Meet the Top Indian Startup Founders Who Changed the Game
India is home to one of the most vibrant and dynamic startup ecosystems in the world. From e-commerce to education, from fintech to health tech, and from social media to space exploration, Indian entrepreneurs have been innovating and disrupting various sectors with their vision and passion. Some of these startups have gone on to achieve global recognition and success, while others have made a significant impact on their respective domains.
In this blog post, we will introduce you to some of the top Indian startup founders who changed the game in their respective domains and inspired millions of aspiring entrepreneurs.
- Ritesh Agarwal- Oyo rooms
- Byju Raveendran- ByJu’s
- Vijay Shekhar Sharma- Paytm
- Bhavish Aggarwal-Ola
- Deepinder Goyal-Zomato
- Girish Mathrubootham – Freshworks
- Naveen Tewari – InMobi
- Nithin Kamath – Zerodha
- Falguni Nayar – Nykaa
- Harshil Mathur – Razorpay
01. Ritesh Agarwal- Oyo rooms
The founder and CEO of OYO, a hospitality chain that operates in over 80 countries and offers affordable and standardized accommodation to travelers. Ritesh started OYO in 2013 when he was just 19 years old, after dropping out of college and traveling across India to find affordable and quality accommodation.
He realized that there was a huge gap in the budget hotel segment and decided to create a platform that would standardize and aggregate hotels under a single brand. OYO has since grown exponentially, raising over $4 billion from investors like SoftBank, Airbnb, and Sequoia Capital. Ritesh Agarwal is also one of the youngest billionaires in India, with a net worth of Rs. 4,500 crore.
02. Byju Raveendran- ByJu’s
Byju Raveendran is the founder and CEO of BYJU’S, India’s largest edtech company that offers personalized learning programs for students from kindergarten to 12th grade. He started BYJU’S in 2011 as an online platform that provided video lessons for competitive exams like CAT, IAS, and JEE.
He later expanded to offer courses for school students, using gamification and animation to make learning fun and engaging. BYJU’S has over 100 million registered users and 6.5 million paid subscribers, making it one of the most valued edtech startups in the world at $16.5 billion. Byju Raveendran is also a self-made billionaire, with a net worth of Rs. 22,500 crore.
03. Vijay Shekhar Sharma- Paytm
The founder and CEO of Paytm, a fintech company that offers a range of digital payment services such as mobile wallets, UPI, QR codes, bank accounts, cards, loans, insurance, mutual funds, and more. Vijay started Paytm as a mobile recharge platform in 2010, after facing difficulties in paying his bills online.
He then expanded Paytm’s offerings to include various financial products and services that catered to the needs of millions of Indians who lacked access to formal banking channels. Paytm has become one of the largest digital payment platforms in India, with over 450 million users and over 17 million merchants.
04. Bhavish Aggarwal-Ola
The co-founder and CEO of Ola, a mobility platform that connects customers with drivers and offers various transportation options such as cabs, autos, bikes, buses, electric vehicles, etc. Bhavish started Ola as an online cab booking service in 2010, after experiencing a bad ride with a local taxi operator.
He then envisioned a platform that would provide reliable and affordable transportation solutions to millions of commuters across India and beyond. Ola has become one of the leading mobility platforms in the world, with over 250 million users and over 2 million driver-partners.
05. Deepinder Goyal-Zomato
The co-founder and CEO of Zomato, a food delivery and restaurant discovery platform that operates in over 20 countries and serves over 70 million users every month. Deepinder started Zomato as a website that scanned and uploaded restaurant menus online in 2008, after noticing that his colleagues had trouble finding food options near their office.
He then expanded Zomato’s offerings to include online ordering, table reservations, reviews, ratings, subscriptions, etc., creating a comprehensive platform that connects food lovers with food providers. Zomato has become one of the most popular and successful food tech startups in the world, with over 1.5 million restaurants listed on its platform.
06. Girish Mathrubootham – Freshworks
Freshworks, one of the world’s fastest-growing SaaS businesses, was founded by and is led by Girish Mathrubootham. Freshworks provides cloud-based software solutions for customer engagement, employee engagement, and business operations. Freshworks has over 40,000 customers across 120 countries, including brands like Honda, Cisco, Netflix, and Spotify.
Girish started Freshworks in 2010, along with his colleague Shan Krishnasamy, after experiencing a poor customer service incident with a software vendor. He decided to create a software product that would enable businesses to deliver exceptional customer service at an affordable price. Girish’s goal is to make Freshworks the best software company ever.
