmers on a day-to-day basis. During his corporate stint, he...
2021-12-0256 min
Founder ThesisThe Community Monetization Playbook | Tamanna Dhamija @ ConvosightAs joyful as it sounds, motherhood can also be a painful journey. The extent of decisions taken by new mothers is bound to make them nervous and apprehensive.In this episode of the Founder Thesis, Akshay Datt speaks with Tamanna Dhamija, Co-founder, Convosight. She is an alumnus of MDI, Gurgaon and has previously worked in the Investment Banking domain. But like many entrepreneurs, she realised that there was more she could do.Stemming from her own experiences as a new mum, she started Baby Destination in 2016, with the mission to assist the discovery journey of...
2021-11-2548 min
The SpotlightOptimising Fresh | Varun Khurana of Crofarm“Once an entrepreneur, always an entrepreneur.” – Varun Khurana, CrofarmIn this edition of The Spotlight, Akshay Datt speaks with Varun Khurana, Founder and CEO, Crofarm, who has been on a quest to identify industry niches and build businesses in them.Varun is a graduate of IIT Delhi and is a three-time entrepreneur. His previous ventures, Wirkle Technologies and Mygreenbox were acquired by Location Labs and Grofers, respectively.During his stint as CTO at Grofers, he observed the poor state of the supply chain in the agriculture sector. This paved the way to his third...
2021-11-2347 min
Founder ThesisEmpowering Rural India with FinTech | Dilip Modi @ Spice MoneyWhile numerous FinTech start-ups have started working towards empowering rural India, Spice Money is one such start-up that is working categorically towards the financial inclusion of rural India.Founder Thesis brings you the inspirational journey of Dilip Modi, Founder, Spice Money, where he tells Akshay Datt about his experiences, from setting up a business in the then-nascent Telecom Industry to running a rural FinTech company.Dilip embarked on his entrepreneurial journey at the young age of 21. He started a telecom provider business in collaboration with numerous international giants, which eventually got acquired by Idea Cellular i...
2021-11-181h 15
The SpotlightPioneering Borderless Investing | Viram Shah of Vested FinanceWith many platforms entering the Indian market, investing in stocks has become easy. But, what about, if one wants to diversify their portfolios and invest in the global stock market?This struck as an area of potential to our guest on this week’s edition of The Spotlight. In a candid conversation with Akshay Datt, Viram Shah, Co-founder and CEO, Vested Finance, outlines his journey of simplifying the US stock market for global investors.Coming from an entrepreneurial background, Viram always wanted to create value. Stemming from his own desires to invest in global companies, he...
2021-11-1640 min
Founder ThesisBuilding The Blue-Collar Hiring Ecosystem | Nimish Sharma @ WorkEx‘Innovation happens when you work on a problem, but adoption happens only during a crisis.’ – Nimish Sharma (WorkEx)The pandemic tested us in unimaginable ways. Many around us lost jobs, and as the economy slowed down, unemployment became a serious issue.In a candid conversation with Akshay Datt, Nimish Sharma, Co-founder and CEO, WorkEx, takes us through his journey. He started his entrepreneurial journey way back in 2007 after graduating from IIT Kanpur.Nimish fondly recalls his earlier days, when his passion for aerospace made him quit his job to start Aurora Integrated Systems in 200...
2021-11-1150 min
The SpotlightScaling-up via Career Planning | Prateek Bhargava of MindlerCareer planning is a tough nut to crack. Had it been easy, there would have been lesser dropouts, career gaps and restarts.In this episode of The Spotlight, Akshay Datt speaks with Prateek Bhargava, Founder and CEO, Mindler, a Delhi-based start-up that has developed a tech-enabled ecosystem for school students to plan their careers and seek mentorship.Prateek is an alumnus of ISB, Hyderabad and MDI, Gurgaon and has worked with some of the big names in the corporate sector. He has always believed that having the right career advice at the right time is...
