BW BUSINESSWORLD 09 APRIL 2022

Photograph by Golden Sikorka THE WINNERS

Woman Entrepreneur of the Year
SuchitraElla
JointManagingDirector,
BharatBiotechInternational

Health, Wellness & Healthtech Woman

Entrepreneur oftheYear
ArikaBansal
Co-founder,
EugenixHairSciences
MeghanaNarayan
Co-founder,
SlurrpFarm

Young Woman Entrepreneur of the Year
AvaniSingh
CEO,
SpiceHealth
LoveenaSirohi
Co-founder&Director,
IndiaHempOrganics

Creative Woman Entrepreneur of the Year
JiaPamnani
Co-founder,
iTokri

Education & Education Tech Woman Entre-

preneur of the Year
KirandeepDham
CEO,
GlobusInfocom

Social Impact Woman Entrepreneur of the

Year
NamitaBanka
Founder&MD,
BankaBioLoo

Startup Woman Entrepreneur of the Year
NehaIndoria
Co-founder&CEO,
Boingg!
PallaviShrivastava
Co-founder,
Progcap
SaumyaSinghRathore
Co-founder,
WinZO

Fintech Woman Entrepreneur of the Year
PallaviShrivastava
Co-founder,
Progcap

Technology Woman Entrepreneur of the

Year
RashiGupta
Co-founder&ChiefDataScientist,
Rezo.ai
SaumyaSinghRathore
Co-founder,
WinZO
VidyaNarayanan
Co-founder&CEO,
Rizzle

Fashion & Lifestyle Woman

Entrepreneur of the Year
VeenaAshiya
Founder&ChiefEnergyOfficer,
MonrowShoes&Accessories

09 April 2022 | BW BUSINESSWORLD | 51

WESA WINNER Woman Entrepreneur
of the Year
Suchitra Ella
A leader
Co-founder and Jt. with grit and
Managing Director
grace
Bharat Biotech
International SuchitraEllarelentlesslycontinuesto
Healthcare adapt,innovateandimprovisetomatchthe

needsofthecustomers

I N 1996, Suchitra Ella co-founded Bharat than 75 trials enrolling more than 300,000 partici-
Biotech with husband Krishna Ella. In the pants globally.
year 1995-96 she proposed the idea of
returning to India to pursue the dream of Entrepreneurial Journey
entrepreneurship to her husband. Both of Turning into an entrepreneur was a programme
them quit their promising careers in the designed for Ella, as it perfectly complemented her
US to relocate along with their two young risk-taking nature, out of box thinking, adapting to
children. changes, creating new pathways and solving problems.
It was a life-changing decision she took in the mid-90s
Bharat Biotech has been driven to solve public health to relocate to India.
problems for the country first. In the war against SARS
COV2, the company did not only develop a new, safe, She left a successful career in the US, a huge risk
and effective vaccine within twelve months but also without any guarantees, co-founded a startup biotech
supplied more than 300 million doses of Covaxin, company based on research, scientific skillset, technol-
India’s first indigenous vaccine to India and under ogy, innovation and people as the core strengths.
Vaccine Maithree programme.
Multifaceted Personality
Unmatchable Success Marks With experience in customer operations, finance, mar-
Some of the biggest accomplishments of the company keting and business development, Ella is a strong pillar
include product and clinical development competen- of support and guidance at Bharat Biotech, overseeing
cies for vaccines such as Rotavirus, Typhoid TCV, JE, a wide range of operations in the company.
Covid-19, Zika, Chikungunya, among many in its
portfolio. She is also the Chairperson of CII Indian Women
Network.
Under Ella’s instrumental leadership, Bharat
Biotech has established an excellent track record of She serves on the Boards of ISB Well Wisher’s Trust
innovation with more than 145 global patents, a wide and United Way Hyderabad-an International Charity
product portfolio of more than 16 vaccines, four bio- Partner focused on social empowerment in local com-
therapeutics, registrations in more than 120 countries munities with focus on livelihoods, health and
and with World Health Organisation (WHO) pre- education.
qualifications.
She was a former Board member of TTD. Ella
Bharat Biotech is proficient in conducting extensive strongly believes in corporate citizenship and social
multi-centre clinical trials, and has completed more responsibility.

She holds a BA in Economics and Social Sciences

52 | BW BUSINESSWORLD | 09 April 2022

from the University of Madras. She followed this up organisation.
with diploma in business development from Bharat Biotech’s Ella relentlessly continues to adapt,
UWCU-Madison, diploma in real estate manage-
ment from University of South Carolina and post- innovate and improvise to match the needs of their
graduate diploma in patent law from NALSAR— customers.
Hyderabad.
This Padma awardee is all for celebrating every
Progressive Mindset: Then and Now woman’s accomplishment. According to her, a varied,
Returning to India she crossed over decades of grass- equal, and inclusive world without bias needs to be cre-
roots experience by spearheading many operational ated. And, diversity needs to be revered and celebrated.
and commercial areas in the company such as project
planning, administration and HR, finance and She says that we need to re-orient our view of how we
accounts, purchase, corporate communication, corpo- view ourselves now and in the future.
rate social responsibility, corporate governance at the
Board level, and proudly calls herself the heart of the She believes that enabling women and young girls is
essential to empower their lives, make their own deci-
sions, and achieve holistic growth success in their
chosen professions.

By Resham Suhail

09 April 2022 | BW BUSINESSWORLD | 53

Health, Wellness
and Healthtech Woman
Entrepreneur of the Year

WESA WINNER ethical counseling -- it also does not over promise
which results in a realistic expectation by the cus-
ArikaBansal tomer.

Co-founder “For us, the comfort of our patients is the most
Eugenix Hair Sciences important thing and we go to lengths to ensure the
convenience and ease for our patients,” says Bansal
Health & Wellness who operates a centre each in Gurugram and
Mumbai at present.
The art of hair
restoration Constant Innovation
In order to stay ahead of competition, Bansal plans
EugenixHairScienceshas to use the latest instruments and keep upgrading
setitseyesonaggressive their services by incorporating the technological
globalexpansionwith advancements in hair transplants.
centresinEurope,Asia,
AustraliaandtheUS As part of her long-term goals, Bansal plans to
take Eugenix beyond India’s shores and establish a
ARIKA BANSAL, A global presence. The company plans to offer its
pioneer in direct services in Europe, Asia, Australia and the US.
hair transplant,
co-founded In the short term though, Eugenix plans to grow
Eugenix Hair the Mumbai and Gurgaon branches while making
Sciences in the Gurgaon centre a local hub in hair transplant.
Gurugram along
with Pradeep Sethi in 2008. Like It intends to do so by expanding infrastruc-
most others, this startup was boot- ture and manpower as well as improving
strapped by the founders, and as such it the quality of services.
is debt-free. The USP of the brand has
been its exceptional results – it gives you Patient Satisfaction
hair that looks natural and dense. Being a women founder, she has been
lucky to have worked with like-
At Eugenix, the pain and discomfort minded visionaries as there have been
caused during and after the transplant
are minimal, The company provides no discouraging challenges in her
case. Bansal says that the
clinic is her second home
and the employees are her
family. However, what
drives her the most is
patient satisfaction.
She says hiring the
right set of people was
one of the major chal-
lenges she faced during
her journey so far. But
things have gotten bet-
ter with time. With time,
the founders have been
able to evaluate and
employ potential employ-
ees with the right skill-
sets to drive the overall
business.
By Resham Suhail

54 | BW BUSINESSWORLD | 09 April 2022

Health, Wellness & [ [SPECIAL MENTION
Healthtech Woman
Entrepreneur of the Year

WESA WINNER introduce sustainable,
nutrient-dense, and
MeghanaNarayan diverse ingredients back
into children’s diets.
Co-founder That is why the company
proudly states on their
Slurrp Farm website: “We make food
with ancient whole grain
FMCG millets and zero junk,
making little tummies
Bringing happy!”
back
nutrient “We decided to follow
dense food our heart. We dug into
recipes from our grand-
SlurrpFarmsiscommittedtogrowthin mothers kitchens and
Indiaaswellasdeepeningitspresence ingredients like millets
internationallyaimingtoreachRs500 from our childhood. And
croreinrevenueby2025 we decided we had to
make them tasty,” recalls
W HILE LEADING THE Public Narayan. “Our first prod-
Health practice at McKinsey, uct was a Chocolate Ragi
Meghana Narayan, now the Cookie. It is yummy!”
Co-founder of Slurrp Farm, But the pandemic forced Slurrp Farms to shut its
become painfully aware of entire offline presence and focus efforts online to stop
India’s appalling nutrition sta- the business from imploding. The DNA of the entire
tistics and the urgent need to organisation underwent a change as the business piv-
change the way kids and families in the country eat. oted online. In a way the pandemic accelerated growth
Upon becoming a mother, she started consulting with for Slurrp Farm as consumers became more health-
new parents about high-quality and nutritious food conscious, enabling them to register a 3x growth from
options for her child. The current patterns of eating and February 2020 till the end of the same year.
the nutrition content of contemporary meals have dra- Slurrp Farm products are made using a diverse range
matically changed, adversely affecting our health. That of superfoods, which includes a variety of nutrient-
is why in 2016 Slurrp Farm was born to provide healthy, dense ingredients like Ragi, Jowar, Foxtail Millet,
yummy, and natural food for children. Lentils, Oats, Amaranth, Nuts, combined with good
fats like real Butter, real Fruits and Vegetable, natural
With an aim of fixing the broken food system and sweeteners like Jaggery and Honey go into making
making a positive impact on the planet, Meghana Slurrp Farm products.
Narayan and her partner Shauravi Malik aspire to re- The first round of pre-Series A funding came from
over 20 angel investors including seasoned veterans
such as Sanjeev Bikhchandani (Founder and Executive
Vice Chairman, Info Edge), Ashish Dhawan (Founder
& CEO, Central Square Foundation), Aditya Ghosh
(board member of Akasa, Fab India, and OYO),
Yasemin Lamy (Deputy CIO of impact investment
group CDC), and Samrath Bedi (Executive Director,
Forest Essentials), amongst others. In December 2020,
multi-stage venture fund Fireside Ventures invested $2
million in Slurrp Farm.

by Anisha Aditya

09 April 2022 | BW BUSINESSWORLD | 55

Young Woman
Entrepreneur of
the Year

WESA WINNER

Avani Singh hours instead of a few
days.
CEO
SpiceHealth Singh worked closely
Healthcare with the central and
state governments, and
within a year
SpiceHealth had 18 labs
in ten locations around
the country. It offered
RT-PCR testing at Rs
499, an 80 per cent dis-
count on the existing
price.

