imporoved chatbot

.gitattributes

@@ -33,4 +33,3 @@ saved_model/**/* filter=lfs diff=lfs merge=lfs -text
 *.zip filter=lfs diff=lfs merge=lfs -text
 *.zst filter=lfs diff=lfs merge=lfs -text
 *tfevents* filter=lfs diff=lfs merge=lfs -text
-faiss_store/index.faiss filter=lfs diff=lfs merge=lfs -text

RAG_Solution_FIXED.py

@@ -0,0 +1,92 @@
+import argparse
+from pathlib import Path
+from typing import List
+
+from langchain_text_splitters import RecursiveCharacterTextSplitter
+from langchain_community.vectorstores import FAISS
+from langchain_community.embeddings import SentenceTransformerEmbeddings
+from transformers import AutoTokenizer, AutoModelForSeq2SeqLM, pipeline
+
+DEFAULT_EMBED_MODEL = "sentence-transformers/all-MiniLM-L6-v2"
+DEFAULT_GEN_MODEL = "google/flan-t5-base"
+
+def load_text_files(data_dir: Path, files: List[Path] = None) -> List[str]:
+    texts = []
+    if files:
+        paths = files
+    else:
+        paths = sorted(Path(data_dir).glob("*.txt"))
+    for p in paths:
+        if p.exists() and p.is_file():
+            texts.append(p.read_text(encoding="utf-8", errors="ignore"))
+    if not texts:
+        raise FileNotFoundError(f"No text files found in {Path(data_dir).resolve()} or provided via --files")
+    return texts
+
+def build_chunks(texts: List[str], chunk_size: int = 800, chunk_overlap: int = 120):
+    splitter = RecursiveCharacterTextSplitter(
+        chunk_size=chunk_size, chunk_overlap=chunk_overlap,
+        separators=["\n\n", "\n", " ", ""]
+    )
+    docs = splitter.create_documents(texts)
+    return docs
+
+def build_vectorstore(docs):
+    embeddings = SentenceTransformerEmbeddings(model_name=DEFAULT_EMBED_MODEL)
+    vs = FAISS.from_documents(docs, embeddings)
+    return vs
+
+def make_generator(model_name: str = DEFAULT_GEN_MODEL, device: int = -1):
+    tok = AutoTokenizer.from_pretrained(model_name)
+    mdl = AutoModelForSeq2SeqLM.from_pretrained(model_name)
+    gen = pipeline("text2text-generation", model=mdl, tokenizer=tok, device=device)
+    return gen
+
+def format_prompt(question: str, contexts):
+    context_block = "\n\n".join([d.page_content for d in contexts])
+    return (
+        "You are an expert assistant. Use ONLY the context to answer.\n"
+        "If the answer can't be found in the context, say you don't know.\n\n"
+        f"Context:\n{context_block}\n\n"
+        f"Question: {question}\n"
+        "Answer:"
+    )
+
+def answer_question(vs, generator, question: str, k: int = 4, max_new_tokens: int = 256):
+    contexts = vs.similarity_search(question, k=k)
+    prompt = format_prompt(question, contexts)
+    out = generator(prompt, max_new_tokens=max_new_tokens, do_sample=False)
+    text = out[0]["generated_text"]
+    sources = [d.metadata.get("source", "") for d in contexts]
+    return text, contexts, sources
+
+def main():
+    ap = argparse.ArgumentParser()
+    ap.add_argument("--question", required=True, help="Question to ask the RAG system.")
+    ap.add_argument("--data_dir", default="./data", help="Folder with .txt files.")
+    ap.add_argument("--files", nargs="*", help="Specific files to use (overrides data_dir)")
+    ap.add_argument("--k", type=int, default=4)
+    ap.add_argument("--chunk_size", type=int, default=800)
+    ap.add_argument("--chunk_overlap", type=int, default=120)
+    ap.add_argument("--max_new_tokens", type=int, default=256)
+    args = ap.parse_args()
+
+    data_dir = Path(args.data_dir)
+    file_paths = [Path(f) for f in args.files] if args.files else None
+
+    texts = load_text_files(data_dir, file_paths)
+    docs = build_chunks(texts, chunk_size=args.chunk_size, chunk_overlap=args.chunk_overlap)
+    vs = build_vectorstore(docs)
+    generator = make_generator()
+
+    answer, contexts, sources = answer_question(
+        vs, generator, args.question, k=args.k, max_new_tokens=args.max_new_tokens
+    )
+    print("\n=== Answer ===\n", answer.strip())
+    print("\n=== Top Sources (chunk previews) ===")
+    for i, d in enumerate(contexts, 1):
+        preview = d.page_content[:200].replace("\n", " ")
+        print(f"[{i}] {preview}...")
+
+if __name__ == "__main__":
+    main()

app.py

@@ -1,58 +1,64 @@
-import logging
-from flask import Flask, request, jsonify
-from flask_cors import CORS
-from waitress import serve
-import rag_faiss as rag
-
-# -------------------------------
-# LOGGING CONFIG
-# -------------------------------
-logging.basicConfig(level=logging.INFO)
-logging.getLogger("transformers").setLevel(logging.ERROR)
-logger = logging.getLogger(__name__)
-
-# -------------------------------
-# APP SETUP
-# -------------------------------
-app = Flask(__name__)
-CORS(app)
-
-# -------------------------------
-# INITIALIZE VECTOR STORE (ONCE)
-# -------------------------------
-logger.info("🔹 Initializing Vector Store...")
-vector_store = rag.VectorStore()
-logger.info("✅ Vector Store loaded successfully")
-
-# -------------------------------
-# ROUTES
-# -------------------------------
-@app.route("/", methods=["GET"])
-def root():
-    return "OK", 200
-
-@app.route("/ask", methods=["POST"])
-def ask():
-    data = request.get_json(silent=True)
-
-    if not data or "question" not in data:
-        return jsonify({"error": "Missing question"}), 400
-
-    question = data["question"].strip()
+from fastapi import FastAPI, Request
+from fastapi.middleware.cors import CORSMiddleware
+from pathlib import Path
+import uvicorn
+import RAG_Solution_FIXED as rag  # your existing RAG logic
 
+app = FastAPI(title="GuessBot API", description="RAG Chatbot API for WordPress integration")
+
+# Enable CORS for your WordPress frontend
+app.add_middleware(
+    CORSMiddleware,
+    allow_origins=["*"],  # You can replace * with your site domain for security
+    allow_credentials=True,
+    allow_methods=["*"],
+    allow_headers=["*"],
+)
+
+# --- Load RAG components once at startup ---
+print("--- Initializing RAG Model ---")
+data_dir = Path("./data")
+
+print("[1/4] Loading text files...")
+texts = rag.load_text_files(data_dir)
+print("✅ Texts loaded.")
+
+print("[2/4] Building text chunks...")
+docs = rag.build_chunks(texts)
+print("✅ Chunks ready.")
+
+print("[3/4] Building vector store...")
+vs = rag.build_vectorstore(docs)
+print("✅ Vector store built.")
+
+print("[4/4] Loading generative model...")
+generator = rag.make_generator()
+print("✅ Model ready.")
+
+print("🚀 Model loading complete. API is now live.")
+
+# --- Routes ---
+
+@app.get("/")
+async def root():
+    return {"message": "GuessBot API is running successfully!"}
+
+
+@app.post("/ask")
+async def ask_question(request: Request):
+    """Receives a question and returns an answer."""
+    data = await request.json()
+    question = data.get("question", None)
     if not question:
-        return jsonify({"error": "Question cannot be empty"}), 400
+        return {"error": "Missing question in request body"}
 
     try:
-        answer = rag.answer_question(vector_store, question)
-        return jsonify({"answer": answer})
+        answer, _, _ = rag.answer_question(vs, generator, question)
+        return {"answer": answer.strip()}
     except Exception as e:
-        logger.exception("❌ Error during question answering")
-        return jsonify({"error": "Internal server error"}), 500
+        return {"error": str(e)}
+
 
-# -------------------------------
-# START SERVER
-# -------------------------------
+# --- Entry point for local testing (ignored by HF Spaces) ---
 if __name__ == "__main__":
-    logger.info("🚀 Starting OpenRouter RAG server on 0.0.0.0:7860")
-    serve(app, host="0.0.0.0", port=7860)
+    uvicorn.run(app, host="0.0.0.0", port=7860)

data/Abhishek Podcast intro.txt

@@ -1,132 +0,0 @@
-00:00:00:00 - 00:00:03:07
-Unknown
-we have. Abhishek bhaiya with this. He's from Kullu.
-
-00:00:03:07 - 00:00:04:20
-Unknown
-What is entrepreneurship.
-
-00:00:04:20 - 00:00:17:21
-Unknown
-Entrepreneurship is a ship which you sail to achieve an objective. The objective is to primarily build something y to satisfy an inner quest
-
-00:00:17:21 - 00:00:27:13
-Unknown
-So, growing up in Kullu, I grew up pretty much, in the most beautiful place you can imagine, right? Like, very great weather
-
-00:00:27:13 - 00:00:41:16
-Unknown
-in this process, which we are calling entrepreneurship, this is a process using which this person is attracting resources to create a new reality, which is unimaginable for most people.
-
-00:00:41:16 - 00:00:48:10
-Unknown
-this is the role of institutions that everyone has to take for the students that are coming to them and make them ready for the world.
-
-00:00:48:10 - 00:00:54:02
-Unknown
-people are naming this startups a table. People are naming the startup is something here, something.
-
-00:00:54:02 - 00:01:07:08
-Unknown
-So this a keyword seems to be very popular. So we are helping people conduct interview. And this is what is really popular. Let's make a startup called a interview. So this was our very initial thought process. So once we kind of
-
-00:01:07:08 - 00:01:10:23
-Unknown
-not about just building something that a few users will love.
-
-00:01:11:00 - 00:01:18:12
-Unknown
-Right? It's about building something and having a vision together with it that can scale and provide investor value.
-
-00:01:18:12 - 00:01:21:24
-Unknown
-these founders the students have the idea. They have the drive.
-
-00:01:21:24 - 00:01:24:03
-Unknown
-What do they need? They need resources.
-
-00:01:24:03 - 00:01:41:16
-Unknown
-So that is where the incubator, first of all, exposes you to people who have been there, done it, and they tell you the real perspective. Second, the incubator brings in those resources. Third, they create an opportunity, like piloting for you.
-
-00:01:41:16 - 00:01:48:07
-Unknown
-that when you find such an intersection, right, people are very eager to talk to you. It doesn't take a lot for you to reach your customers.
-
-00:01:48:07 - 00:02:01:04
-Unknown
-do the first venture. And in my course I will make sure you do your first venture. And once you taste blood, once you there's a little bit of money that you can make and you can learn the process of doing this, you will attempt second time
-
-00:02:01:04 - 00:02:06:19
-Unknown
-we actually landed way back to your childhood. And that is where the seeds are sown.
-
-00:02:06:19 - 00:02:07:08
-Unknown
-
-
-00:02:07:08 - 00:02:09:13
-Unknown
-Ten years later, the apple tree is ready.
-
-00:02:09:13 - 00:02:10:17
-Unknown
-an
-
-00:02:10:24 - 00:02:16:15
-Unknown
-orchards take almost ten years to make. So you have to have the mindset that I keep on working on this thing,
-
-00:02:16:22 - 00:02:18:04
-Unknown
-even though it's on the side.
-
-00:02:18:06 - 00:02:21:12
-Unknown
-Right. And we have patience for ten years. Very interesting.
-
-00:02:21:12 - 00:02:23:14
-Unknown
-with the conditions change everything.
-
-00:02:23:14 - 00:02:23:19
-Unknown
-I
-
-00:02:23:19 - 00:02:29:14
-Unknown
-will keep persisting and I do that and then I will get to do something right.
-
-00:02:29:14 - 00:02:40:06
-Unknown
-idea that I also want to start a came again in during the internship. Right. Because I was very much interacting with the founders, and I understood how the founders are thinking and how much big of an impact they're aiming for.
-
-00:02:40:09 - 00:02:53:05
-Unknown
-a student in I.T. Mandi now of course graduated. I know him as my student in 90 Monday who was in this course that we experimented with entrepreneurship practicum.
-
-00:02:53:05 - 00:03:00:17
-Unknown
-And the ventures may not work out. Earlier ventures may not work out, but the entrepreneur is still working. Yeah,
-
-00:03:00:17 - 00:03:18:06
-Unknown
-You have to wait for the right season. You have to build over years. Take care of the plant during rains when the investors money comes down or the industry is not supportive. And then one day, after five years, ten years, the model that you built would become sustainable, profitable is where
-
-00:03:18:06 - 00:03:22:21
-Unknown
-formative years of you as a child. Yeah. This is where you are built.
-
-00:03:22:21 - 00:03:23:21
-Unknown
-Yes.
-
-00:03:23:21 - 00:03:26:20
-Unknown
-This is the circumstances. What do you see?
-
-00:03:27:07 - 00:03:36:07
-Unknown
-What do you observe and how do you relate to them? What meaning do you, interpret? What interpretation do you have of those experiences? Is what builds you
-

data/Adarsh Podcast.txt

@@ -1,249 +0,0 @@
-00:00:00:00 - 00:00:47:01
-Unknown
-Today I have with me on this run. Are you devices? Are you set? Is the. But then, the from, method to connect all these together. But others started about ten years back in 20 moving up and then trading. You started working on a stock at the end of, some vendors and they, they demanded incubated in the site and, left it today for as of medical devices company ahead to take a startup based in then they need to create about all of these in something and, having these examples and then, you listing on the 17th, and the team and then the
-
-00:00:47:01 - 00:00:54:24
-Unknown
-business all across the country, we let them on this for this, conversation. And, you know, this.
-
-00:00:55:01 - 00:01:42:24
-Unknown
-So, as we've been discussing, since we have made this stuff, decisions about making new and taking on devices to this question. One thing that is going to do, a backseat of, under the campus ambassadors across the country will, kind this initiative, I guess in the other devices, any time you have students take the first step and, do it, a couple of us and us, a lot of funding and, you know, maybe leaving the, in the can get that, if they and we also want to do something, but we never know is this technology ought to be the least viable.
-
-00:01:43:10 - 00:02:20:04
-Unknown
-How can I can I think of a nonprofit that they visit with questions that the standards have shown and suggested the podcast. We are trying to bring students closer to the entrepreneurs. And, you know, I'm super excited. And as you mentioned, one of the reasons to at least for this interaction, it was more to do that is so for this conversation, I feel that we need to obtain, the reality of needing a startup close to this business so that they can bring in themselves in a custom shop and.
-
-00:02:20:05 - 00:02:45:11
-Unknown
-Okay, so let us get started. With this, we want to first of all understand how this what does it differ for the, we've done about the, equipment that we have? The, what do you think? Over the last ten years, we're discussing business other than that, technology and and, but most importantly, that I wanted to go back in 2014 and let us do that.
-
-00:02:45:13 - 00:03:17:13
-Unknown
-And it's in the last ten years. So tell us a little about this stuff. Yeah. So around 70% of the deaths in India have because of non-communicable diseases, including participants and diseases, diabetes, hypertension, cancer. In that many UK cardiologists this cardiovascular diseases that contributes to a 32% of it's a 2.5 million time. The patient does not know that he has fallen.
-
-00:03:17:15 - 00:03:51:12
-Unknown
-Okay, so our aim is to make sure the monitoring and screening or detection of these diseases happens as easy as using the smartphone, right. But at the screening side as well as I do, more taxing. Okay. There. So you know, automation and how we do that is firstly started with the if you go to Cisco telescope has been there for about 400 years, not trying to change the past techniques.
-
-00:03:51:14 - 00:04:20:03
-Unknown
-And on the other side, we have also here, you know, the, you know, in technology today, enforcing other things which are not tremendous or anything, but still, doctors were relying on the word militancy, and we did not do much expanded all the technology. That must mention the most important question and topic to listen to the medicines. Yeah, Covid is, yeah, the process.
-
-00:04:20:03 - 00:04:43:17
-Unknown
-So this is a physical current. And typically you cannot see this against the physical current. And this is how you get it kind of. And I'm not that kind of doctor. But I get to you know, that this kind of and that it was done. Okay. So there is a on off button. We don't have control person.
-
-00:04:43:19 - 00:05:08:13
-Unknown
-And yet this is a one in particular because this is evolving. But yeah. Yeah. And how you can increase the quality control. And this is for us. Yeah. But it will be, you know, to think, okay, this video, this you know, no, this is not on the same number two. Can you show me to this time?
-
-00:05:08:15 - 00:05:25:23
-Unknown
-Yeah. Actually, you, very. You must come up now. I can be okay. Okay, so let me put it here. Now.
-
-00:05:26:00 - 00:05:31:08
-Unknown
-I don't know, okay.
-
-00:05:31:10 - 00:05:57:18
-Unknown
-Okay. I know this is, the records, so you got me. So that is the life you may not know. Please just, you know, and that's you listening to the manual. The other thing is that kind of personal data to way to look book the designer who can record it or share the building, or you can put algorithm to identify a saw or also.
-
-00:05:57:20 - 00:06:30:06
-Unknown
-Okay so with the algorithms. So usually the IQ sound which doctors listen to and then will sort of blindly seeing whether there's something wrong. And I'll put the volume in this okay. Okay. So that can be helpful in. So in one diagnosis in setting this you know it's okay. It's okay. Maybe I'm saying in that case, like the specialist in the book, but it's here, for example, of kind of this.
-
-00:06:30:08 - 00:06:58:08
-Unknown
-We have a to 6000 characteristics okay. But in many cases 80,000. Christopher patient. And record officer being able to pick it kind of this thing so our technology can reach all the places. And you might say this is used by the physician at the time and in this story by the nurses and, and they were able to record the songs and they can show from all this, kind of this or even thinking about that when we were to find out what it is.
-
-00:06:58:09 - 00:07:22:03
-Unknown
-Okay. So the reach of access of history is what we had, you know, compared to and not just for someone, but also diseases like COPD. So third, music was ready for the folk, but people don't, you know, not available. So what kind of is interview did that with the needy? You know, sound of the heartbeat.
-
-00:07:22:05 - 00:07:50:12
-Unknown
-So what is this game. Yeah. So in general doctors now what they want to do when we see the band maybe take the song in connection with the establishment, the other symptoms are. So they knew the completeness of these heart. So and long songs and in heart. So if there is a positive, there will be a murmur which they call them increased number of assault.
-
-00:07:50:14 - 00:08:19:16
-Unknown
-If there is an opportunity, they really look like a new song, like the snow, the stone of the you know, the rhythm is going to something happening and that is a normal heart. So what it looks like and in that we knew this is related to congenital heart disease, it will give indication that your commanders are resistant. And I begin to go for a confirmatory because it doesn't really hope this will help us keep the Bishop of the boy.
-
-00:08:19:16 - 00:08:52:00
-Unknown
-What do you say, about pneumonia, then? That's what the two predict. How long this is is below normal lungs. Which doctor sticks in the place? It on the whole different part other than heart. Sure. So that all the new diseases that screen that. Interesting. So all of you how many is the disturbing story. Yeah. So more than 20 ministry actually across India not acknowledging the spring, not on the 2019.
-
-00:08:52:00 - 00:09:22:02
-Unknown
-We started countries and territories and companies in 2020 when Covid was at peak, we lost for the part of the doctors. So for doctors when these from 2019 2020. Yeah. So in the last five years is only 11,000 kind of pieces, about 2000, pieces and. Yeah. Okay. Who? Islamic diamond. I believe it is like this, but, I would say physicians, pediatricians.
-
-00:09:22:04 - 00:09:44:21
-Unknown
-Oh. And, you know, for them there, you know, I would say habituated to listen to songs and they know from us all those who are good producers, they will be voting on this simple echo or by hugging the best from there said they do, cannot be singing and they will not have to send the patient anything.
-
-00:09:44:23 - 00:10:12:07
-Unknown
-So these things, these doctors, they use their hearing ability along with milk, you know, used to get him to lay and compose on the condition of the patient condition. And, maybe it's kinks, who, you know, purchase his first innings. Yeah, I think so. But us within thinking all of this. So when you listen, if you I back in 2014.
-
-00:10:12:11 - 00:10:39:22
-Unknown
-So 2014 was the not exactly the pandemic started from the 14 I got into this end up heartbreaking. So but it is biomedical engineering technology innovation okay. So navigating be under professor binary again the question is saying how can engineering who does not know. You risk of have probably something right. So you've got I mean institution was okay.
-
-00:10:39:23 - 00:11:09:22
-Unknown
-Yeah I think infected and then do that I didn't know in Karnataka okay. But other media. Yeah. And I was I would say looking in the environment and that's when this hackathon, which was happening at the moment, kind of innovative, the aim of the hackathon was to give them hope to more developing the medical product, but also the aim of that.
-
-00:11:09:24 - 00:11:37:01
-Unknown
-So we then, us, we would find in the time as it has a couple of minutes and then three of the, participants formed a team and we were involved in the technical for five days. Okay, so don't tell me that this is honest to this, from away from the company. Yeah, to do that. So you have to comment on it could flow like this.
-
-00:11:37:01 - 00:12:00:22
-Unknown
-Yeah. You would like that. Involve is the medical center correct. And, you met Professor Somebody that was not the company yet adopted the medical medical and met him and then, okay. So that was also that was fine before that. We know that, you know, so it was a lot of, you know, suppression for a mix.
-
-00:12:01:09 - 00:12:22:11
-Unknown
-There was this thing called PDX that was a on it, I said, and I think it was the media. So there was a form. I mean, there when we were doing a post on electric interfaces. So in that process, since I was in place, we thought of, you know, making and, finally do some.
-
-00:12:22:14 - 00:12:59:23
-Unknown
-So the 700 and we wanted to bring Harvey products into one of the which in the last two weeks. His question with us today, okay, you know, I don't know, you know, usually hundreds of students, they only have one skin color. They didn't have the that stuff in the number, like the comics in the case. They didn't know anything about it and that this is, for them, like the for you, and the team comes together and uses independent other than anyone except for a student question whether they find the, the environmental content or any name.
-
-00:12:59:23 - 00:13:23:16
-Unknown
-The version is certainly what? And I think I have an idea. And you have all the technological promise. And I think we made it to the beginning with the product company. So the answer to that question, they don't let the students is in the fight. Part of the minister's in the fight with other people, other students, friend. In this case, I just found, of the not without any published and, the instructions and so on.
-
-00:13:23:16 - 00:13:48:22
-Unknown
-If I can, for example, when I talk about the company reduced in subsequent, you know, you know, startup. So I, you know, one example of, of. Okay. Thank you again. Controversy. And, I think, you know, we can agree maybe Commissioner me of quality of the first. Yeah. But, my question I ask is, let's say through I would be very hard.
-
-00:13:48:24 - 00:14:24:08
-Unknown
-Nevertheless, I thank you Mr.. Yeah. And the other thing not as categories of massacre do do you understand them engineering. Yeah. Question is will be right for sure for the safety because of that. When you think of another the numerous many many people means business. Yeah. So are you going to like you say someone from being. So if you are not able to get completely increased incentive for the people of the company, and how do you find the people founders of the you know, that is going to be the question.
-
-00:14:24:10 - 00:14:45:12
-Unknown
-That was it. This is our plan. Just going to get this thing back and, and define, so you, you know, did you plan that this would happen like we go to love medical, you know, medic at the time of his death. Yeah. So let's take this story. So, I come from a very small town in the southern part of Connecticut.
-
-00:14:45:14 - 00:15:11:11
-Unknown
-Places, known for coffee. So take a moment. Is a district name. So in that name. But there was a nurse. And all the way to England I spent in know Australia. So I had, in front of my house on the one side, I could see House of a doctor, and, my mother wanted me to get out of here, but, this doctor was the second operator for most of them I had seen.
-
-00:15:11:11 - 00:15:35:08
-Unknown
-The pharmacy was facing it. So were patients. You know, come from far places, like for you to see you. You want to thank me? So there you go. There from there to me. When? At night. I thought if I become a doctor, this is my case, that that's what it's like to talk about that and maybe different. And I was just like that, but I, it seemed to kind of go back to get noted.
-
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-Doctor. Doctor because they have, you know, just kind of thinking about it. So that was the backstory that entire time researching about, you know, I can do something then to showed me a documentary in winter and, you know, sort of building medical devices. That was a starting point that no one can be an engineer and also connected to the medical field.
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-And we try to understand more and try to lead small. You see the project, you know, audio and very simple stuff using your blueprint like a you saw in a project. Yeah. Not of any significant accuracy of any significant value. Just somebody that finally came from all these activities happening. Like that's when we applied for it and it was almost like, you know, I would say kind of bartering everything together.
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-And so we went there together and hoping to learn how to do this. Today we just know how to make some electronics, like it's not you don't want to. And, and after we got the framework of the facility and the completion that define develop that you were better the frameworks for delivering medical products in the end define you develop them.
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-Now, you know, different. So starting from defining the problem statement, understanding the same word of understanding of the invoice, starting with that, we were talking hopefully one day yeah that's when the knowledge to developing became richer. And we have major proof of concept of the product. And then they joined together and then the rest of the product. But when you're really talking, there's 1000 people are going to be able to do.
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-So. What I did is, childhood you had some memories say, you wanted to escape becoming a doctor. You had a friend, he showed you a documentary, Universal Studios. And then they said, okay. And then there was a hackathon, and, and then there was like. And then the baby. I love this. So the question, the question is, how many 97 people have an idea that they would never think, can I have to say something like this?
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-And others, like, I think I am fascinated by a whole different people. Different, hey, can I also do it? I had an idea. What? I really know what I can think, so what an asshole can do some sort of thought about this before and this one commonly benefited out in society that you would you have some memories. You have some experiences.
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-You have something that gives you something that inspires you, you know, in a sense of belonging or attracts you, even if it makes this, and sense, and whatever is around you. And of course, what, what is becoming a better do this technology of, you know, you you often have to think all of that is, creating wonderful opportunity for students today to identify problems.
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-So this is, be observant, thoughtful people, see what is around you and the.
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data/Anybody Can Start Up.txt