2021-11-091h 03
Founder ThesisGoing Vegan and Beyond | Abhishek Sinha @ GoodDotMost of us love animals. But is it easy to live in balance with other living beings without harming them?Founder Thesis brings you the journey of a bureaucrat who has taken his love for animals to the next level.In a candid conversation with Akshay Datt, Abhishek Sinha, Co-founder and CEO, Good Dot, takes us through his journey. He has served the Indian Revenue Service before exploring the entrepreneurial route.Since his earlier days, Abhishek has always faced an existential crisis and has tried to discover his purpose in life. This led...
2021-11-0441 min
Founder ThesisAyurveda's Modern Makeover | Ameve Sharma @ KapivaAs busy as it can get, health, in these times, has taken a back seat. We often fail to consume a proper diet which leads to numerous deficiencies.Founder Thesis brings you the journey of one such founder who has made it his mission to make Ayurveda an integral part of the day-to-day life of the modern consumer.In a candid conversation with Akshay Datt, Ameve Sharma, Co-founder, Kapiva, has taken us through his journey. Ameve has previously worked with McKinsey across various projects before setting off his entrepreneurial journey.A third-generation entrepreneur...
2021-10-2845 min
Founder ThesisSimplifying Banking | Vinay Bagri @ Niyo Solutions Inc.Neobanks are one such disruptor that one day will completely eclipse the traditional banking system.In this episode of Founder Thesis, Akshay Datt speaks with Vinay Bagri, Co-founder and CEO, Niyo Solutions Inc, which is one of India’s fastest growing neobanks.After spending more than a decade in banking companies like Standard Chartered, ING and Kotak, Vinay took a leap of faith and started Niyo in 2015, with a vision to introduce better cash flows to the salaried segment. And today, Niyo products have touched over more than 1.5 million customers.Tune in to th...
2021-10-2155 min
Founder ThesisLights, Camera, FinTech | Priti Rathi Gupta @ LXMEFinancial independence is an essential life skill, and it has been a concept dominated by men.But not anymore!In this episode of Founder Thesis, Akshay Datt speaks with Priti Rathi Gupta, Founder, LXME, who is spearheading the mission to bridge the gap between women and finance.A self-proclaimed financial feminist, Priti has been heading Anand Rathi Shares and Stock Brokers Ltd. It was through her experiences; she firmly believes that managing one’s money empowers women to fulfil their dreams and aspirations. And with her brainchild LXME, she aims to educate women ab...
2021-10-141h 05
Founder ThesisDemocratizing Lending | Bhavin Patel @ LenDenClubGetting access to loans, that too timely is a painful process in India. There are numerous parameters for approval and one’s request might be denied for reasons which are nowhere related to a borrower’s credibility.In this episode of the Founder Thesis podcast, Akshay Datt speaks with Bhavin Patel, Co-founder and CEO, LenDenClub, which is one of India’s pioneer Peer-to-Peer (P2P) lending platforms.Bhavin has extensive experience working with NBFCs, both as a consultant and an employee. He has closely witnessed the struggles NBFCs face with respect to lending loans and raising...
2021-10-071h 00
Founder ThesisFinTech for Gen-Z | Sambhav Jain @ FamPayCatch them young, watch them grow!Great thought! But when it comes to managing money, it’s always the elders who have taken decisions. And that is the sole reason that as adults, people still struggle with savings, taxes and investments and why financial literacy in India is a tough nut to crack.In this episode of the Founder Thesis podcast, Akshay Datt speaks with Sambhav Jain, Founder, FamPay, who is on a mission to provide financial freedom to teenagers.Sambhav is a graduate of IIT Roorkee and always aspired to start his ven...