S Result-oriented
“My passion for impact
led me to entrepreneur-
ship. I knew I had to do
more to play my part in
helping millions of my

fellow citizens. Today, I

TARTUPS HAVE the imprint of the Making am proud to say that
times they are born in. And so was healthcare through SpiceHealth, I
SpiceHealth, which was launched have been able to touch
in November 2020 at the height of the lives of over 5 mil-
the first wave of the Covid-19 pan- lion Indians so far,” says

demic in the country. Naturally, available Singh, CEO,
the spotlight was on making SpiceHealth.
affordable healthcare facilities
Bootstrapped ini-

available to people. AvaniSingh’svisionisto tially by the promoters,
The brand’s origin lay in the SpiceHealth closed its

pandemic. A basic RT-PCR test addressaffordabilityand first financial year
costing Rs 2,499 was simply unaf- accessibilityissuesinhealthcare FY20-21 with revenues
fordable for the average Indian of Rs 791.7 million and

citizen. whilemaintainingquality is on track to finish
Besides, the test was only avail- FY21-22 with Rs 2200

able at select locations with million in revenues.

reports taking multiple days, sometimes weeks to

arrive. The upshot was lack of timely treatment Hybrid Model

and ultimately heavy casualties. Post-Covid, the brand switched over to a hybrid

model by launching multiple pathology labs across

Mobile Test Labs the country. SpiceHealth plans to disrupt health-

Through SpiceHealth, Avani Singh launched care in India with a strong focus on Tier-2 and

India’s first NABL-accredited mobile test labora- Tier-3 cities.

tory. This 40-foot-long container lab was capable SpiceHealth remains firmly committed to its

of testing over 3,000 samples per day. goal of providing affordable, accessible and quality

The mobile lab was backed by a strong IT infra- healthcare services to every Indian.

structure which helped report results within six By Resham Suhail

56 | BW BUSINESSWORLD | 09 April 2022



Young Woman
Entrepreneur of
the Year

WESA WINNER

LoveenaSirohi range that offers oils for
patients suffering from

Co-founder & Director chronic and recurring
ailments, such as stress,

India Hemp Organics anxiety, insomnia, pain,
IBS, and PCOS. “Our

Wellness philosophy revolves
around the holistic

well-being of the mind

and body. Staying

hyper-focused on con-

sumer well-being, we’re

driven by a strong pur-

pose to help each con-

A sumer live a better life
every single day,” reads
her social networking
page.

One in five Indians
suffer from stress, three
in five Indians have

poor sleep habits, 50

FTER HAVING MET with an acci- A new percent of Indians have
dent, where her life transformed direction IBS or poor digestive
overnight, Loveena Sirohi was keen health, and 60 percent
to research alternative and holistic of the population is bat-
forms of healing that could speed tling pain issues. This is

up her recovery. She took this route the total addressable

also because the allopathic medica- Withover20,000patients market of IHO in India,
tions being administered to her most of whom are

came with a lot of side effects. “My withinthelasttwoyears,Indian dependent on allo-
research led to the discovery of HempOrganicsisinnovating pathic medications
medical cannabis oils and their which come with seri-

potential, and I have not looked newsolutionstoresolveIBS, ous side effects, further
back since realising this to be an PCOS,insomnia,andother diminishing the quality
untapped opportunity in the coun- of their health in the

try that could help to solve the ailments long term.
problems of many individuals,” she When asked about

said. In a market that is still at a her thoughts on being a

very nascent stage in India, the combination of faith, women leader in the country, she said, “There is noth-

a transformational experience, and a strong will is ing that women can’t do. They wear multiple hats,

what kept her going. from taking care of their home and families to run-

As a direct-to-consumer brand, Indian Hemp ning businesses. And they manage to do so success-

Organics (IHO) offers services in nutrition, medi- fully”. Over the last two years, Loveena’s brand has

cine, and personal care. Their nutrition range is 100 serviced over 20,000 patients and has shipped to

percent organic, protein-rich, and vegan. It caters every state (except Ladakh) in the country, along with

primarily to the plant-based market in India, and its exports to Poland, Europe, and the US markets.

medical range is a prescription-based, doctor-led by Anisha Aditya

58 | BW BUSINESSWORLD | 09 April 2022

Creative Woman [ [SPECIAL MENTION
Entrepreneur of the Year

WESA WINNER Bringing
craftsmanship to
JiaPamnani the frontline

Co-founder Withavisiontobecomethego-toplatform
iTokri foreverythinghandmadeandpromote
Handicrafts sustainablelivingasalifestylechoice,Jia
PamnanispearheadsoperationsofiTokri

JIA PAMNANI’S entrepreneurial journey tional Indian patterns they are created to suit the con-
started in the year 2010. However, her love temporary user. This is reflected across their collection
for handicrafts began at the design studio of fabrics, dress materials, artwork, and even home
in Delhi where she worked. To avoid the décor. Testimonials on their website highlight quality
hustle and bustle of city life, Co-founders products at affordable prices and even good customer
of iTokri, Jia and Nitin, moved to Gwalior service - all ingredients of success for an e-commerce
to start their own e-commerce business, this was more platform.
than a decade ago. E-commerce was at its nascent stage
and none of the marketplaces accelerated access to Speaking about the challenges faced as a women
their target audience. Today, iTokri is the only brand in entrepreneur, Jia commented, “Since, at iTokri it is a
India that sells products in the name of the artisan, giv- team of mostly women who are working for the brand
ing them their due credit and recognition. and sharing the load with each other. It has been an
inspiring journey for all of us, working in the space of
The designs at iTokri are a perfect blend of the tradi- creativity, and uplifting each other wherever possible.
tional and the modern. Taking inspiration from tradi- The love for art and craft has always been at the core of
my being. I enjoy working in the creative space, and it
amazes me to see what different art forms can bring
into our lives”.

The couple started their business from a one-room
setup and with their savings which were approximately
Rs. 30 lacs. After researching the art and craft scene in
India, and with seed capital from friends and family
iTokri started its operations in the handloom industry.
So far, the biggest challenge has been fighting fast fash-
ion and explaining to customers that they cannot get
the same item in multiple quantities. Whenever the
requests are there, the customer gets a call from the
brand and is thoroughly guided on the process of hand-
made production.

iTokri has not raised any equity investment but it is
now in conversation with venture capitalists and pri-
vate equity investors for scaling of the business. In 2012,
with the help of technology they started the store online
in association with an NGO called Dastakar and got
connected to several artisans. Today, they work with
over 10,000 artisans who are happy to be a part of the
iTokri family.

by Anisha Aditya

09 April 2022 | BW BUSINESSWORLD | 59

Education and EdTech
Woman Entrepreneur
of the Year

WESA WINNER

KirandeepDham

CEO
Globus Infocom
EdTech

Focus on digital neur? “I did overcome challenges with resilience and
transformation not only made our way through education equality for
all via technology integration but also established
KirandeepDhamtalksaboutdeveloping Globus as one of the most trusted EdTech brand
names.,” Dham said. What is her success mantra? “I
acomprehensivetechsolutionthat have always been consistent in my efforts because that
is extremely crucial to rise and become successful,” she
enablestobridgethegapbetweenthe added. Was gender an issue or a challenge? “Gender
never posed itself as a challenge for me. I feel fortunate
ruralandurbaneducationscenarios to be a woman leader and have inculcated a no gender
bias culture within my organisation,” said Dham.
B ASED IN NOIDA, Uttar Pradesh,
Globus Infocom is an Education What is the success mantra of the company? It elimi-
Technology solutions provider that nates the hassles of running from pillar to posts for its
offers a comprehensive suite of digital customers by offering finished, comprehensive solu-
learnings solutions ranging from digi- tions under single warranty, she said. “Our impeccable
tal boards to digital content. More service record with serviceability in every nook and cor-
than 12,000 schools are using these ner of the country helped us muster over 30,000 cus-
solutions, so are various business organisations, train- tomers with more than 50 per cent repeat order ratio,”
ing centres, and higher education colleges. The com- she explained.
pany has also forayed into developing comprehensive
technology solutions catering to domains like So, what is the next goal? Kirandeep said she aims to
Collaborative Conferencing, Professional Displays, scale up the manufacturing capacity in line with the
Security and Surveillance along with Healthcare and soaring demands of the market. Globus Infocom is
Wellness. Meet Kirandeep Dham, its co-founder who looking forward to launching an App-based learning
always aspired to integrate education with technology solution, foraying into the B2C industry to expand their
in order to bridge the gap between rural and urban edu- reach, and introducing a consumer-oriented product
cation facilities. line. By the end of 2028- 2029, Globus Infocom aspires
to achieve a revenue target of Rs 5,000 crore.
She recalls the initial days of the business.
“Streamlining different processes within the business by Anisha Aditya
ecosystem was the most daunting task back then,” said
Dham. But this was tackled with effective policies and
regulations. Today the company has a team of over 245
trained and dedicated individuals.

Was the journey challenging for a women entrepre-

60 | BW BUSINESSWORLD | 09 April 2022

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Social Impact Woman
Entrepreneur of the Year

WESA WINNER sanitation infrastructure and assets across 21 states
of India, becoming the one-stop solution provider
NamitaBanka for all sanitation needs.

Founder & MD They are an NSE-listed company and have raised
Banka BioLoo equity investment from angel investors, debt fund-
Manufacturing ing, investments from venture capital firms as well
as HDFC and Citi Bank.

Speaking about the challenges faced as a woman
entrepreneur, Banka commented, “Only one thing
that drives me is my people who trust me for what I
am doing and women and children for whom sanita-

Sanitation
Infrastructure

BankaEnterprisesaspirestotake
theinnovationofthebusinessto
resolvebasichygieneissues

W ITH THE NEED to support her tion is key to their health and hygiene.
family with extra income, The target is to see the world inching closer every
Namita Banka started her
journey of becoming an entre- year to open defecation-free world and my contribu-
preneur in 1999. tion to that excites and drives me to push extra.”
She started a home-based
jewellery business for design- Team-building Was A Major Challenge
ing and manufacturing diamond jewellery in Surat. Banka expressed that team-building was a major
challenge, especially when it is such an unglamorous
Later she moved to Bangalore and continued her industry.
business until 2008. In the same year, her
husband had to move to Hyderabad. She mentioned that she encouraged her brother
who is an MBA graduate from C-Suit business
Keeping in mind Hyderabad market’s inclination school, to join as CEO, which helped and added a lot
towards jewellery, she opted to do something else, of value by showing the way forward for building an
this led to the formation of Banka Enterprises. organisation for social good.

Developing Green Toilets By Anisha Aditya
Over the course of her entrepreneurial journey,
Banka came across the opportunity of developing
green toilets in Indian Railways. She then realised
that 67 per cent of Indians do not have toilets at
home.

One-stop Solution Provider
Her business model is based on sustainability. They
manufacture, supply, install and maintain

62 | BW BUSINESSWORLD | 09 April 2022

Startup Woman
Entrepreneur of the Year

WESA WINNER W ITH THE MOTIVE of building
beautiful, safe and nurturing
NehaIndoria homes in India, Neha Indoria
started the brand Boingg! in
Co-founder & CEO 2019.
Boingg! As a parent to a then
Furnishing & Decor 3-year-old, Indoria wanted
products that would be sturdy, safe and not too
M heavy on the pocket.

Designing for Customisation was high on their customer’s prior-
spaces ity so that became one of their main priorities as
well. The integration of technology to help custom-
Themigrationofpeopletocitiesis ers visualise their products in real-time and in
increasingthenumberofthoselooking augmented reality (AR) before they placed the order
forsolutionsthat suittheirdecorneeds was a great addition.

The company received its seed round of funding in
September 2021 led by IPV and a few ardent
customers who loved the brand.

Her decision to be an entrepreneur was both
mindful and accidental at the same time. In 2015, six
months after her daughter’s birth, they launched
their first venture, Couched.

Being a B2B furniture leasing company, it was not
an industry or a product that either she or her co-
founder understood entirely.

When asked about the challenges faced as a
women entrepreneur, Indoria commented, “I am
driven by having a sense of purpose and passion
about what I do.

I believe that my time is limited and important
and it should be used pursuing ideas that have
immense value, first to me and then overall to the
people that get affected by my work.

And in the end, I am driven by my daughter. I
started working on Boingg! because I wanted to give
her a great room and now, I see the pride that she has
about what I do and it takes me through the day with
a grin on my face.”