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-
-Anybody Can Start Up: The New Era of Student Entrepreneurs
-
-Devanshi Thakur
-
-    June 2, 2025	
-
-Students of the 21st century are hustlers. They’re not only wearing the academic hat but have widened their horizon by wearing the entrepreneurial hat too. The GUESSS 2023 Survey Report shows that 38% students are balancing their roles as a student as well as an entrepreneur by working on a startup. But this raises the question: what has changed in the recent years that is now enabling students to startup while studying?
-
-The answer lies in the transformation of our universities into entrepreneurial  universities. Today Indian universities are putting together an ecosystem that creates innovators and fosters entrepreneurial skills. The government of India has been instrumental in initiating this revolution through New Education Policy (NEP) and National Innovation and Startup Policy (NISP). The current university ecosystem in India boasts of Institute Innovation Councils (IICs) set up in across 7,400 institutions, with over 2950 incubators and nearly 7500 pre-incubation centers. These numbers are a testament to the thriving entrepreneurial university ecosystem in India. The GUESSS india report show that 63% of student-led startups reported that they received support from their universities for their entrepreneurial journeys. Further, Indian students rate their University Entrepreneurial Climate higher than the global average as per the same report.  
-
-So, how does a university offer support to student startups? Here are some examples from my experience at the Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur: 
-
-• Most universities today have set up incubators, research parks and accelerators  to support and guide student startups. By providing key resources like seed  funding, working space, legal support, industry mentorship, and networking  opportunities; universities are giving a one-stop solution for students to start  their entrepreneurial journeys. IIT Kharagpur campus itself has four incubators in its campus that are supporting hundreds of startups and are easily accessible to all students. There are accelerator programs to train student entrepreneurs and make their startup ideas them market ready. 
-
-• Various student led groups like entrepreneurship cells and innovation cells are  key in creating a culture of entrepreneurial thinking. By organizing activities like  hackathons & and business ideation competitions, investor meets and 
-
-entrepreneurship summits, they ignite students’ entrepreneurial spirit. For  instance, the Innovation and Incubation Cell (IIC) at IIT Kharagpur is helping students connect with the alumni network of entrepreneurs and bridging the gaps between students and entrepreneurial resources through various opportunities and events. 
-
-• Universities are also strengthening research and development for innovation and  entrepreneurship. By encouraging more innovative research and assisting in  patenting and commercialization of research, universities are also fostering the entrepreneurial spirit of PhD students. IIT Kharagpur has a dedicated department  for entrepreneurship – Rajendra Mishra School of Engineering Entrepreneurship that offers programs in entrepreneurship, and integrates academia and practice of entrepreneurship. 
-
-If you are an entrepreneur, your time is now this is your call for action!
-
-Entrepreneurship isn’t about where you come from anymore; it’s about what you do  now. There has never been a better time for students to start-up. The entire Indian  university ecosystem is set up to support students’ dream ventures. The risks are lower, the resources are greater, and the barriers to entry have crumbled. The question is no longer whether students can startup; it is – when they will. The students should identify real problems, build their skills by taking up entrepreneurship courses, participate in entrepreneurial activities, and engage in hands-on projects. 
-
-This is the time to leverage the university incubators, professors, mentors, and student networks. Surround yourself with diverse, driven people, and don’t be afraid to start small – launch, test, fail, adapt, and repeat. Most importantly, take action today – whether it’s pitching an idea, reaching out to a mentor, or starting a side project. Your  entrepreneurial journey begins the moment you decide to make it happen. And your university has got your back!
-

data/E1.txt

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-NEW YOUTUBE SOURCE: Excerpts from the transcript of the video "IIT Bombay to Founding Adapt Ideations & Brokenatom  
-hello everyone and welcome to the guest India cloud experts and entrepreneurs dialogue series i am Dr apan Naro and on behalf of guest India I am talking to you about yet another entrepreneur a young entrepreneur somebody who started up as a student so today we navigate with Prashant Darat the various questions at the heart of student entrepreneurship let me introduce Prashant to you our guest for today prashant was formally um I mean Prashant started off as a student at IIT Bombay and uh took all the courses from the first batch of the Desaieti school of entrepreneurship and from then I have seen Prashant very closely constantly in entrepreneurial mode if I may call it so um and because I've had this opportunity to witness his journey so closely I thought uh we should explore what went on when Prashant started up so welcome Prashant thank you so much for joining us today thanks for having me ma'am yes I'm glad to be part of this series fantastic thank you so much so Prashant uh I know you were a former co-founder of a robotics company and then a co-founder of Adapt Ideations which was a futuristic IoT devices company you worked very closely during COVID for um this project um and you are now on to yet another exciting journey so talk to us about the about your journey first and then we'll take it from there yes so uh thank you once again ma'am i'm glad to be part of this series i started as a a student entrepreneur but let's not call it a student entrepreneur i'm glad that I gave the opportunity to do two electives out of the department so I said uh which which are these two courses that I would do and get away easily that's how it started uh for me but then what has happened is as I started exploring into the entrepreneurship with these courses the first one being uh technology venture creation right so we are only this side of technology and then venture creation has given it it's kind of a simulation on how the venture can scale in in the sheets I think um professors did a really wonderful job including you ma'am in that course uh back in 2015 16 so that's where it started what what it gave is it doesn't stop at technology but there is more to it to convert it as an enterprise and uh that was the triggering
-point that okay let's take this as serious uh thing rather than going for conventional placements and all and uh that's where the journey has begun so I um along with um a senior u immediate senior from IIT Bombay and with a batchmate we started um a robotics company and initially to solve the problem of uh uh IED devices inside the land inside in light affected areas in the country that's how it started so how do we scan the area and say that you know this area is out of this out of danger and it is good to explore for our CRPF and Javans that's how it started and uh we um I Bombay uh center for entrepreneurship and um all of all of these entities helped us with initially the fund office and all of that uh to build this robot that can crawl that that navigates um yeah so what has happened is while doing that journey and the help helped us to build a proof of concept then the CRPF was interested so what uh what has happened is we the the cycles that we were going and building was too quick to build it as a scalable product and hence we said okay let's uh then I said you know this is not the mindset we would build a company with then I said okay uh to my other co-founders that you know I would want to leave and start something where uh where we can sell the product quickly because robot is it had it was it was a big platform a moving platform then 6 do robotic arm so they said I came out uh then partnered with uh one more uh um um batchmate uh to form this company called adapt ideations um to solve the problem of uh wastages happening in gold chain logistics and pharma industry so and this this wastage is not only in pharma but this wastage is in the food sector also everything started with the problem statement that about onethird of uh pharma that is produced and uh 1/4 of food that is produced gets wasted simply thrown out the reason being uh these the food that is stored uh is not monitored right there is no alerts that says that hey the food is stored here and nobody it's not put in right temperature right conditions and as as a result the food gets get wasted in couple of hours of time so and in pharma you cannot put vaccine um outside uh temperature ranges for not more than an hour and the efficacy is si
-mply low you'll feel that the vaccine got administered but there are no effects to it because vaccine in itself is a microorganism out there and it would die at other temperature so um that was the problem statement we uh worked with um uh ma'am is that fine i'm going little in detail no no no this is this is completely about this no problem please continue yeah yeah so the problems that was the problem statement then we started working on a solution and we said okay there should be an IoT connected device uh that would monitor the stationary uh cold rooms then monitor the vaccine in transit then monitor vaccine in distribution and everything and then all of this would send data to the cloud we would build an intelligent layer uh in the cloud and it would send notifications alerts and many a times pre-alert saying that hey here is how your distribution going on here are the roots right so and we got the solution out there um then what has happened is covid hit then we said okay everything is going down let's um we said let's let's only survive let's see what would happen okay So um I told my team guys you know I could only pay half or less than that if it is okay let's continue if it is not uh then you know that is how it is you know that's why the situation is fortunate that most of my team remained um uh intact so prior to co uh I happened to travel to Australia a couple of times work with a major uh supply chain company over there trying to understand this problem in detail so uh once we have the problem once when when when we were putting the solution together I traveled extensively met at least 50 customers what are the older products that are currently used and where the technology is going right now how can we solve so the current products that are being used is they use a offline monitoring recorder that would say that this vaccine has come in so and so temperature Instead of that you know we we said why don't we build an intelligent device that would send data always connected and all so during co you were building the product or did you have any prototype ready we had couple of versions precoid already all right all right yes yes so we did the product was already there we could have gone for mass prod
-uction but the co hit we stopped it there so extensive uh customer visits only gave then we listed all the functionalities okay here are these kinds of customers these needs the these functionality so we used to do it on big uh uh A2 A3 size papers and then map the functionality and say that okay here is our product going to look like and we built the product then the COVID hit and um and then what has happened is uh the the major logistics jo giant in D uh in Australia uh said that we partnered with government of Australia to distribute vaccine across the continent and then and then D um and then um New Zealand government also said the same thing so they asked us you will be our monitoring partners across the supply chain um so these countries Australia and New Zealand were importing vaccine from from different country uh and then the vaccine was stored in one major hub in um uh in Australia and from there the distribution would start and that is where we start monitoring the vaccine and um but we got the order but it means preparation met opportunity your timing must have been very strong was very strong yeah the timing was very strong we played completely in our um favor yeah uh yeah but what has happened is um uh the chip market has completely went down so the the chips that we used in our designs were no more available and my team was put in various parts of the country so um it it was impossible to pull that order we got a major u uh major order from this uh logistics giant but then how do we um how do we fulfill the order that was the question we had so yeah so luckily you know the team was so supportive um I'm I'm fortunate to have built that team again uh you know thanks to because building the team the emphasis came from uh my uh lectures at um my classes at school of entrepreneurship of uh you used to always ask where is your team you know are you lone team member why don't you find a team so we fortunate that we built that team and then the team was intact so we said okay let's build a new product with what is available in the market so I'm here I'm here yes yes so we uh we said okay we we scrapped everything we had we had done like six seven iterations by then we said let's scrap everything um soft
-ware is software was easy to scrap and rebuild so we said okay all the firmware code all the I think 18 to 24 months of testing and development we scrapped everything and then we kind of built everything in next two weeks of time and you have only two weeks so um and um between uh the two covid covids there was some gap so I asked everybody to come to Hyderabad one city and then we said let's go to office in the morning us because that's when the there was a you can move around the city so we would go to office build a product entirely in two weeks of time and then we sent out designs for manufacturing and um that's how we kind of fulfilled that order and um you know that triggered a major investment uh into the company and that triggered a geographical we were then only you know we were we had an office in Australia then then that triggered a office in uh um um um US Atlanta uh we we were triing with a lot of customers over there right and um yeah so yeah that was the journey and then uh then my board said you know we need somebody who's experienced to run the company and then I said well that is good then the thought was the thought that was inside my mind was okay how what should I do so that you know pay was not the problem what should I do so that I would create 100 million value in next two years of time so that would not come if I if I join some other company uh if I go and work in US right so I would be working for somebody in right so that's when uh my current co-founder Ash said okay there is a problem statement uh if played well uh we can revolutionize the software development uh way um how we can quickly bring up the applications out there so and then uh I kind of fell in line because while I was building my previous uh product the cycles of development has impacted a lot so the the entire thought was how to bring um prototypes and POC's to faster deployable code scalable code right scalable products and that was the thought we start started with once again I start restarted everything from zero and uh in again again then when you restart there is no guarantee that your product would be hit in the first go right it together product new industry you have to understand the problem problem statement
-people and all of that so in here also we are going through multiple cycles once again that's how we started broken atom right recover covered most of it man right right so um Prashant u one uh question because you are one person who started up as a student and then you continue to be in startup mode again meaning I'll use the same uh phrase in the sense that you you now know how you want to build from a scratch and you can build from a concept to to uh scale and then you have the strength and uh the capability to take a call when you need to exit and then also make a new effort correct yes so Prashant uh tell us about the key drivers for your decisions meaning you uh when we look at the guest survey for example one of the findings was that most of the stu most of the students excuse me most of the students expect to take up employment first and then go into entrepreneurship almost uh 38% if my numbers uh serve my memory serves me right are interested in starting up but they want to do it after 5 years of employment in your it was you have decided consciously not to take up employment um tell us about these the key drivers for this decision um yes so entrepreneurship started for me as a you know exploratory act act activity as first um I used to always think that you know so many smart um ITNs uh or nits major institute graduate PhDs graduate and I used to always think where are all they going okay so um then I felt okay once you are out of IIT you would work for couple of years um or we go for masters do it two year master cycle over there um or you work couple of years in India and uh you get married and you fall into the cycle of life and you're not free until you are 40 or 45 until your kid leaves your home right uh that was one one thought uh and second my sister and family lives in US and uh I was looking at the seniors from my college um what happens is when you go for masters you need to retain your visa over there so you fe you'll have to keep trapped yourself for every twoear cycle you know someone has to sponsor you you have to work very well for them right I would otherwise no one would want you to be there right so and then you fall in that trap and I mean there's good trap of course there's good
-standard of living over there good life and in fact it here also you get paid well and then you get married and it's a it's a it's a trap in a way I mean this it's a good trap to have right so in both ways it is same I mean you you fall into the cycle of life so the thought was when is the time to explore and learn fast and do things quickly right so that is as soon as you graduate because the moment you go for masters uh if you're uh then you'll have to take a loan or there is a financial burden there is a comparison right um or you go for a job then you always compare your salary with your friend salary or next job better job so I said okay the right time to explore is now couple of years now and uh right time to do understand fasten your cycle is now and then as I started that I as I started entrepreneurship then I realized okay let's look at the list of entrepreneurs and what it took them to make an impact in the market so let's not look at um few people who had made an impact in very few years of time they started entrepreneurship but the average um average uh span they make an impact is no less than a decade I mean you would right I mean half a decade for sure right so half a decade for any startup to have it any name on the market so so well when I started I figured out how to survive first right you by doing entrepreneurship you can survive too so once I've survived okay how would I build the consistency and build the company and then you know reach that time where I make the impact so yeah so so you a first generation entrepreneur right yeah I'm a first generation entrepreneur in my family what was your family outlook like towards this kind of a decision it must have been disruptive circle at least so I made some rules yeah definitely i come from a farming uh family um so we said because I made some rules like I would not take a penny from home so that would stop half a half a noise coming from there and whenever I can I'll contribute back home so that would stop most of it right uh so and then they were always saying why don't you take up a job and all I said you know um how does it matter I I started to earn after two years of my entrepreneurship journey so that two years was where I said I'll not ta
-ke money from home and yeah so they were supportive initially they were suggesting me and uh given that you know nobody is as educated as I was in the family i mean yeah so immediate family was fairly educated but I think they were okay for me to try couple of years but in that time I figured out a way to make money and so yeah that's right that's right my father want me to do government job though yet right exactly exactly so navigating through that is uh is not easy especially family expectations so you did have a conversation with yourself right to identify how you want to navigate through the family pressure about your decision right tell us about the so uh I mean that was so much uh to unpack in whatever you shared so far um three companies broken atom is the third company right um you have also shared how you got into an entrepreneurship course and option the option was that it'll help me get off easily so today as you look back on your journey are there any regrets do you think you would have done things differently anything there there are no regrets as such uh ma'am um right now there are no regrets in the journey i would say it's been like 9 8 n years since I graduated but I uh unpack I feel that I've gained the knowledge of 30 years uh working in India navigating navigating through various parts of the country um so there are no regrets i know how would how a Delhiite would uh behave how would Mumbai behave how a South Indian behave um in a team culture I mean in a when you are talking to uh people from who who do you who customers who want to genuinely support you customers who uh want to squeeze as much as out of you so I could unpack um learn all that experience a conventional person a MBA graduate would learn in 10 12 years of their career post all these so that way learning wise um I have no regrets at all in terms of money I guess I made what more than what I my friends could make so there are no regrets that way as well yeah absolutely absolutely so that is great so Prashant let me give you another statistic from the guest survey okay so one one of the findings was that 4.8% of the students who responded to our survey are already running a business venture the global figure for this is 11% oka
-y uh what do you think should Sorry ma'am can I get the question once again yes yes so the guest uh in the guest survey the students who responded to us we found that 4.8% of these students are already running their own business ventures right 4 4.8% 8% of the students right we got students from across the country right now now the global average of student entrepreneurship is 11% okay how what do you think should be done to improve this number the percentage of students entering entrepreneurship as a student first of all do you think it should be a goal that we encourage more and more students to take up entrepreneurship secondly what can change yeah so how I'm looking at that ma'am is introduction to entrepreneurship um for me was done by choice right but imagine introduction to entrepreneurship was done by force just a pun but yeah so I think it should be done like early um early in um graduate schools uh by not by choice but by you know we do we do introduction to humanities we do introduction to biosciences why not introduction to entrepreneurship right that would so what will happen is I took uh introduction to entrepreneurship by choice you know when you say by choice I think 10 20% of people would only want to you know look at that right and then I did it my third I in third year second semester also um or early fourth year so um so it came out as a lot of one it came out as a choice right and it came in the third or fourth year of my bachelors and then it came out of multiple options that I have you know I could go for an MBA I could go for uh a um job or I could go for masters or PhD right uh so but what if this is made as a a compulsory course in uh um in all the graduate schools right and to be done in you know second year or later second year I I don't know I don't know when is the right time but then what would happen is um the thinking would change for a lot of students the number would sharply rise you know if what if there was a course on registering a company doing transactions right handling customers making Excel sheets right filing GST and then how to run a basic company so I think that numbers will not I can't say it will double but quadruple uh if these activities are done that's right th
-at's right because it's you know it it it'll not it's a theor can be a theoretical course where students or you know for me I used to we used to do MA like MA courses and we are second order differential equation courses somebody who's doing all these um introduction to entrepreneurship should be an easy course right you know there can be case studies there can be so what would happen is that would take away all the fear of starting up um and entrepreneurs can you know students can be entrepreneurs while doing their bachelors and um and can get out much more confident um that's how I believe yeah right right so Brandant since you mentioned the course introduction to entrepreneurship in your case the person who took it was an entrepreneur himself somebody who'been there done that and when you heard straight from the horse's mouths so to say there is a certain impact uh how would students accept it from an academician somebody who's an educator and who's interested in entrepreneurship of course and taking this course teaching this course would students be as accepting as lessons from an entrepreneur directly i think um there has to be a strong attractor to uh these courses initially um because uh um it it it happens by crowd itself you know when you know when I was uh there used to come seniors who would be like I keep seeing uh the post from uh uh LinkedIn that you know Bavi Shagarwal went to IIT Bombay and then the lecture hall is full of students so yeah what would happen is initially it it can't be the entrepreneurs teaching these courses because their learning will be only limited to some sectors there has to academicians has to come uh put out case studies and put out a theoretical plan because they are the researchers behind all these entrepreneurs so it has to be a combination a combination well curated so that you pull the crowd initially that's how I'm looking it interesting very interesting uh what else would you add to this uh formula of classroom classroom course on entrepreneurship do you think factors like mentoring funding team formation incubation will they uh play a role at such an early stage yeah so in my case all the credit goes to goes to uh the city center for entrepreneurship all like you
-were there I met you over there and all the credit goes to the staff over there the city center um so no doubt um there was a layer protecting us there was a layer curating environment uh that would um bring out the crazy thoughts in our brains and validate and you know so the incubation centers entrepreneurship schools definitely play a much much bigger role when I when I think right and uh because you need to have somebody who would listen to your crazy ideas right you know otherwise they are only then they only remain crazy ideas so So me and my friend um from bachelors we had we were working on an idea similar to practto back in 2014 so uh and we went to uh sign center for entrepreneurship and then we said can we do it and they said why not you know you guys just come down we will help you in registering the company we'll help you unfortunately we did not perceive that idea but what I'm saying is uh you know whenever we meet we always ask oursel oh we should have done that right okay so that's it yeah I think they play a major role because um students are like often um are clueless correct correct so at an institutional uh so let let's uh close this one segment about your student entrepreneurship what pitfalls do students face when they have all these ideas that you were talking about what is it that stops them from taking that one step in experimenting or starting up i think uh it's it's to do more with uh competition within friends competition within departments of uh securing a job securing uh uh securing a seat in masters um all right so um they are competing uh to do what is next best thing amongst friends so the entire thought process of dealing with uncertaintity is not taught anywhere right i think that I think that plays a major role correct correct that plays a big role right yes that's such a strong insight prashant you in your first venture that you were experimenting with you were doing it as a part of your course you mentioned right technology venture creation yes so you got in touch with the defense you said the CRPF came in and all how did you manage that being a student so we were a team of uh then we were a team of four people uh one of us on the communication side uh working with IIT Bom
-bay had made the introduction through their um I think there's a center called uh um center for which which connects to the industry and industrial bodies okay so they made the introduction and uh we met the defense uh they work with defense yes they work with defense as well so they made the introduction and then uh uh then CRPF had an open problem statement of somebody solving this and we said we would want to do something in robotics and why don't we pick this as problem statement so correct so let's go to the next part uh here what kind of uh so the next segment will be related to institutional level or policy level interventions that Yeah so what kind of interventions do you think will bridge this gap which will and encourage more students to explore entrepreneurship yeah so first the point number one should be um um should we should the the the educational institutes institutions should introduce entrepreneurship and that is not happening like you know that is happening as a choice now you have bunch of 100 courses to take you pick one or two and then the chances are you know two three percentage so right um the introduction can happen much earlier um the second one is um I don't know how this is to be done but you know the students mindset should be changed in such a way that it is okay to have a couple of years of your life to be in exploratory life you know postgraduation right um you know when I look at the history and statistics of my the people that I know right it's not that everybody who has gone for PhD in a um you know ranked number one university had done you know so great a job right so um there is no standard formula so the standard formula can be somehow I don't know you know teaching students that they can explore things uh a year or two postgraduation trying to solve some problem statements right so um that has to be brought down that that would be my second point okay yeah third yeah i think I think these are the two points uh somehow yes sorry it's complete somehow if these two things um gets uh into the students mind early it would be yeah number of entrepreneurs coming out can be quadrupled correct correct correct so there is uh yet another guess finding that I would like to share with
-you according According to this report 63% of student entrepreneurs have access to university support for developing ventures but only 26% of these student ventures get incubation uh what are the gaps that you have observed in the incubation ecosystems in educational institutions yeah so there are I mean in fact this comes from experience itself um the incubation ecosystem has to um own the entrepreneurship entrepreneurs in the early stage like sometimes what would happen is um for example um um like in in in in IIT the I think there was a the ecosystem was definitely there you have to apply for um you have to apply for some schemes so that you know they would put some money um uh there has to be a groundwork that has to be done uh right um then present it to the committee and then uh so what would happen is all of this is done as a all of this has to be done as an extra activity apart from your academics correct exactly from my from my experience um academics was too intensive uh at at IIT Bombay uh it was quite consuming uh then you have extracurriculars then you have friends right so when all of us has to be part of your life over there and uh then you have to do entrepreneurship that means you have to pull all together one or two courses apart from what you're doing right so um one incentive for the students could be you know just like there was an elective for me that enabled me to to take a course on entrepreneurship Uh there can be electives that says that hey you work on an entrepreneurship idea equivalent to some quotes equivalent to some credits and credit credits come together for a degree right so that can be an so students literally going to these entrepreneurship buildings and then sitting there and working um trying building a cult out of entrepreneurship uh can be one incentive for students right so that they're at least visiting they're trying to do something just like I would visit um lecture halls for my lectures but they are just lecture halls so but what if lot of teams working over there in dedicated buildings and and these are considered in the grading system in the point and then these are attached to uh I mean these schools are attached to incubation centers and then right if if there
-is a if there is a journey that can be curated correct that that would help a lot I guess a pathway within the institution as a pathway within the institution a fail safe entrepreneurial journey yes right right now all of that is coming out of a narrow choice to you Right right so you mentioned I Bombay and definitely facilities at IIT Bombay meaning resources uh is not a constraint in that in IITB but what about tier 2 and tier three cities or what about institutions within Mumbai who do not have access to the same kind of ecosystem support what they will really have to pull out budgets and build on this what is the for them to take it forward for universities or institutions i think in that would come as a major um educational policy change uh uh uh where uh these institutes should be incentivized in some way through grading so I see that these institutions get graded on some metrics but why shouldn't that metric be entrepreneurship as a major metric right uh that would change the economy I I I some way so um yes yes yes true so what about the private sector Brashant we've spoken about the educational sector Uh sorry ma'am I missed something yeah yes no no no problem we spoke about the educational sector we spoke about uh what can be done for incubation what kind of uh free funding ideas can be implemented and all of that what do you think corporations VCs and accelerators can do in this space to incentivize um either students in educational institutions or institutions themselves to encourage venture venture creation i think even in tier two tire three cities um there are lot of industries uh if if these education institutions are somehow able to connect with these uh industries and get them on board there so that these these people will bring out problem statements to the institutions that's right okay so the industry will provide the problem statement you meant yeah so because what is happening is a student like me would never understand uh you know for me it is a frustrating world but we would never know what the problem out there is the problem that could pay right that's the basis for entrepreneurship a problem that is worth solving that has a market to it that has a scalability to it so um at any tire
-city there can be a a combination of incubators educational institutions and industry out there right uh uh so everybody incubation center education is bringing entrepreneurs or students incubation is an environment they get um they get nurtured But uh industry can bring the problem statement government can have a little bit of early um some funding or some way to support this and if this is part of uh a policy or part of educational rethinking I believe it can do wonders absolutely absolutely so Prashant one last question and uh uh before I close I would like to kind of uh also speak to you mention that we will come back to you for any more further insights because there are so many things that have come out in whatever you said that when our team analyzes it there will be more uh questions we would like to come back to you absolutely no I'm always available man yes one one last uh question what would be one bold hack to uh that you would share for aspiring student entrepreneurs how can they start and how can they overcome the fear of failure i think I've uh repeat yes is there one hack for it or are there more than one hack what you can ask me i think there has to be the habit of um I mean uh you know a year going or year or two going waste shouldn't matter in early stages of um building a career career so um I think you it should be okay to explore new things uh the journey don't have to be super perfect uh I graduated then I got into masters then I got into job then I got it don't have to be super perfect right you know I somehow feel uncertainity is the uh root for creation and then creation of any kind or innovation of any kind so that would start with the uncertaint uncertaintity uh the students would want to take at the and it would have high reverse hurts later on um right so yeah yeah that's what I said it is okay to you know try something new for a year or two there's nothing wrong you start you want to be an entrepreneur in the fourth year because that's a deciding year do you want to do MBA masters or take up a job but why not entrepreneurship and pursue it for couple of years and there's nothing wrong as as as soon as this thing goes into the heads of student entrepreneurs um the retainership in t
