1947 Rise: Recent Episodes

Shiva Singh Sangwan

It’s a podcast that helps India-born, US-trained Indians get integrated into the Indian tech ecosystem and inspires them to move back to India to build massive tech companies and/or help enable the tech ecosystem.

We do this by interviewing India-born, US-trained Indians who have moved back to India and built massive tech companies themselves and/or helped enable the tech ecosystem.

Leo is a co-founder and General Partner at Susa Ventures and Humba Ventures. He writes $1m-$3m checks via Susa, mostly in B2B SaaS companies, and $250k-$500k checks via Humba, mostly in deep tech and in critical sectors (manufacturing, energy, defense, etc). Humba is a new early stage fund in the Susa fund family.00:00 - Top moments01:09 - Intro 02:30 - What led you into investing? What was the founding story of Susa Ventures?04:43 - What was the portfolio construction and the thesis of Susa Ventures? And has it evolved over time? 07:30 - What’s the thesis around Humba and What’s the portfolio construction around it?10:12 - What’s the most overrated advice that you’ve heard about fundraising for funds?12:03 - How would you go about, sourcing LPs, building relationships, and closing LPs? 13:49 -What was the the hardest lesson or the biggest mistake, that you did as a group when you were fundraising and you realized later on?15:40 - How have you, improved over in each segment, around sourcing?19:37 - What’s the best way to build a great deal flow?21:23 - How one can think about building a brand?22:45 - What’s your take on picking?25:26 - What do you think are the biggest lies out there? 27:50 - How much do you think, investing is random and luck? 29:47 - What’s the hardest thing, about building Susa Ventures and Humba Ventures?31:40 - What’s making you smile lately?32:49 - Is there a hack that you can’t live your life without? 34:18 - If you’re hosting a dinner, and could invite three folks, dead or alive, who would they be? 35:18 - What do your friends know you for?

Prashant is the co-founder of EaseMyTrip. Ease my trip is among very few consumer-startups in the world, that bootstrapped all the way till IPO & later even became a unicorn.Raghu is the founder of Zolve. Zolve is world's first cross-border Neobank. Before Zolve, Raghu built and sold ride hailing startup Taxi for sure to Ola for $200M dollars00:00 - Top Moments 01:25 - Intro03:41 - How are you both sleeping these days?08:40 - What were the scariest moments while building your company? How did you persist through it?30:37 - What’s been your relationship with health?49:34 - What’s been your relationship with desire? How do you set and manage your ambition?🔗 CONNECT WITH Prashant Pitti 👥 Linkedin - www.linkedin.com/in/prashantpitti/🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/ppitti?lang=en🔗 CONNECT WITH 👥 Linkedin - / graghunandan 🐦 Twitter - / raghugnandan

Vinny Pujji is the Managing Partner at Left Lane Capital. Left Lane Capital is a global venture capital firm that invests in high-growth internet and consumer technology companies. Notable investments include GoStudent, Jackpocket, Bilt Rewards and many moreBefore Left Lane Vinny was at Insight Partners - where he led insights investments in India00:00 - Top moments01:32 - Intro03:16 - How did you get into the world of investing and What is the founding story of Left Lane Capital?07:56 - Founders were telling you, "hey, there's something that you're doing. Not many people are doing out there" What is that really specifically?"10:31 - How did you arrive at that portfolio construction and thesis?12:53 - Do you think being a global firm gives you an edge? If so how does it give you an edge?15:53 - What's been the hardest thing for you in terms of building the fund?19:26 - Do you remember, an inflection point in your investing career that just changed your trajectory as an investor?22:54 - How has your relationship to investing in India started? How has it evolved over time?26:41 - How did the investment oppourtunity of AstroTalk come about?29:59 - What's been the biggest learnings for you through working with the founders in India?32:52 - What needs to be true for founders in India to get funded by Vinnie and the team at Left Lane Capital?34:28 - What's been making you smile lately?35:07 - What's your relationship with health?37:18 - How's tennis, going for you?38:27 - What was like your most favorite thing about India?39:26 - Who are you outside of work?🔗 CONNECT WITH Vinny Pujji👥 Linkedin - / vpujji 🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/vpujji?lang=en🔗 CONNECT WITH SHIVA💌 Sign up to my weekly email newsletter - https://1947tech.substack.com/🎥 YouTube Channel - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCfiQ...🐦 Twitter - / shivassangwan 🐦 Twitter - / 1947rise 👥 Linkedin - / shiva-sin. .

Aditya Agarwal is the Partner at South Park Commons. SPC is a community of technologists and builders dedicated to helping each other explore, learn, and get from -1 to 0.Prior to SPC Aditya was the CTO of Dropbox and he was one of Facebook’s first engineers.00:00 - Top moments01:22 - Intro 02:41 - What is the founding story of South Park Commons?13:26 - What is the thesis and the portfolio construction of the fund?15:12 - What type of check sizes are these and what is the portfolio construction like?16:30 -What are some examples of companies that have gone from -1 to 0 under SPC?19:09 - What are some examples of companies that got incubated or took a bigger route?23:03 - What has been the hardest thing about building SPC?25:17 - What are your learnings from backing these top founders? What are some similar patterns?28:45 - What is your relationship with India? What are your learnings from working with Indian founders?31:36 - How can Indian companies apply for SPC?32:35 - Are you looking to spend more time in India and what is your view on India?35:44 - What's been making you smile these days?36:22 - What's your relationship with health?39:27 - What is that one hack, that you cannot live your life without?40:01 - What's on your techno playlist these days🔗 CONNECT WITH Aditya Agarwal 👥 Linkedin - https://www.linkedin.com/in/adityaagarwal3/🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/adityaag🔗 CONNECT WITH SHIVA💌 Sign up to my weekly email newsletter - https://1947tech.substack.com/🎥 YouTube Channel - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCfiQ...🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/shivassangwan🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/1947Rise👥 Linkedin - https://www.linkedin.com/in/shiva-sin...

Nitin is the co-founder of Ofbusiness, a $6 billion dollar company and Pratham is the founder of Masters Union - A leading technology-focused b-school led by veteran leaders, offering an industry immersive PGP.00:00 - Top moments01:28 - Introduction02:27 - How are you both sleeping these days?06:38 - How is Nitin able to persist through everything and do it?10:00 - What's the secret behind Pratham's energy and persistence?16:13 - What is Nitin's framework to make it big in life?20:47- What is Pratham's framework to make it big in life?23:01- How does Nitin manage the relationship with his support systems while building the company?26:00 - How does Pratham manage the relationship with his support systems while building the company?29:33 - What's been making you smile lately, Nitin?31:35 - What's been making you smile lately, Pratham?33:05 - Your thoughts on the importance of support systems in life?34:34 -To what extent Money should define us?36:14 - The Importance of Work-Life Balance: Should we trade of personal life for work life?39:27-How do people who work with/under you find break from work?44:07 - How to tackle overworking and burnout?46:26 - What are your food habits?50:38 - If your company were a superhero what superpowers would it have? And who would be your arch nemisis?56:45 - do you battle not having a sense of belonging?58:45 - How to take breaks and manage them?🔗 CONNECT WITH Nitin Jain 👥 Linkedin - https://www.linkedin.com/in/nitin-jain-17b82310/?originalSubdomain=in🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/njain351🔗 CONNECT WITH Pratham Mittal👥 Linkedin - https://www.linkedin.com/in/prathammittal/?originalSubdomain=in🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/prathammittal?lang=en🔗 CONNECT WITH SHIVA💌 Sign up to my weekly email newsletter - https://1947tech.substack.com/🎥 YouTube Channel - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCfiQ...🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/shivassangwan🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/1947Rise👥 Linkedin - https://www.linkedin.com/in/shiva-sin...

Andreas Klinger is a former CTO of Product Hunt, CoinList, Head of Remote at AngelList, and CTO at On DeckHe is also an investor via Remote First Capital.He has backed some amazing companies like Remote, Mainstreet, Clubhouse and more.Here are the topic we covered during our conversation00:00 - Top moments00:49 - Introduction02:07 - What was the founding story of Remote First Capital?05:18 - Did you have any mentors who helped you go about it?06:11 - What's the portfolio construction like?And how did you arrive to that portfolio construction?10:35 -What's your thesis around your global investing approach?11:49 - What are 1-3 things that work well when raising capital from LPs?What are 1 or 2 things you did wrong while fund raising?14:04 -Who was your first believer in Remote First Capital?15:04 - What was the story behind Remote.com?18:46 -What is that one thing that you know now, you wish you knew earlier?22:22 -What is the hardest thing about building a fund?27:45 -What was your reason for doing a trip to India and what has the experience been like?30:09 -What has been the top take aways from this? What did you find intresting?33:37-What do people get wrong about India?36:00 -How can someone building from India reach out to you?38:58 -What's been making you smile lately?40:26 -Is there a hack you can't live without?41:17 -If money was not needed anymore, what would you work on?44:28 -Who are you outside of work?🔗 CONNECT WITH Andreas Klinger👥 Linkedin - https://www.linkedin.com/in/andreasklinger🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/andreasklinger🔗 CONNECT WITH SHIVA💌 Sign up to my weekly email newsletter - https://1947tech.substack.com/🎥 YouTube Channel - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCfiQ...🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/shivassangwan🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/1947Rise👥 Linkedin - https://www.linkedin.com/in/shiva-sin...

Sahil Lavingia is an entrepreneur, known as the founder and CEO of Gumroad, an investor, painter, and writer.Through SHL Capital he Invests $10 million a year into early-stage technology startups, mostly via $100K-$250K checks.00:00 - Top moments 00:42 - intro01:54- What was the founding story of SHL Capital?05:40 - What's the portfolio construction like for SHL capital? 08:09 - Are there examples in your portfolio of weird investments that turned out to be very good?14:15- Any investors in particular who have really helped you become a better investor?19:27 - Have you seen a pattern across your successful investments? 24:03- What was your reason of visiting India and how was the trip like?29:18- You recently tweeted saying, you know, "if you want to be a billionaire, move to India" Where did that come from?40:05- I'm a founder looking to, you know, reach out to Sahil and kind of get a sense, would I be even fit to Sahil? What would that scenario look like? 44:06 - What's been making you smile lately, Sahil?45:06 - What's your typical day like? 48:16- Is there a hack you can't live without? 50:58- Thank you🔗 CONNECT WITH Sahil Lavingia👥 Linkedin - https://www.linkedin.com/in/sahillavingia/🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/shl?lang=en🔗 CONNECT WITH SHIVA💌 Sign up to my weekly email newsletter - https://1947tech.substack.com/🎥 YouTube Channel - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCfiQ...🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/shivassangwan🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/1947Rise👥 Linkedin - https://www.linkedin.com/in/shiva-sin...