07. Naveen Tewari – InMobi
One of the biggest mobile advertising networks in the world, InMobi, was founded by Naveen Tewari, who also serves as CEO. Through its network of mobile apps and websites, InMobi provides marketers with the opportunity to connect and interact with more than 1.6 billion users across 190 countries. In 2007, Naveen founded InMobi as the mobile search engine mKhoj with his pals Abhay Singhal, Amit Gupta, and Mohit Saxena.
They later switched to mobile advertising when they saw the potential of the developing smartphone industry. Making InMobi the next significant digital behemoth from India is Naveen’s goal.
08. Nithin Kamath, Zerodha
The founder and CEO of India’s largest online stock broker, Zerodha, Nithin Kamath provides over 5 million users with transparent, affordable trading services. After numerous years of working as a trader and sub-broker, he co-founded Zerodha in 2010 with his brother Nikhil Kamath. He desired to build a system that would democratise investing and make it available to all.
Customers save millions of rupees in costs thanks to Zerodha, which charges no brokerage for equity delivery trades and a flat fee of Rs. 20 for all other deals. Zerodha is successful and self-funded; it has never sought outside funding. With a net worth of Rs. 11,500 crore, Nithin Kamath is also one of the wealthiest self-made businesspeople in India.
09. Falguni Nayar, Nykaa
Falguni Nayar is the founder and CEO of Nykaa, India’s leading online beauty retailer that sells over 3,000 brands of cosmetics, skincare, haircare, wellness, and personal care products. She started Nykaa in 2012 at the age of 50, after quitting her successful career as an investment banker at Kotak Mahindra Bank. She wanted to create a platform that would cater to the beauty needs of Indian women and offer them authentic and curated products at affordable prices.
Nykaa has since grown to become a household name in India’s beauty industry, with over 70 million monthly visitors and 17 physical stores across the country. Nykaa is also valued at over $1.2 billion, making it one of the few unicorn startups led by a woman in India. Falguni Nayar is also one of the richest women entrepreneurs in India, with a net worth of Rs. 5,400 crore.
10. Harshil Mathur, Razorpay
Razorpay, the top fintech firm in India that offers payment solutions to both businesses and people, was co-founded and is led by Harshil Mathur. After having trouble collecting online payments for their prior business, he and his friend Shashank Kumar founded Razorpay in 2014. They intended to develop a platform that would make the payment process easier and more efficient for both clients and merchants.
In addition to a variety of other goods, Razorpay also provides a payment gateway, payment links, payment pages, subscriptions, invoices, UPI, wallets, cards, and net banking. On its platform, Razorpay processes payments from more than 5 million merchants.
FAQs
Q.1-How many startups are there in India 2023?
As of February 2023, India has more than 100 startups. According to Invest India, as of September 2022, India is home to 107 unicorns with a total valuation of $340.79 Bn. The year 2021, 2020, and 2019 saw the birth of the maximum number of Indian unicorns with 44, 11, and 7 unicorns coming each year, respectively.
Q.2- Youngest startup founders in India
Here is a list of some of the youngest startup founders in India:
- Ritesh Agarwal- OYO Rooms, a network of budget hotels, when he was 19 years old in 2013.
- Trishneet Arora- TAC Security, a cyber security company, when he was 19 years old in 2013.
- Shravan and Sanjay Kumaran- GoDimensions, a mobile app development company, when they were 14 and 12 years old respectively in 2012.
- Aman Sharma- Empowerji, a platform that helps senior citizens use technology, when he was 17 years old in 2018.
- Tilak Mehta- Papers N Parcels, a courier service that uses Mumbai’s local trains, when he was 13 years old in 2018.
Q.3-Top 10 female startup founders India
- Falguni Nayar – Nykaa
- Sabina Chopra – Yatra.com
- Suchi Mukherjee – Limeroad
- Richa Kar – Zivame
- Shradha Sharma – YourStory
- Aditi Gupta – Menstrupedia
- Sairee Chahal – Sheroes
- Upasana Taku – MobiKwik
- Divya Gokulnath – Byju’s
- Naiyya Saggi – BabyChakra
Q.4- top startup founders in India?
- Ritesh Agarwal- Oyo rooms
- Byju Raveendran- ByJu’s
- Vijay Shekhar Sharma- Paytm
- Bhavish Aggarwal-Ola
- Deepinder Goyal-Zomato
- Girish Mathrubootham – Freshworks
- Naveen Tewari – InMobi
- Nithin Kamath, Zerodha
- Falguni Nayar, Nykaa
- Harshil Mathur, Razorpay
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