-he student entrepreneurship would increase drastically correct and and uh supposing they don't start up but they have developed the mindset I think even the problem solving mindset like you mentioned identifying problem statements solving problems even if they've developed the mindset towards that I think it's a job well done yes because you once you become a micro entrepreneur then you would always when you join a fairly larger organization you would want to always the problem finder and solver um to this day I look it way only um um even today's day I align my team in what is the problem and how do we solve this you know how do we put aside all um hierarchal egos aside and get to the problem solve it in time that is the mindset I guess that would help in any profession they take absolutely on that note thank you so much Brashant this was very rich uh interview with so many inputs because it's rare that we get to talk to entrepreneurs who start off as students and build three companies like you have and share so much along the way thank you so much for this thank you very much ma'am glad to be part of this yes happy to be part of any conversations in the future yeah do let me know fantastic thank you so much Brashan thank you
+NEW YOUTUBE SOURCE: Excerpts from the transcript of the video "IIT Bombay to Founding Adapt Ideations & Brokenatom | ft. Prashanth Dharawath | SES-1 | GUESSS India" uploaded on the YouTube channel "GUESSS India"
+hello everyone and welcome to the guest India cloud experts and entrepreneurs dialogue series i am Dr apan Naro and on behalf of guest India I am talking to you about yet another entrepreneur a young entrepreneur somebody who started up as a student so today we navigate with Prashant Darat the various questions at the heart of student entrepreneurship let me introduce Prashant to you our guest for today prashant was formally um I mean Prashant started off as a student at IIT Bombay and uh took all the courses from the first batch of the Desaieti school of entrepreneurship and from then I have seen Prashant very closely constantly in entrepreneurial mode if I may call it so um and because I've had this opportunity to witness his journey so closely I thought uh we should explore what went on when Prashant started up so welcome Prashant thank you so much for joining us today thanks for having me ma'am yes I'm glad to be part of this series fantastic thank you so much so Prashant uh I know you were a former co-founder of a robotics company and then a co-founder of Adapt Ideations which was a futuristic IoT devices company you worked very closely during COVID for um this project um and you are now on to yet another exciting journey so talk to us about the about your journey first and then we'll take it from there yes so uh thank you once again ma'am i'm glad to be part of this series i started as a a student entrepreneur but let's not call it a student entrepreneur i'm glad that I gave the opportunity to do two electives out of the department so I said uh which which are these two courses that I would do and get away easily that's how it started uh for me but then what has happened is as I started exploring into the entrepreneurship with these courses the first one being uh technology venture creation right so we are only this side of technology and then venture creation has given it it's kind of a simulation on how the venture can scale in in the sheets I think um professors did a really wonderful job including you ma'am in that course uh back in 2015 16 so that's where it started what what it gave is it doesn't stop at technology but there is more to it to convert it as an enterprise and uh that was the triggering
+point that okay let's take this as serious uh thing rather than going for conventional placements and all and uh that's where the journey has begun so I um along with um a senior u immediate senior from IIT Bombay and with a batchmate we started um a robotics company and initially to solve the problem of uh uh IED devices inside the land inside in light affected areas in the country that's how it started so how do we scan the area and say that you know this area is out of this out of danger and it is good to explore for our CRPF and Javans that's how it started and uh we um I Bombay uh center for entrepreneurship and um all of all of these entities helped us with initially the fund office and all of that uh to build this robot that can crawl that that navigates um yeah so what has happened is while doing that journey and the help helped us to build a proof of concept then the CRPF was interested so what uh what has happened is we the the cycles that we were going and building was too quick to build it as a scalable product and hence we said okay let's uh then I said you know this is not the mindset we would build a company with then I said okay uh to my other co-founders that you know I would want to leave and start something where uh where we can sell the product quickly because robot is it had it was it was a big platform a moving platform then 6 do robotic arm so they said I came out uh then partnered with uh one more uh um um batchmate uh to form this company called adapt ideations um to solve the problem of uh wastages happening in gold chain logistics and pharma industry so and this this wastage is not only in pharma but this wastage is in the food sector also everything started with the problem statement that about onethird of uh pharma that is produced and uh 1/4 of food that is produced gets wasted simply thrown out the reason being uh these the food that is stored uh is not monitored right there is no alerts that says that hey the food is stored here and nobody it's not put in right temperature right conditions and as as a result the food gets get wasted in couple of hours of time so and in pharma you cannot put vaccine um outside uh temperature ranges for not more than an hour and the efficacy is si
+mply low you'll feel that the vaccine got administered but there are no effects to it because vaccine in itself is a microorganism out there and it would die at other temperature so um that was the problem statement we uh worked with um uh ma'am is that fine i'm going little in detail no no no this is this is completely about this no problem please continue yeah yeah so the problems that was the problem statement then we started working on a solution and we said okay there should be an IoT connected device uh that would monitor the stationary uh cold rooms then monitor the vaccine in transit then monitor vaccine in distribution and everything and then all of this would send data to the cloud we would build an intelligent layer uh in the cloud and it would send notifications alerts and many a times pre-alert saying that hey here is how your distribution going on here are the roots right so and we got the solution out there um then what has happened is covid hit then we said okay everything is going down let's um we said let's let's only survive let's see what would happen okay So um I told my team guys you know I could only pay half or less than that if it is okay let's continue if it is not uh then you know that is how it is you know that's why the situation is fortunate that most of my team remained um uh intact so prior to co uh I happened to travel to Australia a couple of times work with a major uh supply chain company over there trying to understand this problem in detail so uh once we have the problem once when when when we were putting the solution together I traveled extensively met at least 50 customers what are the older products that are currently used and where the technology is going right now how can we solve so the current products that are being used is they use a offline monitoring recorder that would say that this vaccine has come in so and so temperature Instead of that you know we we said why don't we build an intelligent device that would send data always connected and all so during co you were building the product or did you have any prototype ready we had couple of versions precoid already all right all right yes yes so we did the product was already there we could have gone for mass prod
+uction but the co hit we stopped it there so extensive uh customer visits only gave then we listed all the functionalities okay here are these kinds of customers these needs the these functionality so we used to do it on big uh uh A2 A3 size papers and then map the functionality and say that okay here is our product going to look like and we built the product then the COVID hit and um and then what has happened is uh the the major logistics jo giant in D uh in Australia uh said that we partnered with government of Australia to distribute vaccine across the continent and then and then D um and then um New Zealand government also said the same thing so they asked us you will be our monitoring partners across the supply chain um so these countries Australia and New Zealand were importing vaccine from from different country uh and then the vaccine was stored in one major hub in um uh in Australia and from there the distribution would start and that is where we start monitoring the vaccine and um but we got the order but it means preparation met opportunity your timing must have been very strong was very strong yeah the timing was very strong we played completely in our um favor yeah uh yeah but what has happened is um uh the chip market has completely went down so the the chips that we used in our designs were no more available and my team was put in various parts of the country so um it it was impossible to pull that order we got a major u uh major order from this uh logistics giant but then how do we um how do we fulfill the order that was the question we had so yeah so luckily you know the team was so supportive um I'm I'm fortunate to have built that team again uh you know thanks to because building the team the emphasis came from uh my uh lectures at um my classes at school of entrepreneurship of uh you used to always ask where is your team you know are you lone team member why don't you find a team so we fortunate that we built that team and then the team was intact so we said okay let's build a new product with what is available in the market so I'm here I'm here yes yes so we uh we said okay we we scrapped everything we had we had done like six seven iterations by then we said let's scrap everything um soft
+ware is software was easy to scrap and rebuild so we said okay all the firmware code all the I think 18 to 24 months of testing and development we scrapped everything and then we kind of built everything in next two weeks of time and you have only two weeks so um and um between uh the two covid covids there was some gap so I asked everybody to come to Hyderabad one city and then we said let's go to office in the morning us because that's when the there was a you can move around the city so we would go to office build a product entirely in two weeks of time and then we sent out designs for manufacturing and um that's how we kind of fulfilled that order and um you know that triggered a major investment uh into the company and that triggered a geographical we were then only you know we were we had an office in Australia then then that triggered a office in uh um um um US Atlanta uh we we were triing with a lot of customers over there right and um yeah so yeah that was the journey and then uh then my board said you know we need somebody who's experienced to run the company and then I said well that is good then the thought was the thought that was inside my mind was okay how what should I do so that you know pay was not the problem what should I do so that I would create 100 million value in next two years of time so that would not come if I if I join some other company uh if I go and work in US right so I would be working for somebody in right so that's when uh my current co-founder Ash said okay there is a problem statement uh if played well uh we can revolutionize the software development uh way um how we can quickly bring up the applications out there so and then uh I kind of fell in line because while I was building my previous uh product the cycles of development has impacted a lot so the the entire thought was how to bring um prototypes and POC's to faster deployable code scalable code right scalable products and that was the thought we start started with once again I start restarted everything from zero and uh in again again then when you restart there is no guarantee that your product would be hit in the first go right it together product new industry you have to understand the problem problem statement
+people and all of that so in here also we are going through multiple cycles once again that's how we started broken atom right recover covered most of it man right right so um Prashant u one uh question because you are one person who started up as a student and then you continue to be in startup mode again meaning I'll use the same uh phrase in the sense that you you now know how you want to build from a scratch and you can build from a concept to to uh scale and then you have the strength and uh the capability to take a call when you need to exit and then also make a new effort correct yes so Prashant uh tell us about the key drivers for your decisions meaning you uh when we look at the guest survey for example one of the findings was that most of the stu most of the students excuse me most of the students expect to take up employment first and then go into entrepreneurship almost uh 38% if my numbers uh serve my memory serves me right are interested in starting up but they want to do it after 5 years of employment in your it was you have decided consciously not to take up employment um tell us about these the key drivers for this decision um yes so entrepreneurship started for me as a you know exploratory act act activity as first um I used to always think that you know so many smart um ITNs uh or nits major institute graduate PhDs graduate and I used to always think where are all they going okay so um then I felt okay once you are out of IIT you would work for couple of years um or we go for masters do it two year master cycle over there um or you work couple of years in India and uh you get married and you fall into the cycle of life and you're not free until you are 40 or 45 until your kid leaves your home right uh that was one one thought uh and second my sister and family lives in US and uh I was looking at the seniors from my college um what happens is when you go for masters you need to retain your visa over there so you fe you'll have to keep trapped yourself for every twoear cycle you know someone has to sponsor you you have to work very well for them right I would otherwise no one would want you to be there right so and then you fall in that trap and I mean there's good trap of course there's good
+standard of living over there good life and in fact it here also you get paid well and then you get married and it's a it's a it's a trap in a way I mean this it's a good trap to have right so in both ways it is same I mean you you fall into the cycle of life so the thought was when is the time to explore and learn fast and do things quickly right so that is as soon as you graduate because the moment you go for masters uh if you're uh then you'll have to take a loan or there is a financial burden there is a comparison right um or you go for a job then you always compare your salary with your friend salary or next job better job so I said okay the right time to explore is now couple of years now and uh right time to do understand fasten your cycle is now and then as I started that I as I started entrepreneurship then I realized okay let's look at the list of entrepreneurs and what it took them to make an impact in the market so let's not look at um few people who had made an impact in very few years of time they started entrepreneurship but the average um average uh span they make an impact is no less than a decade I mean you would right I mean half a decade for sure right so half a decade for any startup to have it any name on the market so so well when I started I figured out how to survive first right you by doing entrepreneurship you can survive too so once I've survived okay how would I build the consistency and build the company and then you know reach that time where I make the impact so yeah so so you a first generation entrepreneur right yeah I'm a first generation entrepreneur in my family what was your family outlook like towards this kind of a decision it must have been disruptive circle at least so I made some rules yeah definitely i come from a farming uh family um so we said because I made some rules like I would not take a penny from home so that would stop half a half a noise coming from there and whenever I can I'll contribute back home so that would stop most of it right uh so and then they were always saying why don't you take up a job and all I said you know um how does it matter I I started to earn after two years of my entrepreneurship journey so that two years was where I said I'll not ta
+ke money from home and yeah so they were supportive initially they were suggesting me and uh given that you know nobody is as educated as I was in the family i mean yeah so immediate family was fairly educated but I think they were okay for me to try couple of years but in that time I figured out a way to make money and so yeah that's right that's right my father want me to do government job though yet right exactly exactly so navigating through that is uh is not easy especially family expectations so you did have a conversation with yourself right to identify how you want to navigate through the family pressure about your decision right tell us about the so uh I mean that was so much uh to unpack in whatever you shared so far um three companies broken atom is the third company right um you have also shared how you got into an entrepreneurship course and option the option was that it'll help me get off easily so today as you look back on your journey are there any regrets do you think you would have done things differently anything there there are no regrets as such uh ma'am um right now there are no regrets in the journey i would say it's been like 9 8 n years since I graduated but I uh unpack I feel that I've gained the knowledge of 30 years uh working in India navigating navigating through various parts of the country um so there are no regrets i know how would how a Delhiite would uh behave how would Mumbai behave how a South Indian behave um in a team culture I mean in a when you are talking to uh people from who who do you who customers who want to genuinely support you customers who uh want to squeeze as much as out of you so I could unpack um learn all that experience a conventional person a MBA graduate would learn in 10 12 years of their career post all these so that way learning wise um I have no regrets at all in terms of money I guess I made what more than what I my friends could make so there are no regrets that way as well yeah absolutely absolutely so that is great so Prashant let me give you another statistic from the guest survey okay so one one of the findings was that 4.8% of the students who responded to our survey are already running a business venture the global figure for this is 11% oka
+y uh what do you think should Sorry ma'am can I get the question once again yes yes so the guest uh in the guest survey the students who responded to us we found that 4.8% of these students are already running their own business ventures right 4 4.8% 8% of the students right we got students from across the country right now now the global average of student entrepreneurship is 11% okay how what do you think should be done to improve this number the percentage of students entering entrepreneurship as a student first of all do you think it should be a goal that we encourage more and more students to take up entrepreneurship secondly what can change yeah so how I'm looking at that ma'am is introduction to entrepreneurship um for me was done by choice right but imagine introduction to entrepreneurship was done by force just a pun but yeah so I think it should be done like early um early in um graduate schools uh by not by choice but by you know we do we do introduction to humanities we do introduction to biosciences why not introduction to entrepreneurship right that would so what will happen is I took uh introduction to entrepreneurship by choice you know when you say by choice I think 10 20% of people would only want to you know look at that right and then I did it my third I in third year second semester also um or early fourth year so um so it came out as a lot of one it came out as a choice right and it came in the third or fourth year of my bachelors and then it came out of multiple options that I have you know I could go for an MBA I could go for uh a um job or I could go for masters or PhD right uh so but what if this is made as a a compulsory course in uh um in all the graduate schools right and to be done in you know second year or later second year I I don't know I don't know when is the right time but then what would happen is um the thinking would change for a lot of students the number would sharply rise you know if what if there was a course on registering a company doing transactions right handling customers making Excel sheets right filing GST and then how to run a basic company so I think that numbers will not I can't say it will double but quadruple uh if these activities are done that's right th
+at's right because it's you know it it it'll not it's a theor can be a theoretical course where students or you know for me I used to we used to do MA like MA courses and we are second order differential equation courses somebody who's doing all these um introduction to entrepreneurship should be an easy course right you know there can be case studies there can be so what would happen is that would take away all the fear of starting up um and entrepreneurs can you know students can be entrepreneurs while doing their bachelors and um and can get out much more confident um that's how I believe yeah right right so Brandant since you mentioned the course introduction to entrepreneurship in your case the person who took it was an entrepreneur himself somebody who'been there done that and when you heard straight from the horse's mouths so to say there is a certain impact uh how would students accept it from an academician somebody who's an educator and who's interested in entrepreneurship of course and taking this course teaching this course would students be as accepting as lessons from an entrepreneur directly i think um there has to be a strong attractor to uh these courses initially um because uh um it it it happens by crowd itself you know when you know when I was uh there used to come seniors who would be like I keep seeing uh the post from uh uh LinkedIn that you know Bavi Shagarwal went to IIT Bombay and then the lecture hall is full of students so yeah what would happen is initially it it can't be the entrepreneurs teaching these courses because their learning will be only limited to some sectors there has to academicians has to come uh put out case studies and put out a theoretical plan because they are the researchers behind all these entrepreneurs so it has to be a combination a combination well curated so that you pull the crowd initially that's how I'm looking it interesting very interesting uh what else would you add to this uh formula of classroom classroom course on entrepreneurship do you think factors like mentoring funding team formation incubation will they uh play a role at such an early stage yeah so in my case all the credit goes to goes to uh the city center for entrepreneurship all like you
+were there I met you over there and all the credit goes to the staff over there the city center um so no doubt um there was a layer protecting us there was a layer curating environment uh that would um bring out the crazy thoughts in our brains and validate and you know so the incubation centers entrepreneurship schools definitely play a much much bigger role when I when I think right and uh because you need to have somebody who would listen to your crazy ideas right you know otherwise they are only then they only remain crazy ideas so So me and my friend um from bachelors we had we were working on an idea similar to practto back in 2014 so uh and we went to uh sign center for entrepreneurship and then we said can we do it and they said why not you know you guys just come down we will help you in registering the company we'll help you unfortunately we did not perceive that idea but what I'm saying is uh you know whenever we meet we always ask oursel oh we should have done that right okay so that's it yeah I think they play a major role because um students are like often um are clueless correct correct so at an institutional uh so let let's uh close this one segment about your student entrepreneurship what pitfalls do students face when they have all these ideas that you were talking about what is it that stops them from taking that one step in experimenting or starting up i think uh it's it's to do more with uh competition within friends competition within departments of uh securing a job securing uh uh securing a seat in masters um all right so um they are competing uh to do what is next best thing amongst friends so the entire thought process of dealing with uncertaintity is not taught anywhere right i think that I think that plays a major role correct correct that plays a big role right yes that's such a strong insight prashant you in your first venture that you were experimenting with you were doing it as a part of your course you mentioned right technology venture creation yes so you got in touch with the defense you said the CRPF came in and all how did you manage that being a student so we were a team of uh then we were a team of four people uh one of us on the communication side uh working with IIT Bom
+bay had made the introduction through their um I think there's a center called uh um center for which which connects to the industry and industrial bodies okay so they made the introduction and uh we met the defense uh they work with defense yes they work with defense as well so they made the introduction and then uh uh then CRPF had an open problem statement of somebody solving this and we said we would want to do something in robotics and why don't we pick this as problem statement so correct so let's go to the next part uh here what kind of uh so the next segment will be related to institutional level or policy level interventions that Yeah so what kind of interventions do you think will bridge this gap which will and encourage more students to explore entrepreneurship yeah so first the point number one should be um um should we should the the the educational institutes institutions should introduce entrepreneurship and that is not happening like you know that is happening as a choice now you have bunch of 100 courses to take you pick one or two and then the chances are you know two three percentage so right um the introduction can happen much earlier um the second one is um I don't know how this is to be done but you know the students mindset should be changed in such a way that it is okay to have a couple of years of your life to be in exploratory life you know postgraduation right um you know when I look at the history and statistics of my the people that I know right it's not that everybody who has gone for PhD in a um you know ranked number one university had done you know so great a job right so um there is no standard formula so the standard formula can be somehow I don't know you know teaching students that they can explore things uh a year or two postgraduation trying to solve some problem statements right so um that has to be brought down that that would be my second point okay yeah third yeah i think I think these are the two points uh somehow yes sorry it's complete somehow if these two things um gets uh into the students mind early it would be yeah number of entrepreneurs coming out can be quadrupled correct correct correct so there is uh yet another guess finding that I would like to share with
+you according According to this report 63% of student entrepreneurs have access to university support for developing ventures but only 26% of these student ventures get incubation uh what are the gaps that you have observed in the incubation ecosystems in educational institutions yeah so there are I mean in fact this comes from experience itself um the incubation ecosystem has to um own the entrepreneurship entrepreneurs in the early stage like sometimes what would happen is um for example um um like in in in in IIT the I think there was a the ecosystem was definitely there you have to apply for um you have to apply for some schemes so that you know they would put some money um uh there has to be a groundwork that has to be done uh right um then present it to the committee and then uh so what would happen is all of this is done as a all of this has to be done as an extra activity apart from your academics correct exactly from my from my experience um academics was too intensive uh at at IIT Bombay uh it was quite consuming uh then you have extracurriculars then you have friends right so when all of us has to be part of your life over there and uh then you have to do entrepreneurship that means you have to pull all together one or two courses apart from what you're doing right so um one incentive for the students could be you know just like there was an elective for me that enabled me to to take a course on entrepreneurship Uh there can be electives that says that hey you work on an entrepreneurship idea equivalent to some quotes equivalent to some credits and credit credits come together for a degree right so that can be an so students literally going to these entrepreneurship buildings and then sitting there and working um trying building a cult out of entrepreneurship uh can be one incentive for students right so that they're at least visiting they're trying to do something just like I would visit um lecture halls for my lectures but they are just lecture halls so but what if lot of teams working over there in dedicated buildings and and these are considered in the grading system in the point and then these are attached to uh I mean these schools are attached to incubation centers and then right if if there
+is a if there is a journey that can be curated correct that that would help a lot I guess a pathway within the institution as a pathway within the institution a fail safe entrepreneurial journey yes right right now all of that is coming out of a narrow choice to you Right right so you mentioned I Bombay and definitely facilities at IIT Bombay meaning resources uh is not a constraint in that in IITB but what about tier 2 and tier three cities or what about institutions within Mumbai who do not have access to the same kind of ecosystem support what they will really have to pull out budgets and build on this what is the for them to take it forward for universities or institutions i think in that would come as a major um educational policy change uh uh uh where uh these institutes should be incentivized in some way through grading so I see that these institutions get graded on some metrics but why shouldn't that metric be entrepreneurship as a major metric right uh that would change the economy I I I some way so um yes yes yes true so what about the private sector Brashant we've spoken about the educational sector Uh sorry ma'am I missed something yeah yes no no no problem we spoke about the educational sector we spoke about uh what can be done for incubation what kind of uh free funding ideas can be implemented and all of that what do you think corporations VCs and accelerators can do in this space to incentivize um either students in educational institutions or institutions themselves to encourage venture venture creation i think even in tier two tire three cities um there are lot of industries uh if if these education institutions are somehow able to connect with these uh industries and get them on board there so that these these people will bring out problem statements to the institutions that's right okay so the industry will provide the problem statement you meant yeah so because what is happening is a student like me would never understand uh you know for me it is a frustrating world but we would never know what the problem out there is the problem that could pay right that's the basis for entrepreneurship a problem that is worth solving that has a market to it that has a scalability to it so um at any tire
+city there can be a a combination of incubators educational institutions and industry out there right uh uh so everybody incubation center education is bringing entrepreneurs or students incubation is an environment they get um they get nurtured But uh industry can bring the problem statement government can have a little bit of early um some funding or some way to support this and if this is part of uh a policy or part of educational rethinking I believe it can do wonders absolutely absolutely so Prashant one last question and uh uh before I close I would like to kind of uh also speak to you mention that we will come back to you for any more further insights because there are so many things that have come out in whatever you said that when our team analyzes it there will be more uh questions we would like to come back to you absolutely no I'm always available man yes one one last uh question what would be one bold hack to uh that you would share for aspiring student entrepreneurs how can they start and how can they overcome the fear of failure i think I've uh repeat yes is there one hack for it or are there more than one hack what you can ask me i think there has to be the habit of um I mean uh you know a year going or year or two going waste shouldn't matter in early stages of um building a career career so um I think you it should be okay to explore new things uh the journey don't have to be super perfect uh I graduated then I got into masters then I got into job then I got it don't have to be super perfect right you know I somehow feel uncertainity is the uh root for creation and then creation of any kind or innovation of any kind so that would start with the uncertaint uncertaintity uh the students would want to take at the and it would have high reverse hurts later on um right so yeah yeah that's what I said it is okay to you know try something new for a year or two there's nothing wrong you start you want to be an entrepreneur in the fourth year because that's a deciding year do you want to do MBA masters or take up a job but why not entrepreneurship and pursue it for couple of years and there's nothing wrong as as as soon as this thing goes into the heads of student entrepreneurs um the retainership in t
+he student entrepreneurship would increase drastically correct and and uh supposing they don't start up but they have developed the mindset I think even the problem solving mindset like you mentioned identifying problem statements solving problems even if they've developed the mindset towards that I think it's a job well done yes because you once you become a micro entrepreneur then you would always when you join a fairly larger organization you would want to always the problem finder and solver um to this day I look it way only um um even today's day I align my team in what is the problem and how do we solve this you know how do we put aside all um hierarchal egos aside and get to the problem solve it in time that is the mindset I guess that would help in any profession they take absolutely on that note thank you so much Brashant this was very rich uh interview with so many inputs because it's rare that we get to talk to entrepreneurs who start off as students and build three companies like you have and share so much along the way thank you so much for this thank you very much ma'am glad to be part of this yes happy to be part of any conversations in the future yeah do let me know fantastic thank you so much Brashan thank you