Akshay Chaturvedi is the founder and CEO of Leverage Edu, a fast-growing study abroad platform startup that provides personalized mentorship and guidance for higher education and careers.He is also a prolific angel investor.Timestamps:00:00: Top Moments00:34: Intro with Akshay02:25: Leverage Edu Overview04:22: First External Investor06:25: Akshay's Angel Investing Journey08:15: Impact on Growth as Founder12:26: Identifying Investment Opportunities15:51: Angel Investing Learnings18:58: Advising on Cap Table Construction22:22: Advice for Operator Angels27:04: Akshay's Typical Day29:47: Health's Impact on Akshay32:42: Akshay's Outside Interests34:02: Dream Dinner Guests37:10: No Limits to Dreaming

Charles Hudson is the Managing Partner and Founder of Precursor Ventures, an early-stage venture capital firm focused on investing in the first institutional round of financing for the most promising software and hardware companies.He is one of the pioneers of pre-seed investing.He is also an advisor and mentor to a number of emerging managers.Timestamps:00:00 Top Moments00:31 Intro to pod with Charles Hudson02:21 Angel investing and Precursor Ventures' founding story05:28 Evolution of fund strategy over the years07:29 Convincing LPs on a diversified portfolio09:52 Non-consensus of non-consensus being right12:35 Fundraising journey and learnings from fund one15:35 Fundraising from scratch, picking a number, and handling rejections18:53 Hardest part in building Precursor and in building a venture21:42 Growth as a fund manager and mentors' impact24:17 Solo GP Happy Hours initiative25:55 Advice for emerging fund managers and characteristics of successful investors27:17 Charles's outside-of-work obsessions27:58 Typical day for Charles28:32 Sleep, health, and well-being28:54 Dream project with time and resources29:56 Charles's affinity for Indian cuisine29:39 Charles's reputation among friends outside of work30:17 Dinner guests, dead or alive, and why

Bradley Tusk is a venture capitalist, political strategist, philanthropist, and writer. He is the co-founder of Tusk Ventures, the world’s first venture capital fund that invests solely in early stage startups in highly regulated industries.TVP has raised three funds so far and proved its model by investing in major winners like FanDuel, Lemonade, Coinbase, Ro and more.Timeline : 00:00 Introduction02:07 Founding story of Tusk Ventures05:39 Evolution of portfolio construction from Fund 1 to Fund 307:51 Assisting companies like Uber, FanDuel, Coinbase and advice on navigating regulations, particularly in India12:05 Moments of reflection and questioning during the journey13:48 Does being in a small niche limit opportunities?15:15 Mistakes in fundraising for the first fund and changes leading to the success of subsequent funds17:15 Challenges in building a venture fund19:00 Insights behind writing a recent book, its thesis, and the intended audience22:01 Thoughts on the biggest global regulatory issue concerning AI25:33 Perspective on TikTok26:55 A glimpse into a typical day29:08 Knowing Bradley beyond work29:06 Bradley's greatest passion outside of work30:23 Strategies for maintaining mental, physical, and emotional fitness32:15 If money and attention are not needed anymore, what would he work on?

Masha Bucher is the Founder of Day One Ventures, an early-stage venture capital firm that’s pioneering a new model in VC by spearheading communications for its portfolio companies. The fund has backed backed 8 unicorns and one portfolio company went publicThey have invested in companies like Remote, Worldcoin, You.com, Simulate, Superhuman, Truebill (acq), Arcadia, DoNotPay, Atoms, Yumi, DuckDuckGo & othersBefore that, Masha was an angel investor and PR studio founder working with companies like Houzz, HotelTonight, Toptal & more.Timeline:00:00 : Top Moments00:31 : Intro to pod with Masha01:53 : Founding story of Day One Ventures04:25 : How does it differentiate itself from other funds07:32 : Portfolio construction10:28 : How has she improved as an investor over the years13:04 : Role of luck in investing15:00 : Patterns in successful companies17:55 : Notable moments, significant mistakes20:26 : Lessons from Fund one for Fund two22:57 : Strategies for securing LPs27:04 : A typical day in Masha's life28:34 : Masha beyond professional identity

Arjun Nair is the Co-Founder and President of Great Learning. Great Learning is India's leading provider for online professional & higher education.In 2021, BYJU’S Acquired Great Learning for $600 Million. Great Learnings was bootstrapped.Timeline:00:00: Top Moments00:38: Intro to pod02:00: Early life and shaping moments09:56: Return to India and founding Great Learning16:03: Evolution of online learning and its future22:44: Key issues in Indian education and solutions28:55: Advice for diasporas for seizing opportunities in India33:29: A glimpse into a typical day35:52: Yoga practice38:30: Alternative passions without constraints40:34: Exploring the person beyond the professional persona

Nihal Mehta is the co-founder of Eniac Ventures. One of the top Venture Capital funds in the US. Through Eniac they have invested in over 10 unicorns.Before founding Eniac, Nihal had built 5 tech companies. Some succeeded and some failed.People call Nihal the human Rolodex and Nihal is typically the life of the party.Timeline:00:00 Top Moments00:40 Intro to pod with Nihal Mehta02:30 Foundational Thesis of Eniac Ventures04:19 Portfolio construction and evolution over the years06:44 Journey of transitioning from making smaller investments to leading rounds10:11 Aspects of investing: sourcing, picking, and winning15:41 Common traits of companies of successful companies in portfolio17:46 Lessons from misses in investment19:54 Challenges and less-discussed aspects of building a venture fund22:38 Fundraising journey and communicating with LPs25:38 Advice for someone starting a fund or venturing into VC29:13 Personal life and daily routine outside of work33:19 Interests beyond work35:48 Superpowers or unique qualities of partners in the venture firm

Fabrice Grinda is among the world’s leading Internet entrepreneurs and investors.Fabrice was named the #1 Angel Investor in the world by Forbes.Fabrice founded FJ labs, and today FJ labs is one of the most active investors globally.FJ labs has invested in companies like Alibaba, Airbnb, Instacart, Flexport, and many more.Timeline : 00:00: Top Moments00:34: Intro for Pod with Farbrice01:57 : FJ Labs founding story04:57: Portfolio and fund model evolved through experience and learning.07:59: Success factors for a $295 million fund09:45: Potential changes for the third fund if starting a new fund.12:15: LP relationship-building strategies16:38: Effective pre-fundraising relationship building18:31:Evolution in deal sourcing.25:27: Challenges in building a venture fund27:05: Investment thesis for India31:08: Pros and cons of starting a fund 33:54: Importance of brand building for deal flow35:17: Typical day routine37:14: Non-work obsession38:25: Recent personal mindset changes41:32: Who is he outside of work?

Back in 2015, when the start-up landscape in India was at a nascent stage, as a banker Ishpreet pioneered the first-ever debt solutions for startups in India. In 2018, Ishpreet founded Stride Ventures and today it has become —India’s leading venture debt fund.They have partnered with companies like Zepto, Bira, Sugar, Spinny, Zetwerk and many more.

00:00 Top Moments00:26 Intro02:31 Starting Stride Ventures in 2015 and pioneering venture debt in India05:40 Thesis, portfolio, fundraising, and venture debt business model12:10 Check sizes, sectors, and stages of investment14:09 Journey of building Stride Ventures16:55 Vision for Stride Ventures as a startup bank in 3-5 years19:23 Prioritizing tasks and product roadmap20:43 Early lessons when starting Stride Ventures24:16 Challenges in building a venture debt firm28:11 Advice for startups open to venture debt31:25 Tough moments and confidence boosters34:36 Typical day routine36:03 Unexplored areas of learning36:34 Outside work obsession38:40 Alternative pursuits if not building Stride Ventures39:48 Perception by friends outside work41:12 Dream dinner guests, dead or alive

Jeff Morris Jr. is the founder and Managing Director of Chapter One. Chapter One has invested in companies like Mercury, Supabase, Superhuman, Dapper Labs, and Pipe to name a few.Morris was previously the VP of Product, Revenue at Tinder. In the role, he led the revenue team to the #1 top grossing app in the App Store globally.Timestamps 00:00 Top Moments02:27 - Entry into angel investing and Chapter One's founding story.05:22 - Fundraising and portfolio changes between Fund 1 and Fund 2.08:23 - Establishing a unique value proposition for Fund 2.11:17 - Staying relevant in a rapidly changing industry.13:23 - Recent insights from fund manager interactions.15:13 - Pros and cons of starting a fund.17:54 - Fundraising advice for aspiring fund managers.21:16 - Early fundraising and investing insights.24:32 - A typical day in the speaker's life.25:55 - Personal interests and hobbies.26:39 - Unexplored subjects or skills.27:43 - Top three funds for LP investment.🔗 CONNECT WITH JEFF👥 Linkedin - https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeffmorrisjr/🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/jmj🔗 CONNECT WITH SHIVA💌 Sign up to my weekly email newsletter - https://1947tech.substack.com/🎥 YouTube Channel - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCfiQ...🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/shivassangwan🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/1947Rise👥 Linkedin - https://www.linkedin.com/in/shiva-sin...

Julia Lipton is the founder of Awesome People Ventures.Awesome People Ventures is an early-stage fund focused on Web3.She is one of the top web3 investors globally.Timestamps:0:00 Top Moments0029 Intro to pod with Julia Lipton01:39 What led to founding Awesome People Ventures?03:16 Fundraising journey and evolution of fund thesis?05:13 Portfolio construction, check sizes, investment stages?06:32 Mistakes in fund one and their influence on approach?09:36 Future of Web3 in next 3-5 years?11:09 LPs in fund one, key learnings, evolution in fund two?13:15 Importance of brand building for fund managers?15:04 Pros and cons of being a solo GP?17:00 Advice for those starting a fund?18:36 Early career insight for fund management?19:33 What's your daily routine?21:33 Current passions outside of work?22:23 Recent diet changes or helpful products?23:44 How do friends perceive you beyond your role as an investor?🔗 CONNECT WITH JULIA LIPTON👥 Linkedin - https://www.linkedin.com/in/julialipton/🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/JuliaLipton🔗 CONNECT WITH SHIVA💌 Sign up to my weekly email newsletter - https://1947tech.substack.com/🎥 YouTube Channel - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCfiQ...🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/shivassangwan🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/1947Rise👥 Linkedin - https://www.linkedin.com/in/shiva-sin...

Eddy Chan is the Founding Partner at “Indonesia-only” Intudo Ventures, the only VC investing exclusively in IndonesiaPrior founding to Intudo Ventures, Eddy worked on venture investments in startups since the late 1990s, including PayPal, Palantir, and Affirm, founded and operated venture-backed technology companiesTimestamps : 00:00 Top Moments00:31 Intro to pod with Eddy02:04 Eddy's Entry into Venture capital and Intudo Ventures07:13 His journey from first fund to current fund17:21 Strategy to build LP relationships and closing deals.27:36 Lessons learnt while fund raising29:41 Evolution of Indonesian Tech Ecosystem since 200737:01 Eddy's Typical Day41:48 Who is Eddy outside of work?🔗 CONNECT WITH EDDY👥 Linkedin - https://www.linkedin.com/in/eddychan🔗 CONNECT WITH SHIVA💌 Sign up to my weekly email newsletter - https://1947tech.substack.com/🎥 YouTube Channel - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCfiQ...🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/shivassangwan🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/1947Rise👥 Linkedin - https://www.linkedin.com/in/shiva-sin...

Robin Haak is a Solo GP based out of Berlin. Through his fund, Robin Capital, Robin primarily invests in angel, pre-seed and seed stages of companies.

00:00 Top Moments00:23 Into to pod with Robin Haak01:58 Robin's journey to Angel Investing15:45 Porfolio Construction of Robin Capital20:59 Robin's approach to deal sourcing.28:45 Robin's strategy to source LPs35:56 Robin's experience as solo GP39:50 Top three funds Robin would invest in.42:40 Robin's daily routine43:33 Challenging or undesireable parts of his day.🔗 CONNECT WITH SHIVA🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/RobinEricHaak👥 Linkedin - https://www.linkedin.com/in/robinhaak/🔗 CONNECT WITH SHIVA💌 Sign up to my weekly email newsletter - https://1947tech.substack.com/🎥 YouTube Channel - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCfiQ...🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/shivassangwan🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/1947Rise👥 Linkedin - https://www.linkedin.com/in/shiva-sin...

