India’s Brave Young Hearts
The past 20-months will be remembered as a challenging spell in the history of mankind, as it will for the Indian economy. Through the malaise of a raging pandemic that resurfaces in new mutations every day, some sectors of the economy have actually fared quite well and continue to perform better with each passing quarter. Albeit, consumers still feel the squeeze of an uptick in inflation, but the economy as a whole demonstrates some significant positives. The stock markets, which have yo-yoed through most of 2021, have touched new heights as the year draws to a close. Every passing quarter brings in more positive signs of recovery, growth and optimism.
Braving the challenges and hurdles dragged in by the pandemic, the spirit of entrepreneurship has continued to shine through, however. This year for instance, will certainly be remembered for the fabulous performance of startups in India. Incidentally, India has the third largest ecosystem of startups in the world. At least three new startups on an average are known to have joined the elite club of Unicorns every month in 2021. Till date, 33 active startups have entered the Unicorn club, which inspired us to shine the spotlight on these young and enthusiastic enterprisers in our cover feature.
The BW Businessworld Young Entrepreneur Awards (YEA) is a platform that highlights the ideas of tomorrow’s Unicorns. An endeavour of BW Disrupt, the YEA is an annual initiative conceptualised to recognise and laud India’s most enterprising young minds. For the seventh edition of the YEA Awards, more than 120 nominations were received, of which 70 shortlisted entrepreneurs presented their story to the jury board, an eminent panel of industry experts. The winners’ list included 36 dynamic entrepreneurs.
The panel evaluated these entrepreneurs across diverse parameters including the key milestones achieved, the market opportunity, their financial performance and highlights of their entrepreneurial journey, to name a few. This year’s nominations hugely surpassed last year’s record. The awards ceremony was preceded by the YEA Summit, a day-long live event, where industry leaders debated on the growth triggers, digital transformation, technology and innovations that assist young entrepreneurs in their everyday decision making and in charting out their long-term plans.
The YEA Summit attracted prominent industry leaders like Manoj Kohli, Country Head, SoftBank India, Sudhir Sethi, Founder and Chairman, Chiratae Ventures and Beerud Sheth, CEO and Co-Founder, GupShup, among others. Many high profile industry leaders and experts joined in to celebrate India’s dynamic and ever-expanding ecosystem of startups. We hope you enjoy reading about these young and enterprising business leaders in the making, who stand a chance to change the world. Of course, we also bring to you all our regular columns and features. Happy reading!