Made-to-order Platform
Since they did not have enough working capital to
make stock and to pay for real-estate to hold this
stock, they started operations on a made-to-order
model.

This made-to-order platform allowed them to
refine the customisation offering and truly address
the needs of the customers.

On the product aspect, they want to increase the
product portfolio by 10 per cent in the next six
months, which translates to adding almost 300 new
stock-keeping units (SKUs) to the website under
different categories.

By Anisha Aditya

09 April 2022 | BW BUSINESSWORLD | 63

Startup Woman Entrepreneur
& Fintech Woman
Entrepreneur of the Year

WESA WINNER mile businesses and their scale-up in the emerging
markets of Asia and Africa. It was during this work
PallaviShrivastava experience that Shrivastava encountered the mas-
sive challenge of lack of access to finance faced by
Co-founder last-mile businesses.

Progcap To solve this bottleneck of economies, Shrivastava
started Progcap to bridge the gap in access to finance
Fintech for millions of underserved SMBs.

Delivering “As we got deeper, we found that while there was
financial some focus on manufacturing MSMEs, the trading
access side MSMEs – retailers (merchants and shopkeep-
ers), were largely excluded from the formal
Technologymixedwith financing ecosystem”, she said.
innovationandaholistic
developmentplancando There were several reasons for this including lack
wondersindrivingSMBsat of understanding of risk profiles, lack of data to
theforefrontofeconomies make underwriting decisions as well as the absence
of right products that could service their latent
T HE IDEA OF building demand, currently serviced by informal credit.
something that could
potentially transform Leveraging Technology
the lives of millions of Progcap sources their revenue from the
individuals always fas- interest income based on customer
cinated Pallavi repayments, and has raised US$55
Shrivastava. million last year.
Growing up in a family of bankers, she Speaking about the challenges faced
was not distant from the power of finance as a women entrepreneur, Shrivastava
and credit that provided opportunities commented, “As a woman entrepre-
by removing financial barriers. neur in technology space the driv-
ing force to go over and above
In 2012, Shrivastava left her corpo- my target has been my deep
rate job to start working with entrepre- passion to contribute towards
neurs to build and scale businesses that education and raising the
could potentially solve the problems of level of teaching and learn-
the next billion who are living on the ing through the power of
fringes of the economy. Later, she joined technology”.
the World Bank and IFC, focusing on last-
Retailer Financing
With the market antici-
pated to reach US$1.5 tril-
lion by March 2026, the
team envisions being syn-
onymous with retailer financ-
ing in India and aims to posi-
tion itself as the first full-
stack digital bank for retail-
ers that’s on a mission of
revolutionising the way finan-
cial access is delivered
to underserved segments of the
Indian retail economy.

by Anisha Aditya

64 | BW BUSINESSWORLD | 09 April 2022

Technology Woman
Entrepreneur of the Year

WESA WINNER WhatsApp and social at the required scale, whilst
training agents with minimal costs. Initially, the
RashiGupta brand had secured $300,000 in seed funding but
currently runs on a traditional revenue model.
Co-founder & Chief
Data Scientist Some of the salient features of the brand’s services
are:
Rezo.ai
• Deep learning combined with natural language
Technology technology (NLP and NLU) helps interpret customer
language appropriately
Enhancing
customer • Integrates seamlessly with any CRM and drives
experience automation and provides training without changing
the current systems
Rezo.aiisIndia’sfastest
growingAI-poweredcontact • Deployment: from data modelling to integrating
centresolutionproviderthat backend APIs, the system is ready to roll in 1- 4 weeks.
iseyeingUSandMiddleEast Deployable both on a cloud or on-premises basis.
foraythisyear
Enhanced Efficiency
I N COMPARISON TO worldwide norms, It counts among its biggest challenges the deploy-
customer support in traditional contact ment in one of India’s largest automobile providers
centres in India is quite appalling due with massive volumes being rolled out and multiple
to a high number of queries, insuffi- use-cases. Rezo.ai successfully exceeded what their
cient capacity of agents, and inane traditional contact centres had been doing. It deliv-
customer support systems. ered two times improved feedback, at 20 per cent
Businesses struggle with a multi- reduced cost and 30 per cent enhanced efficiency.
fold rise in customer discontent and bounce
rate, resulting in connectivity failure points So what really spurred Rashi Gupta to turn an
between them and customers. entrepreneur? “Freedom to work on something I
believe in, love to do and turn it into a profitable
To address this issue, IITian couple
Manish and Rashi Gupta founded Rezo’s business,” says the co-founder and
AI-powered contact centre in 2018. It ena- Chief Data Scientist of Rezo.ai, add-
bles enterprises to boost revenue and ing that there is constant motiva-
enhance customer experience by automat- tion to break the stereotypes
ing and analysing customer interac- associated with women that
tions. It assists across multiple chan- have limited them to stay at
nels including voice, email, chat/ home and play an inferior role
despite their career goals and
dreams.
Gupta says Rezo will
continue to look for and
invent new ways to
expand and grow.
This includes pene-
trating new geogra-
phies with competi-
tive pricing, investing
in local talent, bring-
ing in a regional con-
text, and fostering
tieups with clients
with the setting
up of regional
offices.
By Team BW

09 April 2022 | BW BUSINESSWORLD | 65





Technology Woman
Entrepreneur & Startup Woman
Entrepreneur of the Year

WESA WINNER A winning
proposition
Saumya Singh
Rathore RathoreaimstomakeWinZO
ahouseholdnameandcreateanoticeable
Co-founder
WinZO equityforgametechcompanies
Gaming
Marathi, Bengali, and Bhojpuri, with more than 75
million registered users.

One of the key challenges was building trust
amongst the audiences in India. WinZO was
launched with the intent of creating a one-stop-
shop for social interactive entertainment for audi-
ences from a wide-ranging demographic.

E STABLISHED IN EARLY 2018 by Community Building
Saumya Singh Rathore, WinZo pro-
vides a platform to third-party In addition to acceptability, a significant under-
game developers to host their standing of the deepest markets in the country to
games. It enables them to earn up offer vernacularisation was equally challenging. In
to 100 times more than conven- order to create acceptability, it continued to chan-
tional revenue models such as in- nelise efforts to build a trusted community of
app purchase (IAP) and ads. users, game developers and micro-influencers.
The WinZO platform facilitates more than 2.5
billion micro-transactions per month across a After completing her master’s from the
portfolio of over 100 games available in more than University of Manchester, Rathore decided to join
six formats. The platform is available in 12 lan- ZO Rooms. Following a brief stint with the com-
guages including English, Hindi, Gujarati, pany, she decided to launch WinZO Games, but
with a twist. Contrary to conventional online plat-
forms, WinZO decided to launch across Tier-2 to
Tier-5 cities.

Talking about the gaming industry, Rathore
says, “In the Indian gaming industry, most of the
gaming companies including the global giants
have felt a vacuum due to inefficient and unsus-
tainable monetisation models.”

WinZO is a series C funded venture backed by
global gaming and entertainment investment
funds, having raised a total equity of $100 million.
WinZO raised its latest round in July 2021 of $65
million led by California-based Griffin Gaming
Partners.

The company is focused on building an enthusi-
astic community of gamers and gaming influenc-
ers across India. It envisions a future where
the platform can deliver a culturally relevant
and enjoyable experience in the Indian gaming
ecosystem.

By Resham Suhail

68 | BW BUSINESSWORLD | 09 April 2022

Technology Woman
Entrepreneur of the Year

WESA WINNER Android that focused on bringing 24x7 context
sensing and interpretation.
Vidya Narayanan
Narayanan also championed Google’s effort on
Co-founder & CEO building the dedicated context hub – hardware, run-
Rizzle ning highly optimised algorithms for efficient sens-
Content Creation ing. Besides this, she also played an advisory role in
building the context engine that powered the
A creator- original Moto X.
first platform
Rizzle began with the vision of building a world-
OneofthetopfiveappsonGoogle, class short video platform that is inclusive, interac-
theRizzleapproachisrootedin tive, positive, and creator-first across categories
designthinking,andreimaginingthe such as comedy, drama, mystery and crime, action,
futureofvideo romance, fantasy, science fiction and more. It is at
the cutting-edge of driving innovation in short vid-

I N 2019, RIZZLE was conceptualised and eos, with its engaging user interface, 1000+ tem-
co-founded by Vidya Narayanan and plates, and AI-based features, such as Rimix, Filmi,
Lakshminath Dondetti to revolutionise Titan, and the recent Transition. These provide
the short-video app market, breaking the users with unique opportunities to create new con-
monotony of video-sharing apps and tent, especially music-based. “At Rizzle, we are com-
developing a creator-centric platform. mitted to being a creator-first platform, democratis-
Unlike other video apps in the market, ing creation and monetisation experiences for every-
Rizzle focuses on original, user-generated episodic day creators. Our camera is already levelling the
content. For them, product-led growth with every- playing field by allowing anyone with a smartphone
day creators is the key. to create great videos, without needing elaborate
editing skills”, says Narayanan.
The company has developed a distinct identity
and brand for itself, and more importantly, for its With Rizzle Series and other unique media for-
creators. Before founding Rizzle, Narayanan had co- mats helping in strongly differentiating the product,
founded UrbanAMA: Ask Me Anything, a video over the next 18-24 months, Rizzle will grow beyond
AMA platform that hosted AMAs from government India and develop scale in the US and eventually in
officials, NFL players, celebrated authors, among other markets as well.
others.
By Anisha Aditya
Prior to her entrepreneurial journey, she served as
the Head of Qualcomm’s context-aware research
team, where she led the company into the field of
context-aware computing. Subsequently, at Google,
she built an always-on location and context team for

09 April 2022 | BW BUSINESSWORLD | 69

Fashion and Lifestyle
Woman Entrepreneur
of the Year

WESA WINNER

Veena Ashiya

Founder & Chief Energy
Officer
Monrow Shoes &
Accessories

Fashion

Design-driven
shoe brand

Foundedin2017, MonrowShoesand brand.
“I liked being presentable every time I stepped out,
Accessoriesisfocusedonboldand
and no matter how far I would travel I would wear
carefreewomenwholovefashion heels and travel through metros, subways, walk miles,
and had a perception that heels cannot ever be com-
M 0NROW Shoes and Accessories fortable,” Monrow’s Ashiya opens up.
aspires to become a market
leader of the fashion plus The brand’s tagline ‘boldly comfortable’ says it all.
comfort category by 2025. With Fashion and comfort is its biggest USP along with
a passion and love for heels, being a sustainable brand. The business model is
Veena Ashiya decided to pursue omnichannel -- digital and retail.
her long-cherished dream of
having her own brand and founded Monrow Shoes and The brand stands strong with its retail partnership
Accessories in the year 2017. across 30 key retail partners in India like Shoppers
Stop, Central, along with online partners like Myntra,
A NIFT alumnus who worked in the fashion and Nykaa, Ajio, Amazon, Flipkart etc.
lifestyle industry for over 15 years, took quite some
time to reach desired goals as it was uncharted Ashiya has faced many challenges being a woman
territory for her. entrepreneur, preconceived notions of what women
are good at and the misconception of becoming a solo
In a significant development, Monrow Shoes and founder.
Accessories, a homegrown women’s footwear brand
has secured its first round of super booster funding of Monrow’s Ashiya always wanted to break these
$1 million from marquee investors like 9unicorns, biases. Its expansion in tier-2 cities has worked very
Blume, Chand brothers, a bunch of angels like well and the current customer retention stands at 30
Aprameya, Archana, Shweta Rao in 2021. per cent and is heading towards 50 per cent this year.