Sairee Chahal is the founder of Sheroes, Mahilay Money and Appreciate Capital.Sairee is responsible for bringing women in India to the internet. Today Sheroes has over 20 million users. Mahila Money is a full stack financial products and services platform for women in India.Apprecite capital is a vehicle through which she invests in other founders00:00 Top moments00:33 Intro with Sairee Chahal03:11 MahilaMoney founding story?10:04 Loan amounts & impact stories?16:56 MahilaMoney's long-term vision?18:59 What motivates you in supporting founders?21:11 Angel investment advice?23:52 Changes needed in the startup ecosystem?28:03 A day in your life?30:40 Unlearned skill or subject?31:33 How do friends perceive you?

Aman Verjee is the Founder and General Partner at Practical Venture Capital.Practical Venture Capital is a VC secondary firm providing liquidity to LPs and GPs.00:00 Top Moments01:43 What led Aman to Venture Capital?03:21 Founding story of Practical VC.06:29 Evaluation process of GPs and LPs and portfolio construction08:25 Focus on Venture Funds and not direct secondary companies.09:31 Uniqueness of Practical VC11:01 What type of LPs are targeted in Practical VC12:59 Typical return expectations for LPs in VC13:55 Cheque sizes of Practical VC14:19 Envisioned outcome of Practical VC 5-15 years.15:53 Global investment approach of Practical VC17:18 Lessons learnt while building Practical VC21:02 What is Aman's typical day like?23:29 Aman's relationship with health26:05 Aman's motivation behind writing the book28:59 What is something Aman wanted to do but hasn't got the time yet?

Ahana Gautam is the CEO & Co-Founder at Open Secret.India’s leading Food and Beverages companyThrough Open Secret she is looking to Unjunk India.0:00 - Early Life & Shaping Ahana: Ahana's upbringing and influences.03:17 - Mother's Values: Development of Ahana's mother's values.05:44 - Learning in the US: Ahana's experiences and lessons abroad.09:11 - Conviction to Return: What inspired Ahana to move back from the US.12:39 - First Believer in Funding: Ahana's initial support in funding.14:31 - Rise of Homegrown Brands: Why Indian consumers prefer local brands.17:57 - Open Secret's Vision: The future plans for Open Secret.19:43 - Key Turning Point for Success: Milestones in Open Secret's journey.21:23 - Financial Independence: Implementing Ahana's mother's values.24:36 - Advice for Returning to India: Guidance for those considering a move back to India.26:19 - Passion Beyond Work: Ahana's interests outside of her career.28:10 - Unlimited Resources & Purpose: Would Ahana still pursue this path with unlimited resources?29:28 - Daily Routine: Ahana's typical day-to-day schedule.30:43 - Focus on Health: How Ahana prioritizes her health.32:12 - Desire to Learn Something New: What Ahana is eager to learn.33:01 - Gym Playlist: Ahana's go-to music for workouts.33:24 - Dream Dinner Guests: Three individuals, dead or alive, Ahana would invite and why.🔗 CONNECT WITH AHANA GAUTAM👥 Linkedin - https://www.linkedin.com/in/ahanagautam🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/GautamAhana🔗 CONNECT WITH SHIVA💌 Sign up to my weekly email newsletter - https://1947tech.substack.com/🎥 YouTube Channel - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCfiQ...🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/shivassangwan🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/1947Rise👥 Linkedin - https://www.linkedin.com/in/shiva-sin...

Dhruv Bahl is the Former COO of BharatPe. Before that, he played an important role in helping PAYTM scale. And he is also a prolific operator angel investor in the Indian tech ecosystem.

Timestamps : 00:00 Top Moments 00:29 Intro to pod with Dhruv 02:06 Transition from fintech to angel investing, first angel investment. 07:55 Self-education methods for angel investing. 14:08 Learning to distinguish good from bad deals as an angel investor. 19:43 Typical check sizes and sector focus. 20:52 Most important angel investing lesson. 25:56 Portfolio companies and investment rationale. 35:01 Structuring ESOPs for founders. 44:33 Unexplored learning interests. 48:14 A Memorable act of kindness.

Nichole Wischoff is the solo GP of Wischoff Ventures where she’s investing into pre-seed & Seed stage unsexy businesses out of a $20M fund II. Before venture, Nichole was an operator at 2 successful companies, one that was acquired by Walmart.Timestamps :00:00: Highlights of Key Moments00:33: Introduction to the Podcast with Nichole02:00: Initiation of Angel Investing and Creation of Wischoff Ventures03:00: Founding of Wischoff Ventures Linked to Angel Investing Success05:38: Application of First Fund Lessons to Second Fund10:42: Clear Playbook Development for Solo GP Fund Building with Twitter's Aid15:28: Evaluation of Nashville's Advantages and Drawbacks Compared to Tech Hubs17:44: Influence of Non-Tech Hub Residence on Independent Thinking19:11: Identification and Discussion of Venture Capital Misconceptions21:15: Advice for Operators Transitioning to Venture Capital23:50: Gratifying and Challenging Aspects of Building Wischoff Ventures26:06: Insights into Capital Raising from First Fund to Second29:21: Preferred Investment Targets as an LP30:24: Common New Fund Manager Mistakes and Lead Investor Role Transition34:50: Current Non-Work Obsessions36:43: Alternate Focus if Not Engaged with Wischoff39:16: The three invitees to dinner with Nichole🔗 CONNECT WITH NICHOLE WISCHOFF👥 Linkedin - https://www.linkedin.com/in/nicholewi...🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/NWischoff🔗 CONNECT WITH SHIVA💌 Sign up to my weekly email newsletter - https://1947tech.substack.com/🎥 YouTube Channel - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCfiQ...🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/shivassangwan🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/1947Rise👥 Linkedin - https://www.linkedin.com/in/shiva-sin...

Vivek is the Co-founder & CEO of Bounce. Bounce is a full-stack EV mobility company. Vivek is also a prolific angel investor.

Timestamps: 02:28 Early Days and Challenges 07:04 Learning from Challenges 09:26 Support System 11:26 Bounce Infinity's Approach 16:13 Angel Investing Motivation 16:47 Backing Other Founders 20:07 Portfolio Companies 21:01 Missed Investment Opportunities 24:30 Building Deal Flow 26:42 Investing Approach 27:31 Daily Routine and Fitness 30:48 Movie and Friends' Perception 31:58 Friend's Perception of Vivek 33:38 Beyond Bounce 35:27 Dinner Guests

🔗 CONNECT WITH 👥 Linkedin - https://www.linkedin.com/in/vivekanan... 🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/vivekanandahr

🔗 CONNECT WITH SHIVA 💌 Sign up to my weekly email newsletter - https://1947tech.substack.com/ 🎥 YouTube Channel - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCfiQ... 🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/shivassangwan 🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/1947Rise 👥 Linkedin - https://www.linkedin.com/in/shiva-sin...

Aakrit is the Co-Founder & CEO of Haptik. Haptik is one of the world’s largest Conversational AI companies. Aakrit is also one of the most founder-friendly angel in India. He has invested in companies like Unacademy, MPL, Indiagold to name a few.

Timestamps : 02:15 Founding story of Peercheque 06:51 How does Peercheque operate? 11:12 Specific sectors Peercheque is focused on 14:32 Changes for the Indian Venture Ecosystem 19:04 Prospects for Founders Becoming Investors 20:14 Changes in Investment strategies and lessons learned 23:10 Why COCKROACH MENTALITY for entrepreneurs 25:09 Founding Story of TEAM 31:43 Aakrit's Typical Day 34:32 Aakrit's relationship with health 36:32 Benefits of staying active 38:21 The three invitees to dinner with Aakrit

Howard Lindzon has more than 20 years of experience in the financial community acting in both an entrepreneurial and investing capacity. As an entrepreneur he founded Stocktwits. As an investor, he founded Social Leverage. As an LP he recently founded the Social Leverage Access fund. A FoFs that backs emerging fund managers.

Timeline: 02:00 Founding story of Social Leverage Access Fund. 06:20 Portfolio construction of Social Leverage Access Funds. 07:46 Focus on emerging fund managers. 10:43 Selection criteria for evaluating fund managers. 13:43 Check sizes and criteria for investments. 14:41 Common mistakes in fund manager pitches. 16:19 One thing to know earlier. 18:17 Three advice for emerging fund managers. 23:13 Evaluating operators transitioning into investors. 24:22 Venture outlook in the next five years. 26:00 Staying relevant as an emerging fund manager. 27:02 Obsession outside of work. 28:40 Working towards not working. 29:38 Insight into the daily routine. 31:03 The most undesirable part of the day. 31:18 Sleeping habits. 32:01 Relationship with health. 33:06 Experience with pickleball. 33:55 Unexpected benefits of blogging. 36:26 Dream dinner guests, dead or alive.

🔗 CONNECT WITH HOWARD LINDZON 👥 Linkedin - https://www.linkedin.com/in/howardlindzon/ 🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/howardlindzon

🔗 CONNECT WITH SHIVA 💌 Sign up to my weekly email newsletter - https://1947tech.substack.com/ 🎥 YouTube Channel - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCfiQ... 🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/shivassangwan 🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/1947Rise 👥 Linkedin - https://www.linkedin.com/in/shiva-sin...

Sunil Chhaya is a Co-Founder and General Partner at Kearny Jackson. Kearny Jackson is an early-stage venture fund focused on backing SaaS, Infrastructure, and FinTech founders.

Timeline : 00:00: Top Moments 00:33: Intro to Pod with Sunil 01:46: Influences and entering venture capital 03:22: Introduction to Sriram Krishnan 05:22: Decision to start a fund with Sriram Krishnan 07:02: Approach to portfolio construction 09:47: Portfolio construction for Kearney Jackson 10:41: Reaching out to LPs and raising capital 13:49: Insights on fundraising lessons learned 19:58: Advice for pursuing a path in venture capital 21:23: Perspective on the Indian tech ecosystem 23:04: A typical day's schedule 24:47: Most undesirable part of the day 25:41: What friends know him for 26:28: Preferred cuisine 26:55: Soccer team affiliations with Sriram Krishnan 27:40: Relationship with health 28:47: Recent focus on health 29:58: Guests for a dinner table discussion

🔗 CONNECT WITH SUNIL CHHAYA 👥 Linkedin - https://www.linkedin.com/in/sunil-chhaya/ 🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/sunilchhaya

🔗 CONNECT WITH SHIVA 💌 Sign up to my weekly email newsletter - https://1947tech.substack.com/ 🎥 YouTube Channel - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCfiQ... 🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/shivassangwan 🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/1947Rise 👥 Linkedin - https://www.linkedin.com/in/shiva-sin...

Rohit Kapoor is the Chief Executive Officer of Swiggy, where he handles Food Marketplace. He is also an amazing Angel Investor. He has invested in companies like OfBusiness, Mosaic, Mokobara and 40 others.

Timestamps: 00:00 Top moments 00:30 Intro to pod with Rohit Kapoor 01:37 Interest in angel investing, first investment? 02:51 His first angel investment? 05:09 Investing process and criteria? 14:31 Factors when evaluating founders? 15:48 Successful investments, missed opportunities? 21:17 Relationship building for college graduates? 27:45 His typical day? 31:01 Known for by friends? 32:27 Relationship with health? 35:37 Three guests for dinner?

🔗 CONNECT WITH ROHIT KAPOOR 👥 Linkedin - https://www.linkedin.com/in/rohit-kapoor-99a30436/ 🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/rohitisb

🔗 CONNECT WITH SHIVA 💌 Sign up to my weekly email newsletter - https://1947tech.substack.com/ 🎥 YouTube Channel - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCfiQ... 🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/shivassangwan 🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/1947Rise 👥 Linkedin - https://www.linkedin.com/in/shiva-sin...