2021-09-301h 08
Founder ThesisIndia's Pioneering FinTech Company | Kunal Varma @ Freo (Part 2)Innovation and disruption are the hallmarks of the technology world. Amidst the fintech revolution and the subsequent rise of digital banks in India, going to a bank branch is no longer in vogue.And with neobanking, this metamorphosis has reached a new level with state-of-the-art technologies and providing customers with easy, quick, and efficient financial services.The Founder Thesis podcast presents to you a two-part series where Akshay Datt speaks with Kunal Varma, Co-Founder, Freo. He is a serial entrepreneur who started his entrepreneurial journey back in 2008, while pursuing his MBA from the Indian School o...
2021-09-161h 23
Founder ThesisIndia's Pioneering FinTech Company | Kunal Varma @ Freo (Part 1)Innovation and disruption are the hallmarks of the technology world. Amidst the fintech revolution and the subsequent rise of digital banks in India, going to a bank branch is no longer in vogue.And with neobanking, this metamorphosis has reached a new level with state-of-the-art technologies and providing customers with easy, quick, and efficient financial services.The Founder Thesis podcast presents to you a two-part series where Akshay Datt speaks with Kunal Varma, Co-Founder, Freo. He is a serial entrepreneur who started his entrepreneurial journey back in 2008, while pursuing his MBA from the Indian School o...
2021-09-1634 min
Founder ThesisRising from the ashes | Rahul Pagidipati @ ZebpayIn India, Cryptocurrency is one of those tech innovations that has hit more headlines than any other! From influencers promoting it on social media to companies sponsoring major sporting events, the popularity of these virtual digital currencies has risen in India.In this episode of the Founder Thesis podcast, Akshay Datt speaks with Rahul Pagidipati, CEO, ZebPay, India’s biggest cryptocurrency exchange. He is a second-generation Indian American and has been a part of the global start-up ecosystem for the past 20 years.Rahul fondly recalls his earlier days when he started numerous ventures in India an...
2021-09-091h 17
The SpotlightMaking Organic Cool | Dhruv Bhasin and Dhruv Madhok of ArataNature has always been a solution to all our problems. Be it personal care or medicines, nature always has an answer. As far as we can go back in time, people in India have always relied on Ayurveda.In this episode of The Spotlight, Akshay Datt speaks with Dhruv Bhasin and Dhruv Madhok, Founders, Arata. They have worked in the corporate sector before setting off their entrepreneurial journey.The idea behind Arata came as a fruit of the discussion the founders had regarding how toxic and harmful hair styling gels are. Understanding the consumers’ inclination towa...
2021-09-071h 10
Founder ThesisFlying into the future | Prof. Satya Chakravarthy @ The ePlane CompanyThe end of the 2000s saw the rise in radio taxi services. In the next decade, the urban mobility market in India was captured by Ola and Uber. You might wonder what’s in store for commuters in this decade!In a candid conversation with Akshay Datt, Prof. Satya Chakravarthy, Co-founder, and CTO, The ePlane Co, takes us through his amazing journey. A veteran in the Indian aerospace arena, he is heading NCCRD, which is one of the world’s largest combustion research centers and is a member of the advisory board of various start-ups incubated at IIT M...
2021-09-021h 46
The SpotlightTurbocharging Email | Niraj Ranjan Rout of HiverWhat letters were in the 20th century, emails are in the present day. It has become the backbone of communicating at work or otherwise.In this episode of The Spotlight, Akshay Datt speaks with Niraj Ranjan Rout, Founder, and CEO, Hiver, a Bengaluru-based company, whose SaaS product enhances Gmail’s features to help its users manage their business processes from their inbox.Niraj is an alumnus of IIT Kharagpur and has worked in tech companies before starting his venture in 2007. All along he faced technical challenges when it came to emails. He started Hiver in 2012 wit...
