They had an idea in mind. They left their cushy jobs. They worked hard. They created history.

India is witnessing a brand new generation of startups, making their presence felt not just in the domestic sphere, but also globally. They’re inspiring success stories of people who have paved their own roads of innovation and dreams.

1. Make My Trip

MakeMyTrip story

Brainchild of Deep Kalra, an IIM Ahmedabad alumnus, Make My Trip has revolutionized the travel industry over the years. It was originally launched in the US market in 2000 to cater to the needs of NRIs for their Indo-American trips. It launched its operations in India in 2005, starting with flight tickets. After a few years, Make My Trip got listed in NASDAQ and in the next year went on to make 3 acquisitions. It has got worldwide recognition and innumerable rewards.

2. Flipkart

Sachin Bansal - Founder and Ceo of Flipkart

No one would be a stranger to this one! Flipkart achieved massive success a few years back owing to its first mover advantage in the online market in India. Sachin and Binny Bansal, both IIT-D alumni, worked with Amazon before, thus they introduced a similar concept into the Indian market. They started with books in 2007 and now sell almost everything, from personal care to jewellery, from CDs to stationery. It acquired Myntra for around INR 2000 crore.

Flipkart.com has made it to the top five global billion dollar start-up club with a valuation of $11 billion, according to the Wall Street Journal and Dow Jones VenturSource report published on Thursday.

3. Zomato

Zomato Founders

Launched in 2008, Zomato hasn’t been anything less of a sensation. It covers over 331,200 restaurants in 19 countries. Started as Foodiebay.com, in two years, it was named the most promising internet companies in India. In another two years, it went on to get international recognition.

Deepinder Goyal and Pankaj Chaddah, the co-founders always wanted to create their own path, a path with its own obstacles. Zomato had no funding initially, their growth was excruciatingly slow. However, tables turned very soon and it made Zomato what it is now.

4. redBus

redBus Founders

Started in 2006, redBus has grown phenomenally over the past few years. An online bus ticket booking and hotel booking site, this start-up achieved success for its innovative idea of making bus ticket booking easier for the common man. Phanindra, Sudhakar and Charan, the budding entrepreneurs from BITS Pilani initiated this idea, when one of them, Phanindra couldn’t go home for Diwali because he didn’t get a bus ticket. All of them were working for reputed MNCs at that time; it was a huge risk for them to start redBus.in. That risk, however paid off and the rest, as they say, is history.

5. Housing.com

Housing.com Founders

A Mumbai-based real estate search engine, Housing.com was co-founded by twelve IIT-B graduates with the idea to introduce transparency in the real-estate market. What is commendable about Housing.com is the exponential rate at which it has grown. It was just founded two years ago and the response they’ve got is amazing. Despite many hurdles, Housing.com managed to achieve enormous success. It has raised four rounds of funding since its founding in 2012.

6. InMobi

Naveen Tewari

Founded in 2007, InMobi, a mobile ad network giant was a result of entrepreneurship expertise and an innovative idea. Naveen Tewari, an alumnus of Harvard Business School, who had previously worked at McKinsey, wanted to build something which he could call his own. Before tasting success, it had its own set of problems. Since, it operated internationally, people weren’t sure if an Indian company could achieve success.

Despite the obstacles, it has had a great reception around the world; it is now one of the largest mobile ad networks in China. Its growth from a start-up to an MNC is certainly inspiring.

7. FreeCharge

Kunal Shah

An e-commerce website, FreeCharge was founded in 2010 by Kunal Shah and Sandeep Tandon. It has made mobile recharge free by offering equal value back to the customers in form of retailers’ coupons. It’s success to be credited to the fact that it’s a win-win situation for both the customers and the retailers. Like any start-up, there were many hurdles that FreeCharge had to face- everyone thought that it was too good to be true and weren’t too serious about it.Some retailers felt that the concept of ‘free’ would harm their brand.

However, FreeCharge has been able to overcome most of its problems. Now, they have tied up with various production houses like Sony Pictures, YRF, UTV etc.

8. Ola Cabs

Bhavish Aggarwal: Co-founder of Ola Cabs

Who would’ve thought that a few years back that booking cabs would be so much easier? Thanks to Ola Cabs, travelling in a cab now costs less than travelling in an auto rickshaw. Bhavish Aggarwal and Ankit Bhati who co-founded Ola Cabs were IIT-B graduates who were working in MNCs before going on the uncertain path of entrepreneurship.