Gaurav Jain is the Co-founder of Afore Capital Afore Capital is one of the largest venture funds ($300M AUM) dedicated to super early stage investments. Before founding Afore Capital. Gaurav was an investor at A VC fund called Founder Collective. And before that, he was one of the first Product Managers for Android.

Timestamps: 00:00 Top Moments 00:49 Intro for pod with Gaurav Jain 02:18 Gaurav's angel investing journey and Afore's founding story 06:07 Gaurav's partnership with his co-founder Anamitra Banerji 07:45 Gaurav's strategies for engaging LPs and raising capital 13:52 Gaurav's advice on fund modeling for emerging fund managers. 23:58 Afore's approach to staying relevant and reinventing themselves. 29:49 Top mistakes made by first-time fund managers. 32:38 Gaurav's perspective on the Indian tech ecosystem 36:57 What is Gaurav obsessed about outside of work 38:31 Gaurav's approach to prioritizing health and well-being.

🔗 CONNECT WITH GAURAV JAIN 👥 Linkedin - https://www.linkedin.com/in/gjainvc/ 🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/gjain

🔗 CONNECT WITH SHIVA 💌 Sign up to my weekly email newsletter - https://1947tech.substack.com/ 🎥 YouTube Channel - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCfiQ... 🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/shivassangwan 🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/1947Rise 👥 Linkedin - https://www.linkedin.com/in/shiva-sin...

Boris is the founding partner of Version One and one of the top tech early-stage investors in North America. He is a former board partner with Andreessen Horowitz. Version one has backed iconic companies like Coinbase, AngelList, Dapper Labs and Shippo to name a few.

Before becoming an investor, Boris built an online marketplace for used and out-of-print books in 1999 called AbeBooks, selling the business Amazon

Timestamps : 00:00 Top Moments 00:36 Intro to pod with Boris Wertz 01:56 Reason for angel investing & Founding story of VersionOne's 03:06 LP fundraising approach evolution & past mistakes. 06:06 Reinventing for long-term compounding effects. 08:28 Importance of portfolio construction 11:32 Evolution of VC with solo capitalists & industry changes. 14:10 Similarities between Indian & North American VC ecosystems. 15:08 India's growth & tech's role in the coming decades. 18:59 Reasons for investing in other funds & considerations. 20:38 Investing in emerging fund managers & key factors. 23:10 VersionOne's criteria for determining investment fit. 26:22 What's his typical day? 28:17 Potential edge in a smaller ecosystem. 30:30 Obsession outside of work. 31:17 Interest in running and fitness 32:07 Memorable non-work experience in India. 34:20 Three dinner guests (dead/alive) he would like to invite and why.

In this engaging podcast episode, join the conversation with Radhika Gupta, CEO of Edelweiss Asset Management, as she shares her insights on India's economic growth, her personal journey, and the challenges and opportunities in the financial services industry. From discussing India's rapid progress in becoming a trillion-dollar economy to the development of India's first domestic hedge fund, Radhika's story is filled with inspiration and a deep understanding of the market. Discover why she believes now is the best time to be in India and how she manages money and expectations at scale. Don't miss her insights on the recently launched first-to-market multi-assets fund and its tax-efficient investment opportunities.

02:18: Would she move back to India and why? 05:50: How did she establish India's first domestic hedge fund? 09:45: Did she anticipate founding the hedge fund, and how does she manage money and expectations? 14:43: Why invest in her new fund? 21:50: How to enhance financial literacy among grassroots women? 22:29: What's her daily routine like? 24:00: Does she talk to her parents daily, and why? 26:12: What's her non-work obsession? 26:44: What would she work on if money and attention weren't needed? 27:08: Any future aspirations? 28:16: Which country inspires her for tourism policies? 29:07: Three individuals, dead or alive, she'd invite to dinner and why?

radhikagupta #assetmanagement #1947rise

🔗 CONNECT WITH RADHIKA GUPTA 👥 Linkedin - https://www.linkedin.com/in/radhikagu... 🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/iRadhikaGupta

🔗 CONNECT WITH SHIVA 💌 Sign up to my weekly email newsletter - https://1947tech.substack.com/ 🎥 YouTube Channel - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCfiQ... 🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/shivassangwan 🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/1947Rise 👥 Linkedin - https://www.linkedin.com/in/shiva-sin...

Annelie Ajami is the Founder & Managing Partner of Anamcara Capital

Anamcara Capital is a pre-seed & seed stage venture fund investing in B2B companies across Europe.

They have backed companies like Nory, Bits Technology and Equipme to name a few.

Timestamps : 00:00 - Podcast introduction. 00:27 - Annelie Ajami's background. 01:51 - Motivation for angel investing and founding story of Anamcara Capital. 04:42 - Journey after starting Anamcara Capital. 11:30 - Inspiration behind starting a fund. 13:18 - Fundraising experience, challenges, and motivation. 18:26 - Biggest fundraising mistakes and lessons learned. 20:27 - Impact of being recognized for building Europe's most successful fund. 22:52 - Insights on the tech ecosystem in Europe and portfolio companies. 28:12 - Q&A sessions with founders and fostering personal connections. 30:39 - Annelie Ajami's daily routine. 31:42 - Current listening and podcast preferences. 32:24 - Finding energy outside of work. 33:29 - Work-life balance and personal priorities. 35:55 - Pending learning or opportunities. 38:00 - Annelie Ajami's reputation among friends.

Rishabh Mariwala is the founder of Sharrp Ventures - the Mariwala Family Office.Sharrp Venture is known to be one of the top consumer-focused funds in India. They have invested in companies like Nyakka, Mamearth, and Policybazaar to name a few.Timeline : 00:00 Top Moments00:30 Intro with pod with Rishabh Mariwala02:10 What was Rishabh’s childhood environment like and what shaped him the most in his early life?11:26 How did his time in the US during his undergraduate years shape and benefit him in the long run?28:35 What is the founding story of Sharrp Ventures?38:41 Where are we today in terms of Sharrp Ventures?45:17 What is Rishabh’s day like?50:08 If he could invite three people, dead or alive, from any industry, to a dinner, who would they be?53:08 Who is Rishabh outside of work?🔗 CONNECT WITH RISHABH MARIWALA👥 Linkedin - https://www.linkedin.com/in/rishabhma...🔗 CONNECT WITH SHIVA💌 Sign up to my weekly email newsletter - https://1947tech.substack.com/🎥 YouTube Channel - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCfiQ...🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/shivassangwan🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/1947Rise👥 Linkedin - https://www.linkedin.com/in/shiva-sin...

Tarun is the Co-founder & CEO at Ather Energy.He is also known as the Elon Musk of India for introducing EV scooters to the country.Ather is India's first smart and connected electric scooter, often referred to as the Tesla of two-wheelers in India.Ather is contributing to the growth of the EV ecosystem in India and inspiring the adoption of electric mobility.Timeline:00:00 Top Moments00:38 Intro to pod with Tarun Mehta2:20 What was the founding story of Ather?09:07 Who was the first believer in Tarun and Ather?14:23 What policy would Tarun create to promote EV if given the opportunity?17:44 What is something the government hasn't got right?20:30 Why is India leading in EVs compared to its counterparts?21:35 What led Tarun to angel investing, and what is his best gain from it?23:24 What drives Tarun's long-term thinking, and why does he admire companies prioritizing it?26:58 What is Tarun's day like?29:27 What is Tarun's sleep routine?30:36 If money and attention are not needed anymore what would Tarun work on?32:05 Who would Tarun invite for a dinner and why?33:31 Who is Tarun outside of work?

Sheel is the GP at Better Tomorrow Ventures.Better Tomorrow Ventures is one of the top seed-stage fintech investors.They have backed companies like Unit, Chippercash, Flexport, Mercury, Ramp to name a few.Timeline:00:00 Top moments.00:48 Intro to pod with Sheel Mohnot02:55 What led Sheel to angel investing and the founding story of Better Tomorrow Ventures?06:15 How did Sheel determine the portfolio construction of his fund, including fund size and check sizes?07:22 How was he able to source LPs, build relationships with them and close LPs?11:58 How does Sheel decide when to start investing if he is unsure about reaching the target raise?13:19 How does Sheel keep LPs updated and engaged during the fundraising process?14:13 What were the lessons learned from fundraising for the first fund and their impact on subsequent fundraising?16:13 What advice would Sheel give to an emerging fund manager when fundraising from LPs for their first fund?19:56 Did Sheel iterate and make changes his your pitch deck based on the feedback he received over time?22:10 What is his relationship with India, particularly in terms of investments?26:49 What fascinates him about the Indian tech ecosystem, especially in the FinTech sector?28:50 Do learning from the Indian tech ecosystem help you evaluate companies based outside of India?30:36 If not at BTV and if money and attention are not needed any more who would Sheel aspire to be?34:50 If he could invite three people dead or alive for dinner, who would they be and why?35:35 Which Indian individual would he love to meet and socialize with over dinner or drinks?

Aditya Virwani is the promotor and COO of Embassy Group. Embassy Group is one of the top 10 largest real estate developers in India.Timeline :00:00 Top Moments00:17 Intro to pod with Aditya Virwani03:23 How was Aditya's environment growing up, and how it shaped him?07:49 How did Aditya choose Real Estate?11:53 What has been Aditya's current focus and his future aspirations?17:08 How does Aditya keep himself updated with technology?18:46 Evolution of real estate in India, future opportunities, and how is Embassy Group preparing for them?25:28 What is Aditya's day like?28:47 What is the most crucial lesson that took Aditya the longest to learn?31:18 What is Aditya's approach to maintaining mental health?34:10 How is the status of his tennis practice?34:02 If Aditya could have dinner with any three people, dead or alive, who would they be and why?36:55 What do Aditya's friends know him for?39:14 How does Aditya handle his ego and stay humble?

James Beshara is a founder, investor, and encourager. He has started a few startups, sold one (Tilt, acq by Airbnb), and has invested in a few multi-billion dollar companies in his career.He has written angel cheques into gusto, clubhouse, bolt, mercury, openAI, 50+. His portfolio companies have a market cap of $50Bn.Timeline : 00:00 Top Moments00:38 Intro to pod with James.02:18 How did James get into angel investing, and what made him do the fund?05:44 What made James take such a bold and risky bet into Gusto?08:55 How did James decide the fund size, cheques, and investment stages during the fund's inception?14:14 What was James' strategy for differentiating from other investors, gaining access to deals, and targeting LPs for his first few funds? 20:39 What is James' deal sourcing process, his big wins and misses, and his learnings from that?29:42 What is James' relationship with India?35:27 If money and attention are not needed anymore, what would James work on?38:08 What do James' friends know him for?39:33 What is James most obsessed about lately, and what is draining him?

Ryan Hoover is the founder of the Weekend Fund. Weekend fund is an early stage fund that writes $100k - $300k cheques into early stage starups around the world across consumer and B2B.Weekend fund helps founders with product, community building, and GTM strategy alongside an LP collective of 350+ exceptional founders and operators.Ryan also founded ProductHunt.

Timeline :02:02 How did Ryan get into angel investing and what was the thought process behind staring weekend fund ?03:46 How did Ryan decide on portfolio construction?07:05 How did his portfolio construction evolve?10:57 What is Ryan’s fund raising process?17:36 What is Ryan’s value proposition as a fund among the many in the US?21:05 What is the optimal time to start investing after the first close according to Ryan?24:31 What are the tactics used by Ryan to continue conversations with LPs who are interested to invest but prefer later funds?26:28 When should one begin raising Fund 2?27:39 What is something Ryan knows now he wishes he knew earlier?30:36 What is Ryan most excited about of late?33:21 How much of his success does Ryan attribute to luck?34:54 If money and attention are not needed anymore what would he work on?35:45 What changes have Ryan made in his diet and fitness routine?37:03 What do Ryan’s friends know him for?38:03 How attentive is he to Suzy?