2021-08-3151 min
Founder ThesisNever Quit | Ankit Prasad @ Bobble.aiEver heard of the Japanese proverb, “Fall seven times, stand up eight.” That’s exactly the premise of the story of our guest on this episode of the Founder Thesis podcast.In a candid conversation with Akshay Datt, Ankit Prasad, Founder, and CEO, Bobble AI, has shared interesting anecdotes about his early days and the journey of Bobble.As he says, “Entrepreneurship ka keeda bachpan se he tha!”, Ankit started his first venture when he was in Standard 10th. He soon realized that the mobile space is growing exponentially and in 2015 he founded Bobble AI, an app that e...
2021-08-121h 07
The SpotlightToch-ing Video | Vinayak Shrivastav of TochIn this episode of The Spotlight, we have the amazing journey of a company that started with the idea to give India its first video streaming platform, but ended up helping its clients to unlock the real potential of their video content.In a candid conversation with Akshay Datt, Vinayak Shrivastav, CEO and Co-founder, Toch.ai, takes us through his journey. He is a graduate of London Business School and has worked for a prominent Venture Capitalist firm before taking the entrepreneurial plunge.In 2016, he started Toch with an aspiration to become the next YouTube o...
2021-08-1050 min
Founder ThesisWhat VCs Really Fund: Rajiv Srivatsa (Antler India) on PMF, GTM & AI DisruptionHow did Rajiv Srivatsa go from building one of India’s most beloved furniture brands, Urban Ladder, to backing the next wave of founders at Antler India? In this episode of the Founder Thesis Podcast, we explore his journey through IIT, Infosys, Yahoo, Urban Ladder, and finally into venture capital, while uncovering timeless lessons for entrepreneurs navigating India’s startup ecosystem.Rajiv Srivatsa’s story is one of resilience, customer obsession, and reinvention. As the co-founder of Urban Ladder, he pioneered India’s online furniture revolution before steering the company through a brutal funding winter. Today, as Founding...
2021-08-051h 40
Founder ThesisThe path from Pashmina to Pixels | Raj Kundra @ JLStreamOnline content creation saw a drastic boom when the pandemic struck. This made content creators spend more hours with their gadgets.In a candid conversation with Akshay Datt, Raj Kundra, Founder and CEO, JL Stream, shares his journey.Born and brought up in London, Raj started his entrepreneurial journey at the age of 18. After running multiple businesses, he became an entrepreneur in India. In 2020, he launched JL Stream with a mission to enable social media users to grow their outreach, broadcast their talents, and monetize their content. And within four months it has garnered more th...
2021-07-2938 min
The SpotlightA Surgeon turned Green Warrior | Dr. Srikanth Sola of Devic EarthIn this episode of The Spotlight, we have a founder who is on a mission to improve the quality of air we breathe.In a candid conversation with Akshay Datt, Dr. Srikanth Sola, CEO, Devic Earth, takes us through his amazing journey. He is a graduate of Stanford University and a former cardiologist at the Cleveland Clinic.It was the love for his country and the will to serve people that brought him back to India. He joined the Department of Cardiology at the Sri Sathya Sai Institute of Higher Medical Sciences, Bangalore, where he w...
2021-07-271h 02
Founder ThesisPowering Digitization of Offline Merchants | Shailaz Nag @ DotPeAll of you must be familiar with the phrase silver lining. Where the pandemic forced us to maintain social distancing, it has also enabled entrepreneurs to come up with innovative and disruptive business ideas.In a candid conversation with Akshay Datt, Shailaz Nag, Co-founder and CEO, DotPe, takes us through his amazing journey of working in top corporates to building ventures like PayU and DotPe.Shailaz fondly remembers his father’s principles and how this has guided him throughout his life and work. He co-founded PayU India in 2011, which at present, is one of the le...
2021-07-151h 18
Founder ThesisI Sold My House to Start Veeba After My First Business Failed | Viraj Bahl (Veeba)"I asked my wife if we could sell our house to fund something new. She said yes without blinking."At the lowest point in his entrepreneurial journey, financially ruined by a failed business, Viraj Bahl made the ultimate bet—he sold his family home to fund one last dream. This single act of courage and conviction laid the foundation for one of India's most successful new-age food companies.About The Guest:Viraj Bahl is the Founder and Managing Director of VRB Consumer, the parent company of Veeba. After a major failure with his fi...
