2022 has brought the Covid scare back in our lives and the WFH regime continues. The vaccination drives have been pretty successful with over 60% people having at-least one dose and close to 45% fully jabbed. The year gone by had its fair share of ups and downs, but for the startup ecosystem in India, it was a year to remember. With the year gone by and the five days into the new year, I have a feeling that India has arrived and in style.
India ranks as 3rd largest startup ecosystem in the world with over 60K+ registered startups till end of Dec’21. This year, 44 startups joined the Indian unicorn club taking up the tally to 81, with a cumulative valuation of ~$275B. The thought process is evolving and there is a strong desire to solve the real problems amongst the people of our country is quite evident at the grassroot level. To showcase such innovations, global shows such as #SharkTanks is making its way into the drawing rooms of our home at the prime time slot (no comparison to its American counterpart!). With the likes of hawker, street vendors, auto drivers etc. accepting digital payments (at-least in the metro cities) through QR codes is a treat to watch for a startup enthusiast like me. I recently read somewhere and confirmed with one of my dear one there, that there is no app like #Cred in a developed economy like Canada (Strange, but fact!) for their credit card payments. The fundamental thing is to solve problems.
With the CEO’s of the major tech giants now Indian, the time is surely near that we are the super powers of tomorrow with our work forces and the raw talent, we possess. With some of the top startups going in for an IPO, startups founders should be celebrated instead of the actors. And yes, startup or businesses tends to fail. So, what? There’s always a better a way out of it. The founder emerges victorious and stronger than before, if he understands the mistake and finds a solution to solve in a more solution effective manner. With the positivity comes the negativity, with scaling comes sustainability and with money comes responsibility. Learning to balance remains the key factor for the founder to drive the growth. That is the thin line between a successful startup and a business that has failed to make its mark.
India is a land with emotions. Make your idea, an emotion. A dream, you see every other minute of your life. With the change right from the bottom, it is evitable that we are moving slowly but steadily towards a developed nation. And with unlimited resources that this country has, no one can stop this wave of entrepreneurship in the minds of young India.
A few question lies ahead is that what time will it take for the startup culture to penetrate in the non-metros and when will the elder generation accept startups against the MNCs/govt jobs in Tier-2/3/4 cities
PS – My parents had no clue whatsoever about startups, when I entered in the startup ecosystem back in 2014 and now they order groceries in 10 minutes!!