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-NEW YOUTUBE SOURCE: Excerpts from the transcript of the video "IIT Bombay to founding Edgistify | ft. Kamal Kishore Kumawat | SES-2 | GUESSS India" uploaded on the YouTube channel "GUESSS India"
-welcome to the guest area cloud experts and entrepreneurs dialogue series guest stands for global university entrepreneurial spirit students survey and it's one of the largest entrepreneurship research projects in the world with the main research focus on students entrepreneurial intentions and activities including the topic of family firm succession i am Dr raaro speaking on behalf of guest India and today I'm thrilled to host a conversation that dives deeper into the heart of student entrepreneurship it's my pleasure to welcome our guest today Kamal Kishor Kumawat co-founder at Justify a next generation warehousing and fulfillment company that specializes in building highly optimized supply chain solutions and executing them on the ground kamill is also the co-h former co-founder with an affiliate marketing platform called deal with us being an IIT Bombay alumnus Kamill took almost all the entrepreneurship courses offered by DS School of Entrepreneurship and today he continues his engagement as a mentor we will explore this more in our conversation so let's go so Kamill my first uh set of questions to you is related to the entrepreneurial spirit in academia okay uh you have been a student of entrepreneurship meaning you've been a student of IIT Bombay of course you did engineering and uh you also took courses in entrepreneurship can you give us a quick uh brief about that yes so I would just start with the basics so I joined IT Bombay back in 2011 and while there like with all the great minds there was one thing which was missing was how to build those products there were lot of teams who were building robots participating in international national competitions those students were not recognized for their courses or that value was not there i started my entrepreneurial journey back in 2011 when these courses were introduced i guess in 2014 2015 these courses were introduced what what helped me was structuring out all the things which we did while building robots also or while building companies so which things are needed structurally like when we are starting a company it's more about passion about building or solving a problem but while building a company there are n number of things which also takes up your
-time so while doing those redundant things which are needed to run a company and also ensuring that you are able to follow your passion or you are building that thing remains more important was driven by the courses which I was able to take from identification what all skill sets would be needed to even start a new company that two you can fail on paper first while executing on ground so those things were quite constructive and helped me scale a company so before that it was more gutdriven and like we were more like though we were earning good revenue but we were missing out on compliances or things which we were not knowing that these are also mandatory to run a business while in college so you you if I had to summarize what you said we you would say you would say that the courses did give you a direction to something that you were already doing is that right yes not just the direction part like there were pieces which we were missing out like when you start a company it's more sort of a gut feel and you just want to break the door and things should start falling in place but there are easier methods you don't need to take always a harder route right like just from a simple BMC that things which I can do by partnering with other firms what all skill sets are needed in my co-founders or even in like it shouldn't happen that I am I have to spend almost one or two or even three decades with the company so I shouldn't miss out on the crucial things which are necessary or needed to build any exactly so that helps to know that is it worth my time to devote next two three decades in this particular domain so that is when you go via like academics though you have to devote more time but still it helps you fail fast right right so that takes me to the next question Kamill can what's your opinion about nature versus nurture can entrepreneurship education make entrepreneurs or is entrepreneurship education more about identifying and nurturing those who are already inclined towards entrepreneurship okay so there are two takes on this part there is a misconception that by learning something you will be able to execute entrepreneurship courses are needed even for the people who are joining the companies because ultimately
-around us there are thousands and millions of companies which are there and people are needed so through entrepreneurship that mindset building is needed so that you would be able to do more impactful work wherever you are joining it's not that you need to start a new company from scratch you could act in similar way in even in larger organizations so companies which are surviving or thriving even traditional companies are now acquiring startups because their traditional teams can't reach at that scale they need to have smaller scrum teams even for a new product launch in the traditional organizations so that mindset would develop them how to deal with the new work environment where each day because of AI and different things are changing even through geopolitical situations you have to evolve you have to identify that mindset building is needed which these entrepreneurship courses are helping though engineering is again a structural approach to doing things correct but ultimately even for Indian market I would say engineers are more sort of managers they know ultimately if I want to execute any project I also need to understand people management skill sets i also need to understand P&L handling right so while building that entrepreneur mindset you are aware about these words which are not being taught at early stage if you are entering real core research PhD and all again the PhD mindset helps you build on that research failing thousands of time to identify that mindset is being inculcated for PhD people but now for bachelor's degree how you want to evolve those people to run businesses or do activities these entrepreneurship courses helped from day one itself that boss you have to identify like if you are doing a job if you screw Do it up you can choose to change your company your growth might not be exponential but owning to your own mistakes that you are the sole decision maker whatever actions you are taking you have to back it and find a solution that solution approach is needed so which through courses also we can try i won't say that it is 100% proof but at least 1% improvement is a big impact in a person's journey for next two three decades correct so uh thanks for that uh elaborate response Kamill i w
-ill come back to some of the points you raised here let me uh give you a short statistic small statistic from the guest India report it shows a major a shift in career aspirations and 31% of students aspire to become entrepreneurs after 5 years that is up up by 14% at graduation right do you think entrepreneurship education is a major driver of this shift or are there other factors at play so actually lot of other factors are there not just the courses part But because of the digital infrastructure now India has so more reach is there even tier 2 tier three cities people are able like they have been running but now that data is available with them too so multiple business models are there and through even Tik Tok or Instagram deals or YouTubers that's again a business opportunity for them people are able to know that they can earn through different different sources that data because of the digital part data is available with lot of people and now current generations are born with phones in their hand they know what things are going out across the world and no one knows which thing would become viral or which model could work out so people have more access and through education the success rate is increasing the enthusiasm the passion to build something is something which we are inheriting from our previous generations like for my example I am able to take risk because of my father or my family support like I don't I know you also need to ensure that you have a like roof over your head that is needed then only I have that confidence to jump into entrepreneurship so but that mindset would help a person to reach that financial independence to take that risk calculated risk then it doesn't become that risk so that you are ensuring that your family also thrives and you are able to start your own journey it reduces the time span so there are multiple factors from digitization from data availability and like growth stories with Indian markets for sure like the action is happening here right so right time to be in India okay this will increase more like even the shows like Shark Tank right that is making it more famous and people try to attract like even in early 2000 cricket started broadcasting on channel like TV TV
-s were available to people so people wanted to become cricketers right now because of Shark Tank and and other people are becoming famous or India have now 100 plus unicorns those people are being celebrated so now people also want to become that it is a cool thing also to become an independent so there are multiple factors correct so since you mentioned Shark Tank I'm going to bring up a question which I had uh sort of wanted to talk about later but I will sort of bring that up right now m do you think entrepreneurship education should focus on creating entrepreneurs or should it look at mindset generation mindset uh orientation so first part I would always say the mindset part because if that confidence is built the problem solving attitude that what all resources would be needed you would go and identify because you are the sole person sole decision maker who need to ensure that that mindset will help even in developing our traditional organizations even people enter government organizations that would be a great skill set to help okay so first part is mindset second that mindset would lead to eventually more entrepreneurs right right okay so actually you answered another question so I'll now move to the next stage in this uh uh interview um classroom to startup and I think you uh you're one supreme example of how you have been uh tinkering working experimenting with venture creation from the time you joined you said that you joined in 2011 and you started up also in 2011 right yes and so so this journey from the idea to venture what are the common pathways that students follow from ideiation to venture creation so again uh like if you had that skill set that boss you want to work on something so people in IIT is also ultimate aim with even the coaching institutes have created a gaga world that boss if you're entering in IIT you would get kes of packages that theory is there and for those you need to build your great resume you need to take lot of Ps you need to understand that that's a set path but early on when I joined IIT I had seen the movie three idiots Ashish word heard about him met him also in my first year those sort of experiences gave me another perspective that boss if I put that time in buildin
-g something more jobs can be created and wealth can also be built so that was a ticking point that I started taking actions which would result in revenue generation or even help me understand the market also so similar steps I've followed for multiple ventures like when you want to ensure that boss you want to do something one no bra thing which I did was start building documenting everything start doing customer jour discovery part writing out about them that how that industry is working so documentation becomes the first part then for seriousness part you have to purchase the domain you have to do basics so that it is seen by the world that you are building something uh am I audible yes yes I can hear you okay you're clear so I started taking actions like each day if there is no delta movement that becomes a problematic part so for again if you are running something of your own you need to have small wins also each day each day swings from low to high you try to meet someone you send 10 invite like 10 people messages you just get one response at least one meeting that's a win for you so that you have to evolve or mature also that boss you are able to take different 10 different hits try to have one closer enjoy that moment also so Those things have helped me build businesses right multiple times so would you say this say that uh you were an outlier in your batch in the way you kept putting in efforts to build startups or would you say that there are multiple people so luckily when I was in college there were multiple startups which were coming up because Ola was becoming famous flipkart got funding was struggling in 2011 12 Snapd so I was at the time when startups were booming even in my wing there were 10 or 12 different companies being started okay so that ecosystem was there luckily right right yes plays a big role that means for sure like you need like-minded people you need people who are also enjoying the failures and ultimately small wins need to be there absolutely so what does it take a student to move from intention to action so one part which I feel like again the passion part or the action part they need to meet lot of customers the thesis need to be there on paper also it should win once you have
-a business model or not to articulate business model is a big word when you start thinking about that boss okay this might work in this way let me try and speak with people and when you're speaking with people don't forcefitit your solution understand the market first is it needed or not the major problem with engineering students which I have seen is we try to build something first sitting in a room then go to market then because of uh VC funding or some lucky breaks we try to see think that this is a PMF and now I should be able to scale that becomes a problematic partial aim is building real revenue also correct so for that you need to meet and understand the market so people who go in the market start understanding showing early revenue sign or something more active users people start using those things whatever you are building that gives you more confidence that's right that's right in fact uh with a justify I remember um you explained your concept to many people and it it's it's a pretty at least when you started up it was futuristic today we know the shape form service and everything and we know what's happening but when you started you had nothing what difficulties did you face in explaining your concept to people okay so again when we started knowing about the market uh we were pretty young like 23 24 year of old people going to people and saying that boss your thousands of cr of inventory will be handled by us we didn't even have that much capital or even we don't have capital but still we are better to execute your operations guide you with better solutions that was our random confidence but in that journey for closing one customer we spoke with more than 300 plus customers we documented that understood that read lot of research report met with people who have executed operations like we met lot of executives of DHL APL different differential companies we started like dreaming about it earlier when I used to see a good train we used to get bored but when I started building a 5y even seeing those trains like it could be my customer even the trucks which are moving when we are in traffic now I just think that those might be my customer what they are moving so you start hallucinating that boss everyth
-ing any product which I can touch was needing some sort of warehousing or was placed at some place even it's in their manufacturing plant or their distributor or even the retail outlet is a space that's how we built the journey like we started understanding the market then we were able to close a customer after that we got funded right thank you so uh Just to build on this continuous conversation a little bit more there there are many so for every one student who chooses to start up there are so many who choose not to right and there is interest there is excitement but there are certain barriers that prevent them from taking that one step that one action what are these bar barriers according to you that prevent students from acting on their entrepreneurial aspirations so first part is again I would always say that family comes first you need to first uh thrive you need to have a roof over your head and your like you should be able to eat good meals you shouldn't struggle for those things like you have that passion for building something but you are forgetting the basics because you can focus on like companies like your baby you want to provide your entire time to that so that becomes a first barrier second part now I guess because of the digital world has become easier that network part to meet people now there are digital roots which have reduced that barrier earlier people didn't have information so businesses which were built in 2000 2010 were more related with information asymmetry like people were charging for the information now after Google or even Chad GPT now information is available evidently so those barriers have reduced but people who have high paying salaries that becomes a big barrier because when you start you're starting with zero so I've seen lot of successful entrepreneurs who started at 40 45 having 1 2 3 cr of wealth then they started but student entrepreneurship is totally different it mighted by your batchmates supported by your friends or have at least that base like base money to survive correct who are your initial helpers exactly so you mentioned family does this mean that the economic stability of a family is important for students to want to start up so if you see most of the companies toda
-y which are larger enterprises they had this basic proof and basic family stability there would be outliners for sure we like stories those stories become famous but 99% people who are making wealth are not famous right those are people again according to balar if I take about successful companies we don't know about 90% of the companies who are in the back end running the businesses built a small plug-in selling just small products also even Eli those people are the ones who are running the ecosystem but we don't know about those people we always study or hear about outliner stories right so what about institutional interventions or policy level interventions do you think some of these can help to bridge this gap yes so again if you have that mindset built then you try to look at these are the easier tools policy level changes you are tracking that boss look EV is getting benefits or wind energy is get so those are the easier spots to identify opportunities and jump on all right all right even a small opportunity of I would take say the route from say China to or Russia to China to other Ukraine or European countries is blocked because of the war there was big opportunity how to move those inventory or goods because those goods are manufactured and needed so people build our businesses around that too so short these are short opportunities but again you have to think long term yes so such things are needed you need so again that skill set of research is needed a lot um let's look at uh incubation centers in university ecosystems so there is a guess finding that 63% of student entrepreneurs currently access university support but only 26% of student ventures are being incubated with some of the top universities scoring a 4.7 out of seven one of the highest globally that is for fostering a positive entrepreneurship climate what do you think are the key factors that would have contributed to this success so there are two questions here uh like I would take like according to my understanding what I feel first part is the incubation centers are there like lot of universities have started having that but you also need good mentor support in those who come from diverse background like otherwise if we take a talk abou
-t engineering colleges they their focus would be more on engineering products if you talk about management colleges is they would be focusing more on fintech or that sort of products which they understand so while setting up an incubation center even in larger organizations who want to have entrepreneurial mindset they want to build ventures or fastmoving companies inside that so that they can also survive they need to have that open mindset and have diverse people supporting that so that no startup opportunities missed so providing basic infrastructure but now highly skilled infrastructure is also needed because digital have reduced the barriers you can know about thing you can know even the documentation part initially when incubation centers were there they were more focusing on providing other supports from CA to legalities and which is needed but now those things are more democratized now you need that industry experience also to improve this score further So there are different incubation centers who provide that diverse infrastructure also but if it is provided across all the institutes at similar level it would help a lot okay so in your case in the case of justify especially or even I think deal with us you chose not to go for incubation is that right yes so luckily because I started early I had built that network and connections and about documentation process so I wasn't needing that support okay which generally other people might need we had built those thesis in place otherwise we would have gone through institute incubation center so have you observed any gaps in incubation ecosystems and educational institutions yes so again because so any company or any incubation center would be great depending upon the kind of expert experts they're able to bring in every instit like if you want to run even a company you need to institution institutionalize certain things that acts as a good part for the long term but on short-term period you also miss out on some things because the team who is running would look at startups who are more fitting to their thesis or their understandings of the ecosystem so either incubation center should also be run by entrepreneurs or that mindset that would help them evolve yo
-u can find similar thing in VC ecosystem also in India also VC funds who are run by entrepreneurs are able to take better bets compared to the financial VC funds okay and like everyone is doing great i'm not like saying that they are some belt or something wrong is there those have their own thesis but for incubation centers I feel more openness is needed more support is needed so that any idea could get better feedback better opportunities so can you throw some more light on what you mean by openness is needed so when so in college you can't define that boss i we would take only engineering startups or manufacturing startups or we won't take service based startups that shouldn't be the role of a college incubation center they should be open about any idea and they should have that network to connect them with ideal incubation center okay or ideal support because if those people are from that college they should get those other support too so um right in the beginning you had spoken about how um startups built by engineers also need to integrate business understanding design and service orientation understand customers understand P&L and all of that right so that means obviously venture creation and the journey of a startup is interdisciplinary correct yeah So do you think uh institutions provide these kind of interdisciplinary opportunities in venture creation for students yes so I guess entrepreneurship courses and venture creation courses are helping that we are able to meet like again because of that college mindset people are not able to respect the professor ecosystem but because of entrepreneurship courses they see the tag of company also our professors are even better than the CEOs of most of the companies but we are not able to value them that school mindset is there or we are not taught in a right manner that we can also utilize their expertise of industry too right because they have done research they have done PhD like they have that mindset also they also know how to build something unique we are not able to take those benefits but through these courses more importance that thinking is built even for the people who are not going for masters or PhDs true true so would you say that students in tier t
-wo and three cities are also getting access to the same kind of ecosystem support not right now i feel that even tier one colleges are still struggling so that support is needed to be extended that would give us even better team members like for me being a founder or running a great project in my company I feel those are again everyone who's working with us is an entrepreneur that mindset that how they run particular department how they are building those even smaller solutions we need people who have that mindset right right so let's now segue to a very tantalizing question employment first entrepreneurship later yes so the guess India report offers one unique insight into this the evolving aspirations of Indian students right and there is this shift that we are seeing 70% students aim for jobs immediately after graduation and this number falls to 52% over 5 years and entrepreneurial aspirations uh which were 14% immediately after graduation are now going to 31% after 5 years so why is there this shift why do people want to take up a job work for 5 years and then jump into entrepreneurship so two things in India the education is again becoming expensive all people can't like the family how their families have been so first they need to support their family that becomes a big factor so everyone wants to have that financial independence then only they can also learn about the market in again colleges we learn about say electrical engineering or mechanical engineering core one to two we are 5% people would be there who would be choosing PhD or research part going exactly or building on that but most of the people would want to go to jobs in jobs they require totally different skill set limited one or two profiles coding profiles who might be using their learnings but these engineering courses just build the basic behavior that boss you can try to incorporate engineering in different things also like setting a chemical plant you have are a chemical engineer so you know different things but you also need to understand the costing part of material involved so that where you want to build pipes and all those things so for that part the learning going to the market becomes a necessary thing like You want to build some
-thing but before understanding the market you are being taught certain things you have to pass that also so that becomes a problematic part so in first year itself if that mindset is being taught I guess more people would start exploring because as you see Indian ecosystem in last 70 years our forefathers from agriculture to they have built something now I guess most of the people have that roof over their head so more people can take that entrepreneurship bet but for that to happen we need to start building on early on right like from first year itself people would can start looking at things from an entrepreneur mindset that what problems we can solve true true and it can happen across India it is not needed tier one colleges only if we start doing this I guess percentage would so tier one college might have 5% success rate in tier 2 college would or tier three college would start having at least 1% or.5% impact okay so so what do you think should be the first step to ensure that this thrust happens so I guess that like I guess from first year like in colleges we have NSS NSO In government colleges these are the mandatory things which happen i guess basics of entrepreneurship should also be part of this which should be mandatory just for like how we know about mathematics basics like for me till 10th I guess everyone should have 10th level education so you are aware about all different courses which is beauty for Indian market that we know about even Sanskrit even different different languages which are being taught till 10th class mathematics social science all the we are like we have that basic access to all the things similarly I feel entrepreneurship is needed to fit in that criteria even financial education I feel those things will help people more to build something early Okay okay uh let's uh so you we've spoken about educational institutions incubation ecosystems in educational institutions entrepreneurship education you've also spoken a little bit about the government let's look at the private sector what can private stakeholders what can private players do like corporations VC funds NOS's accelerator groups how can they engage students better so I guess again VC funds are again startups so they have
-to prove the numbers for them i guess it would be difficult to build something on because they are a startup they have to be profitable they have to show highest returns that's how they are also making money those are startups for me but if I talk about traditional larger corporates businesses who have thrived for two three decades who are profitable sitting on great pile they could also imagine about building new companies but for that they have to have those like teams dedicated teams in corporates the problem part is they have that management structure in place and if they try to start something new in the venture and try to incorporate different different resources that could result in failure also so people will think that how my promotion would be impacted so they have to remove those barriers provide a open ecosystem that boss if you are able to at least build some thesis build something in these lines and they should have a separate team like even co-founders for that particular incubation can have a code tag in that who are building in that if that fails also they should be promoted in their existing jobs so they need to have more teams who can build on businesses that's right that's right so that culture need to be there separate teams building separate of even a separate dedicated teams would be needed it it's not a part-time job where you imagine if I take example of say Reliance and Reliance want to build something similar to Zomemetto and they just give a additional responsibility that becomes a confusing task you need to have dedicated teams inside corporates allow them to fail also right so um there are uh several private startup support systems mushrooming right student and they're inviting students to participate but somehow like it look it's a business model like you said uh how can these support systems be more studententric and how can they be more tangibly supportive in addition to the openness and the appetite for failure that you spoke about are there anything any other factors so I guess education part is already covered that if we start imparting basics of entrepreneurship from start and try to identify the problem statements which new generations are now seeing they can build better
-solutions imagine if I take a simple example people are who are born in 2020 or 2024 would your voice broke off come on for a moment sorry so I was talking about we need newer generation to build on product so how people who are born in 2020 or even in 2024 would be requiring totally different games altogether right so there are several uh you still audible yes you are audible am I audible uh you're audible now you're audible now just one uh meaning we're to towards the end and I have just a couple of questions more one of them one of them is about um the institution industry ac uh interface there are several collaborations there are several partnerships do you think something should be added to these partnerships to strengthen the entrepreneurship aspect or do you think the partnerships are not working at all we feel again it totally depends upon even while telling people that boss we have built this partnership it's depends upon the person who should be able to utilize the features of it so that those partnerships need to be marketed in that way that I'm able to understand that boss if I'm coming here I would be able to reach out to these universities or these people these props or even these additional benefits I can get those benefits need to be highlighted ed by a person not from corporate but who have that entrepreneurial mindset right right take example of even like the courses which we run in DSSE or ideas program students if they are able to access great industry mentors or write customer support we are trying to build a community people who are with corporates also should come for those pitches so that those products can get loi or a pilot opportunity true so everyone can be it's a like startups will thrive when corporates start using them too true that's true that's true in fact customers yeah yes yes i I think this is uh the right time to give you an idea of a project an experiment that I tried uh here at NM i speak to uh I'm on the uh like there is this it's not really a startup right now maybe it's in the transition going uh to going public okay and uh they build insurance technology solutions the the way we worked it the way the partnership worked was we ran a startup in here and the problem stat
-ements came in from the company students tried solutions and the objective was to come out with a startup idea around those problem statements and then the company would support them in developing those problems those solutions for the winning teams of course and that would be termed as an internship so it became a very attractive uh invitation for students to join participate and now in their summer break uh uh an opportunity for them to experiment with their startup development and and the prizes of course they sponsored some small money 50,000 rupees but the company also gets multiple uh perspectives and solutions you know so they they did do that um effectively Um but but then these kind of partnerships I'm finding are very few and far between not every large company comes forward with this kind of a thought process and sometime most of the companies who want to thrive for longer period need to do that because now age is not a number to judge on like someone who is 49 or 50 or someone whose age is 25 or 29 or even 18 we don't know the information they have accumulated in last one decade because of digitization so we don't know who would be great in terms of execution or understandings right totally depends upon what sort of impact they can bring out corporates could be running behind different different programs to understand how they would be able to provide things for the next generation absolutely they become their consumers they become they don't get bored even Netflix YouTube are experimenting what sort of they're trying to bring YouTubers to these OTD platforms so that their engagement can increase so you can imagine things which we calling as cringe is now becoming mainstream right more value than the traditional actors true this is just the entertainment industry now imagine the products which we are building for the next generation when I say products even the consumables the biscuits everything would change right to innovate even the supply chains would be no waiting like instamart blanket they are selling that 10-minut path flip card failed multiple times but now they have again launched minutes Amazon has launched the phone pay with their pin code so people who were calling that that won't work
-out are now running behind this at least in metro cities it can become profitable model right right so one last question from you Kamill because um uh you are uh an inspirational young entrepreneur who started off as a student and today many people would look up to you as a role model so what would be your message for aspiring student entrepreneurs if you had to give them one message so instead of one I would say two three things which are needed first of all start talking about ideas also early on try to identify people whom you're meeting identify learning about their journeys we keep diving in our phones so have that physical connect have that networking opportunities earlier we used to call that as dragon knowing about our seniors mhm but imagine that basic culture of knowing 20 30 things about our people they wanted to pursue do I is or they wanted to have the financial role they wanted to become consultant understanding their journeys so having that physical connect understanding that part is I feel that is started missing out but that connect would help people to build new organizations which can thrive longer and get honest so for students my first thing is start knowing about people who are around you know knowing about their backgrounds how they raised at those places what experiences were there and reading about general knowledge which is around us that would give like you rightly said about policy changes or government interventions you might have seen the defense talks going up because of the war then they're coming down because of ceasefire these things are happening around us so that common sense is built based on our environment how we are seeing the news or how we are interacting with people around us so have that common sense have those interactions and have empathy too okay because people are who have been successful one common trait which I found is empathy yes fantastic true Kamill that was very insightful and now if I had to ask you one last question before we close if you had to implement one bold idea to transform student entrepreneurship in India what would it be if you had to drive a change the thing which I told you so I wanted to bring lot of corporate guys on weekends to college
-and student just pitch their random ideas that uh one or two hour part where you can have snacks and all corporate people are coming just to interact with their college students and they can give them opportunities and ideas that's a like if a institute can sponsor that or a corporation or even a VC fund can do that that would be a great thing where after imagine like you are living in Friday afternoon uh Friday evening instead of going to your home you go to such place where startups are just pitching failing badly also but in just 2 to 5 minutes they are pitching and going away now it's up to corporate people to reach out to those so that gives them excitement ment also for both the sides people who want to build people who are with corporates who want to incorporate new solutions yes thank you so much so I'll be in touch with you thank you Kamill thank
+NEW YOUTUBE SOURCE: Excerpts from the transcript of the video "IIT Bombay to founding Edgistify | ft. Kamal Kishore Kumawat | SES-2 | GUESSS India" uploaded on the YouTube channel "GUESSS India"
+welcome to the guest area cloud experts and entrepreneurs dialogue series guest stands for global university entrepreneurial spirit students survey and it's one of the largest entrepreneurship research projects in the world with the main research focus on students entrepreneurial intentions and activities including the topic of family firm succession i am Dr raaro speaking on behalf of guest India and today I'm thrilled to host a conversation that dives deeper into the heart of student entrepreneurship it's my pleasure to welcome our guest today Kamal Kishor Kumawat co-founder at Justify a next generation warehousing and fulfillment company that specializes in building highly optimized supply chain solutions and executing them on the ground kamill is also the co-h former co-founder with an affiliate marketing platform called deal with us being an IIT Bombay alumnus Kamill took almost all the entrepreneurship courses offered by DS School of Entrepreneurship and today he continues his engagement as a mentor we will explore this more in our conversation so let's go so Kamill my first uh set of questions to you is related to the entrepreneurial spirit in academia okay uh you have been a student of entrepreneurship meaning you've been a student of IIT Bombay of course you did engineering and uh you also took courses in entrepreneurship can you give us a quick uh brief about that yes so I would just start with the basics so I joined IT Bombay back in 2011 and while there like with all the great minds there was one thing which was missing was how to build those products there were lot of teams who were building robots participating in international national competitions those students were not recognized for their courses or that value was not there i started my entrepreneurial journey back in 2011 when these courses were introduced i guess in 2014 2015 these courses were introduced what what helped me was structuring out all the things which we did while building robots also or while building companies so which things are needed structurally like when we are starting a company it's more about passion about building or solving a problem but while building a company there are n number of things which also takes up your
+time so while doing those redundant things which are needed to run a company and also ensuring that you are able to follow your passion or you are building that thing remains more important was driven by the courses which I was able to take from identification what all skill sets would be needed to even start a new company that two you can fail on paper first while executing on ground so those things were quite constructive and helped me scale a company so before that it was more gutdriven and like we were more like though we were earning good revenue but we were missing out on compliances or things which we were not knowing that these are also mandatory to run a business while in college so you you if I had to summarize what you said we you would say you would say that the courses did give you a direction to something that you were already doing is that right yes not just the direction part like there were pieces which we were missing out like when you start a company it's more sort of a gut feel and you just want to break the door and things should start falling in place but there are easier methods you don't need to take always a harder route right like just from a simple BMC that things which I can do by partnering with other firms what all skill sets are needed in my co-founders or even in like it shouldn't happen that I am I have to spend almost one or two or even three decades with the company so I shouldn't miss out on the crucial things which are necessary or needed to build any exactly so that helps to know that is it worth my time to devote next two three decades in this particular domain so that is when you go via like academics though you have to devote more time but still it helps you fail fast right right so that takes me to the next question Kamill can what's your opinion about nature versus nurture can entrepreneurship education make entrepreneurs or is entrepreneurship education more about identifying and nurturing those who are already inclined towards entrepreneurship okay so there are two takes on this part there is a misconception that by learning something you will be able to execute entrepreneurship courses are needed even for the people who are joining the companies because ultimately
+around us there are thousands and millions of companies which are there and people are needed so through entrepreneurship that mindset building is needed so that you would be able to do more impactful work wherever you are joining it's not that you need to start a new company from scratch you could act in similar way in even in larger organizations so companies which are surviving or thriving even traditional companies are now acquiring startups because their traditional teams can't reach at that scale they need to have smaller scrum teams even for a new product launch in the traditional organizations so that mindset would develop them how to deal with the new work environment where each day because of AI and different things are changing even through geopolitical situations you have to evolve you have to identify that mindset building is needed which these entrepreneurship courses are helping though engineering is again a structural approach to doing things correct but ultimately even for Indian market I would say engineers are more sort of managers they know ultimately if I want to execute any project I also need to understand people management skill sets i also need to understand P&L handling right so while building that entrepreneur mindset you are aware about these words which are not being taught at early stage if you are entering real core research PhD and all again the PhD mindset helps you build on that research failing thousands of time to identify that mindset is being inculcated for PhD people but now for bachelor's degree how you want to evolve those people to run businesses or do activities these entrepreneurship courses helped from day one itself that boss you have to identify like if you are doing a job if you screw Do it up you can choose to change your company your growth might not be exponential but owning to your own mistakes that you are the sole decision maker whatever actions you are taking you have to back it and find a solution that solution approach is needed so which through courses also we can try i won't say that it is 100% proof but at least 1% improvement is a big impact in a person's journey for next two three decades correct so uh thanks for that uh elaborate response Kamill i w
+ill come back to some of the points you raised here let me uh give you a short statistic small statistic from the guest India report it shows a major a shift in career aspirations and 31% of students aspire to become entrepreneurs after 5 years that is up up by 14% at graduation right do you think entrepreneurship education is a major driver of this shift or are there other factors at play so actually lot of other factors are there not just the courses part But because of the digital infrastructure now India has so more reach is there even tier 2 tier three cities people are able like they have been running but now that data is available with them too so multiple business models are there and through even Tik Tok or Instagram deals or YouTubers that's again a business opportunity for them people are able to know that they can earn through different different sources that data because of the digital part data is available with lot of people and now current generations are born with phones in their hand they know what things are going out across the world and no one knows which thing would become viral or which model could work out so people have more access and through education the success rate is increasing the enthusiasm the passion to build something is something which we are inheriting from our previous generations like for my example I am able to take risk because of my father or my family support like I don't I know you also need to ensure that you have a like roof over your head that is needed then only I have that confidence to jump into entrepreneurship so but that mindset would help a person to reach that financial independence to take that risk calculated risk then it doesn't become that risk so that you are ensuring that your family also thrives and you are able to start your own journey it reduces the time span so there are multiple factors from digitization from data availability and like growth stories with Indian markets for sure like the action is happening here right so right time to be in India okay this will increase more like even the shows like Shark Tank right that is making it more famous and people try to attract like even in early 2000 cricket started broadcasting on channel like TV TV
+s were available to people so people wanted to become cricketers right now because of Shark Tank and and other people are becoming famous or India have now 100 plus unicorns those people are being celebrated so now people also want to become that it is a cool thing also to become an independent so there are multiple factors correct so since you mentioned Shark Tank I'm going to bring up a question which I had uh sort of wanted to talk about later but I will sort of bring that up right now m do you think entrepreneurship education should focus on creating entrepreneurs or should it look at mindset generation mindset uh orientation so first part I would always say the mindset part because if that confidence is built the problem solving attitude that what all resources would be needed you would go and identify because you are the sole person sole decision maker who need to ensure that that mindset will help even in developing our traditional organizations even people enter government organizations that would be a great skill set to help okay so first part is mindset second that mindset would lead to eventually more entrepreneurs right right okay so actually you answered another question so I'll now move to the next stage in this uh uh interview um classroom to startup and I think you uh you're one supreme example of how you have been uh tinkering working experimenting with venture creation from the time you joined you said that you joined in 2011 and you started up also in 2011 right yes and so so this journey from the idea to venture what are the common pathways that students follow from ideiation to venture creation so again uh like if you had that skill set that boss you want to work on something so people in IIT is also ultimate aim with even the coaching institutes have created a gaga world that boss if you're entering in IIT you would get kes of packages that theory is there and for those you need to build your great resume you need to take lot of Ps you need to understand that that's a set path but early on when I joined IIT I had seen the movie three idiots Ashish word heard about him met him also in my first year those sort of experiences gave me another perspective that boss if I put that time in buildin
+g something more jobs can be created and wealth can also be built so that was a ticking point that I started taking actions which would result in revenue generation or even help me understand the market also so similar steps I've followed for multiple ventures like when you want to ensure that boss you want to do something one no bra thing which I did was start building documenting everything start doing customer jour discovery part writing out about them that how that industry is working so documentation becomes the first part then for seriousness part you have to purchase the domain you have to do basics so that it is seen by the world that you are building something uh am I audible yes yes I can hear you okay you're clear so I started taking actions like each day if there is no delta movement that becomes a problematic part so for again if you are running something of your own you need to have small wins also each day each day swings from low to high you try to meet someone you send 10 invite like 10 people messages you just get one response at least one meeting that's a win for you so that you have to evolve or mature also that boss you are able to take different 10 different hits try to have one closer enjoy that moment also so Those things have helped me build businesses right multiple times so would you say this say that uh you were an outlier in your batch in the way you kept putting in efforts to build startups or would you say that there are multiple people so luckily when I was in college there were multiple startups which were coming up because Ola was becoming famous flipkart got funding was struggling in 2011 12 Snapd so I was at the time when startups were booming even in my wing there were 10 or 12 different companies being started okay so that ecosystem was there luckily right right yes plays a big role that means for sure like you need like-minded people you need people who are also enjoying the failures and ultimately small wins need to be there absolutely so what does it take a student to move from intention to action so one part which I feel like again the passion part or the action part they need to meet lot of customers the thesis need to be there on paper also it should win once you have
+a business model or not to articulate business model is a big word when you start thinking about that boss okay this might work in this way let me try and speak with people and when you're speaking with people don't forcefitit your solution understand the market first is it needed or not the major problem with engineering students which I have seen is we try to build something first sitting in a room then go to market then because of uh VC funding or some lucky breaks we try to see think that this is a PMF and now I should be able to scale that becomes a problematic partial aim is building real revenue also correct so for that you need to meet and understand the market so people who go in the market start understanding showing early revenue sign or something more active users people start using those things whatever you are building that gives you more confidence that's right that's right in fact uh with a justify I remember um you explained your concept to many people and it it's it's a pretty at least when you started up it was futuristic today we know the shape form service and everything and we know what's happening but when you started you had nothing what difficulties did you face in explaining your concept to people okay so again when we started knowing about the market uh we were pretty young like 23 24 year of old people going to people and saying that boss your thousands of cr of inventory will be handled by us we didn't even have that much capital or even we don't have capital but still we are better to execute your operations guide you with better solutions that was our random confidence but in that journey for closing one customer we spoke with more than 300 plus customers we documented that understood that read lot of research report met with people who have executed operations like we met lot of executives of DHL APL different differential companies we started like dreaming about it earlier when I used to see a good train we used to get bored but when I started building a 5y even seeing those trains like it could be my customer even the trucks which are moving when we are in traffic now I just think that those might be my customer what they are moving so you start hallucinating that boss everyth
+ing any product which I can touch was needing some sort of warehousing or was placed at some place even it's in their manufacturing plant or their distributor or even the retail outlet is a space that's how we built the journey like we started understanding the market then we were able to close a customer after that we got funded right thank you so uh Just to build on this continuous conversation a little bit more there there are many so for every one student who chooses to start up there are so many who choose not to right and there is interest there is excitement but there are certain barriers that prevent them from taking that one step that one action what are these bar barriers according to you that prevent students from acting on their entrepreneurial aspirations so first part is again I would always say that family comes first you need to first uh thrive you need to have a roof over your head and your like you should be able to eat good meals you shouldn't struggle for those things like you have that passion for building something but you are forgetting the basics because you can focus on like companies like your baby you want to provide your entire time to that so that becomes a first barrier second part now I guess because of the digital world has become easier that network part to meet people now there are digital roots which have reduced that barrier earlier people didn't have information so businesses which were built in 2000 2010 were more related with information asymmetry like people were charging for the information now after Google or even Chad GPT now information is available evidently so those barriers have reduced but people who have high paying salaries that becomes a big barrier because when you start you're starting with zero so I've seen lot of successful entrepreneurs who started at 40 45 having 1 2 3 cr of wealth then they started but student entrepreneurship is totally different it mighted by your batchmates supported by your friends or have at least that base like base money to survive correct who are your initial helpers exactly so you mentioned family does this mean that the economic stability of a family is important for students to want to start up so if you see most of the companies toda
+y which are larger enterprises they had this basic proof and basic family stability there would be outliners for sure we like stories those stories become famous but 99% people who are making wealth are not famous right those are people again according to balar if I take about successful companies we don't know about 90% of the companies who are in the back end running the businesses built a small plug-in selling just small products also even Eli those people are the ones who are running the ecosystem but we don't know about those people we always study or hear about outliner stories right so what about institutional interventions or policy level interventions do you think some of these can help to bridge this gap yes so again if you have that mindset built then you try to look at these are the easier tools policy level changes you are tracking that boss look EV is getting benefits or wind energy is get so those are the easier spots to identify opportunities and jump on all right all right even a small opportunity of I would take say the route from say China to or Russia to China to other Ukraine or European countries is blocked because of the war there was big opportunity how to move those inventory or goods because those goods are manufactured and needed so people build our businesses around that too so short these are short opportunities but again you have to think long term yes so such things are needed you need so again that skill set of research is needed a lot um let's look at uh incubation centers in university ecosystems so there is a guess finding that 63% of student entrepreneurs currently access university support but only 26% of student ventures are being incubated with some of the top universities scoring a 4.7 out of seven one of the highest globally that is for fostering a positive entrepreneurship climate what do you think are the key factors that would have contributed to this success so there are two questions here uh like I would take like according to my understanding what I feel first part is the incubation centers are there like lot of universities have started having that but you also need good mentor support in those who come from diverse background like otherwise if we take a talk abou
+t engineering colleges they their focus would be more on engineering products if you talk about management colleges is they would be focusing more on fintech or that sort of products which they understand so while setting up an incubation center even in larger organizations who want to have entrepreneurial mindset they want to build ventures or fastmoving companies inside that so that they can also survive they need to have that open mindset and have diverse people supporting that so that no startup opportunities missed so providing basic infrastructure but now highly skilled infrastructure is also needed because digital have reduced the barriers you can know about thing you can know even the documentation part initially when incubation centers were there they were more focusing on providing other supports from CA to legalities and which is needed but now those things are more democratized now you need that industry experience also to improve this score further So there are different incubation centers who provide that diverse infrastructure also but if it is provided across all the institutes at similar level it would help a lot okay so in your case in the case of justify especially or even I think deal with us you chose not to go for incubation is that right yes so luckily because I started early I had built that network and connections and about documentation process so I wasn't needing that support okay which generally other people might need we had built those thesis in place otherwise we would have gone through institute incubation center so have you observed any gaps in incubation ecosystems and educational institutions yes so again because so any company or any incubation center would be great depending upon the kind of expert experts they're able to bring in every instit like if you want to run even a company you need to institution institutionalize certain things that acts as a good part for the long term but on short-term period you also miss out on some things because the team who is running would look at startups who are more fitting to their thesis or their understandings of the ecosystem so either incubation center should also be run by entrepreneurs or that mindset that would help them evolve yo
+u can find similar thing in VC ecosystem also in India also VC funds who are run by entrepreneurs are able to take better bets compared to the financial VC funds okay and like everyone is doing great i'm not like saying that they are some belt or something wrong is there those have their own thesis but for incubation centers I feel more openness is needed more support is needed so that any idea could get better feedback better opportunities so can you throw some more light on what you mean by openness is needed so when so in college you can't define that boss i we would take only engineering startups or manufacturing startups or we won't take service based startups that shouldn't be the role of a college incubation center they should be open about any idea and they should have that network to connect them with ideal incubation center okay or ideal support because if those people are from that college they should get those other support too so um right in the beginning you had spoken about how um startups built by engineers also need to integrate business understanding design and service orientation understand customers understand P&L and all of that right so that means obviously venture creation and the journey of a startup is interdisciplinary correct yeah So do you think uh institutions provide these kind of interdisciplinary opportunities in venture creation for students yes so I guess entrepreneurship courses and venture creation courses are helping that we are able to meet like again because of that college mindset people are not able to respect the professor ecosystem but because of entrepreneurship courses they see the tag of company also our professors are even better than the CEOs of most of the companies but we are not able to value them that school mindset is there or we are not taught in a right manner that we can also utilize their expertise of industry too right because they have done research they have done PhD like they have that mindset also they also know how to build something unique we are not able to take those benefits but through these courses more importance that thinking is built even for the people who are not going for masters or PhDs true true so would you say that students in tier t
+wo and three cities are also getting access to the same kind of ecosystem support not right now i feel that even tier one colleges are still struggling so that support is needed to be extended that would give us even better team members like for me being a founder or running a great project in my company I feel those are again everyone who's working with us is an entrepreneur that mindset that how they run particular department how they are building those even smaller solutions we need people who have that mindset right right so let's now segue to a very tantalizing question employment first entrepreneurship later yes so the guess India report offers one unique insight into this the evolving aspirations of Indian students right and there is this shift that we are seeing 70% students aim for jobs immediately after graduation and this number falls to 52% over 5 years and entrepreneurial aspirations uh which were 14% immediately after graduation are now going to 31% after 5 years so why is there this shift why do people want to take up a job work for 5 years and then jump into entrepreneurship so two things in India the education is again becoming expensive all people can't like the family how their families have been so first they need to support their family that becomes a big factor so everyone wants to have that financial independence then only they can also learn about the market in again colleges we learn about say electrical engineering or mechanical engineering core one to two we are 5% people would be there who would be choosing PhD or research part going exactly or building on that but most of the people would want to go to jobs in jobs they require totally different skill set limited one or two profiles coding profiles who might be using their learnings but these engineering courses just build the basic behavior that boss you can try to incorporate engineering in different things also like setting a chemical plant you have are a chemical engineer so you know different things but you also need to understand the costing part of material involved so that where you want to build pipes and all those things so for that part the learning going to the market becomes a necessary thing like You want to build some
+thing but before understanding the market you are being taught certain things you have to pass that also so that becomes a problematic part so in first year itself if that mindset is being taught I guess more people would start exploring because as you see Indian ecosystem in last 70 years our forefathers from agriculture to they have built something now I guess most of the people have that roof over their head so more people can take that entrepreneurship bet but for that to happen we need to start building on early on right like from first year itself people would can start looking at things from an entrepreneur mindset that what problems we can solve true true and it can happen across India it is not needed tier one colleges only if we start doing this I guess percentage would so tier one college might have 5% success rate in tier 2 college would or tier three college would start having at least 1% or.5% impact okay so so what do you think should be the first step to ensure that this thrust happens so I guess that like I guess from first year like in colleges we have NSS NSO In government colleges these are the mandatory things which happen i guess basics of entrepreneurship should also be part of this which should be mandatory just for like how we know about mathematics basics like for me till 10th I guess everyone should have 10th level education so you are aware about all different courses which is beauty for Indian market that we know about even Sanskrit even different different languages which are being taught till 10th class mathematics social science all the we are like we have that basic access to all the things similarly I feel entrepreneurship is needed to fit in that criteria even financial education I feel those things will help people more to build something early Okay okay uh let's uh so you we've spoken about educational institutions incubation ecosystems in educational institutions entrepreneurship education you've also spoken a little bit about the government let's look at the private sector what can private stakeholders what can private players do like corporations VC funds NOS's accelerator groups how can they engage students better so I guess again VC funds are again startups so they have
+to prove the numbers for them i guess it would be difficult to build something on because they are a startup they have to be profitable they have to show highest returns that's how they are also making money those are startups for me but if I talk about traditional larger corporates businesses who have thrived for two three decades who are profitable sitting on great pile they could also imagine about building new companies but for that they have to have those like teams dedicated teams in corporates the problem part is they have that management structure in place and if they try to start something new in the venture and try to incorporate different different resources that could result in failure also so people will think that how my promotion would be impacted so they have to remove those barriers provide a open ecosystem that boss if you are able to at least build some thesis build something in these lines and they should have a separate team like even co-founders for that particular incubation can have a code tag in that who are building in that if that fails also they should be promoted in their existing jobs so they need to have more teams who can build on businesses that's right that's right so that culture need to be there separate teams building separate of even a separate dedicated teams would be needed it it's not a part-time job where you imagine if I take example of say Reliance and Reliance want to build something similar to Zomemetto and they just give a additional responsibility that becomes a confusing task you need to have dedicated teams inside corporates allow them to fail also right so um there are uh several private startup support systems mushrooming right student and they're inviting students to participate but somehow like it look it's a business model like you said uh how can these support systems be more studententric and how can they be more tangibly supportive in addition to the openness and the appetite for failure that you spoke about are there anything any other factors so I guess education part is already covered that if we start imparting basics of entrepreneurship from start and try to identify the problem statements which new generations are now seeing they can build better
+solutions imagine if I take a simple example people are who are born in 2020 or 2024 would your voice broke off come on for a moment sorry so I was talking about we need newer generation to build on product so how people who are born in 2020 or even in 2024 would be requiring totally different games altogether right so there are several uh you still audible yes you are audible am I audible uh you're audible now you're audible now just one uh meaning we're to towards the end and I have just a couple of questions more one of them one of them is about um the institution industry ac uh interface there are several collaborations there are several partnerships do you think something should be added to these partnerships to strengthen the entrepreneurship aspect or do you think the partnerships are not working at all we feel again it totally depends upon even while telling people that boss we have built this partnership it's depends upon the person who should be able to utilize the features of it so that those partnerships need to be marketed in that way that I'm able to understand that boss if I'm coming here I would be able to reach out to these universities or these people these props or even these additional benefits I can get those benefits need to be highlighted ed by a person not from corporate but who have that entrepreneurial mindset right right take example of even like the courses which we run in DSSE or ideas program students if they are able to access great industry mentors or write customer support we are trying to build a community people who are with corporates also should come for those pitches so that those products can get loi or a pilot opportunity true so everyone can be it's a like startups will thrive when corporates start using them too true that's true that's true in fact customers yeah yes yes i I think this is uh the right time to give you an idea of a project an experiment that I tried uh here at NM i speak to uh I'm on the uh like there is this it's not really a startup right now maybe it's in the transition going uh to going public okay and uh they build insurance technology solutions the the way we worked it the way the partnership worked was we ran a startup in here and the problem stat
+ements came in from the company students tried solutions and the objective was to come out with a startup idea around those problem statements and then the company would support them in developing those problems those solutions for the winning teams of course and that would be termed as an internship so it became a very attractive uh invitation for students to join participate and now in their summer break uh uh an opportunity for them to experiment with their startup development and and the prizes of course they sponsored some small money 50,000 rupees but the company also gets multiple uh perspectives and solutions you know so they they did do that um effectively Um but but then these kind of partnerships I'm finding are very few and far between not every large company comes forward with this kind of a thought process and sometime most of the companies who want to thrive for longer period need to do that because now age is not a number to judge on like someone who is 49 or 50 or someone whose age is 25 or 29 or even 18 we don't know the information they have accumulated in last one decade because of digitization so we don't know who would be great in terms of execution or understandings right totally depends upon what sort of impact they can bring out corporates could be running behind different different programs to understand how they would be able to provide things for the next generation absolutely they become their consumers they become they don't get bored even Netflix YouTube are experimenting what sort of they're trying to bring YouTubers to these OTD platforms so that their engagement can increase so you can imagine things which we calling as cringe is now becoming mainstream right more value than the traditional actors true this is just the entertainment industry now imagine the products which we are building for the next generation when I say products even the consumables the biscuits everything would change right to innovate even the supply chains would be no waiting like instamart blanket they are selling that 10-minut path flip card failed multiple times but now they have again launched minutes Amazon has launched the phone pay with their pin code so people who were calling that that won't work
+out are now running behind this at least in metro cities it can become profitable model right right so one last question from you Kamill because um uh you are uh an inspirational young entrepreneur who started off as a student and today many people would look up to you as a role model so what would be your message for aspiring student entrepreneurs if you had to give them one message so instead of one I would say two three things which are needed first of all start talking about ideas also early on try to identify people whom you're meeting identify learning about their journeys we keep diving in our phones so have that physical connect have that networking opportunities earlier we used to call that as dragon knowing about our seniors mhm but imagine that basic culture of knowing 20 30 things about our people they wanted to pursue do I is or they wanted to have the financial role they wanted to become consultant understanding their journeys so having that physical connect understanding that part is I feel that is started missing out but that connect would help people to build new organizations which can thrive longer and get honest so for students my first thing is start knowing about people who are around you know knowing about their backgrounds how they raised at those places what experiences were there and reading about general knowledge which is around us that would give like you rightly said about policy changes or government interventions you might have seen the defense talks going up because of the war then they're coming down because of ceasefire these things are happening around us so that common sense is built based on our environment how we are seeing the news or how we are interacting with people around us so have that common sense have those interactions and have empathy too okay because people are who have been successful one common trait which I found is empathy yes fantastic true Kamill that was very insightful and now if I had to ask you one last question before we close if you had to implement one bold idea to transform student entrepreneurship in India what would it be if you had to drive a change the thing which I told you so I wanted to bring lot of corporate guys on weekends to college
+and student just pitch their random ideas that uh one or two hour part where you can have snacks and all corporate people are coming just to interact with their college students and they can give them opportunities and ideas that's a like if a institute can sponsor that or a corporation or even a VC fund can do that that would be a great thing where after imagine like you are living in Friday afternoon uh Friday evening instead of going to your home you go to such place where startups are just pitching failing badly also but in just 2 to 5 minutes they are pitching and going away now it's up to corporate people to reach out to those so that gives them excitement ment also for both the sides people who want to build people who are with corporates who want to incorporate new solutions yes thank you so much so I'll be in touch with you thank you Kamill thank