Ankit Mehrotra is the Co-founder and CEO of Dineout. He started Dineout in early 2012 and through multiple acquisitions over the last eight years, has grown Dineout’s portfolio to include both B2C & B2B services and has been successful in positioning it as the Largest Dining Out and Restaurant Tech Platform in India.Dineout was acquired by Swiggy, India's Largest On-Demand Delivery platform for $100M, in July 2022.Ankit also recently co-founded a celebrity-led fund called Da One Global Ventures with the star cricketer Shikhar DhawanTimeline :00:00 Top Moments00:32 Intro to pod with Ankit02:00 How did Ankit's upbringing and environment shape him?04:00 What valuable experience did he gain from working in the UK?05:54 What made Ankit move back to India and the founding story of Dineout?13:14 How did Ankit launch Dineout without Internet, Angels or VC?18:52 What is Dineout today after selling it for over $100 million to Swiggy?26:13 What lesson does Ankit share with new entrepreneurs?27:17 What is the investment thesis of Da One Global Ventures?31:46 How much of his success would he attribute to luck and why?33:10 Is it money or power for Ankit?33:31 What is his relationship with money?34:14 If money and attention are not needed anymore what would he work on?35:44 What do Ankit's friends know him for?36:00 What is Ankit's day like?

Naiyya Saggi is the Co- Founder & Board Member at the Good Glamm Group - India’s fastest-growing and largest content-to-commerce D2C house of brands and she also Founded BabyChakra - India’s most trusted parenting platform.Good Glamm Group is currently valued at $1.2BillionTimestamps :00:00 Top Moments00:25 Intro to pod with Naiyya01:42 How was Naiyya’s early life and her experience in US?04:49 Is she an intuition-driven person?05:28 How was her experience at Harvard in consulting?08:32 Naiyya's framework of moving back to India and the founding story of BabyChakra.12:31 What is the grand vision for MyGlamm moving forward?14:47 How quick was the decision of merging BabyChakra with MyGlamm for her after the five-hour meeting?17:36 What frameworks help her go through up and downs of building a company?18:57 What is Naiyya’s day like?20:52 What changes did she make in her food and fitness routine that helped her in a good way?22:15 What is the most undesirable part of the day for her?24:09 If money and attention are not needed anymore what would she work on?24:42 What’s her relationship with money?25:21 How much of her success does she attribute to luck?26:26 Which entrepreneur does she admire the most?27:37 What do Naiyya’s friends know her for?

Nitin Jain is the co-founder of OfBusiness and Oxyzo.

OfBusiness is a new-age b2b commerce and fintech startup that provides smart procurement and smart financing solutions to SMEs through its tech-enabled platform.

OfBusiness is currently valued at $5B.Timestamps : 00:00 Top moments00:30 Intro to pod with Nitin Jain01:49 How was your early life and what made you move back to India?03:28 What was the founding story of Ofbusiness?05:17 How did Nitin and his team navigate through the difficult phases?07:12 What is the grand vision for all three ventures?08:36 How is Nitin’s day like? 09:46 How does Nitin mentor founders?11:18 What are Nitin’s strengths in Tennis?12:33 Other than tennis players who inspires Nitin? 13:57 What framework would Nitin suggest to Indian diaspora looking at Indian Ecosystem in the long run?15:50 If money and attention were not needed anymore what would he work on?16:47 How much of his success does Nitin attribute to luck and why?18:03 How was the feeling like after Zodius invested?18:58 What is Nitin’s relationship with money?20:19 Things that Nitin has changed about his health that is helping him.21:39 Super Powers that Asish and Bhuvan have and they don't know about it.22:35 What do Nitin’s friends know him for?

Harsh Shah is the co-founder of Fynd.

Fynd is India's largest omnichannel platform helping retail businesses accelerate growth.

Fynd was acquired by Reliance in 2019. Harsh is a prolific angel investor. He has made over 60 investments till date.

Timeline:

00:00 Top Moments

00:13 Intro to pod with Harsh

01:21 What drove Harsh to angel investing and what was his first angel investment?

05:18 How does Harsh source, pick, and win deals?

07:48 What triggers Harsh to invest? 10:21 What were his biggest wins and misses and learning from them?

16:52 His advise to operators looking to start angel investing

18:40 How would he go about constructing a cap table?

22:25 If money and attention are not needed anymore what would he work on?

24:12 How much of his success would he attribute to luck and why?

24:50 What is his relationship with money? 26:12 Who is Harsh outside of work?

27:21 What’s his favorite country?

Ranjan Kant is a co-founder of Arthmate.

Arthmate is enabling entrepreneurs of emerging Bharat.

He also co-founded Ofbusiness. Currently valued at $5B. And Ranjan is also a prolific angel investor.

Timeline:

00:00: Top moments

01:45: What drove Ranjan to angel investment and what was his first angel investment?

03:33: How does Ranjan pick and win deals?

07:24: What cheque sizes does he write and what sectors that Ranjan invests in?

08:52: What are the biggest wins and misses for Ranjan and his learnings from them?

12:26: Something Ranjan knows now he wishes he knew earlier.

16:48 His advice to operator angels looking to start angel investing

21:00 What was the founding story of Arthmate?

25:30 Who was the first believer of Arthmate?

26:14 If money and attention are not needed anymore what would he work on?

27:37 How much of his success would he attribute to luck and why?

29:23 What is his relationship with money?

00:00 Top Moments

00:32 Intro to pod with Abhishek

01:38 What drove Abhishek to angle investing and what was his first angel investment

03:35 How does Abhishek source and win deals?

06:06 How does Abhishek evaluate deals and his trigger to invest?

08:57 Cheque sizes that Abhishek writes and sectors he invests in.

11:00 What's something he knows now he wishes he knew earlier?

12:40 Biggest wins and misses of Abhishek.

16:40 What is the founding story of Tracxn?

19:10 Abhishek's suggestion to someone who is looking to start angel investing

22:00 How would Abhishek go about constructing his cap table if he were to start a new company?

23:34 If money and attention are not needed anymore what would Abhishek work on?

26:00 How much of his success would Abhishek attribute to luck?

27:28 Abhishek's relationship with money.

Rahul is Managing Director at Arkam Ventures, an early stage tech VC fund. Arkam portfolio includes incredible companies like SmallCase, Jaikisan, Jar, KrazyBee, Signzy, Jumbotail, BestDoc.

00:00 Top moments

00:33 Intro to pod with Rahul Chandra

02:20 Early life of Rahul and his move back to India.

11:00 Founding story and thesis of Arkam Ventures.

19:54 Some of Arkam’s investments and the thesis behind it

29:35 Advise for those that are thinking about moving back to India

32:20 If money and attention were not needed anymore what would Rahul work on? 35:48 How is Yoga helping Rahul?

38:37 What do Rahul's friends know him for?

Saurabh Garg is the co-founder of NoBroker.

NoBroker is a revolutionary real estate platform that makes it easier to buy, rent or sell a home without paying any brokerage. It's a One-stop shop for the entire Real Estate journey.

Saurabh is also a prolific angel investor

00:00 Top Moments

00:57 Intro to pod with Saurabh

02:20 What drove Saurabh to angel investing and his first angel investment.

06:24 Saurabh’s investing process.

09:56 Traits of a mediocre founder.

11:20 Industries that Saurabh invests in and cheque sizes he writes.

13:22 What is something that Saurabh knows now he wishes he knew it earlier ?

14:29 Founding story of NoBroker

17:44 First Angel investor at NoBroker.

20:11 Rationale behind having operators on cap table.

23:18 How much of his success would Saurabh attribute to luck ?

24:54 If money and attention were not needed anymore what would Saurabh work on ?

25:29 Saurabh’s relationship with money.

26:25 What do Saurabh’s friends know him for?

27:28 The operator that Saurabh admires the most.

Anand ChandrasekaranAnand is a Partner at General Catalyst. In this role, he is focused on early-stage investing and leading the India/US practice across consumer, climate/agri, healthcare, software and crypto/fintech.

Show Notes00:00 Top Moments

01:03 Intro to pod with Anand Chandrasekaran

02:33 Anand’s journey of growing up in India and what made him move to the US.

07:08 Anand’s framework of moving back and his learnings while working at companies in India.

12:00 What drove Anand to angel investing and what was his first angel investment?

16:10 Something that Anand knows now he wishes he knew earlier about angel investing.

20:02 Anand’s transition to full-time venture capitalist and how did General Catalyst happen?

24:30 Thesis of GC for India.

29:34 What kind of change would Anand like to see in the Indian ecosystem?

32:32 Anand’s take on the layoffs happening in the US.

35:58 If money and attention were not needed anymore what would Anand work on?

39:30 Who is Anand outside of work?

Arjun Vaidya is a D2C founder & investor. He built Dr. Vaidya’s to India’s largest Ayurveda brand online. Dr. Vaidya’s was recently acquired by RP Sanjiv Goenka Group – making it one of India’s first D2C exits.

He now leads venture investing for V3 Ventures in India.

Show Notes00:45 Intro to pod with Arjun.

02:20 What drove Arjun to angel investing and his first angel investment.

04:45 Arjun’s investing process.

10:25 What are the traits of a mediocre founder?

12:40 What kept Arjun going after 70 investors said no to him?

16:07 What are Arjun's biggest wins and misses and his learning from them?

20:40 How is Arjun looking at India through V3 Ventures?

24:21 Advice of Arjun for someone who is starting to build a brand in VC.

27:12 If money and attention were not needed anymore what would Arjun work on?

28:11 Money or Power?

28:15 What is Arjun’s relationship with money?

28:53 A founder that Arjun admires and why?

29:20 What is Arjun’s day like?

30:00 How much of his success does Arjun owe to luck?

Apaksh is the co-founder of One Impression. One Impression is helping over 250 Enterprises and Fast-growing startups drive influencer-led campaigns

Apaksh is also a prolific angel investor.

Show Notes

00:35 Intro to the pod with Apaksh Gupta

02:16 What drew Apaksh to Angel Investing and his first angel investment.

04:06 Investing process of Apaksh.

10:02 Traits of a mediocre founder

12:16 Apaksh’s advice to someone who is starting to Angel Invest.

17:38 Biggest wins and misses of Apaksh.

22:41 What is something that Apaksh knows now but he wishes he knew it earlier.

24:51 If money and attention are not needed anymore what would Apaksh work on.

26:45 Apakh’s relationship with money.

29:07 What do Apaksh’s friends know him for

Ankur WarikooAnkur is a tech entrepreneur, angel investor, author and one of India’s top content creators.

His aim through his content is to make sure all the choices you make in life come from a point of awareness and not ignorance.

Show Notes00:00 Top Moments

00:42 Intro to pod with Ankur Warikoo

01:59 What drove Ankur into angel investing and what was his first angel investment

05:09 How Ankur does Ankur source deals and evaluates founders

07:52 What are the traits of a mediocre founder according to Ankur

07:53 Cheque sizes that Ankur writes and sectors that he invests in

14:56 Some of Ankur’s misses and his learnings from them

23:17 How should founders construct their cap table when raising the first round of funding

27:58 Advise on how to start angel investing

31:20 What would Ankur work on if money and attention are not needed anymore

31:45 How much of his success would Ankur attribute to luck

32:31 Ankur’s relationship with money.

34:08 What do Ankur’s friends know him for.

34:40 How to become a good listener.