This idea was formed after a weekend trip on a rented car had gone bad for Bhavish. He wanted to bring transparency and convenience to consumers in this area. Last year in october, Ola Cabs has raised around $210 million at a valuation of nearly $1 billion, with this, it has joined the league of the most valued start-ups in the country.

9. Teach For India

Teach for India Fellow

A non-profit organization under the Teach For All global movement, Teach For India works towards ensuring excellent education for all children. Founded by Shaheen Mistri in 2007, TFI exists because of a deep belief that every child can and must attain an excellent education. For the same, TFI has a fellowship, wherein it recruits college graduates and young professionals to serve as full-time teachers in low-income schools for two years. Today, Teach For India is present in 7 cities and have 910 Fellows and 660 Alumni working towards eliminating educational inequity.

10. Make A Difference (MAD)

Michelle Obama dances with underprivileged children enrolled in the academic programme of Make A Difference

Michelle Obama dances with underprivileged children enrolled in the academic programme of Make A Difference in Mumbai.

MAD has justified its slogan- ‘Don’t Stop BELIEVING!’ in almost a decade of its operations. It mobilizes young leaders to bridge the gap of education inequality. In 2005, MAD’s founders – Jithin C Nedumala, Gloria Benny and Sujith Abraham Varkey decided to visit a boys’ Home in Cochin to spend some time there. Children at shelter homes were talented and had aspirations and so they felt that more needed to be done. Soon, they started going back regularly, just to spend time with the children there. The MAD story started there.

They have various programmes where various volunteers are recruited to teach kids from disadvantaged backgrounds. Currently around 2100 MAD volunteers teach close to 5200 children across India. It has received a lot of recognition from international organizations for its successful operations.

_________________________________

About the Author

This article was written by Dr. Vani of Clamor World, a digital platform dedicated to sharing valuable information. see more.

Recently Published

Key Takeaway: Airports often lead to unusual behavior, such as drunken brawls and flight diversions. The psychology of travel can influence this behavior, as the promise of vacation can shift our mindset into anticipation and liberation. The overwhelming noise, crowds, and constant hustle can overload our senses, leading to stress-induced irritability and unexpected outbursts. Airports […]
Key Takeaway: Over 8,500 shipwrecks from two devastating world wars pose a significant threat to marine ecosystems and coastal communities. These underwater time capsules contain up to 6 billion gallons of oil, munitions, toxic heavy metals, and chemical weapons. The degradation of these wrecks is accelerating due to rising ocean temperatures, increasing acidification, and more […]

Top Picks

Key Takeaway: South Korea’s cultural exports have surged to unprecedented heights, with the latest season of “Squid Game” solidifying its position as a global entertainment powerhouse. The “Korean Wave” or Hallyu, which includes TV series, movies, animation, and music, has generated approximately US$3.7 billion annually for South Korea through exports, consumer spending, and tourism. The […]
Key Takeaway: A study published in Nature Astronomy found a strong consensus among scientists that extraterrestrial life exists in the universe. The survey, which involved 521 astrobiologists and 534 non-astrobiologists, found that 86.6% agreed or strongly agreed that some form of extraterrestrial life exists. The study also found that 67.4% of astrobiologists and 58.2% of […]
Key Takeaway: Researchers are using genome-scale metabolic models (GEMs) to study the complexities of microbial life, offering innovative solutions to climate change and space challenges. GEMs simulate the vast network of metabolic pathways within living organisms, allowing scientists to test and predict microbial behavior across diverse environments. They provide a detailed framework for understanding organisms’ […]
Key Takeaway: The “Wirkin” bag, a $78 imitation of Hermès’ Birkin bag, has gained popularity on TikTok, attracting millions of users. The bag, a clever portmanteau of “Walmart” and “Birkin,” allows everyday consumers to partake in high-end fashion without the exorbitant cost. The trend reflects a broader shift in societal values, where symbols of wealth […]
Key Takeaway: In 2022, scientists achieved the “experiment of the century” at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, marking the first time a fusion reaction produced more energy than consumed. This achievement has attracted billions of dollars in private investment, particularly in the United States, to advance fusion technology. However, a myriad of engineering challenges remain before […]

Trending

I highly recommend reading the McKinsey Global Institute’s new report, “Reskilling China: Transforming The World’s Largest Workforce Into Lifelong Learners”, which focuses on the country’s biggest employment challenge, re-training its workforce and the adoption of practices such as lifelong learning to address the growing digital transformation of its productive fabric. How to transform the country […]

Join our Newsletter

Get our monthly recap with the latest news, articles and resources.

Login

Welcome to Empirics

We are glad you have decided to join our mission of gathering the collective knowledge of Asia!
Join Empirics