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-Here are the transcripts, organized video by video, as requested:
-NEW YOUTUBE SOURCE: Excerpts from the transcript of the video "Did Lucky get Lucky? | ft. Lucky and Dr. Puran Singh | IIT Mandi | Special Ep.1 SES-3 | GUESSS India" uploaded on the YouTube channel "GUESSS India"
-my name is Puran Singh and I'm bringing to you student entrepreneurship stories i have with me Lucky who is a student of IMBA program at I Mandi i met him last year and he has recently completed one year uh the first year of this program and recently during the semester break he started a venture which is what intrigued me and uh I've invited Lucky to uh talk to us about why would he do such a crazy thing one year into um undergraduation program right first year right after plus two so I mandi he's from Hana and we see that by by the time the semester closes lucky announced venture which he calls IMBA beacon and we were intrigued uh the faculty group at I Monday we were intrigued saying what happening what is lucky doing and then over the next month or so we saw him do a lot of things which were interesting and I thought let Let's talk to Lucky and ask him more about why did he start this little venture lucky this is your first venture let's call this first venture okay so welcome Lucky to this interaction please tell us about what is IMBA beacon first of all and then I'll ask you the question why I do such a crazy thing go ahead so first of all thank you so much for the opportunity so IMBA beacon is a initiative that I took to mentor students who are aspiring to join IMBA program at IIT Mandi so at IMBA beacon me along with four or five batchmates we just guide students how they can ace the interview strategies and tips so that they can uh drive interview in their favor and things like that and one important thing that I missed out is we are also spreading awareness about this program many students didn't know this okay this type of thing also exists and now they knew it and I hope they okay and we also recently concluded the interview round for this but I want to know is when you started this IMBA weekend okay uh initially I confused it with maybe this is an initiative that we have taken and I'm aware of it as a school that we started some IMBA beacon to tell students uh about you to help them prepare and then I realized uh and you reached out to me as well sir I want to discuss about IV week and I thought maybe you have been deployed by or appointed by the admissions committee to spread awareness and when we
-had an interaction I figured out no this this is a this is a startup this is a small startup project that you're trying to do u so where did this begin uh when did you get the idea idea and what was that uh context where you thought I could do this so let us start from the very start so until my 12th class I was very much involved in sports from past six seven years so I'm a three times national medalist in fencing and by mid 12th I realized that okay if I put this hard work in studies I'll get more output maybe in terms of money and time freedom and all that so I just shifted my career then I got interested into NDA and I gave the exam qualified the written exam all the times and in total I gave four attempts two before getting into IIT Mundi and two after getting into IIT Mundi so I cleared the written exam cleared the stage one but couldn't clear the stage two that is the conference round so then I decided okay uh let me look for alternatives as my J was J score was also not very high so I looked for alternatives as I was not really interested into BTE but then I started looking for opportunities then IP and it was really interesting and as I got to know about IPMAT I also got to know about IIT Mundy's integrated MBA and this was even more interesting technology and management so I applied for it and I got in and then too I was thinking okay after a semester or so I'll just leave the institute and join national defense academy but all is in front of you so I didn't get selected and I didn't even appear for my last attempt because this business thing was more interesting to me now and I started to look for opportunities and I was so much interested in entrepreneurship okay I want to start my own venture and all then I saw this opportunity okay although this is not a full-time and so-called big venture but I just took it as a small project so that I have an entrepreneurship experience how to build team how to lead people how to deal with customers marketing strategies and all that stuff so I got to know so many things that will for sure help me if I start another venture that is full-time and I'm actively looking for that so that is it i saw the opportunity and I just picked it up so let us tell u uh the view
-ers about the venture a little bit more so far we've only called it IMBA beacon and we've said you know you are spreading awareness or you're guiding let's talk more in business terminology who is a customer is someone who appeared for J this year and is looking for colleges okay what is the problem that they have problem is they are mostly going in PCM they don't know what are the alternatives and different opportunities after 12 okay what is the problem that you are solving for them first thing is awareness second one is guiding through the interview process okay and uh uh what what is it that you offer this uh service to them what what is the modality what is the that you offer okay so initially we started with just one pack that is for 1,500 rupees and in that pack we have three mock interviews with detailed feedback and all and along with that based on the previous year interview patterns we had some important questions okay these are some questions that are repeatedly asking asked by almost everyone so we made some small exercises out of that okay so why imba is an important question so read the brochure carefully because you'll get so many terminologies and ideas to frame your answer why imba because there are so many features out there written on the brochure so if you go through the brochure then it will be very helpful to frame this answer so exercises like these we had four or five exercises and we had these mock interviews along with that if someone is facing some issues with answer framing and if someone is not able to guide their interview in their favor so we just tell them okay use only those words and things that you are aware of and that you can explain everything so things like that we offered initially but as uh it was a last time I mean just a one week before the interviews we offered two more packs in that we didn't had any exercises and all we just had 600 for one mock interview and 1,000 for two mock interviews okay uh you're looking at people who are applying for any program or only the IMB program since you call it IMB vehicle our uh main problem solving is guiding students who are applying for it but also there are many students who are not aware of this so we are spreading awareness
-and the students who are getting aware we are taking them into IMBA and so that they purchase our course right so my next question is uh if we uh go back in time when when is it you did explain that uh interest in NDA of you were you know you played nationals uh in fencing u but um all of that motivate you how did that motivate you to become an entrepreneur or try an entrepreneurial venture what was the trigger exactly how does this background in sporting and interest in NDA uh did that lead you to this or because that didn't happen you got interested in business or that wasn't happening you picked this so what exactly happened it was you can say a mix of both of them it was not happening and I was a little interested in this because I have developed so many skills like leading team uh and working with people collaboration as a fencing was also a team game along with individual games so yes I learned so many things and those things also helped me in this venture and also things were not happening so I looked for alternatives and I found this more interesting and as as far as IMB is concerned at what time did it hit you that you could do this venture in the last one year you may have gone through the courses in school of management here and would have uh been introduced to business but um at what point did you think that I will do this project this startup okay so it was during our mids in second semester it was uh February last week I guess so me and Yupta were sitting in library and I just told Yukta okay hey uh can't we do this then she said okay it's a great idea we can start working on that and as uh I proceed with it so Yukta was like okay I can't do this uh uh maybe some personal reasons but uh then I started alone and recorded my first video with the help of my roommate and Yukta but she was not really into this initially we decided a 50/50 but now I was just alone she was just helping me in recording videos and all but later on she joined me back as a mentor for mock interviews that is a different story but yes initially we started as two then she got out i was alone when we actually actually started and actually working on it but we discussed the idea at the same time in Jul uh February February and Fe
-bruary tell us more about this video why what is this video business you had to record the video okay so most of the JS parents use YouTube as for watching videos and with YouTube we started on Instagram and now we are also on LinkedIn so if some professionals kid is also appearing for J so they can also look in for their daughters and so initially we started with YouTube and Instagram because most of the youth is on Instagram and many students are using YouTube so for spreading awareness about the course in first video we didn't mention anything about our mentorship course we just told okay hey this is IMBA beacon oh I mean this is IMBA at IIT Mundi if you are not aware of this okay have a look in this okay so that's why the videos uh were were required okay great but didn't you think that you know you're just a student and you are just completing your second semester first year into the program at IIT Maldi uh starting a venture of you know asking people to pay you did it not sound crazy to you why would they come to you it was and initially before starting when the idea was in ideation stage so I was like okay I'll get so many registration I'll get six figures and all that stuff but when I actually started it I got only one registration in first 15 days 10 15 days so I was like okay I didn't expect that but as soon as the dates approached and I worked hard on marketing and spreading awareness then we grew very fast and there were some days in which we had 8 9,000 revenue per day but initially there were 10 15 days when we had zero revenue and I was like okay I just got one aspirant and that too his uh like he didn't get more than 75% marks in board exams so I had to refund his money so So it was really heartbreaking okay so uh let's uh drill down a little bit more you said Feb okay i'm writing down here on my piece of paper feb 2025 you get this idea during midsams okay and then you said you had to record videos you started recording videos so tell us a little bit more about uh what is what what are the steps that you followed uh you mentioned several words you said 1,500 rupees you said uh JES parents you said video record awareness let's talk step by step if if any student has to start u you know small min
-i startup project startup idea uh what are the first few steps so with your example I want to say what did you what did you do first you recorded a YouTube video then how did you decide you of course said that it should be on YouTube because people watch YouTube but then what content to put how to advertise so let's go step by step so that you know other students who are listening in they can get an idea of how can you build a mini startup uh in the first place so first of all look for an opportunity there was a huge opportunity that was lying and I explored it and get into this so I'll explain it in my case so I thought okay we can do I can do this and this so for that first thing is awareness because I was also not aware of this program but I saw a video on YouTube from some random coaching so if someone who is studying in the program he tells about the program it's even more reliable so in first video we didn't market anything see if you are marketing anything in your first video itself they'll be like okay so initially in the first video it was just for information and from the second video onwards we started talking about our mentorship course that two in the end of the video so first thing is information the second thing is grabbing their attention okay so if you want to get an edge over others because we told okay we are offering this and this nobody else in the market is offering this we had a unique thing that is the data data of the last year's student so I personally sat with almost all of my batchmates and asked questions okay what were what were some questions that were asked by you and where do you think you lagged where do you think you performed really well so we had some patterns okay this is where students are stuck or this is how you can drive interview in your favor okay and these are some most important questions that are really asked in the interview repeatedly so then we found the pattern the data that is our USP see there was one one competitor and he started one year back although there were some trust issues with some students okay you you you don't have any experience for taking interviews how do how can we trust you and pay 1,500 rupees and 1,500 rupees was just taken as a reference
-because last year as I'm talking about the competitor he put the price as 1,500 and we just wanted to start with the base year as it is our first year so we just tried to put it kind of equivalent but this year he changed a strategy and he just gave two packages one for,000 and one for 1500 and we just started with 1500 and later on we shifted to 600 and 1,000 packs too so initially we started uh for a base 1500 and next year we let's see what happens and what is good to go so you said you start with uh identifying an opportunity and uh because you had faced this process and you had access to your fellow batchmates you could also collect the data on was asked in the interview and therefore you could pitch this as your USB okay but operationally did you have a piece of paper on which you do did some number crunchy wrote your strategy what channels to use date by date plan did you do any of that or was it all let's see what what to do tomorrow no actually if you're asking about numbers uh I didn't get to your question can you please how did you strategize this did you write a plan on the piece of paper tomorrow we going to do this and then day after tomorrow this is the task to be done or you know we will take it as it comes every day we will see what do we have to do so how did you strategize not actually on a piece of paper but mostly I use my phone and there is the option to send message to ourself so I just send any important uh ideas questions that I need to look on or think upon so all the important stuffs I just put it there send a message to myself on WhatsApp and I did it all there because I don't really have a piece of paper every time but ideas are every time everywhere so okay all right and you did mention you know the USP because you were a student here you said the first fellow batchmate backed out and then joined later again how hard was it to convince other people you had five people with you uh initially you were just two of you or did the others did not want to join uh so how hard was it to find people to work with you okay so actually I just approached them to no I didn't even approach they told me okay hey I want to join if you want I can help you with this and all but at that point in time it
-was very organized everything was very clear we started getting registrations then only they approached okay hey we can help you with this so there was no as the challenges because everything was well established I just needed some people who can help me because I can't handle so many interviews and all that alone and also we did one more thing that okay there were three mock interviews so we gave three mock interviews with three different panelists and I was common in all the panels and the other person was changing so that students have more exposure to different type of questions interview environment and all okay okay great so um lucky my next question is about uh the mindset of students as a student um starting seems like too too difficult a task did you think you were starting a venture did you think it's an experiment did you think you are going to become an entrepreneur so what exactly did you believe would happen after this project did you think about that so my mindset before starting this was okay this is kind of a entrepreneurship journey only so in a long run I am definitely looking for a full-time venture and for that it will be a good hands-on experience and that is how I started like I want to do a full-time venture and for that it will be a good experience because obviously this is a seasonal business one time in a year so there are some limitations in this I can't really just get into this thing so I'm just looking for a full-time venture and this is a very good experience so many learnings for starting that one yesterday I was talking to a bunch of students about uh starting up and um some some of the questions that they have is sir I'm just a how can I start a company right so did you think of starting a company did did you think that oh startup means I have to register a private limited company and uh then I can start this not one thing I checked out was okay if uh I am doing some legal thing because I saw okay when do I need to pay tax then I found out okay if my annual revenue is more than 2.5 lakhs then I have to uh give tax okay then I was like okay it's fine now that thing I said but yes uh I saw many people on internet who are saying okay I'll do an MBA then I'll do two years of job
-so that I have uh recovered the payment that I did to the college for MBA and then I'll start my venture okay there will not be any golden day okay after two years jadu mantra and I have idea okay I'll start my venture now so when you you have ideas now you can start now while waiting for an MBA for 2 years and then two years to recover that payment of loan so it is a good idea to start as soon as you have ideas but then uh you started after the semester break or during this seme because you have courses to take care of you have to study for exams you may be engaged in other co-curricular activities or other administrative club level responsibilities doing a startup would you know how much time do you think a mini startup would take like you did and can you really do it parallelly with your studies was hard because uh in the last 1 month especially we had more than 6 to 8 hours classes almost every day and taking time out even when NSMs are approaching it was really difficult my brother was saying okay hey don't upload the second video first one is done do whatever you have the people now but I was like okay this is the peak time if I'll not do now it will be really difficult to uh catch up with the audience later so I just talked to him and I secretly recorded video and he got to know about it when I uploaded that video and he scolded me okay you didn't focus on your studies and all why you wasting I don't want this IMBA beacon I just want you to study you can start these ventures later on but I like okay I'll manage all the things so so do you think u yeah let's talk about uh brother your brother your family parents friends how did they react to it your brother of course wanted you to uh study and focus on what were some other people in your close circle like parents uh siblings other relatives who knew about this and how did they so my father is in CRPF actually so he don't have much idea about all this but he knew okay I'm just teaching some students and all that and he knows that okay CGPA is important but my CGPA is not really good as of now so he just focus in his studies don't give too much time on that and your main focus should be your college and exams and CGPA and all that okay yeah yes and my mom d
-idn't really react okay she says okay do whatever you want and a similar idea okay focus on your exams It must not be ruined because of all this so that you regret later and you are not able to catch up and yes one of my one of my cousins who is a master's graduate from triple triple it Bangalore he told me okay you're doing great and just stick with it okay so not everyone is in in support and when you come to uh an educational program u typically initial mindset is that I have to get a job and then trying to start a venture can actually go crazy right so what kind of support would you expect would you expect your parents or your relatives to be more supportive of you in future or do you think they won't change and you just have to go your you how how are you calibrating that in your mind no what I believe is when money comes they always become supportive as soon as my exams were over and I started getting money although I didn't tell them the complete amount that I earned from this all but I told okay hey mom I just earned 4,000 today today or I just earned 7,000 today so she was like okay good when money comes nobody is like everybody is with you okay but it can so this was a different kind of startup project you got the money you didn't require an initial investment but then there can be uh startup initiatives where you need to invest from your pocket you may need to be borrow steal whatever right in the beginning uh with hardware based startups where you have to build a product Uh so in such cases it could be difficult how do you think if you have to you still have to figure out a long startup idea uh you have made some money and if you want you can share with the viewers how much is that maybe other students will feel inspired and make uh you know this much amount of money in about a month in a short mini startup project but I'm saying if you have to do another project which requires investment money uh how do you think you're going to handle handle that okay firstly I work on a startup which I'm 100% or at least 98 99% on confident on the startup and and looking to the investment also so I'm looking for a venture in which there is not so much of investment like in this one I initially before I started ea
-rning I just paid my editor nothing else so it was kind of small investment that I can take out from my pocket money too so initial investment should be low and the returns should be high i'm looking for that one and even if it's the case that we need high investment so we obviously pitch our ideas and if it is like idea we'll definitely get investors uh another question that students have is you know early in the first year you haven't learned a lot of technology right and usually startups are technology based uh and this idea that you uh have experimented with this again does not involve a lot of you know technology there's no product as such but it's it's a service that you're providing to them so did at any point in time you feel like you know it's not going to be a very attractive uh you know startup if I have to tell someone it's just coaching people for interviews so it won't look as uh interesting or as uh you know it's not an AI venture which is the uh thing of the dayto-day right so did you think about these it was never like I want to impress people okay hey I am startup founder and all I just wanted to do it firstly for the experience as a startup owner and secondly for money so it was never about okay impressing people hey I am a starter founder and all it was about me it was about and the learnings that are more important okay at least for for this startup so tell us the outcome and then tell us the learnings what is the outcome u I'm asking the question again tell us give us some of how much money have you made I'm not really comfortable sharing this so let's skip this question all right a mystery okay so coming to learnings firstly is marketing and especially the social media marketing through various channels like LinkedIn YouTube Instagram and we also had a community of more than 135 members on Telegram so where they discuss their doubts and all that stuff so firstly it's it's the marketing secondly handling the audience or our customers in a peak time I received more than 15 20 calls every day for queries about our course and from students who are already enrolled but they have doubts and all like it was a really hectic schedule and I was actually enjoying it i was not like yeah I'm working 1
-0 hours a day what the hell is this but I was actually enjoying working 14 15 hours every day for that duration of 8 10 days that was the peak time for a startup so it was really worth investing my time and obviously I was also getting money that was a second thing but I was actually enjoying what I was doing so this is one more thing as I discussed with you previously why are we all doing this why are we earning money so it was just for fun whatever we are doing are we really interested in that so yes I was very interesting and I was enjoying it all and the third thing was is uh building a team and working with them so we had conflicts in our team okay the there was a x amount that I was paying to our mentors per interview it like it is very less so we had so many discussions and we just concluded on the decided amount this year but obviously I'll have to increase it significantly next year okay okay so a lot of learnings and money is uh what is the outcome uh and we'll keep the viewers guessing as to how much amount but I based on our previous discussions it's it's to uh you know take a nice vacation in Himatel and outside which was your plan which you told me earlier okay great uh what were some some areas or you know some days when you felt like oh I failed here this this just did not work can you recall any such moments initially when we started and we were not getting registrations for the first 15 20 days so it was like very heartbreaking i was expecting okay I'll get so many registration I'll earn lacks of rupees and all that stuff but I just got one registration and that too I had to refund the amount so I was like okay will I even get five registrations will it work or I have started this but people are not joining is it really worth spending my time on this and all that stuff but I thought of this okay the registrations for IM are not even open why will people register for my course from now itself it is a long journey so I just waited for the right time and on the peak time we just hit and we got so many registrations okay can you also you know when you have to make decisions as an entrepreneur be it u uh around the pricing be it around which channels should I use uh or what strategy to use what wer
-e some interesting decision points that I have to decide this and based on this decision the course this startup is going to change right can you what were you know maybe one or two favorite moments which you maybe enjoyed you were really scared or you were very confident whatever are the highlights for you okay so for registrations when I didn't had any idea okay how websites are made and all that so I just talked to one of my friends okay hey can you make a website for me he said okay if we are register registering it or buying the website name or all that stuff we'll need some money and all that but then I said okay I don't think we'll get so many registrations that we need a website for it so I just tried Google form and that was the first time in life when I made my first Google form for my startup and it was really impressive considering it was the first time so for registrations we kept it on the Google form and at some point in time our registrations were almost zero in the end I'm talking about so I decided to launch two new plans that was 600 for one mock interview and 1,000 for two mock interviews for last minute and that was a successful one we earned thousands of rupees because of that only so at some point in time our revenue was just stagnant and then I introduced a new thing and it went up again so continuous innovation you had to do yeah how did you uh how did you celebrate when you had so many registrations you know maybe there was one day where you got so many registrations and you were like "Okay this is going in my bank account you're happy." How did you celebrate did you call a friend did you uh celebrate with your team members uh did you pray to God or what did you do how did you acknowledge that yeah things are working out okay so generally I just talked to my brother and my cousin who I just previously mentioned from triple it Bangalore so most of the things are discussed with these two so yeah I just told them okay I got this many registrations we hit this much revenue and I'm very happy so many learnings and all that they were like okay good you are doing great did they ask for a sh did they ask you for a party not really but yes we can have it anytime it's not an issue okay so u anot
-her question which I wanted to ask earlier was you said after you came to this program in the first year you got introduced to the business world you got introduced you know through the courses in management and business can you again pick some highlights from these courses try to recall where is it where you know in in the class some moments where in a subject something was being taught and helped you shape uh that gave you more confidence that yeah let me try entrepreneurship I want to do this do you have any such moments when your thinking got for entrepreneurships no but in the process yes I would like to highlight written and verbal communication course so I had to write emails and for verbal communication it's the content creation so it helped me in the written part mostly because I was not very confident obviously I use chat GPD but it gave me uh more little more confidence in framing those things and giving prompt to chat GPD and improvising it so I also tried uh this influencer marketing but it was really out of our budget at that point in time so we skipped it i just cold mailed uh almost 15 16 influencers who have their audience as Jes parents i got reply from 78 of them and we talked on call and things really didn't work out we were planning for an affiliate based thing but they were like okay we want some fixed amount we will not work on affiliate basis so we just skipped that part let's build our brand okay but um uh again u that question same question back in the courses you said nothing but during the process uh is when you had this feeling that you you want to do this right okay because in uh initial two semesters there was no such course related to entrepreneurship there was a course that helped me in this is foundations in business management and the second one is problem solving and decision making so these two were some management courses that I found some things really helped me in the process okay okay and over the last one year what skills you know compare yourself to you back what skills have you developed and which skills have helped you build this venture so that you know other students who are uh do this can also sort of pick some of those skills and start working towards that i thin
-k so there is not any so-called skill that I have learned through any online channel or anywhere it it was just a part of the process and I can't concretely mentioned okay I learned this skill that skill but there were some things like leadership and all which I learned through sports as in college too I'm part of the basketball team so yes teamwork leadership and all that stuff from there and critical thinking analysis and all that from some courses that I mentioned problem solving and decision- making so yeah it was a mix of so many things until I would say uh the end of my first semester i was like I have to leave this college and all that but then I am at Praguya and things really take a turn so it was a life-changing moment can say for college actually I was just okay playing video games and not even studying for an hour just studying 2 hours before the exam and all that stuff just having fun okay I have to leave this college what's the point of getting good grades in exam and all that stuff but when I meet him uh I realized that okay if I proceed with this thing this minds set and these actions things are not really be going great so I just told him this okay this is what I'm doing this is what the problem I'm facing and this is what I want to do so then we had a long discussion multiple discussions and he initially he gave me some task okay update me every day whenever you're done with this and this and all that stuff then things came back on track and I really really worked hard on my communication skills i uploaded a YouTube video or YouTube short every day for more than 110 straight days consistently not even a single day missing and that really really helped me in improving my communication skills great great thanks i think that's that's quite inspiring 110 days uh day on day recording yourself and putting content on the YouTube not to show to others but you're saying only for yourself to practice that's great so I think uh yeah that's an interesting idea uh you need to have people around you a support system uh whom you go to when you are in trouble or you need guidance uh were there some other people other than Pak uh who where you bounced off your ideas or you spoke to you know some other family m
-ember of course we've had some discussions uh as well just went to you sometimes uh in last few days but uh no such mentor he's the only one with whom I discuss my ideas apart from my family okay great great so thanks so much for giving all these details I think uh some ideas which stand out uh especially for the students who are thinking of start thinking hey I need to stumble upon a big idea you don't have to wait you can start you can you know work with the first idea build your first I have this theory of third venture where I believe the students need to reach their third venture which is where uh the real juice lies so I'm I'm so happy that you have done your first venture uh in this imba beacon initiative that we took u secondly student mostly they believe that they don't have the money they don't have the resources so how can the startup they don't have the credibility so it's it's all mindset if you change it a little bit you will find a USB uh now what lucky did was I went through this process so I know what questions are asked and I you know 40 other students uh who got who have gone through the same process so he goes to them and collects the question bank and there you go you have a real asset which is worth selling right and then you are you are part of this program already you've gone through this process so you have the credibility so like that everyone just needs to wants to start something they should just think about what is it you know who they are and what do they know and based on that you know a business proposition uh can be created and starting small is is very important for students especially uh it will be difficult with the studies with the exams and other things and of course the support from families friends starting up is now gradually becoming uh you know a common word part of the jargon and even in the households or rural it is becoming a you know word which is more popular uh but having support from all these people um around you your your support system important it doesn't come automatically but when they see the success uh when they see that you are moving you're taking action then they will support you so action is most important and lucky had a short time window to execute
-this idea u there was only about a month within which the interviews were held and he had to get people on board and honestly I was skeptical in the beginning thinking how are you going to get people how will you reach out to them um and I'm having discussions on which channel LinkedIn versus Instagram versus YouTube how will you find those people uh we can of course not share with you the details of applicants how will you uh catch them but I'm glad that you did u I think you had about 30 people 40 people who registered with you which which a great uh lucky does not want to disclose at all okay but these are great insights for any student who is watching and who start the the idea is to start quick take action and seize the opportunity don't wait for a big idea to come your way don't uh for an innovative tech based AI enabled idea just start with what you can do right now and that will give you so much confidence and learning and support from around your ecosystem and help you develop into a very different kind of person who thinks entrepreneurally all of those contribute to you becoming a better person every day right lucky thank you so much for helping us derive all these learnings and I'm sure you will inspire many other students from IIT Mundi and around the country to start up quick start up small and start up fast thank you thank you so much sir and you all can reach me out anytime i'm always up for ideas to discuss new ideas explore new ideas so yes all the best thank you Lucky