Founder and Chief Energy Officer Ashiya, a lady Monrow Shoes and Accessories will be utilising the
with a dual-edge of strong business acumen and crea- freshly infused funds to increase its market presence,
tivity, evolved Monrow as a data and design-driven expand its product portfolio, build the Monrow tribe,
and strengthen its commitment to offering a world-
class experience for customers through its shoes and
accessories.

By Team BW

70 | BW BUSINESSWORLD | 09 April 2022



COLUMN

Dhruv Nath , Director,
Lead Angels Network

ENTREPRENEURSHIP PERSISTENT market? After all, if
FRAMEWORK you are operating in a
small market, you’ll
FOR soon stagnate.
STARTUPS Fortunately, the mar-
ket for homestays is
High-quality homestays in huge. But it’s also very,
very crowded with
villages have been branded as competitors — led by
the mammoth Airbnb.
‘VilloTale’ and marketed online
But here’s the key —
to travellers VilloTale had identi-
fied a large enough
L ET ME START with a question. Where did niche within this large
you go for your last holiday? Shimla? market of homestays
Nainital? Mussoorie? Jaipur? One of these (the ‘n’ in persistent).
places, isn’t it? And the one before that? One That of village homes-
of these places, again? And before that? tays. This niche itself
Again, the same? So boring isn’t it? But what if you had was large enough, and
a choice? What if you could stay in a village, and actually had almost no compet-
experience village life. Where you could see crops being itors — so our young
sown. Or cows being milked (or buffaloes – it doesn’t friends would not have
really matter which). to compete head-on
with giants.
Sounds interesting? Of course it does. Because most
of us city folk have never experienced village life. And And now for the
that is exactly what Soumen Karmakar and Shuddha risks in the business (the ‘r’ in persistent), starting with
Satwa Ghosh thought when they launched their unique competition. Every business needs an entry barrier (the
startup called VilloTale. Where they identified high- ‘e’ in persistent), which prevents a competitor from get-
quality homestays in villages, branded them ‘VilloTale’ ting in. Obviously, if you have an innovative solution
(rather like the Oyo Rooms model), and then marketed (the ‘i’ in persistent), that gives you a decent entry bar-
them online to travellers. But will VilloTale succeed? rier. Clearly these guys did have an innovative solution.

Well, to find out, let’s analyse the business using the But there was one other critical requirement for cre-
well-known ‘persistent’ framework. First the ‘p’ in per- ating an entry barrier — namely scaling up rapidly (the
sistent — are they solving a problem? Of course they are second ‘s’ in persistent), and thereby building a solid
— the problem of travellers going to the same old boring brand. Fortunately, like Oyo Rooms, the business was
places again and again. highly scalable because the founders did not invest in
buying properties — they simply partnered with exist-
And then the next letter ‘e’ — do they have an earnings ing homestays.
model? Yes, they get a commission on each transaction!
What about the first ‘s’ in persistent, namely size of the And finally, the two ‘t’s — team, starting with the
founders, and traction. I can personally vouch for the
founders — passionate, hard-working, and always will-
ing to try out something new. Yes, Covid had drastically
cut down travel and impacted their business, but now
that things are opening up, bookings are picking up.
And that’s traction. In other words, as a business,
VilloTale, passes the ‘persistent’ test with flying colours.
And if you are the founder of a startup, wouldn’t you like
to apply this test to your startup as well?

The author is a professor at MDI, Gurgaon and
co-author of Funding Your Startup: And Other Nightmares

72 | BW BUSINESSWORLD | 09 April 2022



COLUMN

Meena Ganesh, Co-founder,
MD & Chairperson, Portea
Medical

I T IS ALMOST A startup bly before the others.
movement in India Flexibility – When
today. In fact, the interest
in launching one’s own you start a business,
venture today seems to there will be others
such as investors/ men-

be at par with the way people tors, and experts who

used to line up for government you will come across

jobs in the 1980s. However, the during the journey.

dynamism or opportunities such They all will offer their

as government support and diverse points of views.

investor interest are just ingredi- You must be always

ents of the mix that go into the willing to listen, evalu-

making of a successful entrepre- ate the merit of the idea,

neur. There are skills, traits, and and quickly pivot if

vision that are essential to that’s what the con-

ensure that one doesn’t just sumer feedback, mar-

ENTREPRENEURSHIP startup, but go all the way in cre- MAKING OF AN ket trends, etc. hint at.
ating an enterprise level venture Funding – The ear-
that is sustainable. Let’s take a
look at these. lier you get the funds in

ENTREPRENEURPassion – An entrepreneur place, the better it is.
Having funds in the

requires a deep passion to dis- Entrepreneurshipisnotatrendor bank enables founders
rupt the status quo in the target to confidently focus on

vertical with fresh ideas and somethingfancyorevenashortcutto their plans. At the same
capabilities. An entrepreneur time, the need for fund-
fameandwealth
must be willing to channel their ing shouldn’t drive a

physical, mental and emotional founder to accept any

energies into turning the vision into reality wholeheart- offer from any investor. More than the amount that

edly. Entrepreneurship is hard work punctuated by the investors are ready to put in, it is important to

successes and failures, and one has to commit to keep determine whether they share your vision, and are in

going even when doors keep shutting. agreement with the plans or not.

The right founding team – A successful startup can It is better to turn down an offer than to grab funds

be built only when the founding team is strong, and has from someone who subsequently interferes with the

adequate complementary skills to take it forward. The operations or is pushy for valuations. Such investors

diversity of skillsets that the founding team has will be would force compromises or pivots that may damage

the superpower or the USP that will boost the products/ the brand’s USP. Thus, one has to watch out against

services being offered. such things.

Right product-market fit – Markets are dynamic The road between starting up and reaching great

and customer needs/ preferences are ever changing. heights requires unwavering commitment and a lot of

Therefore, it is essential to create a good product-mar- resilience to overcome the challenges. Remember, no

ket fit at the earliest. When you know there is an matter how good your plans and ideas are, or how much

addressable demand at scale, and the audience is will- funds you receive, there will be obstacles and failures.

ing to pay enough to make the offering unit positive to Those who are ready to sweat it out, make for great

deliver, go ahead and tap it as soon as you can, prefera- entrepreneurs!

74 | BW BUSINESSWORLD | 09 April 2022



IN CONVERSATION

“We believe in
delivering clinical

excellence”

Medantahospitalwasrecentlyacknowledged
asthebestprivatehospitalinIndiabyaglobalindustrysurvey.
PANKAJSAHNI,CEO,MedantaHospital,speaksaboutthehospital’s
expansionplansandthebenefitsandchallengesoftheNationalDigital

HealthMission. ByJYOTSNASHARMA

What makes Medanta a success? into associated services such as home care, outpatient

The clinicians, the technology, the infrastructure, and pharmacy services, and telemedicine.

the value system we have put in place make us what we

are. We decided when we began that we would deliver The World Health Organisation’s guidelines are one

at the absolute highest level. This value flows down into doctor for 1,000 people. What are your thoughts on

every aspect from the machines we buy to the recruit- the ratio of nurses and doctors to patients in India?

ment we do. When you walk into Medanta, you will see We have a huge shortage of doctors and nurses in the

this wall we refer to as the tree of life, it is a spot where country. There is a talent shortage in the country and we

people tie a holy thread and make a wish for their ail- need to get far more aggressive in developing our health-

ing relatives. An inscription on that reads care talent. Training has to be given its

‘every life is precious’, and that is the ethos “There is a tal- due importance. We also need to adapt
we follow. and skill shift — by this I mean, train

What are the expansion plans for the ent shortage medical workers to take on additional
hospital? in the country responsibilities where possible. We also
need to make regulatory changes to allow

There are several sticks in the fire. We and we need for medical staff to practice their skills at
currently have five operating hospitals, to get far more the highest end of their training. Not only
these are in Gurgaon, Lucknow, Ranchi, will this provide employment, but it will

Indore, and Patna. Our in-patient servic- aggressive in also free up manpower to be used in an
es in Patna have been the most recent, we developing our optimum way.
started it just before the Omicron wave

came around. We will be building a hos- healthcare Let’s discuss the National Digital
pital in Noida as well, and have started talent” Health Mission (NDHM) and what
working towards that. We are also looking could be the challenges to its success?

76 | BW BUSINESSWORLD | 09 April 2022

Snapshot of the
Indian healthcare
sector

India’s public expenditure on
healthcare stood at 1.2 per cent
of the GDP in 2021

Indian medical tourism market
is expected to reach $13.42
billion by 2026

By FY22, Indian healthcare
infrastructure is expected to
reach $349.1 billion

The e-health market size is
estimated to reach $10.6 billion
by 2025

NDHM: 17,33,69,087 Ayushman
Bharat Health accounts
created. 10,114 doctors and
17,319 health facilities have
been registered in Ayushman
Bharat Digital Mission (ABDM)
as on 24th February 2022

It is a brilliant and a much-needed initiative if we truly relationship between a patient and his caregiver is a
want to provide quality healthcare to the population of human relationship of trust and we must find a way to
our country. The ease with which health institutions strengthen it through technology. There are also opera-
(once authorised by the patient) can have access to a pa- tional challenges such as healthcare units will have to
tients’ medical data will make all the difference in giving get access to tech platforms and digitise their systems.
him quality care. It will also reduce the transaction cost
of a number of associated services in the ecosystem. For Will data privacy be a challenge for the NDHM?
example, insurance companies incur a cost for process- Yes, data privacy is an important issue to consider. We
ing a claim, once this moves to a digital ecosystem like need to put systems in place to make sure privacy is not
the NDHM, the cost goes down manifold and out-patient compromised. The fact that patients need to give consent
insurance can become a reality. to use their data is a step in the right direction.

Having said that, one of the challenges is the lack of [email protected]; @Jyotsna_off
human connection when we deal with technology. The

09 April 2022 | BW BUSINESSWORLD | 77

GUEST COLUMN Srivatsa Subbanna

The Big
Picture of
Dialogue AI
in Banking
T HE RISE OF SMART DEVICES (phones, speakers, and tablets etc.)
has led to an increase in delivery of services leveraging Dialogue AI in the future.
AI. Banks have been at the forefront of delivering services to their
customers by converting unstructured human communication into Dialogue AI in Banking
machine interpretable forms. In this article, we look at the practical Dialogue AI has the potential to give
applications of Dialogue AI in banking and its evolutionary path. banks access to critical data on their cus-
tomers’ financial behaviour, goals, and

It is undeniable that big technology companies such as Amazon, their aspirations. Banks can leverage this

Netflixetc.haveprovidedalevelofcustomerexperienceandperson- information to offer relevant advice and

alisation that was unthinkable a few years ago. In the past, customers have had to rely focus on individual customer priorities.

onmoreasynchronousandone-waycommunicationmodesformeetingtheirbanking Improvements in cognitive and self-

needs. The pandemic, increased customer expectations combined with the rise of AI learning capabilities of AI powered bots

and breakthroughs in areas such as Deep Learning and Natural Language Processing will mean that interactions will become

(NLP), have led to banks adopting newer ways to provide banking services remotely, more natural. Dialogue AI will be seen

securely, and digitally. more as a collaborator and trusted advisor

Dialogue AI may be defined as the use of AI for building interfaces for interactive over the next few years.

speech between organisations and their customers. It combines the processing of Dialogue AI in banking may be looked

speech (converting spoken words into digital text) with execution

of specific tasks (achieved by interpreting the text and performing

specificactions). Dialogue AI has been achieved by organisations COGNITIVE USE-CASES

by using four broad categories of Dialogue AI Assistants.