2021-07-081h 22
Founder ThesisDigitally Empowering Car Buyers | Anurag Jain @ GirnarSoftEver thought of starting a venture from a tier 2 city? I’m sure the majority of you haven’t. It was the love for his family that brought our guest back to his hometown Jaipur and started a venture which is soon going to be a unicorn.In a candid conversation with Akshay Datt, Anurag Jain, COO & Co-Founder, GirnarSoft, takes us through his amazing journey. He is an alumnus of IIT Delhi and has worked with eminent software companies both in the US and India, before starting his entrepreneurial journey.Anurag reminisces about his early days...
2021-07-011h 19
Founder ThesisBuilding An Ecosystem For Car Owners | Amit Lakhotia @ Park+Scaling start-ups is not new to Amit Lakhotia. So, the choice of starting his venture came naturally to him.In a candid conversation with Akshay Datt, Amit Lakhotia, Founder, Park+, takes us through his amazing journey. This IIM-A alumnus has worked with various start-ups before charting his path towards entrepreneurship.An independent decision-maker at heart, Amit chose the companies where he can take decisions without any interventions, and the results are evident in the growth stories of MakeMyTrip, Paytm, and Tokopedia.Stemming from his experience of not being able to find a parking...
2021-06-1759 min
Founder ThesisWhy The Best Product Doesn't Automatically Win in Enterprise Sales | Rohit Chennamaneni (Darwinbox)"In enterprise sales, the best product doesn't automatically win."This powerful insight from Rohit Chennamaneni dismantles a common startup myth. In his conversation with Akshay Datt, he explains that winning high-stakes enterprise deals goes beyond features and requires a deep understanding of client politics, internal power dynamics, and solving strategic business challenges.About Rohit ChennamaneniRohit Chennamaneni is the Co-founder of Darwinbox, the Hyderabad-based HR tech platform that has become a dominant force in Asia. A graduate of IIM Lucknow, Rohit leveraged his unique experience at both Google and McKinsey & Company to build...
2021-06-101h 34
The SpotlightEnabling Hospitals Do More | Shyatto Raha of MyHealthcareIn today’s episode of The Spotlight, we have a founder who is on a mission to bring healthcare to your doorstep.In a candid conversation with Akshay Datt, Shyatto Raha, Founder and CEO, MyHealthcare, recalls his 23-year journey at a prominent media house, which groomed the entrepreneur he is today. From starting as a research intern to heading the e-commerce business unit, Shyatto has been there and done it all.It was when he took a business trip to Indonesia, he realized that the healthcare system was completely broken in hospitals. He started working on...
2021-06-081h 02
Founder ThesisTaking the NPA challenge head on | Rishabh Goel @ CredgenicsIndia is on the cusp of a new fintech revolution. Post demonetization, where the sector has witnessed a surge in digital payments and lending, there have been very few fintech companies that focus on resolving the debt recovery opportunity.In a candid conversation with the host Akshay Datt, Rishabh Goel, Co-founder and CEO, Credgenics, takes us through his inspiring journey. He is an alumnus of the prestigious IIT Delhi and has worked with companies like Deutsche Bank and BlackRock before taking the entrepreneurial plunge.Rishabh harks back to his days at BlackRock which gave him...
2021-06-031h 03
Founder ThesisTaking the road less travelled | Dr. Ritesh Mallik @ Innova8“There are always two roads which will emerge for an entrepreneur, and you have to take the one less travelled.” – Dr Ritesh MalikOur guest today is a person who has donned many hats – an entrepreneur, an investor, a public speaker, and a doctor.In a candid conversation with Akshay Datt, Dr Ritesh Malik, Founder, Innov8 Coworking, takes us through his amazing journey. Hailing from a family of doctors, his career was pre-decided. He studied medicine and started practising as a surgeon at Sir Gangaram Hospital in Delhi.It was in 2012, he decided to quit...