+Here are the transcripts, organized video by video, as requested:
+NEW YOUTUBE SOURCE: Excerpts from the transcript of the video "Did Lucky get Lucky? | ft. Lucky and Dr. Puran Singh | IIT Mandi | Special Ep.1 SES-3 | GUESSS India" uploaded on the YouTube channel "GUESSS India"
+my name is Puran Singh and I'm bringing to you student entrepreneurship stories i have with me Lucky who is a student of IMBA program at I Mandi i met him last year and he has recently completed one year uh the first year of this program and recently during the semester break he started a venture which is what intrigued me and uh I've invited Lucky to uh talk to us about why would he do such a crazy thing one year into um undergraduation program right first year right after plus two so I mandi he's from Hana and we see that by by the time the semester closes lucky announced venture which he calls IMBA beacon and we were intrigued uh the faculty group at I Monday we were intrigued saying what happening what is lucky doing and then over the next month or so we saw him do a lot of things which were interesting and I thought let Let's talk to Lucky and ask him more about why did he start this little venture lucky this is your first venture let's call this first venture okay so welcome Lucky to this interaction please tell us about what is IMBA beacon first of all and then I'll ask you the question why I do such a crazy thing go ahead so first of all thank you so much for the opportunity so IMBA beacon is a initiative that I took to mentor students who are aspiring to join IMBA program at IIT Mandi so at IMBA beacon me along with four or five batchmates we just guide students how they can ace the interview strategies and tips so that they can uh drive interview in their favor and things like that and one important thing that I missed out is we are also spreading awareness about this program many students didn't know this okay this type of thing also exists and now they knew it and I hope they okay and we also recently concluded the interview round for this but I want to know is when you started this IMBA weekend okay uh initially I confused it with maybe this is an initiative that we have taken and I'm aware of it as a school that we started some IMBA beacon to tell students uh about you to help them prepare and then I realized uh and you reached out to me as well sir I want to discuss about IV week and I thought maybe you have been deployed by or appointed by the admissions committee to spread awareness and when we
+had an interaction I figured out no this this is a this is a startup this is a small startup project that you're trying to do u so where did this begin uh when did you get the idea idea and what was that uh context where you thought I could do this so let us start from the very start so until my 12th class I was very much involved in sports from past six seven years so I'm a three times national medalist in fencing and by mid 12th I realized that okay if I put this hard work in studies I'll get more output maybe in terms of money and time freedom and all that so I just shifted my career then I got interested into NDA and I gave the exam qualified the written exam all the times and in total I gave four attempts two before getting into IIT Mundi and two after getting into IIT Mundi so I cleared the written exam cleared the stage one but couldn't clear the stage two that is the conference round so then I decided okay uh let me look for alternatives as my J was J score was also not very high so I looked for alternatives as I was not really interested into BTE but then I started looking for opportunities then IP and it was really interesting and as I got to know about IPMAT I also got to know about IIT Mundy's integrated MBA and this was even more interesting technology and management so I applied for it and I got in and then too I was thinking okay after a semester or so I'll just leave the institute and join national defense academy but all is in front of you so I didn't get selected and I didn't even appear for my last attempt because this business thing was more interesting to me now and I started to look for opportunities and I was so much interested in entrepreneurship okay I want to start my own venture and all then I saw this opportunity okay although this is not a full-time and so-called big venture but I just took it as a small project so that I have an entrepreneurship experience how to build team how to lead people how to deal with customers marketing strategies and all that stuff so I got to know so many things that will for sure help me if I start another venture that is full-time and I'm actively looking for that so that is it i saw the opportunity and I just picked it up so let us tell u uh the view
+ers about the venture a little bit more so far we've only called it IMBA beacon and we've said you know you are spreading awareness or you're guiding let's talk more in business terminology who is a customer is someone who appeared for J this year and is looking for colleges okay what is the problem that they have problem is they are mostly going in PCM they don't know what are the alternatives and different opportunities after 12 okay what is the problem that you are solving for them first thing is awareness second one is guiding through the interview process okay and uh uh what what is it that you offer this uh service to them what what is the modality what is the that you offer okay so initially we started with just one pack that is for 1,500 rupees and in that pack we have three mock interviews with detailed feedback and all and along with that based on the previous year interview patterns we had some important questions okay these are some questions that are repeatedly asking asked by almost everyone so we made some small exercises out of that okay so why imba is an important question so read the brochure carefully because you'll get so many terminologies and ideas to frame your answer why imba because there are so many features out there written on the brochure so if you go through the brochure then it will be very helpful to frame this answer so exercises like these we had four or five exercises and we had these mock interviews along with that if someone is facing some issues with answer framing and if someone is not able to guide their interview in their favor so we just tell them okay use only those words and things that you are aware of and that you can explain everything so things like that we offered initially but as uh it was a last time I mean just a one week before the interviews we offered two more packs in that we didn't had any exercises and all we just had 600 for one mock interview and 1,000 for two mock interviews okay uh you're looking at people who are applying for any program or only the IMB program since you call it IMB vehicle our uh main problem solving is guiding students who are applying for it but also there are many students who are not aware of this so we are spreading awareness
+and the students who are getting aware we are taking them into IMBA and so that they purchase our course right so my next question is uh if we uh go back in time when when is it you did explain that uh interest in NDA of you were you know you played nationals uh in fencing u but um all of that motivate you how did that motivate you to become an entrepreneur or try an entrepreneurial venture what was the trigger exactly how does this background in sporting and interest in NDA uh did that lead you to this or because that didn't happen you got interested in business or that wasn't happening you picked this so what exactly happened it was you can say a mix of both of them it was not happening and I was a little interested in this because I have developed so many skills like leading team uh and working with people collaboration as a fencing was also a team game along with individual games so yes I learned so many things and those things also helped me in this venture and also things were not happening so I looked for alternatives and I found this more interesting and as as far as IMB is concerned at what time did it hit you that you could do this venture in the last one year you may have gone through the courses in school of management here and would have uh been introduced to business but um at what point did you think that I will do this project this startup okay so it was during our mids in second semester it was uh February last week I guess so me and Yupta were sitting in library and I just told Yukta okay hey uh can't we do this then she said okay it's a great idea we can start working on that and as uh I proceed with it so Yukta was like okay I can't do this uh uh maybe some personal reasons but uh then I started alone and recorded my first video with the help of my roommate and Yukta but she was not really into this initially we decided a 50/50 but now I was just alone she was just helping me in recording videos and all but later on she joined me back as a mentor for mock interviews that is a different story but yes initially we started as two then she got out i was alone when we actually actually started and actually working on it but we discussed the idea at the same time in Jul uh February February and Fe
+bruary tell us more about this video why what is this video business you had to record the video okay so most of the JS parents use YouTube as for watching videos and with YouTube we started on Instagram and now we are also on LinkedIn so if some professionals kid is also appearing for J so they can also look in for their daughters and so initially we started with YouTube and Instagram because most of the youth is on Instagram and many students are using YouTube so for spreading awareness about the course in first video we didn't mention anything about our mentorship course we just told okay hey this is IMBA beacon oh I mean this is IMBA at IIT Mundi if you are not aware of this okay have a look in this okay so that's why the videos uh were were required okay great but didn't you think that you know you're just a student and you are just completing your second semester first year into the program at IIT Maldi uh starting a venture of you know asking people to pay you did it not sound crazy to you why would they come to you it was and initially before starting when the idea was in ideation stage so I was like okay I'll get so many registration I'll get six figures and all that stuff but when I actually started it I got only one registration in first 15 days 10 15 days so I was like okay I didn't expect that but as soon as the dates approached and I worked hard on marketing and spreading awareness then we grew very fast and there were some days in which we had 8 9,000 revenue per day but initially there were 10 15 days when we had zero revenue and I was like okay I just got one aspirant and that too his uh like he didn't get more than 75% marks in board exams so I had to refund his money so So it was really heartbreaking okay so uh let's uh drill down a little bit more you said Feb okay i'm writing down here on my piece of paper feb 2025 you get this idea during midsams okay and then you said you had to record videos you started recording videos so tell us a little bit more about uh what is what what are the steps that you followed uh you mentioned several words you said 1,500 rupees you said uh JES parents you said video record awareness let's talk step by step if if any student has to start u you know small min
+i startup project startup idea uh what are the first few steps so with your example I want to say what did you what did you do first you recorded a YouTube video then how did you decide you of course said that it should be on YouTube because people watch YouTube but then what content to put how to advertise so let's go step by step so that you know other students who are listening in they can get an idea of how can you build a mini startup uh in the first place so first of all look for an opportunity there was a huge opportunity that was lying and I explored it and get into this so I'll explain it in my case so I thought okay we can do I can do this and this so for that first thing is awareness because I was also not aware of this program but I saw a video on YouTube from some random coaching so if someone who is studying in the program he tells about the program it's even more reliable so in first video we didn't market anything see if you are marketing anything in your first video itself they'll be like okay so initially in the first video it was just for information and from the second video onwards we started talking about our mentorship course that two in the end of the video so first thing is information the second thing is grabbing their attention okay so if you want to get an edge over others because we told okay we are offering this and this nobody else in the market is offering this we had a unique thing that is the data data of the last year's student so I personally sat with almost all of my batchmates and asked questions okay what were what were some questions that were asked by you and where do you think you lagged where do you think you performed really well so we had some patterns okay this is where students are stuck or this is how you can drive interview in your favor okay and these are some most important questions that are really asked in the interview repeatedly so then we found the pattern the data that is our USP see there was one one competitor and he started one year back although there were some trust issues with some students okay you you you don't have any experience for taking interviews how do how can we trust you and pay 1,500 rupees and 1,500 rupees was just taken as a reference
+because last year as I'm talking about the competitor he put the price as 1,500 and we just wanted to start with the base year as it is our first year so we just tried to put it kind of equivalent but this year he changed a strategy and he just gave two packages one for,000 and one for 1500 and we just started with 1500 and later on we shifted to 600 and 1,000 packs too so initially we started uh for a base 1500 and next year we let's see what happens and what is good to go so you said you start with uh identifying an opportunity and uh because you had faced this process and you had access to your fellow batchmates you could also collect the data on was asked in the interview and therefore you could pitch this as your USB okay but operationally did you have a piece of paper on which you do did some number crunchy wrote your strategy what channels to use date by date plan did you do any of that or was it all let's see what what to do tomorrow no actually if you're asking about numbers uh I didn't get to your question can you please how did you strategize this did you write a plan on the piece of paper tomorrow we going to do this and then day after tomorrow this is the task to be done or you know we will take it as it comes every day we will see what do we have to do so how did you strategize not actually on a piece of paper but mostly I use my phone and there is the option to send message to ourself so I just send any important uh ideas questions that I need to look on or think upon so all the important stuffs I just put it there send a message to myself on WhatsApp and I did it all there because I don't really have a piece of paper every time but ideas are every time everywhere so okay all right and you did mention you know the USP because you were a student here you said the first fellow batchmate backed out and then joined later again how hard was it to convince other people you had five people with you uh initially you were just two of you or did the others did not want to join uh so how hard was it to find people to work with you okay so actually I just approached them to no I didn't even approach they told me okay hey I want to join if you want I can help you with this and all but at that point in time it
+was very organized everything was very clear we started getting registrations then only they approached okay hey we can help you with this so there was no as the challenges because everything was well established I just needed some people who can help me because I can't handle so many interviews and all that alone and also we did one more thing that okay there were three mock interviews so we gave three mock interviews with three different panelists and I was common in all the panels and the other person was changing so that students have more exposure to different type of questions interview environment and all okay okay great so um lucky my next question is about uh the mindset of students as a student um starting seems like too too difficult a task did you think you were starting a venture did you think it's an experiment did you think you are going to become an entrepreneur so what exactly did you believe would happen after this project did you think about that so my mindset before starting this was okay this is kind of a entrepreneurship journey only so in a long run I am definitely looking for a full-time venture and for that it will be a good hands-on experience and that is how I started like I want to do a full-time venture and for that it will be a good experience because obviously this is a seasonal business one time in a year so there are some limitations in this I can't really just get into this thing so I'm just looking for a full-time venture and this is a very good experience so many learnings for starting that one yesterday I was talking to a bunch of students about uh starting up and um some some of the questions that they have is sir I'm just a how can I start a company right so did you think of starting a company did did you think that oh startup means I have to register a private limited company and uh then I can start this not one thing I checked out was okay if uh I am doing some legal thing because I saw okay when do I need to pay tax then I found out okay if my annual revenue is more than 2.5 lakhs then I have to uh give tax okay then I was like okay it's fine now that thing I said but yes uh I saw many people on internet who are saying okay I'll do an MBA then I'll do two years of job
+so that I have uh recovered the payment that I did to the college for MBA and then I'll start my venture okay there will not be any golden day okay after two years jadu mantra and I have idea okay I'll start my venture now so when you you have ideas now you can start now while waiting for an MBA for 2 years and then two years to recover that payment of loan so it is a good idea to start as soon as you have ideas but then uh you started after the semester break or during this seme because you have courses to take care of you have to study for exams you may be engaged in other co-curricular activities or other administrative club level responsibilities doing a startup would you know how much time do you think a mini startup would take like you did and can you really do it parallelly with your studies was hard because uh in the last 1 month especially we had more than 6 to 8 hours classes almost every day and taking time out even when NSMs are approaching it was really difficult my brother was saying okay hey don't upload the second video first one is done do whatever you have the people now but I was like okay this is the peak time if I'll not do now it will be really difficult to uh catch up with the audience later so I just talked to him and I secretly recorded video and he got to know about it when I uploaded that video and he scolded me okay you didn't focus on your studies and all why you wasting I don't want this IMBA beacon I just want you to study you can start these ventures later on but I like okay I'll manage all the things so so do you think u yeah let's talk about uh brother your brother your family parents friends how did they react to it your brother of course wanted you to uh study and focus on what were some other people in your close circle like parents uh siblings other relatives who knew about this and how did they so my father is in CRPF actually so he don't have much idea about all this but he knew okay I'm just teaching some students and all that and he knows that okay CGPA is important but my CGPA is not really good as of now so he just focus in his studies don't give too much time on that and your main focus should be your college and exams and CGPA and all that okay yeah yes and my mom d
+idn't really react okay she says okay do whatever you want and a similar idea okay focus on your exams It must not be ruined because of all this so that you regret later and you are not able to catch up and yes one of my one of my cousins who is a master's graduate from triple triple it Bangalore he told me okay you're doing great and just stick with it okay so not everyone is in in support and when you come to uh an educational program u typically initial mindset is that I have to get a job and then trying to start a venture can actually go crazy right so what kind of support would you expect would you expect your parents or your relatives to be more supportive of you in future or do you think they won't change and you just have to go your you how how are you calibrating that in your mind no what I believe is when money comes they always become supportive as soon as my exams were over and I started getting money although I didn't tell them the complete amount that I earned from this all but I told okay hey mom I just earned 4,000 today today or I just earned 7,000 today so she was like okay good when money comes nobody is like everybody is with you okay but it can so this was a different kind of startup project you got the money you didn't require an initial investment but then there can be uh startup initiatives where you need to invest from your pocket you may need to be borrow steal whatever right in the beginning uh with hardware based startups where you have to build a product Uh so in such cases it could be difficult how do you think if you have to you still have to figure out a long startup idea uh you have made some money and if you want you can share with the viewers how much is that maybe other students will feel inspired and make uh you know this much amount of money in about a month in a short mini startup project but I'm saying if you have to do another project which requires investment money uh how do you think you're going to handle handle that okay firstly I work on a startup which I'm 100% or at least 98 99% on confident on the startup and and looking to the investment also so I'm looking for a venture in which there is not so much of investment like in this one I initially before I started ea
+rning I just paid my editor nothing else so it was kind of small investment that I can take out from my pocket money too so initial investment should be low and the returns should be high i'm looking for that one and even if it's the case that we need high investment so we obviously pitch our ideas and if it is like idea we'll definitely get investors uh another question that students have is you know early in the first year you haven't learned a lot of technology right and usually startups are technology based uh and this idea that you uh have experimented with this again does not involve a lot of you know technology there's no product as such but it's it's a service that you're providing to them so did at any point in time you feel like you know it's not going to be a very attractive uh you know startup if I have to tell someone it's just coaching people for interviews so it won't look as uh interesting or as uh you know it's not an AI venture which is the uh thing of the dayto-day right so did you think about these it was never like I want to impress people okay hey I am startup founder and all I just wanted to do it firstly for the experience as a startup owner and secondly for money so it was never about okay impressing people hey I am a starter founder and all it was about me it was about and the learnings that are more important okay at least for for this startup so tell us the outcome and then tell us the learnings what is the outcome u I'm asking the question again tell us give us some of how much money have you made I'm not really comfortable sharing this so let's skip this question all right a mystery okay so coming to learnings firstly is marketing and especially the social media marketing through various channels like LinkedIn YouTube Instagram and we also had a community of more than 135 members on Telegram so where they discuss their doubts and all that stuff so firstly it's it's the marketing secondly handling the audience or our customers in a peak time I received more than 15 20 calls every day for queries about our course and from students who are already enrolled but they have doubts and all like it was a really hectic schedule and I was actually enjoying it i was not like yeah I'm working 1
+0 hours a day what the hell is this but I was actually enjoying working 14 15 hours every day for that duration of 8 10 days that was the peak time for a startup so it was really worth investing my time and obviously I was also getting money that was a second thing but I was actually enjoying what I was doing so this is one more thing as I discussed with you previously why are we all doing this why are we earning money so it was just for fun whatever we are doing are we really interested in that so yes I was very interesting and I was enjoying it all and the third thing was is uh building a team and working with them so we had conflicts in our team okay the there was a x amount that I was paying to our mentors per interview it like it is very less so we had so many discussions and we just concluded on the decided amount this year but obviously I'll have to increase it significantly next year okay okay so a lot of learnings and money is uh what is the outcome uh and we'll keep the viewers guessing as to how much amount but I based on our previous discussions it's it's to uh you know take a nice vacation in Himatel and outside which was your plan which you told me earlier okay great uh what were some some areas or you know some days when you felt like oh I failed here this this just did not work can you recall any such moments initially when we started and we were not getting registrations for the first 15 20 days so it was like very heartbreaking i was expecting okay I'll get so many registration I'll earn lacks of rupees and all that stuff but I just got one registration and that too I had to refund the amount so I was like okay will I even get five registrations will it work or I have started this but people are not joining is it really worth spending my time on this and all that stuff but I thought of this okay the registrations for IM are not even open why will people register for my course from now itself it is a long journey so I just waited for the right time and on the peak time we just hit and we got so many registrations okay can you also you know when you have to make decisions as an entrepreneur be it u uh around the pricing be it around which channels should I use uh or what strategy to use what wer
+e some interesting decision points that I have to decide this and based on this decision the course this startup is going to change right can you what were you know maybe one or two favorite moments which you maybe enjoyed you were really scared or you were very confident whatever are the highlights for you okay so for registrations when I didn't had any idea okay how websites are made and all that so I just talked to one of my friends okay hey can you make a website for me he said okay if we are register registering it or buying the website name or all that stuff we'll need some money and all that but then I said okay I don't think we'll get so many registrations that we need a website for it so I just tried Google form and that was the first time in life when I made my first Google form for my startup and it was really impressive considering it was the first time so for registrations we kept it on the Google form and at some point in time our registrations were almost zero in the end I'm talking about so I decided to launch two new plans that was 600 for one mock interview and 1,000 for two mock interviews for last minute and that was a successful one we earned thousands of rupees because of that only so at some point in time our revenue was just stagnant and then I introduced a new thing and it went up again so continuous innovation you had to do yeah how did you uh how did you celebrate when you had so many registrations you know maybe there was one day where you got so many registrations and you were like "Okay this is going in my bank account you're happy." How did you celebrate did you call a friend did you uh celebrate with your team members uh did you pray to God or what did you do how did you acknowledge that yeah things are working out okay so generally I just talked to my brother and my cousin who I just previously mentioned from triple it Bangalore so most of the things are discussed with these two so yeah I just told them okay I got this many registrations we hit this much revenue and I'm very happy so many learnings and all that they were like okay good you are doing great did they ask for a sh did they ask you for a party not really but yes we can have it anytime it's not an issue okay so u anot
+her question which I wanted to ask earlier was you said after you came to this program in the first year you got introduced to the business world you got introduced you know through the courses in management and business can you again pick some highlights from these courses try to recall where is it where you know in in the class some moments where in a subject something was being taught and helped you shape uh that gave you more confidence that yeah let me try entrepreneurship I want to do this do you have any such moments when your thinking got for entrepreneurships no but in the process yes I would like to highlight written and verbal communication course so I had to write emails and for verbal communication it's the content creation so it helped me in the written part mostly because I was not very confident obviously I use chat GPD but it gave me uh more little more confidence in framing those things and giving prompt to chat GPD and improvising it so I also tried uh this influencer marketing but it was really out of our budget at that point in time so we skipped it i just cold mailed uh almost 15 16 influencers who have their audience as Jes parents i got reply from 78 of them and we talked on call and things really didn't work out we were planning for an affiliate based thing but they were like okay we want some fixed amount we will not work on affiliate basis so we just skipped that part let's build our brand okay but um uh again u that question same question back in the courses you said nothing but during the process uh is when you had this feeling that you you want to do this right okay because in uh initial two semesters there was no such course related to entrepreneurship there was a course that helped me in this is foundations in business management and the second one is problem solving and decision making so these two were some management courses that I found some things really helped me in the process okay okay and over the last one year what skills you know compare yourself to you back what skills have you developed and which skills have helped you build this venture so that you know other students who are uh do this can also sort of pick some of those skills and start working towards that i thin
+k so there is not any so-called skill that I have learned through any online channel or anywhere it it was just a part of the process and I can't concretely mentioned okay I learned this skill that skill but there were some things like leadership and all which I learned through sports as in college too I'm part of the basketball team so yes teamwork leadership and all that stuff from there and critical thinking analysis and all that from some courses that I mentioned problem solving and decision- making so yeah it was a mix of so many things until I would say uh the end of my first semester i was like I have to leave this college and all that but then I am at Praguya and things really take a turn so it was a life-changing moment can say for college actually I was just okay playing video games and not even studying for an hour just studying 2 hours before the exam and all that stuff just having fun okay I have to leave this college what's the point of getting good grades in exam and all that stuff but when I meet him uh I realized that okay if I proceed with this thing this minds set and these actions things are not really be going great so I just told him this okay this is what I'm doing this is what the problem I'm facing and this is what I want to do so then we had a long discussion multiple discussions and he initially he gave me some task okay update me every day whenever you're done with this and this and all that stuff then things came back on track and I really really worked hard on my communication skills i uploaded a YouTube video or YouTube short every day for more than 110 straight days consistently not even a single day missing and that really really helped me in improving my communication skills great great thanks i think that's that's quite inspiring 110 days uh day on day recording yourself and putting content on the YouTube not to show to others but you're saying only for yourself to practice that's great so I think uh yeah that's an interesting idea uh you need to have people around you a support system uh whom you go to when you are in trouble or you need guidance uh were there some other people other than Pak uh who where you bounced off your ideas or you spoke to you know some other family m
+ember of course we've had some discussions uh as well just went to you sometimes uh in last few days but uh no such mentor he's the only one with whom I discuss my ideas apart from my family okay great great so thanks so much for giving all these details I think uh some ideas which stand out uh especially for the students who are thinking of start thinking hey I need to stumble upon a big idea you don't have to wait you can start you can you know work with the first idea build your first I have this theory of third venture where I believe the students need to reach their third venture which is where uh the real juice lies so I'm I'm so happy that you have done your first venture uh in this imba beacon initiative that we took u secondly student mostly they believe that they don't have the money they don't have the resources so how can the startup they don't have the credibility so it's it's all mindset if you change it a little bit you will find a USB uh now what lucky did was I went through this process so I know what questions are asked and I you know 40 other students uh who got who have gone through the same process so he goes to them and collects the question bank and there you go you have a real asset which is worth selling right and then you are you are part of this program already you've gone through this process so you have the credibility so like that everyone just needs to wants to start something they should just think about what is it you know who they are and what do they know and based on that you know a business proposition uh can be created and starting small is is very important for students especially uh it will be difficult with the studies with the exams and other things and of course the support from families friends starting up is now gradually becoming uh you know a common word part of the jargon and even in the households or rural it is becoming a you know word which is more popular uh but having support from all these people um around you your your support system important it doesn't come automatically but when they see the success uh when they see that you are moving you're taking action then they will support you so action is most important and lucky had a short time window to execute
+this idea u there was only about a month within which the interviews were held and he had to get people on board and honestly I was skeptical in the beginning thinking how are you going to get people how will you reach out to them um and I'm having discussions on which channel LinkedIn versus Instagram versus YouTube how will you find those people uh we can of course not share with you the details of applicants how will you uh catch them but I'm glad that you did u I think you had about 30 people 40 people who registered with you which which a great uh lucky does not want to disclose at all okay but these are great insights for any student who is watching and who start the the idea is to start quick take action and seize the opportunity don't wait for a big idea to come your way don't uh for an innovative tech based AI enabled idea just start with what you can do right now and that will give you so much confidence and learning and support from around your ecosystem and help you develop into a very different kind of person who thinks entrepreneurally all of those contribute to you becoming a better person every day right lucky thank you so much for helping us derive all these learnings and I'm sure you will inspire many other students from IIT Mundi and around the country to start up quick start up small and start up fast thank you thank you so much sir and you all can reach me out anytime i'm always up for ideas to discuss new ideas explore new ideas so yes all the best thank you Lucky