Prabhu is the co-founder of M2P. M2P builds a stronger infrastructure for the financial world. They are backed by one of the best investors globally. The likes of BeeNext, Insight Partners, Tiger Global to name a few

Show Notes00:00 Top Moments of the episode

00:14 Intro to the episode with Prabhu

01:33 What drove Prabhu to Angel Investing and his first angel investment.

06:19 How does Prabhu source deals and evaluate founders and his cheque sizes.

09:48 What are the traits of a mediocre founder according to Prabhu.

11:47 Biggest learnings from Angel Investing

15:24 Initiatives that Prabhu has taken to support founders from Tamil Nadu.

22:10 Prabhu’s advice to operator angels on Angel investing.

27:03 Entrepreneurs that Prabhu admires the most.

29:44 How much of his success does Prabhu attribute to luck.

31:10 What is Prabhu’s relationship with money.

34:59 Who is Prabhu outside of work.

Pratekk is an operator turned full-time operator-led fund manager.

He is a passionate entrepreneur and Fintech Expert with over 18 years of multi Industry expertise.

Show Notes01:06 Intro to the pod with Pratekk Agarwaal

02:06 What drove Pratekk to angel investing and his first angel investment.

03:11 How does Pratekk build network and source deals.

05:08 Pratekk’s decision of either building one or enabling 100 others.

09:27 Prateek’s thought around high conviction of asset class.

12:50 Prateek’s investment process.

17:38 Something that Prateek knows now he wishes he knew earlier.

20:53 Cheque Sizes Prateek writes and industries of his interest.

24:48 Pratekk’s advice to operators on how to get started with Angel investing.

30:52 How much does Prateekk attribute his success to luck.

33:39 Operators and Investors Pratekk admires the most.

35:34 Who is Pratekk outside of work.

Saahil is the Co-founder and CEO of Shiprocket. Shiprocket is India’s largest eCommerce enablement platform providing digital retailers an end-to-end customer experience platform.

It is currently valued at $1.2 Billion dollars.

Show Notes(01:57) Saahil’s journey from India to US and back to India and what made him move back.

(11:06) Founding Story of Shiprocket, its current status, and the way forward

(26:31) Frameworks used by Saahil

(34:00) Saahil’s advice for folks thinking about moving back to India.

(39:40) How much of his success does Saahil attribute to luck.

(41:20) Entrepreneurs that Saahil admires.

(43:19) Who is Saahil outside of work.

Mohit Sadaani is the co-founder of The Moms Co. India's largest D2C Exit.

He is also an active operator investor.

Show Notes(01:07) Intro to pod with Mohit Sadaani

(02:20) What drove Mohit into Angel Investing

(05:43) Who was the first angel investor in Moms Co.

(06:16) How does Mohit source deals and evaluate founders.

(09:49) Mohit’s cheque sizes and industries he is interested in.

(11:17) Importance of having operator angels on the cap table

(14:44) Stories behind Mohit’s angle investing.

(17:26) Thought process of having Sonam Kapoor as the Brand Ambassador.

(20:39) Mohit’s advice to other operator angels

(21:38) How much of Mohit’s success does he owe to luck and why.

(23:23) An entrepreneur that Mohit admires.

(24:53) Mohit’s choice between money or power.

(24:58) Mohit’s relationship with money

(25:46) Who is Mohit outside of work

Co-Founder & President of CarDekho. CarDekho is India's No. 1 Auto Tech Platform. Umang is also an active angel investor.

Show Notes01:09 Intro to 1947 Operators pod with Umang Kumar

02:20 What drove Umang to Angel Investing and his first angel investment

03:38 How does Umang evaluate founders

06:48 Questions asked by Umang to get insights into the founders

09:49 Industries of Interest of Umang and the bandwidth of cheque sizes he writes.

12:30 Stories of Big wins of Umang.

15:20 Stories from misses of Umang

17:21 Learnings from the misses Umang had.

18:22 Some more reasons that motivate Umang to back founders.

21:34 Framework of investing for new angel investors.

25:52 How to construct cap tables for first-time founders.

30:55 How much of his success does Umang owe to luck.

33:13 A founder that Umang admires.

34:21 Who is Umang outside of work.

Hemant is partner at Lightspeed India and also happens to be a poet who excels at math. Before joining Lightspeed, Hemant worked at a16z, Google and AMD.

Show Notes (00:41) Intro to the episode with Hemant Mohapatra

(02:24) Hemant’s early life in India

(03:46) Why did Hemant decide to move back to India and his framework

(10:40) How Hemant’s perspective about India has changed in the past 4 years

(23:45) How are Indian founders different from the founders in US

(26:16) Something that Hemant has recently changed his mind on

(26:48) Something Hemant has been obsessed about recently

(29:35) Heroes of Hemant’s life

(32:28) Values and framework utilized by Hemant in his journey.

(36:39) Practices that help keep the mind clear

(38:07) Favourite authors of Hemant

(42:00) Who is he outside of work

Karan Mohla is Currently Partner and Head of India and SEA for early-stage investments at B Capital Group.

Previously he was a Partner at Chiratae Ventures (formerly IDG Ventures India) and his investments included FirstCry, HealthifyMe, CropIn, Xpressbees, and Bounce among others.

Show Notes 00:46 Intro To Karan Mohla

01:43 Early life journey in India and moving back to India after being in the US

10:48 Key learnings of Karan Mohla from his investing experience

18:58 Karan’s views on India’s startup ecosystem now and way forward.

23:57 What’s the sweet spot for Karan and B Capital when investing in startups

28:21 Something Karan would want the Indian ecosystem to have.

34:01 Something Karan is super obsessed about.

40:10 What do Karan’s friends know him for.

Mati Giglio is the co-founder of Even. One subscription to cover all your healthcare needs

They are backed by some of the world's leading investors including Khosla Ventures and Founders Fund.

Mati is also an active operator angel investor.

Show Notes 01:11 Intro to the episode with Mati

02:31 What drove Mati into angel investing.

05:19 First few believers in Even and operator angels that helped with the company building

09:53 Stories of some investments by Mati and learnings from the misses

14:18 What is Mati’s pitch to founders

19:43 Mati's process of hiring.

24:29 Advice from Mati to operators that are looking to start angel investing

27:02 Thoughts on India

30:55 What would Mati work on if money and attention are not needed anymore.

32:50 Who is Mati outside of her work.

Rohit MA is the Co-Founder and Director of Cloudnine group of Hospitals - India’s leading maternity, women, and child care service hospitals. Cloudnine has recently filed for public listing.

To increase his impact, he is starting a new journey with PeerCapital.

PeerCapital is an early-stage tech-first multi-sector venture capital fund.

Show Notes 01:12 Intro to the podcast with Rohit MA

02:45 What drove Rohit into angel investing and what was his first angel investment

09:19 First believer in Rohit MA and Cloudnine

12:15 Founding story of PeerCapital and its thesis

19:04 How does Rohit Evaluate founders.

24:56 Rohit’s suggestions to Operator Angels on how to get started with Angel Investing.

30:47 Investments and misses of Rohit. And the learnings from the misses

37:22 Something that Rohit knows now that he wishes he knew earlier.

37:48 Importance of building the right team.

41:01 Who is Rohit outside of his work.

Madhu is the co-founder of M2P. M2P builds a stronger infrastructure for the financial world. They are backed by one of the best investors globally. The likes of BeeNext, Insight Partners, Tiger Global to name a few

Show Notes

01:12 Intro to Madhusudanan R co-founder of M2P

02:15 What drove Madhu to Angel Investing and what was his first Angel Investment

04:33 Who was the first believer in Madhu and M2P

06:00 How operators angels can fundamentally move the needle for you

09:05 How Madhu evaluates founders

12:17 Madhu’s investments; hits and misses, and his learnings from that.

14:30 How has angel investing made Madhu a better founder himself

18:37 Founding Story of M2P and its future prospects.

24:14 India will be the Fintech factory of the world

28:07 If money and attention are not needed anymore what would Madhu work on.

30:25 What is Madhu’s relationship with success.

32:11 Who is Madhu outside of work.

Shashank Kumar is the Co-Founder and Managing Director of Razorpay. Razorpay is India’s first full-stack financial solutions company. They are backed by one of the best investors globally and are currently valued at $7.5B.

Show Notes 00:39 Intro to Shashank Kumar and Razorpay

03:28 Shashank’s story of growing up in India

08:40 Shashank’s experience in the US

13:25 What led to the foundation of Razorpay

19:12 The story that led to the idea of Razorpay

22:07 Shashank’s conversation with his father regarding moving back to India

26:02 How family life in the US is different from that in India

27:57 The first Angel Investor for Razorpay

31:57 Shashank unfolds how the Fintech ecosystem has evolved and its future.

35:59 If money and attention were not needed anymore what would Shashank work on

37:31 What do Shashank’s friends know him for

JD Kanani is the Co-Founder of Polygon. A global, sustainable web3 infrastructure on Ethereum. Polygon is one of the most valued web 3 projects globally.

Show Notes

01:06 Intro to JD Kanani and Polygon Technology

02:33 JD’s First Angel Investment

04:48 How does JD pick deals and evaluate founders while investing.

12:07 What JD thinks of Twitter.

14:00 JD’s First angel investor.

17:08 Policies JD would like to see implemented for Web3 in India.

20:38 What JD is super obsessed about lately.

27:20 If Money and attention are not needed anymore what would JD work on

30:20 What JD’s friends know him for, who is he outside of work

Aakrit Vaish Aakrit Vaish is the Co-Founder & CEO of Haptik. Haptik is a part of the Reliance Jio family now.

Aakrit is also a prolific operator investor. He has backed companies like Unacademy, Pepper Content, India gold, and 70+ more.

Show Notes * What drove him into angel Investing and what was his first investment (2:12) * His advice to operator investors on how to go about angel investing (6:00) * How does Aakrit evaluate founders (11:25) * Outside of capital what motivates him to invest in other founders and operators (21:20) * Learnings from investing (25:40) * Superpower he sees in his investing partner Miten Sampat (33:35)

Rahul Khanna is the Co-Founder & Managing Partner at Trifecta Capital. Trifecta capital is where great companies meet great odds.

Trifecta Capital’s maiden fund was India’s first Venture Debt Fund. Today Trifecta Capital manages one of the largest venture debt funds in India and it also runs a pre-IPO/ growth stage venture capital fund.

Rahul has backed companies like Urban Company, Rivigo, BharatPe and Infra.market to name a few.

Show Notes * Rahul’s journey from growing up in India to moving to the US, and then moving back to India (1:54) * The founding story of Trifecta Capital (12:00) * The vision he holds for Trifecta Capital (17:00) * Three guiding principles at Trifecta capital (21:30) * What is something that he knows now he wishes he had known earlier (23:50) * How does he make tough decisions (28:10) * A change he would like to see in the ecosystem (33:50) * What is he obsessed about both professionally and personally lately (36:50) * His fitness schedule and eating patterns (40:30) * If money and attention are not needed anymore what would he work on (42:00)

Sashank Rishyasringa is the Co-Founder of axio finance, India's leading consumer finance company offering pay later, credit and personal finance management under one seamless brand experience. Earlier axio finance was known as Capital Float.

axio finance is backed by one of the best investors globally. The likes of Elevation Capital, Sequoia India, Lightrock, Creation Investments Capital Management LLC, Ribbit Capital, and Amazon.