Dialogue AI assistants fall mainly into four categories.

l Messenger Apps – Some banks have built financial assistants

on messenger platforms such as WhatsApp (Facebook), Telegram

and WeChat.

l Voice Assistants – General purpose assistants such as Alexa,

Siri etc. are used by some banks as an interface on mobile devices

l Mobile Banking Assistants – Banks have made significant

progress in building their own text/ voice-based mobile assistants

as add-ons or extensions to their mobile banking apps

l IoT Devices – Wearables and connected devices have limited

deployment in terms of banking today. However, the need for

customers to be able to transact across their connected devices

will see them being a core part of gesture or voice driven Dialogue

78 | BW BUSINESSWORLD | 09 April 2022

CUSTOMER LIFECYCLE
DRIVEN USE-CASES

at across multiple dimensions such as
cognitive depth, channels or captur-
ing value across the customer lifecycle
through Dialogue AI. We look at how
Dialogue AI can add value across these
dimensions.

Trends in Dialogue AI Dialogue AI has the potential to disrupt banking
Digital Banking has seen increased adop-
tion since the onset of the pandemic. we think banks should go about build- efficiently. Secondly, banks should set up
Customers, however, continue to prefer ing and implementing their Dialogue AI a strong AI Engine that brings together
to use branches for high touch interac- ecosystem. technologies such as NLP, Speech Rec-
tions such as getting information on in- l Substance over form Dialogue AI ognition, Text to Speech (and vice-versa),
vestment products, financial advice etc. – Banks must avoid falling into the trap Deep Learning, OCR etc. Third, Banks
This has largely been so, because digital of thinking about Dialogue AI narrowly. should take a customer journey driven
channels have prioritised convenience They focus more on channel specific solu- product approach when it comes to build-
over personal connections and empathy. tions rather than taking a holistic view of ing Dialogue AI applications.
Dialogue AI will be at the forefront of of- use-cases. For example, the same request l Focus on fulfilment – Building Dia-
fering a more personalised experience (say cheque book request), has different logue AI applications is one part of the
to customers. We foresee the following workflows and is configured differently equation; the other part is ensuring ac-
trends driving increased adoption of Dia- across channels such as web, chat, phone curacy and consistent customer experi-
logue AI. etc. Siloed approaches diminish cus- ence. Investing in improving solutions by
l AI is ready than ever for Dialogue tomer experience and could leave them focusing on training data, content and al-
– Improvements in low-cost computing confused. Dialogue AI should be context gorithms is crucial to continued success
coupled with breakthroughs in Deep driven and follow similar sequences that l Governance andTraining–Dialogue
Learning and Natural Language Process- encourage further engagement with cus- AI will lead to increased collaboration be-
ing have meant that bots are becoming tomers. tween humans and bots. Processes and
more human-like in their interactions l Build a robust technology frame- governance frameworks around these
l Increasedpreferenceformessaging work and Roadmap - Once use-cases interactions should be defined. Working
– Customers are more comfortable inter- are identified by focusing on customer with bots will also require employees to
acting through messaging apps on their journeys rather than channels, banks acquire new skills. Banks should invest
phone. Messaging apps are AI ready and need a robust technology architecture adequately in these areas to maximise re-
can be seamlessly integrated with cogni- and framework to bring the use-cases turns on their AI investments.
tive agents. to life. In case banks are unable to build
l Customers want a truly personal- such a framework, implementation time- Banks should take a structured ap-
ised omnichannel experience – Dia- lines are likely to be delayed, resulting in proach towards building Dialogue AI
logue AI allows banks to combine Chat- slower speed of response to customer de- capabilities if they wish to see significant
bots, Advanced Analytical models and mands. In addition, this will lead to poor benefits and industry leading growth
big data to deliver a truly personalised customer experience which could lead from these investments. Dialogue AI has
omnichannel experience. to churn. the same potential as mobile bankingdid
l BuildAICapabilities–Banksshould a decade ago in terms of disrupting bank-
Dialogue AI Strategy take a three-layered approach when it ing and delivering value to customers.
Dialogue AI is fundamentally different comes to building AI capabilities. First Dialogue AI gives banks an opportunity
in terms of the way it enables banks to and foremost, banks need a strong data tobeapartof theircustomers’significant
operate. On the one hand, it may seem management platform that can deal life-events.
like a natural progression from digital with structured and unstructured data
banking, but it needs newer technological The author is V P - DataTech, Maveric Systems
capabilities, skills, and operating model.
Given its inherent transformative nature,
banks must get the business models and
implementation plans right. Here is how

09 April 2022 | BW BUSINESSWORLD | 79

AFTER HOURS HEALTHCARE

Sugar Free:
Magicleaf
Co-founder
Prathamesh
Krisang

Please tell us about your ON A
company. How and when MISSION TO
was it conceived? INNOVATE
You can’t start with the
story of Magicleaf with- Prathamesh Krisang, Co-founder & Chief of Growth
out talking about its par- at Magicleaf, talks to BW Businessworld about
ent company, Arboreal, the state of the sweetener industry as well as
where the real ground- developingclean-tastingStevia By Kavi Bhandari
work was laid about seven
years ago. In late 2014, my
co-founder Swati Pandey
and Manish Chauhan
quit their high-paying
investment banking jobs
in Singapore and London
and moved to India to do
something about making
stevia mainstream in In-
dia.

The magical ingredient
has become the sweetener
of choice for almost 40 per

80 | BW BUSINESSWORLD | 09 April 2022

cent of the Japanese and ing technology to bring your customer live a “no in the kitchen and profes-
Korean sweetener market. efficiency to the pro- sugar lifestyle,” you need sional sweeteners.
cesses? to have a holistic approach
This journey began Our mission at Magicleaf is towards eliminating How is Stevia spreading
with scouting for the to develop 100 per cent nat- added sugar from differ- its reach and benefitting
best region to grow high- ural, sweet-tasting, and zero ent aspects of their diet. people?
quality stevia leaves. We sugar-based alternative Magicleaf has three ma- The most important force
tried to grow the miracle food products, and make jor product verticals un- that has been helping the
Stevia plant, also known them as widely available as der three sub-brands that spread of our magical
as Meethi Tulsi, across the sugar-based products. will help people eliminate Stevia-based sweeteners
country, and after three sugar from their lifestyle is the endorsement by our
years, we finally settled in We also make sure our without sacrificing the customers themselves.
the Himalayan region. products are safe for dia- sweet taste. Apart from that, doctors
betics, children and elders and nutritionists have re-
Next, we had to figure out alike. We pride ourselves in Our first sub-brand alised the harmful effects
an extraction process that developing products that called Super Zero (make of artificial sweeteners
uses zero chemicals. We did we and our families can better food) is aimed at and have started recom-
over 10,000 trials over five mending Stevia to their
diabetic patients.
‘Puresteviaextractis300timessweeterthan
sugar. Sothenextchallengewastoperfectthe Popular celebrities like
artandscienceofapplyingsteviatodifferent Alia Bhatt, Jennifer Anis-
foodproductsandtheninnovatingproducts ton and well-known habit
andrecipesthatpeoplecanusetoreplacesugar- coaches like Ashdin Doctor
basedproductsintheirkitchensrecipes’ have already replaced sugar
with Stevia and are living
years to achieve this and we consume in our own homes. replacing sugar in your the “no sugar lifestyle”.
have just started. kitchen with healthy in-
Can you please tell us in gredients. In this, we have What are the future
What is the idea behind detail about your prod- Everyday Sweeteners plans of the company?
this venture? ucts/ services... (Stevia Liquid Drops & We have a very strong re-
Added sugar has penetrat- When you are helping Powder) for everyday use search and development
ed almost every aspect of team. And our goal is to
our life. It is not easy to keep innovating must-
avoid sugar if you want to have products and catego-
live a normal life. People ries that become a part of
have now become aware our customer’s day-to-day
of the harmful effects of routine.
added sugar.
That is the only way to
But the alternatives are accelerate our transition
not yet very accessible. We to the post-sugar world.
started on our journey to And escape from the tyr-
develop a range of tech- anny of harmful added
nologies and innovations sugar and other artificial
to come up with products sweeteners.
that taste as good as sug-
ar-based products and are We want to see the
infinitely healthier. world free from all the
sugar-based lifestyle dis-
eases like diabetes, PCOS,
PCOD, obesity, etc. in our
lifetime.

How is Magicleaf adopt- [email protected]

09 April 2022 | BW BUSINESSWORLD | 81

COLUMN Dhaval Ajmera

Metaverse
to push real

estate

E ARLIER IF SOMEONE would have asked us to invest or buy something on a virtual
platform, our primary focus would have been on video games. However, now due
to the Covid-19 pandemic the lines between the physical and virtual realities have
merged and the metaverse will become the future of real estate investment. It is a
new form of real estate investment which is emerging now — digital land, a form of
non-fungible tokens (NFTs), in the metaverse world such as Decentraland, Sandbox
and Somnium. Several investors, individual and institutional, are now showing
interest in digital real estate.

Land in metaverse
Land is nothing more than a block of data produced on a blockchain and represented by an NFT of
that blockchain in the metaverse. Decentraland, for example, is based on the Ethereum blockchain.
Such an investment is offered utilising NFT technology, which allows for public verification of its
records, ensuring transparency. The metaverse is an intriguing concept that has the potential to
open up doors in the future. Land on the metaverse can be valuable, as demand grows every day.

Metaverse the game changer
One of the most lucrative markets for investing money and growing revenue is real estate. In the
past year, the real estate index has risen by 75 per cent and is the second-best performing sector
index. Despite the pandemic the industry has continued to show resilience and steady growth in
2021. In fact, during the first wave of Covid-19 the sector was standstill for a while. However, by
the last quarter of 2020, the market had begun to pick up pace, particularly owing to an increase
in demand for residential spaces. The second wave of Covid-19 hit the sector just as it had begun
to revive itself. Unlike the first wave, the ramifications of the second wave were not as prolonged or
prominent on the sector.

The sector has evolved substantially in recent years as a result of technological advancements.
Technology is quickly emerging and shaping the future of real estate, and our coping with the pan-
demic is fueling mass adoption of many new technologies. Awareness and forward-thinking will
be vital in strategy and the approach to certain aspects of the ever-evolving real estate environment.

The metaverse is a revolutionary new concept in real estate. Buying land in this virtual world
is becoming a whole new mania. As investors pour millions of dollars into a never-before-

82 | BW BUSINESSWORLD | 09 April 2022

good measure. In 2021, businesses began
making first moves into the virtual world,
hoping to reach out to a completely new
audience. NFT-entangled objects were
used to create special event platforms.

The virtual real estate companies
formed a line. As the real estate ventures
constructed virtual properties, more indi-
viduals were enthralled. Based on prop-
erty locations, the Sandbox and Decentra-
land might suddenly fetch million dollars.
After you’ve figured out why you should
invest in virtual real estate, you’ll need to
figure out how to get started.