2021-05-2752 min
Founder ThesisMaking Commerce Social | Pulkit Agarwal @ TrellWhat you seek is seeking you. This is what describes the story of our guest in this episode.For Pulkit Agrawal, Co-founder and CEO, Trell, a visual blogging app, this search started around six years ago, with a desire to visit local pandals during the Ganesh Chaturthi festival in Mumbai, little knowing that this would turn into a business idea which is at present has surpassed international social media giants like Twitter and Pinterest with more than 45 million monthly active users.In a candid conversation with Akshay Datt, Pulkit tells us that how visiting these...
2021-05-061h 01
Founder ThesisThe Clever Martech Pioneer | Anand Jain @ CleverTapIn 2013, when Anand Jain left Network18, he knew one thing for sure: Communication in the digital world needs to be timely and quick. This led to the birth of CleverTap, a SaaS-based mobile analytics and mobile marketing company.Today, Anand is the Chief Strategy Officer and Co-Founder of CleverTap, working on larger strategic goals of helping brands leverage user data, automation, and personalization techniques on CleverTap. But his rendezvous with technology began when he was in his early teens.In a candid conversation with Akshay Datt, Anand harks back to his early years, when a...
2021-04-292h 05
Founder ThesisHow "Efficiency First, Scale Later" Built 2 Unicorns - FirstCry and Xpressbees"We understood that logistics wasn't just a back-end function—it was a core component of customer satisfaction."This was the pivotal realization inside FirstCry that sparked a billion-dollar idea. By reframing a major operational problem into a strategic opportunity, Amitava Saha didn't just fix a bottleneck for his company; he built an entirely new one, Xpressbees, to serve the whole e-commerce industry.Amitava Saha is the Co-Founder and CEO of Xpressbees and the Co-founder and former COO of FirstCry. He is one of the few entrepreneurs in India to have built two unicorn companies from th...
2021-04-1553 min
Founder ThesisEvangelising Crypto in India | Nischal Shetty @ WazirXEvery problem has a solution. You just have to be creative enough to find it. Our guest in thisepisode is a problem solver at heart, who has used the art of coding to solve real-life problems.Brace for the resilient journey of Nischal Shetty, Founder and CEO, WazirX, India’s largest cryptocurrency exchange.In a candid conversation with Akshay Datt, Nischal talks about his fascination for computers and his coding journey. It was in the second year of engineering when he was bitten by the coding bug and since then there’s been no looking back...
2021-04-081h 11
Founder ThesisA Masterclass on Disrupting a Traditional Market | Nitin Saluja (Chaayos)"We are a technology company that sells chai."This single sentence from Nitin Saluja captures the disruptive core of Chaayos. It’s not just about tea; it’s about using technology—from custom-built IoT robots to a proprietary tech stack—to solve the problem of delivering a perfectly consistent, personalized cup of chai at massive scale. In this conversation, Nitin reveals how this engineering-first mindset allowed him to build a premium brand for one of India's most traditional beverages.In this episode, host Akshay Datt sits down with Nitin Saluja, the founder of Chaayos. An alumnus...
2021-04-0155 min
Founder ThesisThe Future of B2B Supply Chains | Rahul Garg, MoglixHow did ex-Google leader Rahul Garg build Moglix into a category-defining force in India’s B2B procurement and industrial supply chain? In this Founder Thesis episode, we unpack the playbook, from procurement SaaS to working-capital rails via Credlix, that powers factories across India and beyond.From IIT Kanpur to Google to founder, Rahul traces the insight that the world would shift from discovery to transaction platforms, and how that led to Moglix’s build in 2015. We dive into why the company registered in Singapore to execute a global ambition, how enterprise procurement differs from B2C, and...