Show Notes * Sashank’s journey from growing up in India to moving to the US, and then moving back to India (1:21) * The founding story of axio finance (Capital Float) (3:40) * The Aha moment at axio finance (6:40) * The evolution of credit and lending in India (11:30) * What drives him (15:50) * A superpower that he sees in his co-founder Gaurav Hinduja (20:10) * What’s the magical outcome that he holds for axio finance (21:35) * What’s his relationship with success (24:35) * What has he changed his mind on recently (26:40) * A change he would like to see in the ecosystem (29:45) * If money and attention are not needed anymore what would he work on (32:40) * Who is he outside of work (36:00)

Nithin Kamath is the founder of Zerodha and Rainmatter.

Zerodha is an Indian financial services company (member of NSE, BSE, MCX) that offers brokerage-free equity investments, retail, institutional broking, currencies, and commodities trading.

Rainmatter funds and incubates innovative Indian fintech startups.

Show Notes * What got him into angel Investing and what was his first investment (1:00) * The biggest tipping point in Nithin’s life professionally (2:00) * Officially Nithin started angel investing in 2015 (3:30) * The genesis of Rainmatter and the value it brings to founders (5:30) * How does Nithin evaluate founders (8:45) * What’s something that he knows now he wishes he had known it earlier (16:25) * Biggest wins and misses. What did he learn from those misses (17:30) * What’s something that Nithin has recently changed his mind on and why (23:45) * What is he most obsessed about lately (29:00) * Who is he outside of work (34:12)

Dhruv Gupta is the Co-founder of Orange health. Orange Health is India's fastest diagnostic lab. Customers can get tested at home in 60 minutes. It is backed by funds like Accel, General Catalyst, and other top funds.

SHOW NOTES: * Dhruv’s journey from growing up in India to moving to the US, and then moving back to India (2:00) * The journey after the move back to India (5:05) * The founding story of Orange Health (9:55) * The magical outcome he holds for Orange Health (12:32) * A superpower he sees in his Co-founder (15:15) * Evolution of the healthtech in India (16:30) * What’s something he knows now he wishes he had known it earlier (19:30) * What keeps him going (21:00) * The frameworks he uses when things are not going in the right direction (22:50) * If money and attention are not needed anymore what would he work on (25:11) * A turning point in life (26:08) * Who is he outside of work (27:31)

Pranav Pai is the Founding Partner and Chief Investment Officer at 3one4 Capital.

Pranav leads investments and portfolio construction at 3one4Capital. As CIO, he has led over 70 seed and venture capital investments across several investment categories in India and the US.

3one4 capital has 4 unicorns in its portfolio. Licious, Jupiter, Open Bank, and Darwinbox

SHOW NOTES: * Pranav’s journey from growing up in India to moving to the US, and then moving back to India (1:42) * Values he picked up from his family and during college years in India (5:50) * Experiences in the US (9:20) * The founding story of 3one4 Capital (11:15) * Non-consensus bets (16:10) * The magical outcome he holds for 3one4 Capital and the evolution of the Indian tech ecosystem (20:50) * What’s something he knows now, he wishes he had known earlier (23:58) * What’s something that is obvious to him and not obvious to most other people (26:00) * What drives him (28:30) * The framework he uses when things are not going in the right direction (31:20) * A change he would like to see in the Indian tech ecosystem (34:00) * Who is he outside of work (36:00)

Gajendra Jangid is the Co-Founder and CMO of CARS24.

CARS24’s mission is to revolutionize the way used vehicles are bought and sold across the world.

CARS24 was founded in 2015. A mere 7 years later, they have come a long way - 205 branches across India, a presence in 182 Indian cities, channel partners, and a global presence.

SHOW NOTES: * Gajendra’s journey from growing up in India to moving to the US, and then moving back to India (1:50) * The founding story of CARS24 (13:40) * How does he make difficult decisions (18:35) * Learnings from Mahendra Singh Dhoni (23:31 - 24:41) * Hard times Gajendra and his team overcame at CARS24 (25:35) * The turning point in life (33:35) * If money and attention are not needed anymore, what would he work on (38:10) * Who is he outside of work (39:30)

Gautam Chopra is the Co-Founder and CEO of BeatO. BeatO’s mission is to beat Diabetes in India. In the last 6 years, BeatO has expanded from being India’s first smartphone-connected glucometer kit to India’s first personalized health management ecosystem for people with chronic conditions.

SHOW NOTES: * Gautam’s journey from growing up in India to moving to Germany, and then moving back to India (1:40) * The founding story of BeatO (6:38) * The magical outcome he holds for BeatO (17:40) * What frameworks does he use when things are not going in the right direction (20:50) * Unpacking the healthcare ecosystem in India and how can it be democratized for the masses (23:35) * Advice that left a big impact (27:55) * What has he recently changed his mind on (30:10) * Who is he outside of work (34:10)

Anirudh Pandita is the Founder of Loco & Pocket Aces. Loco is India's leading live game streaming platform. Loco is backed by KRAFTON Inc., Lumikai Fund, Hashed, Hiro Capital, Axilor Ventures, 3one4 Capital & North Base Media

SHOW NOTES: * Anirudh’s journey from growing up in India to moving to the US, and then moving back to India (0:50) * The founding story of Pocket Ace and Loco later (12:30) * The magical outcome he holds for Loco (22:40) * What frameworks does he use when things are not going in the right direction (29:40) * If money and attention are not needed anymore what would he work on? (36:50)

Ankit Wadhwa is the Co-founder & CEO of Rario. Rario is Unleashing the non-fungible token revolution for everyone!

Ankit is on a mission to build a digital cricket economy powered by NFTs. Rario recently raised a $100M round, led by Dream capital and other great investors.

SHOW NOTES: * Ankit’s journey from growing up in India to moving to the US, UAE and then moving back to India (1:20) * What’s the magical outcome does he hold for Rario (14:30) * Explaining NFTs to a 5-year-old (19:30) * If money and attention are not needed anymore what would he work on? (22:10) * Who is he outside of work (24:45) * What frameworks does he use when things are not going in the right direction (28:00)

Sumeet Mehta is the Co-Founder and CEO of LEAD. LEAD’s mission is to empower India by making excellent education, accessible and affordable to every child.

LEAD is backed by WestBridge Capital, GSV Ventures and Elevar Equity.

SHOW NOTES * Sumeet’s journey from growing up in India to moving to Singapore, and then moving back to India (1:20) * What led Sumeet to start LEAD and what’s the vision he holds for LEAD (6:00) * What frameworks does he use when things are not going in the right direction (9:00) * What needs to be true for India to democratize education for everyone (12:00) * Who is he outside of work (17:00)

Sandeep Patil is a partner at QED Investors. QED is a premier VC in the fintech space. Sandeep heads QED's investments in Asia and focuses on India and Southeast Asia. He is an investor, board member, and advisor at Jupiter, OneCard, Refyne, Financepeer, and UpSwing.

SHOW NOTES * Sandeep’s journey from growing up in India to moving to the US, UK, and then moving back to India (1:15) * What led Sandeep to join QED and what’s the vision he holds for QED in India (9:40) * As an investor what variables trigger him to Invest. What does he look for (16:30) * What frameworks does he use when things are not going in the right direction (22:30) * If money and attention are not needed anymore, what would he work on (28:00) * Who is he outside of work (31:00)

Sameer Brij Verma is the Managing Director at Nexus Venture Partners, where he opened & leads their Bangalore office. At NVP, he has led investments in Postman, Unacademy, Infra.market, Hasura, Animall, Ultrahuman and about 70 others.

SHOW NOTES * Sameer’s journey from growing up in India to moving to the US and then moving back to India (1:15) * The founding story of Nexus Venture Partners and the evolution of the Indian tech ecosystem (15:00) * The best part about his job and the hardest part (26:00) * What frameworks does he use when things are not going in the right direction (31:00) * If money and attention are not needed anymore, what would he work on (35:00) * Who is he outside of work (37:00)

Anshum Bhambri is the co-founder and CEO of FanCraze. FanCraze is creating the metaverse for cricket. It recently got funded by the likes of Insight Partners, Tiger Global, Sequoia Capital India, Cristiano Ronaldo’s fund, and others.

SHOW NOTES * Anshum’s journey from growing up in India to moving to the US and then moving back to India (1:15) * What’s FanCraze and what’s the grand vision that he holds for FanCraze (11:20) * Unpacking NFTs for a 10-year-old (20:30) * What frameworks does he use when things are not going in the right direction (26:00) * Who is he outside of work (29:00)

Aniket Jindal is the founder of Biconmy. Its mission is to make blockchain transactions simple.

Prior to Biconomy, Aniket was an early employee at Binance.

Aniket is also nurturing the Indian tech ecosystem by backing the web3 founders.

SHOW NOTES * Aniket’s journey from growing up in India to moving to China and then moving back to India (1:10) * The origins of Biconomy (5:15) * What’s Biconomy and what’s the grand vision that he holds for Biconomy (9:30) * Overview of web3 in India, the origins, where are we today and where are we headed to (11:30) * What needs to be true for India to lead the innovation in web3 (16:25) * What frameworks does he use when things are not going in the right direction (19:30) * If money and attention are not needed anymore, what would he work on (23:50) * Who is he outside of work (25:30)

Abhilash Inumella Abhilash is the Co-founder of Questbook. Prior to founding Questbook he worked as a Software Engineer at Facebook in the US, later founded Samosa Labs after moving back to India (sold to MPL)

SHOW NOTES * Abhilash’s journey from growing up in India to moving to the US and then moving back to India (1:10) * The origins of Samosa Labs (4:00) * What’s Questbook and what’s the grand vision that he holds for Questbook (9:45) * Overview of web3 in India, the origins, where are we today and where are we headed to (13:10) * What needs to be true for India to lead the innovation in web3 (16:25) * Skills and experiences he brought back with him to India that ended up becoming valuable (18:40) * What frameworks does he use when things are not going in the right direction (20:10) * If money and attention are not needed anymore, what would he work on (22:50) * Who is he outside of work (24:10) * A book that changed his life (25:20)

Salone Sehgal is the Founder and GP of Lumikai Fund. Lumikai Fund is India’s first gaming and interactive entertainment venture fund.

SHOW NOTES * Salone's journey from growing up in India to moving to the US and then moving back to India (1:00) * The origins of Lumikai Fund and the vision she holds for the fund (6:00) * What’s the best part about her job (11:20) * The hardest part about her job (16:40) * Skills and experiences she brought back with her to India that ended up becoming valuable (19:00) * What frameworks does she use when things are not going in the right direction (21:25) * What is Salone’s life like outside of work (24:10) * If money and attention are not needed anymore, what would she work on (25:10) * What do her friends know her for (26:10)

Arjun Vaidya is a D2C founder & investor. He built Dr. Vaidya’s to India’s largest Ayurveda brand online. Dr. Vaidya’s was recently acquired by RP Sanjiv Goenka Group – making it one of India’s first D2C exits.

He now leads venture investing for Verlinvest in India

SHOW NOTES * Arjun’s journey from growing up in India to moving to the US and then moving back to India (1:00) * The journey after moving back to India and repackaging of Dr. Vaidya’s (6:30) * What made him join Verlinvest and the vision he holds (14:26) * What’s the best part about his job (17:40) * The hardest part about his job (18:20) * What frameworks does he use when things are not going in the right direction (19:12) * What is he most excited about outside of work (20:28) * If money and attention are not needed anymore, what would he work on (21:50) * What do his friends know him for (23:10)

Nishchay AG is the Co-founder and CEO of Jar. A daily gold-savings app that saves spare change & auto-invests for you. Jar currently has 5M users and is backed by Tiger Global and others.