High returns on investment are the pri-
mary motivator for owning virtual real es-
tate. In the metaverse, a number of virtual
real estate developments are in the works.
The concept is similar to buying an NFT:
you possess the digital asset that is kept
on the blockchain, and anyone can verify
its legality. If the value of your virtual land
increases, you can sell it or rent it out for
events.

seen virtual real estate market, digital The metaverse is a revolutionary new concept in
land trading is reaching new heights. real estate. Buying land in this virtual world is
To prepare for the metaverse economic becoming a whole new mania. As investors pour
boom, land trading is done in the form millions of dollars into a virtual real estate market,
of concrete facilities, shopping malls, digital land trading is reaching new heights
and other properties in this 3D world.
The transformation and amalgama- face-to-face thanks to virtual VR headset Conclusion
tion of real-life and electronic events The buzz about metaverse has been go- This dream is still a long way off. Real es-
has significantly improved, guiding the tate is for real assets. This is a completely
emergence of digitally native nations. ing on since months, however, interest different world of virtual but still, there’s
soared last year October after Facebook’s no assurance as to acceptability in the fu-
Metaverse — global talk parent company renamed itself Meta. ture of buying a virtual asset by Indians.
The battle in the metaverse space is heat- Metaverse is a kind of business sense However, with the changing scenarios and
ing up and companies globally are getting which will stay in the real world: it’s in a timeline, the metaverse might become an
serious about it. Tech majors like Face- trendy area with high footfall. alternative investment in virtual assets.
book, Microsoft, SoftBank and sports- In the coming future, there are chances
wear giants like Nike are already betting The latest real estate market isn’t on that Gen-Z/ millennials will park their
big on metaverse. The mostly fictional the scenic coasts or in balmy sun-belt cit- investment besides equity and real estate
and digital world of metaverse in real es- ies. It’s in the metaverse, where gamers into the virtual real estate which should be
tate will essentially let one own a piece of are flocking and digital property sales quite encouraging and different.
digital land, and make money by leasing are setting new records. A year ago, there
it out or selling ads etc. were hardly any brands in the metaverse. Ajmera is Director, Ajmera Realty & Infra India
It was primarily player-driven, with a few
In a simple word, metaverse is a future platform-sponsored events thrown in for
internet where online experiences like
chatting to a friend would eventually feel

09 April 2022 | BW BUSINESSWORLD | 83

Demystifying
data will unlock
potential for the
BFSI industry

BY RATNADEEP CHAUDHARY

The digital economy possesses immense potential for consumers were willing to share data in exchange for ben-
improving the lives of people across the world, and efits such as rapid loan approvals, discount memberships,
its growth prospect is limitless. In the past few years, and personalised offers based on their current location.
India has accelerated its transformation to become a For the industry, the willingness of consumers to share
dataeconomygiant.Severaldigitalserviceshaveproliferated,and data comes as a boon as it helps them provide tailor-made
people across the country are generating a significant quantum services for their customers. In other words, the fundamen-
of data daily. In the post-pandemic period, the digital banking tal question of how the right offer, right customer, the right
ecosystem has kicked into the next gear – a shift that can be moment, and the right channel can now be accomplished.
witnessed in the growing numbers of non-physical transactions The rapidly evolving technological innovations help insti-
taking place across the country. The Banking and Finance tutions capture, store, combine, and analyse a wide range
Services Industry (BFSI) industry holds assets that are not of customer data, including their financial situation, pref-
visibleonitsbalancesheets.Onesuchassetisdata.Convertingthe erences, habits, and physical location. Financial institu-
latent value of data into commercial value will help the industry tions are now trying to utilise the treasure trove of trans-
to boost organisational success, ensure risk management, actional data to which they have access.
provide a competitive edge, and ensure profitable growth and
performance. The industry needs to become insights-driven in Rahul Jain, President and Head, Personal Wealth
order to harness the true potential of data. By 2025, India’s fin- at Edelweiss Wealth Management, highlighted that
tech market is poised to grow to US$ 83.48 billion, up from US$ relevance is of utmost importance while communi-
31billioncurrently.Customersassociatedwiththe industryare cating with a customer. Jain commented, “The bom-
nowlookingforwardtoon-demand,fullydigitalisedexperiences, bardment of general engagement from financial ser-
hyper-personalised services, and around-the-clock assistance. vices has been so high that it is borderline annoying.
People have now stopped using emails because they
Customers willing to share data in exchange for get so many emails. Since one has insights now, the
first and foremost critical part is to create relevance,
improved services which will allow customers to achieve their goals.”
One of the key trends in the BFSI industry recently has Financial institutions are at a point where they are
been the willingness of customers to share personal infor- beginning to realise that failing to provide personalisa-
mation. Despite concerns around privacy, an increasing tion, offers, and products that the customers are looking
number of customers are willing to share personal data, in- for will force the customers to look elsewhere.
cluding location data and lifestyle data, in exchange for im-
proved services. They are also willing to share information Data is everywhere, but how much of it is relevant?
with financial institutions to receive personalised proposi- Financial institutions hold a huge wealth of customer
tions, especially for money management. According to a re- data stored across various spectrums, including busi-
cent survey conducted by Accenture, two-thirds of Indian ness divisions, applications and repositories across the

84 | BW BUSINESSWORLD | 09 April 2022

organisation. Banks do not have a shortage of data at all. Bank, said that in order to stay ahead of the competition,
The main challenge at hand is to successfully combat the one needs to better understand their customer. He said,
poor utilisation of data, which cuts short the institutions’ “It is of paramount importance how well I know a per-
abilities to gain a competitive advantage. In an era where son as a customer, their family tree, his/her investment
financial services are becoming a part of a customer’s day- philosophy, his/her approach to risk, and multiple other
to-day life, a data-driven approach will successfully lead relevant layers of information. So if we can create a store-
to hyper-personalisation and long-term growth. The out- house of institutional memory, not as a static item but as
dated technologies used by several financial institutions a dynamic continuously learning entity, then I think there
are no longer successful in resolving the data manage- will be a winner. This is the game in which all of us are in.”
ment challenges. Understanding and generating useful
insights from an enormous amount of non-cohesive and The advent of data analytics has helped financial in-
scattered data remains a major challenge. Data analyt- stitutions streamline their operations, resulting in im-
ics, besides improving business value and operational ef- proved efficiency and competitiveness. These institutions
ficiency, will help banks evolve into insight-driven busi- are now working towards improving their data analyt-
nesses. It will help institutions spearhead innovations ics to get the edge against the competition by predicting
and meet the changing customer needs. To achieve this, emerging trends that can have an impact on their busi-
institutions will need to generate insights from all the ness. While the traditional approach of financial institu-
data scattered across the organisation. They will need tions was to generate excel reports, with data analytics
to use front-to-back insights: analyse and correlate data they can crunch the information in numerous ways. Data
across applications, controls, events, functions, and pro- insights can help them compete with their competitors on
cesses, adopt predictive operations: combine the knowl- several key aspects, including profitability, risk manage-
edge of the current market with past data to predict the ment, franchise growth, and product offerings. In today’s
future, and enable zero-touch data operations: using dynamic world, the whole mix of technology, data
machine learning and statistical techniques to generate analytics, creating relevance and providing the right in-
insights by profiling and correlation of front and back- formation at the right time becomes very essential.
office data. Satheesh Krishnamurthy, EVP & Head –
Private, Premium Banking & Third-Party Product at Axis Financial institutions need to capitalise on data

analytics

Photographs by Jamesteohart 09 April 2022 | BW BUSINESSWORLD | 85

Despite all the advantages that data analytics brings cal to operational efficiency and product delivery. While
for financial institutions, they have been slow in adopting this will, no doubt, help create a business plan for the
analytics in comparison to other sectors. Though they col- future and achieve the desired objectives, the real chal-
lect a large amount of data, only a few are making returns lenge for companies is to have the right set of people,
commensurate with their investment. There is a lack of such as data experts or data scientists, who can suc-
actionable insights in the banking sector; these insights cessfully drive that strategy which is meaningful for the
play an important role in providing tailored, real-time of- digital and physical world. As technology continues to
ferings and advice. Institutions need to delve deeper into evolve, building the right talent will be crucial for most
the breadth and depth of data in a customer segment, companies, including banks and financial institutions.”
product area to identify and target individual custom-
ers. One of the major reasons for this lag is that the en- The need for a 360-degree customer view in
trenched cultures and operational complexity are such
that it makes it difficult to adopt the most successful data banking
and analytics initiatives. Banks are now seeking talent Customer Relationship Management (CRM) is a power-
that can help them build the correct digital, automation, ful tool used by banks to accurately analyse data, sales
and analytical capabilities that are required to succeed in forecasts, and build strong relationships with present and
today’s environment. Though hiring talent is just one part future clients. Financial institutions have aspired for a
of the story, banks also need to continuously up-skill their long time to achieve a 360-degree view of clients. For sev-
present employees. eral years, the objective was limited to securing a compre-
hensive view of the customer’s relationship with the bank.
Maneesh Ajmani, Head Preferred Banking, NRI, Banks no longer view their customers solely on the basis
Investment Services & Bancassurance at RBL Bank, of their transactions, but also as individuals. The goal of
explained, “With the rapid development and adoption CRM is to combine technology and human resources to
of new-age technology, data, and by extension data cul- meet customer demands or predict those demands for the
ture, have become intrinsic to most businesses. Many near future. The expanded Customer 360 view brings to-
organisations are putting a data strategy in place as it gether the marketing, sales, commerce, service, and IT
is widely seen as a business asset and increasingly criti- departments with shared, and easy-to-understand data

86 | BW BUSINESSWORLD | 09 April 2022

on one integrated CRM platform. This helps in better un- for the VoC (Voice of Customer) suggested that anytime,
derstanding the broad 360-degree view of each customer, anywhere accessibility and on-demand banking could
including their preferences, habits, and history of trans- motivate them to switch to a new generation of financial
actions, to better understand how they like to use their institutions. The analysis also showed that 54 per cent of
money. Abhai Singh, India Sales Head & Scaled Cus- banks struggle to derive insights from data, while 47 per
tomer Business Lead – APAC at LinkedIn said, “If you cent of banks fall short of periodically capturing VoC. It
want a banking relationship with somebody, you need to is high time for the traditional banks to think outside of
think about it from the time the person is born till the time the box about what they generally do – safekeeping, lend-
they pass away. At every given point in time, there will ing, and transferring money. Traditional banks can rein-
always be something or the other that the person needs to vent themselves to survive and thrive by taking several
do with money. This is true for institutions as well. Right measures, including collaborating with fin-techs, creating
from the time when institutions are formed till the time personalised services for their customers, and harnessing
they start becoming profitable and start expanding, there technologies and data analytics to make use of the im-
will be operations that they will need to do alongside the mense amounts of data they are holding. Banks should
banks. If you know your customer (KYC), the philosophy not look at the rising fin-techs as competition but instead,
of KYC will be the differentiator for you to make a better try to collaborate with them. Fin-techs do depend on banks

banking relationship and be more relevant.” A good CRM for several processes, including
can help a bank boost sales, personalise customer experi- payment settlement, account man-
ences, have more efficient communication, and increase agement, and loan disbursement,
productivity, amongst others, which results in a strong amongst others. Meanwhile, fin-
customer relationship with the bank. techs can help banks come up with
the latest products and services at
lightning-fast speed, reducing costs
and improving scalability.

