New Delhi: Shweta Gupta quit her job at an online advertising firm last year to pursue her dream of starting her own company. Last August, she started Criticat.com, an online platform that provides inside information on companies. One year down the road, she’s learned a lot, but she feels she could have done better. Shweta says there is a lot lacking in terms of mentorship and professionalism in the start up world in India, especially for women, citing that it’s hard to tell when people take her seriously.
Although all new startups face challenges, those in India could be alleviated with a little help from fellow entrepreneurs and some government support. Venture Capital funding was close to 1 billion dollars last year, but the bulk of the capital has gone to more established companies.
Startups are still having a hard time attracting that kind of money. The founders of Routeguru.com, an online mapping and directions site, put 100% of their savings into starting the company 2 years ago but when they approached angel and VC investors, they were turned down. In the absence of funding and government support startups are soldiering on, but fretting about not being able to scale up their businesses.