NSRCEL grants ₹1 lakh to ten women-led startups

NSRCEL, part of the Indian Institute of Management Bangalore, recently supported ten women-led startups by giving them grants of ₹1 lakh each. This happened during an event that also launched two new programs: Incubation II and Women in Tech Scale Programme I. Incubation II is a five-month program designed to help startups grow and sustain themselves. The Women in Tech Scale program lasts three months and focuses on women entrepreneurs in the technology sector. The event gathered entrepreneurs, experts, and mentors to discuss the challenges women founders face and how NSRCEL helps them. Malvika R. Harita, a mentor at NSRCEL, highlighted the organization's growth. She mentioned that NSRCEL is the largest incubator in India and has supported over 599 startups, creating around 6,000 jobs. She encouraged women founders to blend passion with planning, accept failures, and stay ambitious. Upasana Taku, co-founder of Mobikwik, shared her journey from a small town to Stanford University and then launching a digital payments platform. She spoke about the challenges she faced, including investor skepticism and gender bias in tech. She emphasized the need to stay focused despite difficulties. Srividhya Srinivasan, founder of Amagi Labs, discussed her experience pivoting her startup from targeted advertising to global streaming solutions. She advised other entrepreneurs to seek market feedback before developing products and to be willing to change their business models. Amrita Mukherjee, founder of SHEvolution, reflected on her entrepreneurial learning about money management and the importance of networking and mentorship. Shivani Shah, another grant recipient and founder of Sensory ALL, aims to create inclusive spaces for individuals with neurodivergent conditions. She addressed the challenge of raising awareness about invisible disabilities.