P. D. Singh, Managing Director
& Head Corporate Banking at JP
Morgan, suggested that in the post-
pandemic age, the majority of the
interactions with customers have
gone digital. Singh underlined,
“When you think about it in terms
of where we all are today, organisa-
tion partnerships themselves are
now in the digital domain from their inception all the way
up. So managing this digital journey will be an important
part of that lifecycle. We have to strive for perpetual inno-
vation and a better way to organise financial transactions
too, not just infrastructure or business models. “

The survival of traditional banks in the age of digital The way forward

According to a 2018 Gartner Survey, 80 per cent of legacy The BFSI industry has achieved a lot, but the journey
financial firms will close their doors by 2030. The report ahead remains tricky. Banking institutions must trans-
suggests that the banks will exist only on paper but that form themselves into data- and insight-driven organisa-
they will no longer be competitive. Their dominance is chal- tions in order to create relevance for their customers.
lenged by non-traditional players and fin-tech companies Consumers today want to be able to do their banking in
who may hold the majority share of the market pie. These the same way that they can order groceries from the com-
new-age organisations are driven by innovative technolo- fort of their living room. Customers have gotten used to
gies and customer-centric business propositions. Most of personalised treatment in the digital world, and financial
the fin-tech institutions have seen a majority of their cus- institutions have yet to do that. This will need an over-
tomers migrate from traditional banking, citing reasons haul of the banking legacy systems, the use of AI/ML, data
such as a lack of deep insights into customer preferences warehouses, and data lakes such that the data is easily
and behaviours, i.e. the banks are not able to successfully accessed by the financial institutions that possess it. Of
stand up to the consumer’s expectations. One size fits all course, the BFSI industry has developed by leaps and
is an outdated context now. As per a 2021 Capgemini Fi- bounds in the past couple of years, but a lot of opportunity
nancial Services Analysis, 81 per cent of those interviewed remains yet remains untapped.n

Photograph by Garatestock 09 April 2022 | BW BUSINESSWORLD | 87

[ [Q&A DESIGNOMICS EMPATHY:
The essence

of design

Darshan Gandhi,
senior consultant

on strategic
projects at
Godrej Consumer
Products Design
Lab and Founder,
The Darshan-
Gandhi Design
Company, on
combining
innovation,
empathy, and
business when
coming up
with ideas and
prototypes

88 | BW BUSINESSWORLD | 09 April 2022

Darshan Gandhi, a design thinker, educator, and creative impact strategist, foundation is the same, the application
talks of the importance of empathy in the design thinking process and the stages vary. I have realised the
importance of combining innovation,
By Jyotsna Sharma empathy, and business when coming up
with ideas and prototypes.
Why is empathy crucial to a human-cantered design process?
We design for human consumption. From need mapping to functionality, and even Businesses typically value
post-consumption empathy, allows one to integrate all aspects. A design process commercials and empathy gets side-
rooted in empathy, helps create a bridge between commercial and social aspects. That lined. In the design process, the business
is how we manage to generate ideas that benefit the community and are heavy on aspect should not be without empathy,
inclusivity. and empathy should not be without the
business aspect.

Could you give us some examples of good design that used empathy? How has design thinking changed in
I would say everyday objects that become silent companions. These are in the the digital age?
background and help one become more productive. Design for the digital age is still at a
nascent stage. While there is a huge
What would you say, is an example of good design in recent years and why. demand in product development, we
At Godrej, I would say the Godrej Aer Pocket and Godrej Protekt magic Powder- are still at the initial stages of what we
to-Liquid Handwash. These ideas were born out of our R&D at the Godrej Design can achieve. Some designs come to
Lab. These products democratise luxurious mind, like Kindle, which marries the
experiences and make them affordable for the physical object with digital very well. We
masses. They are aesthetically pleasing and do, however, have a long way to go. We
have a high sensorial value too. are still learning the medium, we need to
understand how to integrate empathy
Another product that comes to mind is andourunderstandingof human
the Godrej Expert hair colour. The beauty behaviour on this medium. At the
of it was how we could strip away the extra moment we are primarily dependent on
packaging and be able to provide value.
technology advancements.
How do you approach the design pro- Having said that, it does
cess when working on a project? offer a lot of opportunity
Design practice is purpose-led and for innovation in design
contextual (to the industry, the category,
and even the problem you are trying to education and processes.
define). Each project requires a different
design intervention. As a designer, it is How do you unwind?
important for me to design the process Ienjoypottery. Spendingtimeat
before I get to designing. Principally the thewheelhelpsmeunwind. Ialso
enjoy designing spaces.

09 April 2022 | BW BUSINESSWORLD | 89

AFTER HOURS / HEALTH By Rachna Chhachhi

F ORANYONEinaseniorman- deformities in the unborn
agement position in the corpo-
rate world, not getting time to child in the uterus and now
exercise is the norm. So then,
how do you motivate yourself? increasingly emerging evi-
Lack of muscle elasticity and strength
can lead to poor mobility, aches and dence demonstrates that
pains, generalised loss of skeletal mus-
cle mass and strength and lead to phys- folic acid plays a role in im-
ical disability and poor quality of life.
Between the ages of 40 and 80, an esti- proving muscle function
mated 30 to 50 per cent of muscle mass
is lost, resulting in lower strength and and strength. Dosage is 5
less ability to carry out everyday tasks.
This process – known as sarcopenia – is mg daily.
common and clearly linked to frailty
and poorer health in older people. Reduce ageing: Research-

So by the time you hit retirement, all ers at the University of Bir-
set to enjoy your savings, you are walk-
ing with a weak spine, knees that hurt, mingham and King’s College
lower and upper back pain, recurrent
cervical attacks, weight gain, higher London have found that
sugar levels due to lack of activity and
generalised fatigue. If all this seems muscle mass and strength
very familiar to you (and you’re far
from retirement!), it means that your loss did not occur in those
muscle strength and muscle mass is
poor. Follow the easy steps listed be- who exercise regularly. In a
low to start reversing this and walking
towards a healthier ageing process. study group, men who ex-
Up the C & D: New research shows that
vitamin C consumption is linked with ercise regularly had higher
skeletal muscle mass. It defends your
cells and tissues from harmful free testosterone levels, suggest-
radicals. Unopposed, free radicals can
contribute to destruction of muscle, ing they may have avoided
speeding up ageing. Fruits, vegetables
and supplementation with vitamin C most of male menopause
(under supervision of a nutrition ex-
pert, not a medical doctor) are some of (yes, that’s a thing). More
the best ways to reduce this accelerated
ageing. And since you hardly have time surprisingly, the study also
to go out and bathe in the sun, getting
adequate vitamin D supplementation revealed that benefits of ex-
will ensure stronger bones and strong-
er connectivity between the bone and ercise extend beyond muscle
muscle mass, important for muscle
strength. Reversing assubjectshadanimmune
Take folic acid: Folic acid has mul- system that did not age ei-
tiple benefits. It has wonderful heart- ther.
protective properties, can prevent Pain Make a choice: So what
is the perfect exercise for
someone who doesn’t have

the time to exercise? Walk-

Muscles lose strength ing. Walk for 30 minutes in
and mobility with ageing. the morning, 30 minutes be-
fore dinner and 20 minutes,

Sedentary lifestyles can two hours after dinner (not
accelerate ageing and lead immediately after). This
much walking can be done

to early sarcopenia, which is by anyone with a hectic life-
reversible style. If you have work meet-
ings, request a short break

for everybody just before a

working dinner commences. As a leader, inculcate this habit,

and inspire your team to stay healthier and more agile, lead-

ing to higher energy and efficiency at work.

We all have choices. Medical science will keep us alive long,

what our quality of life will be depends upon our daily habits

and good muscle strength, which lead to higher agility and

mobility.

The writer is a certified holistic cancer, nutrition and yoga expert and author
of four bestselling books on health. She treats across 27 countries

90 | BW BUSINESSWORLD | 09 April 2022



AFTER HOURS WELLBEING experience. I grew up with
a sensitive throat and had
WHEN FOOD chronic ENT problems
DOUBLES during my teenage years.
UP AS My throat used to choke
MEDICINE and hurt almost every sec-
ond month. I frequently
EGA Wellness is fostering the idea of food got cold and cough. Every
as medicine with its Ayurvedic products for doctor that I visited gave
everyday use so that one never needs to visit the me antibiotics to prevent
hospital By Kavi Bhandari and cure the problem, but
no one helped eradicate
it,” says Nanda.

He adds: “I got my ton-
sils operated on at the age
of 25. However, that did
not solve my problem as I
kept falling sick. It
became more chronic,
and I was continuously
prescribed anti-allergy
medicines and antibiotics
as doctors had no other
cure. Then, I tried to fol-
low a very healthy life-
style. I exercised regularly
and ate ‘healthy’.

BORN out of
Sumit
Nanda’s per-
sonal trans-
formation
and health journey
towards an Ayurvedic
form of living, EGA
Wellness, conceptualised
in 2016, is a preventive
care innovation company
with a vision to enable
disease-free lives by fos-
tering food as medicine.
Ayurveda helped Nanda
tackle lifestyle diseases
like migraine, blood pres-
sure, diabetes, weight
issues.

“EGA Wellness was
born out of my personal
health transformation

92 | BW BUSINESSWORLD | 09 April 2022

“By the age of 35, I was whether it is veganism, water and earth. These tions with their in-house
diagnosed with high eating close to source, elements come together Ayurveda experts.
blood pressure. I started transparent ingredients in unique combinations
having a lot of headaches or the manner in which at conception and influ- All this sets them apart
which doctors called the world has adopted enced by the environment from both unorganised
migraine. What used to yoga. Ayurveda has been to create three predomi- Ayurveda which may not
initially occur once a re-found by millions of nant doshas, that which be able to scale up in an
month became once a Indians and this way of can go out of balance, or increasingly digital world
week and then almost life is only growing. body types.” and the hyper-organised
every second day. I could large-scale manufactur-
not attend any work or Says Nanda, “We are on Holistic care ers of Ayurveda products
social appointments on a mission to reduce drug All of EGA Wellness’s who are unable to person-
most days as I could not dependence in the world products are made as per alise products or diet
even keep my eyes open for lifestyle diseases and the science and wisdom of plans for their customers.
by the evening. I was instead make preventive the original Ayurveda
almost popping a pain- care commonplace, pow- texts. They offer personal- Today, EGA Wellness is
killer every morning as ered by Ayurveda. ised diet plans and lifestyle one of the fastest growing
soon as I woke up.” Personalised nutrition change recommendations Ayurvedic brands based
may be in the news only through online consulta- in South-east Asia, engag-
Change in mindset now, but it is as old as ing more than 6,000 loyal
The pandemic, in Nanda’s Ayurveda and it is at our members through four
view, has irrevocably core. Each body constitu- clinic locations across
changed the consumer tion is different based on Singapore. Staffed with
mindset to seek out health- the five elements of five dedicated Ayurveda
ier choices, immunity sup- nature -- space, air, fire, doctors and researchers
porting products and a who have more than 75
preventive care lifestyle. years of experience collec-
tively, EGA Wellness is
Thanks to the pan- passionate about sup-
demic, there has never porting clients through
been a better time for their journeys towards
Ayurveda than now, says better health through its
Nanda. Not just India, wellness clinics as well as
but the world is awaken- its online channels. EGA
ing to health and wellness wellness now has its base
that is in balance with in Singapore as well as
nature in every way, India.