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-The sources you provided are excerpts from the transcript of the video "Entrepreneurship, Mindset & Meaning | Ft. Deepa Soman | GUESSS India | IIT Mandi". I will provide the translated transcript of these excerpts, as the original text was in Hindi.
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-Transcript of the Video "Entrepreneurship, Mindset & Meaning | Ft. Deepa Soman | GUESSS India | IIT Mandi" (Excerpts)
-Translated from Hindi:
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-Entrepreneurship education should look at mindset or should it look at venture creation? When I say mindset, mindset is also about resilience, about patience. Mindset is about making that decision to do the right thing because that is what I understand and I can align. Did you have to relearn things when you were setting up your [business]? Parents today are not all deriving their sense of success and validation through their child's professional achievement alone. Do you think entrepreneurship education is a major driver for the shift or are there other factors at play? Everything in entrepreneurship then can get a bad name. It is very important to have a pragmatic and a realistic approach. I had a mindset: I have nothing to lose, this is something that I want to do and I need to do for myself. Hello everyone and welcome to the GUESSS India Cloud Experts and Entrepreneurs Dialogue Series. GUESSS stands for Global University Entrepreneurial Spirit Students Survey. It's one of the largest entrepreneurship research projects in the world with the main research focus on students' entrepreneurial intentions and activities, including the topic of family firm succession. I am Dr. Aparna Rao on behalf of GUESSS India and today I am thrilled to host a conversation that dives deep into the heart of entrepreneurship in India. Before we begin, let me set the stage by introducing you to the platform behind that conversation. GUESSS India Cloud, an initiative of GUESSS India, is created as a dedicated knowledge hub to fuel entrepreneurship and entrepreneurial spirit among students across the country. There are four pillars: the first is Insights, which are blogs unpacking trends; then there are Perspectives, where we are looking at expert opinion, and this interview is part of the Perspectives section; Stories, where we capture student journeys; and Cases, where we talk about real-world startup experiences. In GUESSS India Experts and Entrepreneurs Dialogue Series, we bring you conversations with leaders, thinkers, change-makers, and entrepreneurs who are shaping the future of entrepreneurship in India. Their experiences and insights are here to inform, inspire our generation of entrepreneurs, and in this inaugural edition of the dialogue series, we unpack the data, decode trends, and delve into what it truly takes to nurture student entrepreneurs from shifting mindsets.
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-...to institutional missions. This is where insights meet impact. Let's get started. My pleasure today to welcome a close friend and our guest today, Deepa Soman, founder of Lumiere Business Solutions Private Limited, a pioneering social enterprise in Mumbai. With an Economics degree from St. Xavier's and a Business Management degree from S.P. Jain Institute of Management & Research, Deepa began her career as a management trainee at Hindustan Lever Private Limited in 1996. Deepa founded Lumiere Business Solutions with a mission to empower women professionals to re-enter the workforce. You can read the Lumiere story in Rashmi Bansal's book "Follow Every Rainbow". Today, our interview with Deepa Soman explores themes of flexible entrepreneurship, gender roles, and systemic innovation. It aligns with GUESSS India Cloud's goals of linking academic insights with real-world entrepreneurial narratives. Deepa, thank you so much for accepting our invitation and welcome today to this session, to this meeting. I dive right into you. So Deepa, I have heard you, I have read you talking, and you often describe yourself as an "accidental entrepreneur". How did your academic background influence your entrepreneurial journey or was there a clash with your entrepreneurial journey? No, I, I think thanks for asking Aparna. What I have noticed is whatever experiences we have gleaned personally and professionally, academically, the subjects we study at that point in time, they may seem, "Is this even making sense?" But in my case and in many other cases, I have noticed that there is a connection between what one will do, what one is good at, what one feels passionate about, and what one is meant to do to really serve. So what we have seen as Ikigai, I have seen that come together for me in multiple times, multiple ways. I was very interested in psychology even as an undergraduate student in St. Xavier's College. I was very interested in sociology, in economics, in history, and it was very difficult at a point in time when there was a choice between philosophy and logic, which of course was discontinued, but we had an option when I was entering my application form and I thought I needed to learn both. So somewhere the curiosity to learn multiple subjects, the desire to go deeply into doing certain projects and do my own readings in the reference library of St. Xavier's College, do a lot of reading, borrowing books from British Council.
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-...Council, when USIS and our own reference library. The foundation that I will be a researcher was laid through not just the pursuits of paying a lot of attention in class, because I was that kind of a student, but when I say pay attention, it was also wanting to "double click" on certain things. So I remember in 11th and 12th, when I didn't need to do what the first years and the second years and third years in Psychology did, I was doing that because the subject fascinated me. And as you know, much of my work centers around both. Sociology is really the societal, the human, the connections, the teams, the groups, the families that we work within in cultural contexts. So therefore, different cultures, because Lumiere works not just in India but in other parts of the world. So being able to understand and interpret cultures comes from that subject. And the domain of Economics sort of serves as the bedrock because it at least brings a perspective into how the process of money exchange – what is it that is value and how are things valued? It becomes very important also for entrepreneurs to say it's not about a brilliant idea, but how is it going to make commercial sense? How do we work the economics of it, and so forth? And Psychology, because understanding needs, motivations, what drives people to behave in a certain way, how do people make choices, how do we cognitively process this information? So, somewhere I think a lot of curiosity. So if as educators, or as... and today all of the media available, if we can sort of not just stay as they say in the shallows or just skim at the surface, but we are willing to let's say pick a couple of things that make us go deep, those are... that's really where the education, as you asked me, has helped and fueled and continues to do, because as a lifelong learner and Lumiere as a learning organization, learning is never done. I think it's never done until one is dead and gone, because that's really the whole purpose of life. I mean, when I talk about this, all of our experiences are nothing but for us to learn about, starting with ourselves, how to refine ourselves to become better versions of ourselves. So it is all of it coming together, which not just then 29 years ago, but even up till now continues to fuel this and make every day interesting in the entrepreneurial journey. You put it so well, you know, I, I wish students were listening in to you today where they will and.
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-...that even if something that they are studying today doesn't make immediate sense to them, there are dots which will get connected later. They have to work on that page. Thank you so much. Absolutely, absolutely. So Deepa, did you, so you have, you are a topper in one sense, you are a topper, right? You have been academically excellent and everything. Did this mindset have any impact on Lumiere or did you have to relearn things when you were setting up Lumiere, your journey? Uh, so I think there are two aspects to it. When I say topper, it was more about making all of the efforts one can, but to do one's best. It may or may not translate always into marks, like I know there were my friends who didn't study as much or at least they did claim to study as much, but I was, I used to really slog. So I had this mindset, Aparna, and I think I have carried it through a long part, that I have never, I never get anything easy. I have to really work for it. So this, you know, this strong belief that to get anything, you really need to do your best and then expect the rest. I think that is what I have done and which has continued even at Lumiere. What I have definitely needed to work hard is to inculcate this culture that no matter what, we have to, a lot of times outcomes may not be in our hands. And there are, particularly when you have multiple partners, associates, clients, the things that you cannot determine. So like the Serenity Prayer, what are the things that I know I can change? And I think that's really the attitude that becomes very important of driving and working towards excellence. Yes, I used to be a perfectionist, I can say definitely. Well, well, until the first 15-20 years, it did make me, how shall I say, perpetually unhappy. And I think that that little, you know, that little creative discontent is very good, but I don't think you need to be unhappy. So you just need to be knowing that I want to channelize all those attention, that attention to making sure that I do my best. Just I have clarity about it and I am working in a way that is in harmony with who I am as a person, Aparna. That's very important because if my entrepreneurial self is very different from my personal self, if I am not able to marry the two, I will be in a tremendous state of tension and mental, physical strain. Something it's not going to sit right with me because fundamentally, and this is whether I am doing a, working as an employee.
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-...I am working in an organization or I am working for myself, I think the fund or I am working to raise a family, the fundamentals of who we are do not change. And as in the several years of doing a lot of work, mentoring, talking to people within our teams, within being a sounding board for a lot of people that have found value in talking to me at any point in time in their journey, I have seen that the moment we integrate and harmonize who we are with what we do, what we say, and things align automatically, it's like you have a force multiplier that comes in. That's right, that's right. So Deepa, there is a major shift in the generation today, right? Many, the approach, the attitude. Let me give you some numbers, okay? The GUESSS India report reveals a major shift in career aspirations where 31% of students are aspiring to become entrepreneurs after five years. That is up and this number is up from 40% at graduation. Do you think entrepreneurship education is a major driver for the shift or are there other factors at play? Uh, one of the factors, so there are, I think, multiple factors. One is today, just the vast number of opportunities that become available as opposed to very limited tracks of career that were available some years ago, right? So the fact that you can be a solopreneur and you can make your passion into, instead of a hobby, you can actually make it a wider proposition that can add value and for which you can get a commercial appreciation and you can actually have a business out of it, is become a possibility. Parents today are willing to back that dream. Parents today do not, are not all deriving their sense of success and validation through their child's professional achievement alone. So they are fulfilled. And I'm talking maybe of a certain class, Aparna, because we are many Indias, and we, you see things on a spectrum, and as we go along, we can see, and the people that we speak with, we will see a wide variety of parental anxiety. I think what parents want is their parents want their children to use their time wisely and at the end of it be happy. I think that's like a fundamental requirement. They, in that, they sometimes try to be very over-engineering certain things that the child needs to do, and maybe their own fears manifest in not giving any freedom, but asking what are some of the things that have enabled. Definitely, on the one hand, it is this part which is internal. Environmentally also, you see there.
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-...there are, let's say, a lot of discourse around, you know, support, incubators, things which are part of the ecosystem of entrepreneurship which have also grown from schools, whether it's the engineering colleges, and some have always done it, like William talked about how BIT Mesra in those days, maybe 35 years ago, they also had an incubator. So maybe schools who were already doing it, they have a lab, they had a shed, they would actually provide a seed grant in BIT Mesra for entrepreneurs that were starting. And I have actually been to the campus and seen that space which was very, very early support. So the governmental support, and that's really where a force multiplier comes in. When government gets into anything, then you have popular media, you have shows of people who have gone and even think something like MasterChef. You know, when, when, 15-20 years ago, you see a MasterChef and you see someone gaining proficiency, and that proficiency leading to money and fame, suddenly says, "Oh, even this is a path, I can send my child to culinary. Oh, they can go into culinary." So it's been an organic process. Oh, theater, cinema, you know, sunny, modeling, things which were professions, and this gradually, the stigmatization and the broadening of dimensions of success have started. The external mark. The part that I am a little afraid of is where you have shows like Shark Tank, which are, or you have conversations which are about an X multiplier or very early stage funding or very, or the whole conversation about my business in the context of investment and exit. Now those are conversations which are probably like those billboard ads which talk about these classes which had these are the seven toppers and they all got 100%. So everybody is sending their child to that particular class to get those marks. That's for me is the equivalence of a Shark Tank and that's the trap of saying you don't see the ground work, you don't see that, I'm not saying that they are not, what is highlighted is that one success. What we miss is that there will be 20 failures for one success or 40 failures for one success depending upon the time that we live, times that we live in and the business cycles that will determine how well we will do existing businesses and entrepreneurs also how different, how distinctive is the idea. So those are reality checks because I could be very much in a bubble believing so fiercely in what I want.
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-...to do, and I might end up, uh, you know, everything in entrepreneurship then can get a bad name. So we, we have to, it is very important to have a pragmatic and a realistic approach. Of course, the whole idea of entrepreneurship is resting on dreaming and the ability to envision a certain future that didn't exist before, but balancing heart with head at every juncture is very, very important from that point of view. And it will continue because individual expression particularly in our country was always clamped because of all these expectations, which, so the moment you kind of open that lid a bit and you let go of that steam, so much can flourish. That's true. So Deepa, in one sense of the term, Lumiere was futuristic because you actually carved out a space for women on family breaks. You carved out a work environment which allowed flexi-work, flexi-hours, work from home, and all of that, all these options. How did you take the decisions in developing the business model for Lumiere? Was it a clear thing? It must have been challenging in those days, right? Yeah, so, uh, a lot of times, you know, when you look at hindsight, you just think as an entrepreneur, you are about taking opportunities. Yeah, and you are taking that opportunity with a certain level of gradation of risk and risk appetite. In my case, I had a mindset that I have nothing to lose. I also had a mindset, and I will tell you where I am coming from, a deep belief that, uh, this is something that I want to do and I need to do for myself. So when it comes from a personal experience and a personal need space, you are moved actually from belief to faith. I have faith that this is something that, uh, the world needs. This is something that is a biological need for a woman and a psychological and an intellectual need. So it, the need to have a, an a professional expression path, uh, if it's not allowed, can make this professional woman who is on an interrupted career not very good in her roles as mother because she is going to be angry, irritated, frustrated, resentful. She will go through those cycles of coming to a place of acceptance at a point in time. I also want to say that not all women have this journey at this track, but like I have experienced, there will be women professionals who experience these at different levels, at different stages, whether the first six months is different, up to 2 years is different, two to four years, and because we, the early days, it was organic.
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-...organic, because the more work I got, the more people that I needed to also add. So it didn't, it didn't happen that I had an end point that I'm going to do this. But what were the enablers? There was home computing. There was the fact that people had laptops at that time. They had, you know, home, not even laptops, the desktops had started coming to home. And the work which is consumer, the research, which is what I have focused on at that time, uh, the initial does was being able to, uh, interpret the, read the quantitative data, uh, from a market research report, which I did for my, for the client, and to write research reports. Then organically one day, I got a task of saying, "We have, you know, a whole library of these reports on the past, from the past. Can you create management summaries of each of these reports because we are now looking to have a digital structure where we want to access these reports but we want to have summaries so people know?" So it was a kind of knowledge management. So it was solutioning. So here again, I had somebody who came up and said, "God, there is so much that you are doing, maybe I can help you on the weekend and help write the report." Okay, then I, I trained her and say, "Okay, she's, she's a business analyst. She works with the financial markets, but she understands the fundamentals of being able to analyze information, read information, summarize it." So you understand the, from a systems approach, what is the fundamental skills that this person has and how might it get translated into the task at hand, the project at hand, and what are the activities she needs to do to support me in that, which meant I needed to be able to break it down. First of all, the right person, knowing that they will work very sincerely the way I would. And then I have from one to two people who obviously can divide that role. When I said two people, two people because she was available on the weekend. Hmm, hmm. So every time there was a need, and then there was also a word of mouth that started. I would also actively, whether I went to drop my children to school or whether I went to the gym, I was looking, listening on conversations of those mothers with small children or what I had conversations for them over, "Are you working at an XYZ place? Okay, what is it that you are doing now? How much time do you feel sometimes that you want to work?" So I was also researching to understand whether they had.
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-...the inclination and they could do different tasks. Like there was somebody who I'd say, "I'm going for client meetings. Do you want to come and man my office and phone?" Office was typically one room. "And do you want to spend the time between when your child is not there, answering my phones because I will be gone for client meetings?" So it was, I was approaching people and I was asking them according to their skill sets, "Oh, but I have done this before." "Okay, so here's a script, this is how you speak, this is what you say." So there was a strong developer in me which was willing to break it down and I was not fazed about all their past experience or I wasn't taking one dimension alone. I was taking multiple dimensions: proximity, time availability. But what I did not compromise on was integrity, sincerity, the willingness to learn, the willingness to work hard, the diligence. Right now, those become the responsibility, the transparency, the little proactiveness. Now those sort of, we early on, we knew what is it that we are really hiring for, what values, what qualities. And then organically you will say, "Oh, okay, you are a techie, you want to do this. Why don't we just build a library system here?" "Okay, you know, maybe this quantitative, can we write a macro here and do these things?" So you, you, you sort of just know what the other person could possibly bring. Give them a nudge, give them the confidence and say, "We are doing this together, you are not alone." So you are also giving a lot of reassurance because women with interrupted careers will also have compromised self-confidence, eroded sense of self-worth. So you are bolstering them up as leaders, as professionals again. So you play that role of a mentor. I can't say that I was, I am also guilty of being impatient at times. But I would, I think they also learned that I was not coming, I was not attacking the person, I was attacking the task or I was demanding a certain quality. Like I am a, I am a grammar Nazi, so I would sometimes, and we didn't have auto-correct and all of those things, we just had undo. But I would like, you know, and, and if some, if I, if somebody was not learning like, you know, I corrected you twice but if the mistake persists then I could get a very sharp tongue. So I have had people melt into a pool of tears several times because I was demanding. Today these people who are professionals in their own right, thank me for it. I don't think they liked it very much at that time. Are like me.
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-...very much at that time. But it was all keeping the project deliverable and the quality at the center that would make me be very demanding. And I always knew that if they brought a 70, I needed to bring that 30. So you cannot just rely on what the team is bringing. So it calls for, I think, a huge ability to also work with a whole spectrum of people. When you ask me, "How did I change?" I changed from saying that what I can demand of myself and may not be able to get from the other, primarily because they are not there, either in experience or capability or what they were, they were not ready for it. And I also knew that what they brought, probably I could not bring. So I was able to see the diversity and the force multiplier. I have used the word three times, but I really believe that it is two and two makes five if you can bring the right chemistry into a project team, which is what we have done time and again, project after project. True. Thanks for breaking that part down because this is so... How would you advise students who are exploring the option for remote work? Would you think this can also bridge an urban-rural gap? It, if it is, if you, if we can break down, it is a very systems approach, Aparna. It is design thinking. After all, it is about being able to break the components of the part, but also build it up again and then to see what are the supports that we need. You definitely needed process, you needed technology, you needed understanding the human psychology. You needed to understand re-skilling, upskilling. You needed to understand how do you do a, you know, what are the processes involved in that person being able to bring their best to the, the, you know, what do they need to work together? What people need to work together? So in the years, the after the first, the first 10 years or so, 8 to 10 years or so, it was me and maybe this one or two other people who completed a project. And it was still a lot of, it was very individual based. The need to move to cloud, the need to raise, you know, bring even further capability to do much more, more work, happened as we, when I say much more work, we did a lot of work, but we worked. See, there will be, there is a whole dimension of attrition. So when, let's say, the person has moved, how do I quickly bring people up to steam? So you need to have a tremendous amount of agility and also the ability to manage a bench for some time. So you do, there is going to be a learning curve. So knowing that.
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-...that when you are working with people remotely or working anywhere else, there must be checks and balances. There needs to be ways of building accountability, and also what is your tolerance for that kind of margin of error that you can live with? It's also about how you can anticipate. It starts with being able to fundamentally understand, "Who am I? How do I work? How does this business work?" So it's a lot of, I think, an activity of and some amount of building that perspective which doesn't come on day one. But it is also about trusting your instincts. You will know that sometimes you will fail, but if two times out of 100 if I have failed, then I don't, you know, throw the baby out with the bathwater. You will say, "This is where I, you know, we probably got it wrong," or "you know, this is what is that we probably did not anticipate." Today, with a lot of people post-COVID, this phenomenon has been, a lot of people have moved to their hometowns, they are working remotely now. Right now, I'm in the US, I see so many people who have moved their towns, and they have moved because both husband and wife are working remote. They have found a better community to work with or better weather to work. They probably have, you know, they had some other aspirations that they are willing to explore. So times have changed. Workplaces have got used to working with people remotely. But how do you engage them beyond just a task? How do you get them to show them a path if that's what they want? And how do you make them feel that entrepreneurial spirit? Okay, large organizations also need to do that. So what is that entrepreneurial spirit? Nobody knows it better than an entrepreneur. So when you have your teams working wherever they work, if you can fuel or you can connect with that entrepreneur in, then you can, you can, but be willing to train, be willing to demand, but be willing as much to be a servant leader because they will need the support at that point in time. Exactly, exactly. Uh, so Deepa, we are veering towards the close. I have three, two or three more questions. Just one related to what you said earlier about how Shark Tank is not our model. One quick question that stems from there, would you say that entrepreneurship education should look at mindset or should it look at venture creation? I think it was hand in hand, Aparna. I think it's, it's very, you can't do one without the other. Again, this comes to the approach of the interconnectedness of things. The mindset will drive what are.
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-...the yearnings of that entrepreneur in terms of what they want to do, and nothing is wrong with that. I have seen very, you know, very focused towards profits and towards numbers. We have to bring them back to say that, "You know, what about keeping a focus on quality, listening to the consumer's need, listening to what is the long arc of that one customer's need so you have a customer built for life?" So those are, it's not just about the farming, how do you marry both the right, yeah, uh, the getting of new customers alongside repeat business that you will get, and what drives that repeat business? Business is a satisfied customer. How it will lead to positive word of mouth. So when I say mindset, mindset is also about resilience, about patience. Mindset is about the, uh, the making that decision to do the right thing by the right, because that is what I understand and I can align. Right? And so the stuff that takes longer to do, stuff that is probably in the short term seems, um, uh, you know, "Why am I even doing this?" But I think being aligned with who you are and your values and being committed to doing that over the long run is what defines who I am. That satisfies my metric of success, which may be different from somebody else's metric of success. Yeah. So if I, if there is a certain impact definition, the impact definitions would be different for different people. Right? The ability to tell your story, the ability to believe in your story, the ability for others to seeing you as authentically looking to add value and making a difference in some manner to whatever it is that you are looking to do. So the courage of conviction and I think a relentless interest in your people, growing them to do their best work. Yeah. So I think those are the mindset parts. Then of course is the whole skill set part of, which is very, very important. How well do you understand what it is that you are doing? Uh, the idea, what is the, how does the landscape look like today? What are the adjacencies in terms of the competitors that are possible? Who is doing something that are? So again, it comes from the quest, the curiosity, the openness to ask questions, to listen, to learn continuously, to be able to drop things that don't work. So rather than being fixated with something, being able to fail fast. Yeah, hmm, hmm. Right, right. So let's look at some interesting data again. GUESSS the GUESSS survey of 2023 threw up this one statistic: 38% of students report that they have started ventures. Okay, but we see that.
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-...that only 4.8% reach the revenue stage. That means there's a massive execution gap, right? How do you think the ecosystem, not just incubators, how can the ecosystem help the students to actually walk the complete path? Do you think we can simulate real-world complexity? What do you think can be done in this? One of the things that to, to have a, to be successful, yeah, is, is really when, when you say that only 4.8% reach that path of taking something to market, a lot of times the, uh, taking, you know, being perfect on something. I think their curiosity to go out and actually try to put money to, to fail. So of course, you need some seed capital to go into that market. It's very, you know, "How will I, first of all, how well do I know all my stakeholders? How well have I, what is the work have I done both in terms of working to build the product, working to know the consumer? How do I then look at the competitive context?" All of that comes. And then knowing what is my pathway? How am I going to acquire these customers? How am I going to make a commercial venture out of it? So whether I'm a home bakery, I have to go out there and I have to ideate and say, "Okay, what, how am I going to then put my, what Instagram content am I developing?" So I, and who am I working? Who is doing what? Who is going to make this for me? Who is going to the initial investment that I need to get my kitchen up and going? Yeah, what is the kind of support I require to begin with? And then how long is it going to be for me to actually become, you know, what is the kind of burn that I'm going to allow for some time? So the concept of burn is a very new concept, right? And, and for me, uh, money is not about burning. We come from a culture, "Money is Lakshmi, you don't burn money." So what is the, how can I be frugal in whatever I test? A lot of times the ideas are to be very, very grand. And we have seen some startups with that, you know, very massive investments. "Why do you need?" So those are the questions. And, "No, no, this is the bare minimum I require." I, we contest those to say, "Maybe you think there, there's a shame to say that I have only, you know, five and not 75 of something, but that's the proof that I made." That's also being right by my investor to say, "First let me see how this works and then." So I come from a philosophy which says that, "Don't wait for something to be a 100. Start with a five and then build it to 25. You will learn some.
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-...thing in the journey of zero to five. You will learn something in the journey of five to 25. Then you move from 25 to 50, and then you move to 200. Because work with innovation pipelines of even large companies who have lots of investor money, I would say they are even more answerable to their shareholders. So I have seen them to be even more careful and conservative about getting this zero to five and five to 25 right. And that is the part of doing the qualitative research, working with small samples, knowing yourself, knowing, you know, how you and your co-founders are going to work together, bringing that together, working very hard to understand beyond the idea, the context in which, and the relevance of this idea into the lives of people who are going to actually put their money where their mouth is. That part doesn't get taught, doesn't get understood. And that's the part where when we also work with like the startups where we there people even to prioritize and say, "Okay, these are the three things I can do. How do I systematically go about and say, 'Okay, what is the low-hanging fruit? What is it? How does this align with who I really?'" And not all the answers, Aparna, one is going to have initially, but having that mindset or the curiosity to be patient and to do the hard work and the rigorous work it takes to test and try out. It's not just, uh, and not everybody is cut for entrepreneurship, no. Even to know that, "Yes, this is something I, if I don't have a risk appetite, if I have sleepless nights, you know, there is something that I am compromising to my health." So it all starts with knowing self, which is why we actually work with the individual, as you know, we do the leadership coaching piece first, uh, for everybody in the team because to say, "Okay, how am I going to work?" If everybody thinks they have to eat like this, but actually somebody should be eating like this, maybe let them. So it is very important to be realistic. So mindset as well as that ecosystem needs to understand that. I had somebody tell me, "Oh, you know, my daughter is in Class 9, and I, what does your daughter want to do?" "No, we want her to become an entrepreneur." "Hello, you parents cannot want a child to become an entrepreneur." So that's as bad as saying, "Oh, you know, I worked with the company 40 years, I don't even understand what you are doing with a successful, you know, with this startup, what you call successful." So you have parents also at both ends of the spectrum that we have seen. And some who say, "My God, you know, we are doctors." "This person has started this from his third year in his college, but we don't understand the thing." So actually at that point in time, to say, "Who are the people that your child could even talk to, you know, to professors?" And "How do you take them, build their own confidence? How do you skill them?" So being afraid is natural for parents. Being, but at the same time, how do you balance it out and say, "Okay, we have had someone who said, 'Okay, my parents have given me three years,' but three years may not be enough." I mean, that person today, the two other people have continued in that venture, but the third person, that person has opted out of it also because it's the appetite of, you know, what's the family context? What is that person expected to do? Do they, you know, freedom is also a luxury in some cases, economically also, if there are certain dependencies. So it's also to not to say that therefore somebody succeeded and somebody failed. It's everybody's path is unique. Everybody's entrepreneurial journey, journey as is anybody's life journey, is to be very unique. And therefore it's very important to be secure and to co-opt people who believe within your idea and define what does success look like for you. If I'm a very large conglomerate and I say, "Every startup, you know, I can only think of something which can be a 100 crore idea," that may be works well for them. But for somebody else, that's not their definition of success. Right, right, right, right. Last question, Deepa. This is, this is maybe something for students, policymakers, and educators. If you could launch a GUESSS India Policy Hackathon, what barrier would you ask students or policymakers or educators to solve? I would definitely start that hackathon by helping the person understand themselves first. I would, you know, find a way to say, "Okay, who am I? How do I, what is my natural operating system in terms of the way I think, feel, and behave? Okay, what is it that and then being able to look at this part of understanding the self, which is very important, saying, 'Okay, when I grow my business, am I going to be, you know, do I have a mindset that only looks at revenue and customer? Is it something which is more developmental and therefore, you know, do I, should I, what is the role that I will also play in my bench?' Also learning how do I tell my story, learning about consumer and customer and ways to observe, listen, and dialogue with customers. So these become, I would say, like the alphabets of building your story. You will.
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-...build your words, you will build your sentences, you will know where to punctuate, provided you know these things. If I not learned it, I only understand some, you know, only by practice. I have to, you know, take a long time, maybe 10-15 years before I even discover these things by serendipity. Because otherwise I might, to know if my style is through relationships, I must thrive on that. I must know what it means to nurture those relationships. It is very different from saying, "I will do networking." Nurturing is very different from network. Are an outcome? They don't. Young people today want to go and build networks. Those not, they are so sometimes mixing the "how" with the "outcomes." So all of those things. So a very systems approach to understanding the domain as much as understanding the very critical ingredient in the success of that enterprise, which is the end person, the human person, and their ability to work with other human persons who build that enterprise. I think that be completely absent. How do I, uh, you know, I know the science and the technology, but if I'm so comfortable in this thing of just getting a grant and doing more research and more research and being very comfortable in that comfort zone, but "Oh, I don't understand that part of business," "Oh, I don't understand marketing." Today, we have no business to say, "I don't understand this, I don't understand that." If you are not, if you don't enjoy it, if you feel you don't add value to it, work with someone who can. But in, in today, and I don't think that happens today, young people are, you know, they, they want to know everything. But also to what are the physical limits? How do I also balance and prioritize my health and well-being? Those are also very, very important because a lot of times I could be, you know, because I have taken some funding, I'm completely at the mercy of, you know, I'm doing 18-hour days and I'm sleep compromised and I'm surviving on coffee and, you know. So I think sustainable entrepreneurship is also very important. When I mean sustainable from a health point of view. And I, I, I think I would also prioritize that part very much. Uh, relationships. I mean, I, uh, I have something which is successful at, but I, I, I just have a failed marriage. Now that's impacting my life and my sense of well-being. Now how can I have a balanced approach? Not just skill is what I would really, really focus on, Aparna. Right, right. Yes, that brings us to the end of this interview.
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-Thank you so much, Deepa, and this has been insightful. You brought to this entire discussion an approach that included obviously all your experience as a practitioner, your research outlook, your learner outlook, and the mindset that you are talking about, the entrepreneurship mindset. I'm sure students who are listening to this will have a lot of takeaways for them to first, first, and start looking at self-discovery and the thing to look, feel, that the operating system that you spoke about. So thank you so much for putting all this and taking time out from your personal schedule on a holiday. Thank you very much. Thank you. Thank you to the GUESSS team also, and I think it's a fantastic resource that you are building, and I wish everybody the very best still whatever they want to do as they become on their journey to building their ventures and doing what it is that is their calling and their purpose for this world. So thank you so much. Fantastic. Thank you.
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-Please note: The provided sources are excerpts from the video transcript, not the complete transcript of the entire video. Therefore, this response provides the translation of only the available excerpts.