2021-03-111h 05
Founder ThesisHow We Bounced Back from Near Collapse to ₹121 Cr in Revenue | Rashmi Daga (FreshMenu)"In India, ideas are everywhere, but you get rewarded for execution."This was the core conviction that led Rashmi Daga to build a full-stack food brand, taking on the immense operational challenges of controlling everything from the kitchen to the customer's doorstep—a bet against the asset-light models that dominated the startup world.About The GuestRashmi Daga is the founder of FreshMenu , the pioneering food-tech brand that helped define the cloud kitchen model in India. An alumna of the prestigious IIM-Ahmedabad , she led FreshMenu through a period of meteoric growth, scaling to ov...
2021-01-291h 02
The SpotlightAccelerating Business through Data Analytics.| Prithvijit Roy of BRIDGEi2i Analytics SolutionsWe are in conversation with Prithvijit Roy - CEO and Co-founder at BRIDGEi2i Analytics Solutions. BRIDGEi2i is a rapidly growing analytics solution firm based out of India and USA. In this episode host Akshay Datt talks to Prithvijit about his early childhood days growing up in Calcutta and then later studying at ISI Delhi as a student of quantitative economics. Prithivijit also shares about his corporate work life - working in big large corporations such as GE & HP where he incubated and built two of the largest business analytics services organizations. Having grown up...
2021-01-201h 03
Founder ThesisWhat VCs Miss About Edtech, Lessons from LEAD SchoolHow did Sumeet Mehta and Smita Deorah turn LEAD School into one of India’s most impactful edtech unicorns transforming affordable private schools? In this episode, they reveal how their mission-driven journey is reshaping the future of K12 education in India.Sumeet Mehta and Smita Deorah, co-founders of LEAD School, share their journey from corporate careers at Procter & Gamble to building India’s largest school-first edtech platform. LEAD School began as a single school experiment and scaled into a nationwide network serving millions of students through its school-in-a-box model. In this candid conversation with Akshay Datt, they disc...
2020-12-251h 27
Founder ThesisReshaping India's Infrastructure | Hemant Kanoria @ SREI Infrastructure Finance LimitedThis week on Founder Thesis podcast host Akshay Datt is in conversation with Hemant Kanoria - Chairman at SREI Infrastructure Finance Limited.A pioneer in the field of infrastructure finance, Hemant started SREI in 1989 and in the last two and half decades has scaled it to be India's largest integrated infrastructure institutions with an asset base of around USD 5.5 billion. But that’s not all, Hemant Kanoria, is also known for his role in creating a wave of rural entrepreneurs through the IT-enabled Sahaj service centre initiative that has created over 50000 village-level entrepreneurs. Tune...
2020-12-1858 min
Founder ThesisReinventing online commerce | Sachin Bhatia @ Bulbul.tvThis week on Founder Thesis Akshay Datt is in conversation with serial entrepreneur and investor Sachin Bhatia. You may know him best for his stint as the Co-Founder and CMO at Make My Trip. However Sachin is also the Co-Founder of online dating site TrulyMadly.com and, his latest venture, Bulbul.tv Bulbul is a revolutionary video commerce platform that is redefining online shopping by making it fun, engaging and social. At Bulbul, their network of ‘‘experts’, showcase and explain various products and the features in different Indian languages! In this episode, Sachin shares his journey f...
2020-10-161h 20The SpotlightConnecting Technology Seamlessly | Sriram Subramanian of ShoppinPalThis pandemic has put businesses on an accelerated path to digital transformation. For larger organisations, achieving digital integration is relatively easy. But, for SMEs it poses unique challenges. That’s where our guest for this episode Sriram Subramanian of ShoppinPal comes to the rescue! With a product tailored to make world class tech solutions available to SMEs without burning a gaping hole in their pocket, ShoppinPal has been powering growth for businesses in the retail ecosystem. Join us for a chat with Sriram Subramanian to know more about his entrepreneurial journey, right from his days at th...
2020-08-2650 min