SHOW NOTE: * Nischay’s journey from growing up in India to moving to the US and then moving back to India (1:00) * The journey after moving back to India and were there self-doubts at the beginning (2:30) * What made him join Bounce (8:00) * The origins of Jar (15:00) * The magical outcome he holds for Jar (17:52) * Favorite part about his job (19:30) * The hardest part about his job (19:51) * His advice to those who are planning to move back to India (24:00) * What frameworks does he use when things are not going in the right direction (29:30) * What drives him (31:00) * What do his friends know him for (35:00)

Vaibhav Domkundwar is the CEO and founder of Better Capital. Better Capital is one of the best Pre-seed / seed-stage funds in India. Portfolio companies include Slice, Open, Teachmint Rupeek, Khatabook, and many more. The combined value of the portfolio companies is $5B+

SHOW NOTES * Vaibhav’s journey from growing up in India to moving to the US and then moving back to India (1:00) * The journey after moving back to India and were there self-doubts at the beginning (4:50) * The origins of Better Capital (7:00) * The evolution of angel investing in India over the past decade (11:00) * The things that he struggles with (17:00) * What’s the best part about his job (22:00) * His advice to those who are planning to move back to India (25:00) * What drives him (30:00)

Nitin Sharma is the General Partner, Co-founder, Antler India. Antler is a global early-stage venture capital firm that invests in the defining technology companies of tomorrow.

SHOW NOTES * Nitin’s journey from growing up in India to moving to the US and then moving back to India (1:25) * The journey after moving back to India (First Principles and Antler India) (7:20) * The vision that Nitin holds for Antler India (14:30) * The evolution of the Indian tech ecosystem from 2013 to 2022 (19:00) * Skills that he picked up from his experience in the US that ended up becoming valuable in India (25:45) * His advice to those who are thinking about moving back to India (33:00) * What frameworks does he use when things are not going in the right direction (37:00) * If money and attention are not needed anymore, what would he work on (40:00)

Monish Darda is the Co-founder and CTO of Icertis. Currently valued at $2.8B, Icertis is the contract intelligence company that pushes the boundaries of what’s possible with contract lifecycle management.

SHOW NOTES * Monish's journey from growing up in India to moving to the US and then moving back to India (1:00) * The journey after moving back to India (7:30) * The journey of building Icertis and multiple companies before Icertis (15:15) * His advice to those who are thinking about moving back to India (22:30) * Skills that he picked up from his experience in the US that ended up becoming valuable in India (28:00) * What does he struggle with (34:00) * What frameworks does he use when things are not going in the right direction (37:00) * If money and attention are not needed anymore, what would he work on (40:00) * What do his friends know him for (42:00)

Nirmit Parikh is the founder and CEO of Apna. India's largest professional networking & job opportunities platform for the rising workforce.

SHOW NOTES * Nirmit's journey from growing up in India to moving to the US and then moving back to India (1:00) * The journey after moving back to India and how did the idea of building Apna come about (13:00) * What's the magical outcome Nirmit has for Apna (26:00) * What does he struggle with? What frameworks does he use when things are not going in the right direction? (31:00) * His advice to those who are thinking about moving back to India (38:00) * Failures (42:00) * If money and attention are not needed anymore, what would he work on (46:00)

Gautam Shewakramani is the Head of APAC and India; International Product and Growth at On Deck. Previously he built a company and headed International Product and Growth for Quora and Skillshare.

SHOW NOTES * The journey from growing up in India to moving to the US and then moving back to India (1:00) * The journey after moving back to India (5:30) * His company building experience which involved tons of highs and lows (8:25) * How did Quora come about? (14:00) * On Deck's visions for India (17:40) * On Deck and ODX are relevant to India. India is special for On Deck and On Deck is special for the Indian tech ecosystem (19:00) * His advice to those who are thinking about moving back to India (28:00) * Skills that he picked up from his experience in the US that ended up becoming valuable in India (28:00) * What frameworks do you use when things are not going in the right direction? (37:00) * What do his friends know him for (40:00)

Amrit Acharya is the Co-Founder & CEO of Zetwerk. Currently valued at $1.33 Billion, Zetwerk is a universal manufacturing network powered by new-age technology.

SHOW NOTES * The journey from growing up in India to moving to the US and then moving back to India (1:00) * How did Zetwerk come about (6:20) * His advice to those who are thinking about moving back to India (8:15) * Skills that he picked up from his experience in the US that ended up becoming valuable in India (10:00) * Favorite stories at Zetwerk (13:00) * Where is Zetwerk today as a company (16:00) * His approach towards cold emails and planting seeds with people (20:30) * What frameworks does he use when things are not going in the right direction? (25:00) * Books he would recommend (30:00) * If money and fame are not needed anymore. What would he work on (34:00)

Bradley Tusk is an American businessman, venture capitalist, political strategist, and writer. He is the founder and CEO of Tusk Ventures, the first venture capital fund focused on investing in early-stage startups in regulated industries

SHOW NOTES * Setting the context: Three waves of the internet (1:00) * A call from Travis Kalanick (Uber) was an inflection point for Bradley. He took Uber as his first client not knowing what equity was meant. Ignorance is good sometimes 😉(3:20) * What pushed Bradley to bet on Uber and take equity back when it was a year-old startup (9:40) * His investment in Coinbase (13:00) * They need you more than you need them. That's called access to deals. Bradley has built one through differentiation at Tusk Ventures (14:50) * What types of founders succeed that are building in regulated industries (21:00) * When should a startup start thinking about regulatory frameworks? * Removal of Travis Kalanick, you need aggressive founders like Travis to build something transformational, how Akshay BD thinks about policies and regulations in India * His advice to founders building in Web 3.0 (48:00)

Abhi Kumar heads M12 Asia, the venture arm of Microsoft. He leads series A-C venture equity investments for M12 in Asia (ex China), partnering with stellar entrepreneurs and teams to help amplify their growth. Develop the brand, ecosystem partnerships & peer engagement for M12 across APAC.

SHOW NOTES * The journey from growing up in India to moving to the US and then moving back to India (1:00) * M12's focus in India and its investments (8:40) * Favorite part about his job at M12 (10:40) * Skills that he picked up from his experiences in the US and Hong Kong that ended up becoming valuable in India (12:15) * If he had recently moved back to India, what would he work on? India is a lot different than what it was back when he moved back? Advise to Indians living abroad and thinking about moving back to India (14:20) * Turning points in his life (17:35) * What does he struggle with (20:10) * Favorite failure (23:00) * Rapid-fire questions (25:00)

Aakrit Vaish is the Co-Founder & CEO of Haptik, a Reliance Jio Platforms company & he is also an Angel Investor in 50+ amazing founder

SHOW NOTES * The journey from growing up in India to moving to the US and then moving back to India (1:00) * What made him move back to India (6:46) * Evolution of the Indian tech ecosystem from 2011 - 2021 (14:30) * If he had recently moved back to India, what would he work on? India is a lot different than what it was back when he moved back? Advise to Indians living abroad and thinking about moving back to India (19:00) * Skills that he picked up from his experience in the US that ended up becoming valuable in India (25:00) * Rapid-fire questions (30:00)

Prashant Tandon is the co-founder of 1mg & Healthkart. Both companies have become household names in India.

SHOW NOTES * The journey from growing up in India to moving to the US and then moving back to India (1:00) * What made him move back to India (2:53) * His entrepreneurial journey back in India (5:20) * Was there a time when he thought this was it, if so, how did he manage to overcome it? (10:00) * If he had recently moved back to India, what would he work on? India is a lot different than what it was back when he moved back? Advise to Indians living abroad and thinking about moving back to India (13:50) * Skills that he picked up from his experience in the US that ended up becoming valuable in India (17:10) * Any life event, book or a decision that changed your life (20:00) * What does he struggle with (22:15) * Rapid-fire questions (23:30)

Tejeshwi Sharma is the managing director at Sequoia Capital India. He has led investments in companies like Byju's, Dream11, Bounce, CRED, Moglix, Purplle, Rebel Foods, Whatfix, Unacademy.

SHOW NOTES * The journey from growing up in India to moving to the US and then moving back to India (1:00) * Overview of the Indian tech ecosystem evolution starting from 2010 (5:15) * What is next for India? How can India reach the scale of the US and China, what needs to be true? (9:20) * Advice to Indians living abroad and are thinking about moving back to India (12:45) * Books that changed the way how he thinks about work and life (17:45) * What does he struggle with (23:15) * Rapid-fire questions (27:00)

Sandeep Aggarwal has founded two marketplaces in India so far – ShopClues, India’s first managed marketplaces in 2011, which became the 5th Unicorn in Consumer Internet in India, and Droom, India’s first marketplace for automobiles in 2014, which is about to go public.

The journey from growing up in India to moving to the US and then moving back to India (1:20)
His thought process for making the move back to India (14:00)
How has the Indian tech ecosystem evolved from 2011 to 2021 (12.30)
In what ways the government can support the Indian tech ecosystem for it to get to the next level (24:30)
If he were to move back to India today, what would he work on and his advise to the Indians living abroad and are thinking to move back to India (29:00)
What is money and success to him (33:50)
What do his friends know him for (36:00)

Raghav Chandra is the Co-Founder & CTO of Urban Company. Urban Company is the largest home services platform in India and UAE, with recent expansion to Australia and Singapore.

SHOW NOTES * The journey from growing up in India to moving to the US and then moving back to India (1:00) * His thought process for making the move back to India (7:00) * How did Buggi and later Urban Company come about (12.30) * Times, when he thought this could be it at Urban Company (19:20) * Skills that he picked up from his experience in the US that ended up becoming valuable in India (24:00) * His favorite failure and the learnings from it (29:00) * What does success mean to him (33:30) * What do his friends know him for (35:30)

Mukund Kulashekaran is currently the SVP at Urban Company (valued at $2.1b). Previously he was the CBO at Zomato, which is looking to go public soon and is currently valued at $5.4b.

SHOW NOTES * Journey from growing up in India to moving to the US and then moving back to India (1:00) * His thought process for making the move back to India (2:25) * How did Zomato and later Urban Company come about (3:50) * Times when he thought this could be it at Zomato / Urban Company (8:30) * Favorite stories at Zomato / Urban Company (8:45) * His advice to India-born, US-trained Indians thinking about moving back to India (12:40) * Skills that he picked up from his experience in the US that ended up becoming valuable in India (15:50) * Those who are thinking about moving back, what skills and experiences they should optimize for (19:35) * His favorite failure and the learnings from it (21:35) * What were the turning points in his life (24:50) * A book that changed his life. what are one to three books that have greatly influenced his life (28:40) * What do his friends know him for (32:00) * What keeps him going (33:40)

Abhinav Sinha is currently the global COO & CPO at OYO. He launched and built OYO in SEA, UK, US and other foreign geographies.

Headquartered in Gurgaon, OYO is the fastest-growing and second-largest hotel chain in the world. OYO is spread across 800 cities in 80 countries. Most recently it was valued at $10 billion.

SHOW NOTES

Journey from growing up in India to moving to the US and then moving back to India (1:06)
His thought process for making the move back to India (4:59)
How did OYO come about (7:48)
Favorite stories at OYO (17:20)
His advise to India-born, US-trained Indians thinking about moving back to India (21:12)
Skills that he picked up from his experience in the US that ended up becoming valuable in India (28:10)
His favorite failure (31:22)
What was the turning point in his life (36:00)
A book that changed his life. what are one to three books that have greatly influenced his life (39:22)
What keeps him going (42.48)
What do his friends know him for (44.45)

It’s a podcast that helps India-born, US-trained Indians get integrated into the Indian tech ecosystem and inspires them to move back to India to build massive tech companies and/or help enable the tech ecosystem.

We do this by interviewing India-born, US-trained Indians who have moved back to India and built massive tech companies themselves and/or helped enable the tech ecosystem.