“Wevaluede-averageddiagnosisandprognosis.We [email protected]
diagnoseviain-houseAyurvedicconsultationwhich‘dosha’
orbodytypeisthestrongestinusandtheimbalancesinthe
doshasthatcancauseillnesses”

09 April 2022 | BW BUSINESSWORLD | 93

BOOKMARK BOOKREVIEW

THEBOOK, The THE INDIAN BOSS AT
IndianBossatWork: WORK:
ThinkingGlobal,
Acting Indian by Steve Thinking Global, Acting
Correa was launched during Indian
the pandemic. This is a book
as spirited in its content Steve Correa
about the VUCA world that
it symbolises, as about the SAGE PUBLICATIONS
leadership it brings before its
readers. Pages356

The book describes the Rs 498 (Hardcover)
characteristics that make
the Indian leader distinctive
and adaptive, agile and
effective, both in India and
abroad. It highlights how
Indian leaders respond to
responsibilities, obligations,
dilemmas, and polarities
at the workplace. “There is

Indian Background on
a Western Foreground

Holding up industry icons as examples, Steve Correa describes the characteristics
that make the Indian leader distinctive and adaptive, agile and effective, both in
India and abroad. We need a blend of ‘Harvard’ and ‘Varanasi’ (a Corporate Veda)

to enable the new age Corporate Rishi, he tells us
By Srinath Sridharan

certainlynotoneIndia,and multiple languages. If one aroundtheconceptof ‘what’s suggests that the concept
thereiscertainlynotone were to read every reference Indian leadership’. One of managementbelongs
Indian.Indiahasa‘meta that’sbeenlistedinthebook,I would benefit from this book to the Western world. This
culture’,severalmulti- guess one could easily qualify by reading a few sub-topics book has anecdotes and
culturesandsubcultures for a Masters in Indian in each chapter, instead of insights shared by business
as will be obvious…” writes Leadership Studies. It’s that a chapter at a time. Let the leaders such as Harsh
Correa. detailed! The book has layers content seep in, for they are Mariwala, Som Mittal,
to it, as much as lessons in it. deep and thought provoking. Naina Lal Kidwai and Kiran
The extent of research This book is not your “cursory MazumdarShaw.Itdiscusses
that has gone into the book is read in few days” kind of a What stands out is the behavioural traits, leadership
evidentinthereferencesfrom tome. It would need time and plethoraof Indianexamples styles, human element,
various authors from HR, mental space, for it questions and Indian cultural context! cultural nuances, personality
leadership, business, policy, your rationale or thinking Generally management insights and case studies – all
philosophy, scriptures, and books have a construct that

94 | BW BUSINESSWORLD | 09 April 2022

from the Indian perspective. into global business leaders. importantly, it tells us that we to bring those learnings into
It discusses the Indian way TheIndianBossatWork need not be shy or defensive this book.
of leadershipinbuilding aboutit.Itisour ‘Indianness’
successful companies, based discusses and prompts the that’s working so far, in our For both of us, like many
on generational learnings, reader to think more about: professional journey. resilient professionals, share
attitudes and capabilities. l Thewinningtraitsof the common unlearning:
Indian leaders The book uses many thatemotionaland mental
As the author tells us, l Theculturalinfluences cultural, personality, and maturity and age have
“Theforcesof Market,State, and world order that have leadership assessment no correlation, and good
CommunityandSelf must shaped their mindsets and frameworks, not just from leadership needs no textbook,
remaininharmony.We leadership styles an academic point of view, but first an open mind!
needablendof ‘Harvard’ l Whatmakesthem but more from the context of
and‘Varanasi’(aCorporate adaptable in any business its application to explain the If Steve were to update this
Veda)toenablethenew situation? ‘Indian boss’ better! book with its next version, I
am sure he would bring in

This book has anecdotes and insights shared by business insights from leaders who
leaders such as Harsh Mariwala, Som Mittal, Naina have built first generation
Lal Kidwai and Kiran Mazumdar Shaw. It discusses businesses in the digital
era, while displacing
behavioural traits, leadership styles, human element, conventional / traditional
cultural nuances, personality insights and case studies ... leaders in those segments.
After all, #gemz (gig
ageCorporateRishi–the l Whatcantherestof the BOOK 2.0 economy, millennials, Gen Z)
NewCEO.Weneedtogether world learn from India on the Steve, the professional, is ever dominate our demographics
auniversalistanda practiceof leadership? articulate, and purposeful, and it is their century!
contextualisticapproach,not lest those he speaks to, don’t
atug-of-warbetweenthem”. “Indianleadersmust miss his intent and content. Andif Icanguess,he
Theessenceof thebookis managethetensionsof Ever gentle and precise, lest might theme it as “The
captured aptly by its title co-holdinganIndian the other person not get Indian Leader: Create your
TheIndianBoss:Thinking backgroundandworking misled. Yet firm about values, own, for the Globe”.
Global,ActingIndian. This inaWesternforeground,” adding value and cultural-
book captures the ‘Indian- advises Correa. This relevance and emotional- How about bringing more
ness’of Indianleadersin quandary or dilemma that appropriateness. He has used conversations and learnings
their journey toward evolving many of us face, is finally his rich corporate experience around passion, purpose,
explained in a book. More playandprofitsof businesses
that serve their stakeholders
well?

09 April 2022 | BW BUSINESSWORLD | 95

COLUMN By Astro Friend Chirag Bejan Daruwala

What the Stars time. In the second half of the week, you
Foretell for You may feel disconnected from your job-
related activities.
A RIES: Ganesha says, this ity will be the centre of attention. You’re
week, you’ll be able to over- more likely to get into a fight with some- SCORPIO: A promise made to you
come your fears. Wearing the one with whom you have a strong rela- a long time ago will be honoured this
colour blue will generate good tionship. You may experience a health week, which will improve your financial
luck for you. You will experi- issue relating to your back. status and career prospects. Wearing
ence a resurgence of vitality. pink and red will bring you good fortune.
Mercury confuses your mind. Try to keep LIBRA: You will finally achieve a sense Someone will try to interfere in your per-
your thoughts under control. of security now. You’ll aim higher and go sonal life. Watch your health.
further than you expected. Your spouse
TAURUS: You’ll be able to project your- will allow you space for work and ‘me’ SAGITTARIUS: You’ll make trip ar-
self as ambitious to some significant rangements, most likely with cowork-
individuals, you’ll encounter this ers. You will leave an impact on others.
week. You may be able to recruit Because of Rahu’s connection with Ve-
smart people for your initiatives. nus, someone you are attracted to may
Some recent condemnation you’ve
experienced imply tough times. disrupt your job stream and ruin
everything you have fought for so
GEMINI: Youwillaccomplishthejob far, but will not succeed. Control
that you had postponed dear Gemini. your rage.
You’ll also be able to emerge from
your cozy cocoon. Between Wednes- CAPRICORN: Your rigorous and
day and Saturday, Jupiter will shower thorough approach to work, move
you with extraordinary benefits, so you closer to your objectives. You
schedule meetings about closing a will meet a better version of yourself
contract then. Focus on your health. this week. Discussing your anxieties
with your spouse is the best way to
CANCER: This week, you’ll en- Astrologer: Chirag Bejan Daruwala conquer them. Take advantage of
counter someone who is both en- the favourable position of Venus.
couraging and interesting. A long- WHAT DOES THE
time acquaintance will assist you in 28 MARCH - 3 APRIL AQUARIUS: . You’ll master tog-
gathering assets you’ll need to start PERIOD HAVE IN STORE gling this week. You will be inun-
a new business. Your professional ambi- FOR YOU? CARRYING dated with work from all angles, yet
tions will fall into place. Ketu’s position FORWARD THE LATE BEJAN you will be able to meet your com-
indicates that you should avoid travel. DARUWALA’S LEGACY, THE mitments. You’ll have to be more
AUTHOR GUIDES YOU SO cautious with your wellness. You
LEO: This week, introspection will help YOU MAY MAKE THE MOST will be able to ensure that your chil-
you make significant changes in your life. OF WHAT LIFE HAS TO dren make the best selections possible
You will also make new commitments to because of the influence of Ravi.
yourself. It will be tough for you to fig- OFFER
ure out many things, leading to stress PISCES:Dear Pisces, you will prove
by mid-week. Your companion will help highly trustworthy, particularly among
you stay strong. your coworkers. Someone with more
experience, assists you professionally.
VIRGO: Dear Virgo, you have a distinct Pay attention to your spouse or compan-
character that others will fail to under- ion as their approach to a problem will
mine this week. Your unique individual- prove more productive than yours. In the
second half of this week, you may experi-
ence anger and agitation.

The author is the reknowned astrologer Bejan
Daruwalla’s son and carries forward his legacy

96 | BW BUSINESSWORLD | 09 April 2022

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LAST WORD Praveer Sinha

Will India reintroduce Zero?

Praveer Sinha, CEO & MD, Tata Power believes India can be the torchbearer for
green jobs and an efficient transition to net-zero emissions

Z ERO plays an important role in mathematics as a solar, for example, employs an average of 24.72 people per
place-holding value and an additive identity. Origi- MW. Small-scale hydro and biomass have corresponding
nated in India, Zero led the world to mathematical, figures of 13.84 and 16.24 people, respectively. This implies a

scientific, and astronomical dis- lock, stock, and barrel transition to

coveries. Today, the world is grap- a new energy source that includes

pling with another issue: achieving transition in the skillset of talent,

net-zero emissions. This provides research and technical know-how,

India an opportunity to be the manufacturing and supply chains,

torchbearer for efficient methods and every other ecosystem.

in achieving net-zero emissions.

Greenhouse gas emissions have Bridging the gap

reached their highest level in 2 mil- One way to close the gap is to catch

lion years, according to the United potential workforce early — in high

Nations. school or college. Clean-energy

companies can collaborate with

India’s role governing bodies like the AICTE

India has the demographic divi- or the UGC to create or modify ex-

dend of a young, enterprising popu- isting curricula to ensure gradu-

lation with a buzzing startup and ates from industrial training

social entrepreneurship ecosystem institutes, engineering colleges,

which can lead the green energy science, and other research insti-

transition. The nation is also a key tutes have a solid understanding

player in the International Solar of this sunrise sector’s needs. For

Alliance’s ‘One Sun, One World, this, we could also seek assistance

One Grid’ programme, which aims India has the demographic from the Institutes of Eminence,

to use solar energy 24 hours a day dividend of a young, enterprising which house some of the country’s
population with a buzzing startup and
through a global grid, transmit- social entrepreneurship ecosystem brightest minds. To encourage
ting clean energy anywhere, skill development and innova-
anytime. It was a proud mo- which can lead the green tion, industry players should
ment for India when it arrived energy transition create unique ecosystems such
at COP26 by exceeding its key
as Tata Power Skill Development

Paris commitments. The Prime Institute, which addresses the skill

Minister’s vision was clear in laying out gap challenge faced by the Indian power

the targets to achieve carbon net neutrality by 2070 with sector (both in conventional and new energy space); and

500GWofrenewablecapacityby2030.Thispresentsahuge The Clean Energy International Incubation Centre, which

challenging opportunity for India. India is also on the verge promotes clean energy-related innovations.

of economic expansion and is expected to have the highest

rise in energy demand globally by 2040. India hub of solar champions

AccordingtorecentstudiesconductedbytheCEEW,Nat- Employment is a key driver of India’s growth and it is heart-

uralResourcesDefenceCouncil,andSkillCouncilforGreen eningtoknowthat78,000traineeshavebeencertifiedunder

Jobs, the sector has the potential to generate 10 lakh jobs by the Indian government’s Suryamitra training programme

2030. That is nearly ten times the current workforce in the between 2015 and July 2021. More efforts are required if

existinggreenenergyspace.Itstatedthatsmall-scalerenew- we’re to train millions of people and serve as a role model

able energy projects would generate the majority of the new for the rest of the world, demonstrating how a developing

jobs, as opposed to utility or large-scale projects. Rooftop economy like India can achieve net-zero.

98 | BW BUSINESSWORLD | 09 April 2022



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