+The sources you provided are excerpts from the transcript of the video "Entrepreneurship, Mindset & Meaning | Ft. Deepa Soman | GUESSS India | IIT Mandi". I will provide the translated transcript of these excerpts, as the original text was in Hindi.
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+Transcript of the Video "Entrepreneurship, Mindset & Meaning | Ft. Deepa Soman | GUESSS India | IIT Mandi" (Excerpts)
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+Entrepreneurship education should look at mindset or should it look at venture creation? When I say mindset, mindset is also about resilience, about patience. Mindset is about making that decision to do the right thing because that is what I understand and I can align. Did you have to relearn things when you were setting up your [business]? Parents today are not all deriving their sense of success and validation through their child's professional achievement alone. Do you think entrepreneurship education is a major driver for the shift or are there other factors at play? Everything in entrepreneurship then can get a bad name. It is very important to have a pragmatic and a realistic approach. I had a mindset: I have nothing to lose, this is something that I want to do and I need to do for myself. Hello everyone and welcome to the GUESSS India Cloud Experts and Entrepreneurs Dialogue Series. GUESSS stands for Global University Entrepreneurial Spirit Students Survey. It's one of the largest entrepreneurship research projects in the world with the main research focus on students' entrepreneurial intentions and activities, including the topic of family firm succession. I am Dr. Aparna Rao on behalf of GUESSS India and today I am thrilled to host a conversation that dives deep into the heart of entrepreneurship in India. Before we begin, let me set the stage by introducing you to the platform behind that conversation. GUESSS India Cloud, an initiative of GUESSS India, is created as a dedicated knowledge hub to fuel entrepreneurship and entrepreneurial spirit among students across the country. There are four pillars: the first is Insights, which are blogs unpacking trends; then there are Perspectives, where we are looking at expert opinion, and this interview is part of the Perspectives section; Stories, where we capture student journeys; and Cases, where we talk about real-world startup experiences. In GUESSS India Experts and Entrepreneurs Dialogue Series, we bring you conversations with leaders, thinkers, change-makers, and entrepreneurs who are shaping the future of entrepreneurship in India. Their experiences and insights are here to inform, inspire our generation of entrepreneurs, and in this inaugural edition of the dialogue series, we unpack the data, decode trends, and delve into what it truly takes to nurture student entrepreneurs from shifting mindsets.
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+...to institutional missions. This is where insights meet impact. Let's get started. My pleasure today to welcome a close friend and our guest today, Deepa Soman, founder of Lumiere Business Solutions Private Limited, a pioneering social enterprise in Mumbai. With an Economics degree from St. Xavier's and a Business Management degree from S.P. Jain Institute of Management & Research, Deepa began her career as a management trainee at Hindustan Lever Private Limited in 1996. Deepa founded Lumiere Business Solutions with a mission to empower women professionals to re-enter the workforce. You can read the Lumiere story in Rashmi Bansal's book "Follow Every Rainbow". Today, our interview with Deepa Soman explores themes of flexible entrepreneurship, gender roles, and systemic innovation. It aligns with GUESSS India Cloud's goals of linking academic insights with real-world entrepreneurial narratives. Deepa, thank you so much for accepting our invitation and welcome today to this session, to this meeting. I dive right into you. So Deepa, I have heard you, I have read you talking, and you often describe yourself as an "accidental entrepreneur". How did your academic background influence your entrepreneurial journey or was there a clash with your entrepreneurial journey? No, I, I think thanks for asking Aparna. What I have noticed is whatever experiences we have gleaned personally and professionally, academically, the subjects we study at that point in time, they may seem, "Is this even making sense?" But in my case and in many other cases, I have noticed that there is a connection between what one will do, what one is good at, what one feels passionate about, and what one is meant to do to really serve. So what we have seen as Ikigai, I have seen that come together for me in multiple times, multiple ways. I was very interested in psychology even as an undergraduate student in St. Xavier's College. I was very interested in sociology, in economics, in history, and it was very difficult at a point in time when there was a choice between philosophy and logic, which of course was discontinued, but we had an option when I was entering my application form and I thought I needed to learn both. So somewhere the curiosity to learn multiple subjects, the desire to go deeply into doing certain projects and do my own readings in the reference library of St. Xavier's College, do a lot of reading, borrowing books from British Council.
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+...Council, when USIS and our own reference library. The foundation that I will be a researcher was laid through not just the pursuits of paying a lot of attention in class, because I was that kind of a student, but when I say pay attention, it was also wanting to "double click" on certain things. So I remember in 11th and 12th, when I didn't need to do what the first years and the second years and third years in Psychology did, I was doing that because the subject fascinated me. And as you know, much of my work centers around both. Sociology is really the societal, the human, the connections, the teams, the groups, the families that we work within in cultural contexts. So therefore, different cultures, because Lumiere works not just in India but in other parts of the world. So being able to understand and interpret cultures comes from that subject. And the domain of Economics sort of serves as the bedrock because it at least brings a perspective into how the process of money exchange – what is it that is value and how are things valued? It becomes very important also for entrepreneurs to say it's not about a brilliant idea, but how is it going to make commercial sense? How do we work the economics of it, and so forth? And Psychology, because understanding needs, motivations, what drives people to behave in a certain way, how do people make choices, how do we cognitively process this information? So, somewhere I think a lot of curiosity. So if as educators, or as... and today all of the media available, if we can sort of not just stay as they say in the shallows or just skim at the surface, but we are willing to let's say pick a couple of things that make us go deep, those are... that's really where the education, as you asked me, has helped and fueled and continues to do, because as a lifelong learner and Lumiere as a learning organization, learning is never done. I think it's never done until one is dead and gone, because that's really the whole purpose of life. I mean, when I talk about this, all of our experiences are nothing but for us to learn about, starting with ourselves, how to refine ourselves to become better versions of ourselves. So it is all of it coming together, which not just then 29 years ago, but even up till now continues to fuel this and make every day interesting in the entrepreneurial journey. You put it so well, you know, I, I wish students were listening in to you today where they will and.
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+...that even if something that they are studying today doesn't make immediate sense to them, there are dots which will get connected later. They have to work on that page. Thank you so much. Absolutely, absolutely. So Deepa, did you, so you have, you are a topper in one sense, you are a topper, right? You have been academically excellent and everything. Did this mindset have any impact on Lumiere or did you have to relearn things when you were setting up Lumiere, your journey? Uh, so I think there are two aspects to it. When I say topper, it was more about making all of the efforts one can, but to do one's best. It may or may not translate always into marks, like I know there were my friends who didn't study as much or at least they did claim to study as much, but I was, I used to really slog. So I had this mindset, Aparna, and I think I have carried it through a long part, that I have never, I never get anything easy. I have to really work for it. So this, you know, this strong belief that to get anything, you really need to do your best and then expect the rest. I think that is what I have done and which has continued even at Lumiere. What I have definitely needed to work hard is to inculcate this culture that no matter what, we have to, a lot of times outcomes may not be in our hands. And there are, particularly when you have multiple partners, associates, clients, the things that you cannot determine. So like the Serenity Prayer, what are the things that I know I can change? And I think that's really the attitude that becomes very important of driving and working towards excellence. Yes, I used to be a perfectionist, I can say definitely. Well, well, until the first 15-20 years, it did make me, how shall I say, perpetually unhappy. And I think that that little, you know, that little creative discontent is very good, but I don't think you need to be unhappy. So you just need to be knowing that I want to channelize all those attention, that attention to making sure that I do my best. Just I have clarity about it and I am working in a way that is in harmony with who I am as a person, Aparna. That's very important because if my entrepreneurial self is very different from my personal self, if I am not able to marry the two, I will be in a tremendous state of tension and mental, physical strain. Something it's not going to sit right with me because fundamentally, and this is whether I am doing a, working as an employee.
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+...I am working in an organization or I am working for myself, I think the fund or I am working to raise a family, the fundamentals of who we are do not change. And as in the several years of doing a lot of work, mentoring, talking to people within our teams, within being a sounding board for a lot of people that have found value in talking to me at any point in time in their journey, I have seen that the moment we integrate and harmonize who we are with what we do, what we say, and things align automatically, it's like you have a force multiplier that comes in. That's right, that's right. So Deepa, there is a major shift in the generation today, right? Many, the approach, the attitude. Let me give you some numbers, okay? The GUESSS India report reveals a major shift in career aspirations where 31% of students are aspiring to become entrepreneurs after five years. That is up and this number is up from 40% at graduation. Do you think entrepreneurship education is a major driver for the shift or are there other factors at play? Uh, one of the factors, so there are, I think, multiple factors. One is today, just the vast number of opportunities that become available as opposed to very limited tracks of career that were available some years ago, right? So the fact that you can be a solopreneur and you can make your passion into, instead of a hobby, you can actually make it a wider proposition that can add value and for which you can get a commercial appreciation and you can actually have a business out of it, is become a possibility. Parents today are willing to back that dream. Parents today do not, are not all deriving their sense of success and validation through their child's professional achievement alone. So they are fulfilled. And I'm talking maybe of a certain class, Aparna, because we are many Indias, and we, you see things on a spectrum, and as we go along, we can see, and the people that we speak with, we will see a wide variety of parental anxiety. I think what parents want is their parents want their children to use their time wisely and at the end of it be happy. I think that's like a fundamental requirement. They, in that, they sometimes try to be very over-engineering certain things that the child needs to do, and maybe their own fears manifest in not giving any freedom, but asking what are some of the things that have enabled. Definitely, on the one hand, it is this part which is internal. Environmentally also, you see there.
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+...there are, let's say, a lot of discourse around, you know, support, incubators, things which are part of the ecosystem of entrepreneurship which have also grown from schools, whether it's the engineering colleges, and some have always done it, like William talked about how BIT Mesra in those days, maybe 35 years ago, they also had an incubator. So maybe schools who were already doing it, they have a lab, they had a shed, they would actually provide a seed grant in BIT Mesra for entrepreneurs that were starting. And I have actually been to the campus and seen that space which was very, very early support. So the governmental support, and that's really where a force multiplier comes in. When government gets into anything, then you have popular media, you have shows of people who have gone and even think something like MasterChef. You know, when, when, 15-20 years ago, you see a MasterChef and you see someone gaining proficiency, and that proficiency leading to money and fame, suddenly says, "Oh, even this is a path, I can send my child to culinary. Oh, they can go into culinary." So it's been an organic process. Oh, theater, cinema, you know, sunny, modeling, things which were professions, and this gradually, the stigmatization and the broadening of dimensions of success have started. The external mark. The part that I am a little afraid of is where you have shows like Shark Tank, which are, or you have conversations which are about an X multiplier or very early stage funding or very, or the whole conversation about my business in the context of investment and exit. Now those are conversations which are probably like those billboard ads which talk about these classes which had these are the seven toppers and they all got 100%. So everybody is sending their child to that particular class to get those marks. That's for me is the equivalence of a Shark Tank and that's the trap of saying you don't see the ground work, you don't see that, I'm not saying that they are not, what is highlighted is that one success. What we miss is that there will be 20 failures for one success or 40 failures for one success depending upon the time that we live, times that we live in and the business cycles that will determine how well we will do existing businesses and entrepreneurs also how different, how distinctive is the idea. So those are reality checks because I could be very much in a bubble believing so fiercely in what I want.
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+...to do, and I might end up, uh, you know, everything in entrepreneurship then can get a bad name. So we, we have to, it is very important to have a pragmatic and a realistic approach. Of course, the whole idea of entrepreneurship is resting on dreaming and the ability to envision a certain future that didn't exist before, but balancing heart with head at every juncture is very, very important from that point of view. And it will continue because individual expression particularly in our country was always clamped because of all these expectations, which, so the moment you kind of open that lid a bit and you let go of that steam, so much can flourish. That's true. So Deepa, in one sense of the term, Lumiere was futuristic because you actually carved out a space for women on family breaks. You carved out a work environment which allowed flexi-work, flexi-hours, work from home, and all of that, all these options. How did you take the decisions in developing the business model for Lumiere? Was it a clear thing? It must have been challenging in those days, right? Yeah, so, uh, a lot of times, you know, when you look at hindsight, you just think as an entrepreneur, you are about taking opportunities. Yeah, and you are taking that opportunity with a certain level of gradation of risk and risk appetite. In my case, I had a mindset that I have nothing to lose. I also had a mindset, and I will tell you where I am coming from, a deep belief that, uh, this is something that I want to do and I need to do for myself. So when it comes from a personal experience and a personal need space, you are moved actually from belief to faith. I have faith that this is something that, uh, the world needs. This is something that is a biological need for a woman and a psychological and an intellectual need. So it, the need to have a, an a professional expression path, uh, if it's not allowed, can make this professional woman who is on an interrupted career not very good in her roles as mother because she is going to be angry, irritated, frustrated, resentful. She will go through those cycles of coming to a place of acceptance at a point in time. I also want to say that not all women have this journey at this track, but like I have experienced, there will be women professionals who experience these at different levels, at different stages, whether the first six months is different, up to 2 years is different, two to four years, and because we, the early days, it was organic.
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+...organic, because the more work I got, the more people that I needed to also add. So it didn't, it didn't happen that I had an end point that I'm going to do this. But what were the enablers? There was home computing. There was the fact that people had laptops at that time. They had, you know, home, not even laptops, the desktops had started coming to home. And the work which is consumer, the research, which is what I have focused on at that time, uh, the initial does was being able to, uh, interpret the, read the quantitative data, uh, from a market research report, which I did for my, for the client, and to write research reports. Then organically one day, I got a task of saying, "We have, you know, a whole library of these reports on the past, from the past. Can you create management summaries of each of these reports because we are now looking to have a digital structure where we want to access these reports but we want to have summaries so people know?" So it was a kind of knowledge management. So it was solutioning. So here again, I had somebody who came up and said, "God, there is so much that you are doing, maybe I can help you on the weekend and help write the report." Okay, then I, I trained her and say, "Okay, she's, she's a business analyst. She works with the financial markets, but she understands the fundamentals of being able to analyze information, read information, summarize it." So you understand the, from a systems approach, what is the fundamental skills that this person has and how might it get translated into the task at hand, the project at hand, and what are the activities she needs to do to support me in that, which meant I needed to be able to break it down. First of all, the right person, knowing that they will work very sincerely the way I would. And then I have from one to two people who obviously can divide that role. When I said two people, two people because she was available on the weekend. Hmm, hmm. So every time there was a need, and then there was also a word of mouth that started. I would also actively, whether I went to drop my children to school or whether I went to the gym, I was looking, listening on conversations of those mothers with small children or what I had conversations for them over, "Are you working at an XYZ place? Okay, what is it that you are doing now? How much time do you feel sometimes that you want to work?" So I was also researching to understand whether they had.
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+...the inclination and they could do different tasks. Like there was somebody who I'd say, "I'm going for client meetings. Do you want to come and man my office and phone?" Office was typically one room. "And do you want to spend the time between when your child is not there, answering my phones because I will be gone for client meetings?" So it was, I was approaching people and I was asking them according to their skill sets, "Oh, but I have done this before." "Okay, so here's a script, this is how you speak, this is what you say." So there was a strong developer in me which was willing to break it down and I was not fazed about all their past experience or I wasn't taking one dimension alone. I was taking multiple dimensions: proximity, time availability. But what I did not compromise on was integrity, sincerity, the willingness to learn, the willingness to work hard, the diligence. Right now, those become the responsibility, the transparency, the little proactiveness. Now those sort of, we early on, we knew what is it that we are really hiring for, what values, what qualities. And then organically you will say, "Oh, okay, you are a techie, you want to do this. Why don't we just build a library system here?" "Okay, you know, maybe this quantitative, can we write a macro here and do these things?" So you, you, you sort of just know what the other person could possibly bring. Give them a nudge, give them the confidence and say, "We are doing this together, you are not alone." So you are also giving a lot of reassurance because women with interrupted careers will also have compromised self-confidence, eroded sense of self-worth. So you are bolstering them up as leaders, as professionals again. So you play that role of a mentor. I can't say that I was, I am also guilty of being impatient at times. But I would, I think they also learned that I was not coming, I was not attacking the person, I was attacking the task or I was demanding a certain quality. Like I am a, I am a grammar Nazi, so I would sometimes, and we didn't have auto-correct and all of those things, we just had undo. But I would like, you know, and, and if some, if I, if somebody was not learning like, you know, I corrected you twice but if the mistake persists then I could get a very sharp tongue. So I have had people melt into a pool of tears several times because I was demanding. Today these people who are professionals in their own right, thank me for it. I don't think they liked it very much at that time. Are like me.
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+...very much at that time. But it was all keeping the project deliverable and the quality at the center that would make me be very demanding. And I always knew that if they brought a 70, I needed to bring that 30. So you cannot just rely on what the team is bringing. So it calls for, I think, a huge ability to also work with a whole spectrum of people. When you ask me, "How did I change?" I changed from saying that what I can demand of myself and may not be able to get from the other, primarily because they are not there, either in experience or capability or what they were, they were not ready for it. And I also knew that what they brought, probably I could not bring. So I was able to see the diversity and the force multiplier. I have used the word three times, but I really believe that it is two and two makes five if you can bring the right chemistry into a project team, which is what we have done time and again, project after project. True. Thanks for breaking that part down because this is so... How would you advise students who are exploring the option for remote work? Would you think this can also bridge an urban-rural gap? It, if it is, if you, if we can break down, it is a very systems approach, Aparna. It is design thinking. After all, it is about being able to break the components of the part, but also build it up again and then to see what are the supports that we need. You definitely needed process, you needed technology, you needed understanding the human psychology. You needed to understand re-skilling, upskilling. You needed to understand how do you do a, you know, what are the processes involved in that person being able to bring their best to the, the, you know, what do they need to work together? What people need to work together? So in the years, the after the first, the first 10 years or so, 8 to 10 years or so, it was me and maybe this one or two other people who completed a project. And it was still a lot of, it was very individual based. The need to move to cloud, the need to raise, you know, bring even further capability to do much more, more work, happened as we, when I say much more work, we did a lot of work, but we worked. See, there will be, there is a whole dimension of attrition. So when, let's say, the person has moved, how do I quickly bring people up to steam? So you need to have a tremendous amount of agility and also the ability to manage a bench for some time. So you do, there is going to be a learning curve. So knowing that.
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+...that when you are working with people remotely or working anywhere else, there must be checks and balances. There needs to be ways of building accountability, and also what is your tolerance for that kind of margin of error that you can live with? It's also about how you can anticipate. It starts with being able to fundamentally understand, "Who am I? How do I work? How does this business work?" So it's a lot of, I think, an activity of and some amount of building that perspective which doesn't come on day one. But it is also about trusting your instincts. You will know that sometimes you will fail, but if two times out of 100 if I have failed, then I don't, you know, throw the baby out with the bathwater. You will say, "This is where I, you know, we probably got it wrong," or "you know, this is what is that we probably did not anticipate." Today, with a lot of people post-COVID, this phenomenon has been, a lot of people have moved to their hometowns, they are working remotely now. Right now, I'm in the US, I see so many people who have moved their towns, and they have moved because both husband and wife are working remote. They have found a better community to work with or better weather to work. They probably have, you know, they had some other aspirations that they are willing to explore. So times have changed. Workplaces have got used to working with people remotely. But how do you engage them beyond just a task? How do you get them to show them a path if that's what they want? And how do you make them feel that entrepreneurial spirit? Okay, large organizations also need to do that. So what is that entrepreneurial spirit? Nobody knows it better than an entrepreneur. So when you have your teams working wherever they work, if you can fuel or you can connect with that entrepreneur in, then you can, you can, but be willing to train, be willing to demand, but be willing as much to be a servant leader because they will need the support at that point in time. Exactly, exactly. Uh, so Deepa, we are veering towards the close. I have three, two or three more questions. Just one related to what you said earlier about how Shark Tank is not our model. One quick question that stems from there, would you say that entrepreneurship education should look at mindset or should it look at venture creation? I think it was hand in hand, Aparna. I think it's, it's very, you can't do one without the other. Again, this comes to the approach of the interconnectedness of things. The mindset will drive what are.
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+...the yearnings of that entrepreneur in terms of what they want to do, and nothing is wrong with that. I have seen very, you know, very focused towards profits and towards numbers. We have to bring them back to say that, "You know, what about keeping a focus on quality, listening to the consumer's need, listening to what is the long arc of that one customer's need so you have a customer built for life?" So those are, it's not just about the farming, how do you marry both the right, yeah, uh, the getting of new customers alongside repeat business that you will get, and what drives that repeat business? Business is a satisfied customer. How it will lead to positive word of mouth. So when I say mindset, mindset is also about resilience, about patience. Mindset is about the, uh, the making that decision to do the right thing by the right, because that is what I understand and I can align. Right? And so the stuff that takes longer to do, stuff that is probably in the short term seems, um, uh, you know, "Why am I even doing this?" But I think being aligned with who you are and your values and being committed to doing that over the long run is what defines who I am. That satisfies my metric of success, which may be different from somebody else's metric of success. Yeah. So if I, if there is a certain impact definition, the impact definitions would be different for different people. Right? The ability to tell your story, the ability to believe in your story, the ability for others to seeing you as authentically looking to add value and making a difference in some manner to whatever it is that you are looking to do. So the courage of conviction and I think a relentless interest in your people, growing them to do their best work. Yeah. So I think those are the mindset parts. Then of course is the whole skill set part of, which is very, very important. How well do you understand what it is that you are doing? Uh, the idea, what is the, how does the landscape look like today? What are the adjacencies in terms of the competitors that are possible? Who is doing something that are? So again, it comes from the quest, the curiosity, the openness to ask questions, to listen, to learn continuously, to be able to drop things that don't work. So rather than being fixated with something, being able to fail fast. Yeah, hmm, hmm. Right, right. So let's look at some interesting data again. GUESSS the GUESSS survey of 2023 threw up this one statistic: 38% of students report that they have started ventures. Okay, but we see that.
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+...that only 4.8% reach the revenue stage. That means there's a massive execution gap, right? How do you think the ecosystem, not just incubators, how can the ecosystem help the students to actually walk the complete path? Do you think we can simulate real-world complexity? What do you think can be done in this? One of the things that to, to have a, to be successful, yeah, is, is really when, when you say that only 4.8% reach that path of taking something to market, a lot of times the, uh, taking, you know, being perfect on something. I think their curiosity to go out and actually try to put money to, to fail. So of course, you need some seed capital to go into that market. It's very, you know, "How will I, first of all, how well do I know all my stakeholders? How well have I, what is the work have I done both in terms of working to build the product, working to know the consumer? How do I then look at the competitive context?" All of that comes. And then knowing what is my pathway? How am I going to acquire these customers? How am I going to make a commercial venture out of it? So whether I'm a home bakery, I have to go out there and I have to ideate and say, "Okay, what, how am I going to then put my, what Instagram content am I developing?" So I, and who am I working? Who is doing what? Who is going to make this for me? Who is going to the initial investment that I need to get my kitchen up and going? Yeah, what is the kind of support I require to begin with? And then how long is it going to be for me to actually become, you know, what is the kind of burn that I'm going to allow for some time? So the concept of burn is a very new concept, right? And, and for me, uh, money is not about burning. We come from a culture, "Money is Lakshmi, you don't burn money." So what is the, how can I be frugal in whatever I test? A lot of times the ideas are to be very, very grand. And we have seen some startups with that, you know, very massive investments. "Why do you need?" So those are the questions. And, "No, no, this is the bare minimum I require." I, we contest those to say, "Maybe you think there, there's a shame to say that I have only, you know, five and not 75 of something, but that's the proof that I made." That's also being right by my investor to say, "First let me see how this works and then." So I come from a philosophy which says that, "Don't wait for something to be a 100. Start with a five and then build it to 25. You will learn some.
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+...thing in the journey of zero to five. You will learn something in the journey of five to 25. Then you move from 25 to 50, and then you move to 200. Because work with innovation pipelines of even large companies who have lots of investor money, I would say they are even more answerable to their shareholders. So I have seen them to be even more careful and conservative about getting this zero to five and five to 25 right. And that is the part of doing the qualitative research, working with small samples, knowing yourself, knowing, you know, how you and your co-founders are going to work together, bringing that together, working very hard to understand beyond the idea, the context in which, and the relevance of this idea into the lives of people who are going to actually put their money where their mouth is. That part doesn't get taught, doesn't get understood. And that's the part where when we also work with like the startups where we there people even to prioritize and say, "Okay, these are the three things I can do. How do I systematically go about and say, 'Okay, what is the low-hanging fruit? What is it? How does this align with who I really?'" And not all the answers, Aparna, one is going to have initially, but having that mindset or the curiosity to be patient and to do the hard work and the rigorous work it takes to test and try out. It's not just, uh, and not everybody is cut for entrepreneurship, no. Even to know that, "Yes, this is something I, if I don't have a risk appetite, if I have sleepless nights, you know, there is something that I am compromising to my health." So it all starts with knowing self, which is why we actually work with the individual, as you know, we do the leadership coaching piece first, uh, for everybody in the team because to say, "Okay, how am I going to work?" If everybody thinks they have to eat like this, but actually somebody should be eating like this, maybe let them. So it is very important to be realistic. So mindset as well as that ecosystem needs to understand that. I had somebody tell me, "Oh, you know, my daughter is in Class 9, and I, what does your daughter want to do?" "No, we want her to become an entrepreneur." "Hello, you parents cannot want a child to become an entrepreneur." So that's as bad as saying, "Oh, you know, I worked with the company 40 years, I don't even understand what you are doing with a successful, you know, with this startup, what you call successful." So you have parents also at both ends of the spectrum that we have seen. And some who say, "My God, you know, we are doctors." "This person has started this from his third year in his college, but we don't understand the thing." So actually at that point in time, to say, "Who are the people that your child could even talk to, you know, to professors?" And "How do you take them, build their own confidence? How do you skill them?" So being afraid is natural for parents. Being, but at the same time, how do you balance it out and say, "Okay, we have had someone who said, 'Okay, my parents have given me three years,' but three years may not be enough." I mean, that person today, the two other people have continued in that venture, but the third person, that person has opted out of it also because it's the appetite of, you know, what's the family context? What is that person expected to do? Do they, you know, freedom is also a luxury in some cases, economically also, if there are certain dependencies. So it's also to not to say that therefore somebody succeeded and somebody failed. It's everybody's path is unique. Everybody's entrepreneurial journey, journey as is anybody's life journey, is to be very unique. And therefore it's very important to be secure and to co-opt people who believe within your idea and define what does success look like for you. If I'm a very large conglomerate and I say, "Every startup, you know, I can only think of something which can be a 100 crore idea," that may be works well for them. But for somebody else, that's not their definition of success. Right, right, right, right. Last question, Deepa. This is, this is maybe something for students, policymakers, and educators. If you could launch a GUESSS India Policy Hackathon, what barrier would you ask students or policymakers or educators to solve? I would definitely start that hackathon by helping the person understand themselves first. I would, you know, find a way to say, "Okay, who am I? How do I, what is my natural operating system in terms of the way I think, feel, and behave? Okay, what is it that and then being able to look at this part of understanding the self, which is very important, saying, 'Okay, when I grow my business, am I going to be, you know, do I have a mindset that only looks at revenue and customer? Is it something which is more developmental and therefore, you know, do I, should I, what is the role that I will also play in my bench?' Also learning how do I tell my story, learning about consumer and customer and ways to observe, listen, and dialogue with customers. So these become, I would say, like the alphabets of building your story. You will.
+________________________________________
+...build your words, you will build your sentences, you will know where to punctuate, provided you know these things. If I not learned it, I only understand some, you know, only by practice. I have to, you know, take a long time, maybe 10-15 years before I even discover these things by serendipity. Because otherwise I might, to know if my style is through relationships, I must thrive on that. I must know what it means to nurture those relationships. It is very different from saying, "I will do networking." Nurturing is very different from network. Are an outcome? They don't. Young people today want to go and build networks. Those not, they are so sometimes mixing the "how" with the "outcomes." So all of those things. So a very systems approach to understanding the domain as much as understanding the very critical ingredient in the success of that enterprise, which is the end person, the human person, and their ability to work with other human persons who build that enterprise. I think that be completely absent. How do I, uh, you know, I know the science and the technology, but if I'm so comfortable in this thing of just getting a grant and doing more research and more research and being very comfortable in that comfort zone, but "Oh, I don't understand that part of business," "Oh, I don't understand marketing." Today, we have no business to say, "I don't understand this, I don't understand that." If you are not, if you don't enjoy it, if you feel you don't add value to it, work with someone who can. But in, in today, and I don't think that happens today, young people are, you know, they, they want to know everything. But also to what are the physical limits? How do I also balance and prioritize my health and well-being? Those are also very, very important because a lot of times I could be, you know, because I have taken some funding, I'm completely at the mercy of, you know, I'm doing 18-hour days and I'm sleep compromised and I'm surviving on coffee and, you know. So I think sustainable entrepreneurship is also very important. When I mean sustainable from a health point of view. And I, I, I think I would also prioritize that part very much. Uh, relationships. I mean, I, uh, I have something which is successful at, but I, I, I just have a failed marriage. Now that's impacting my life and my sense of well-being. Now how can I have a balanced approach? Not just skill is what I would really, really focus on, Aparna. Right, right. Yes, that brings us to the end of this interview.
+________________________________________
+Thank you so much, Deepa, and this has been insightful. You brought to this entire discussion an approach that included obviously all your experience as a practitioner, your research outlook, your learner outlook, and the mindset that you are talking about, the entrepreneurship mindset. I'm sure students who are listening to this will have a lot of takeaways for them to first, first, and start looking at self-discovery and the thing to look, feel, that the operating system that you spoke about. So thank you so much for putting all this and taking time out from your personal schedule on a holiday. Thank you very much. Thank you. Thank you to the GUESSS team also, and I think it's a fantastic resource that you are building, and I wish everybody the very best still whatever they want to do as they become on their journey to building their ventures and doing what it is that is their calling and their purpose for this world. So thank you so much. Fantastic. Thank you.
+________________________________________
+Please note: The provided sources are excerpts from the video transcript, not the complete transcript of the entire video. Therefore, this response provides the translation of only the available excerpts.

data/Entrepreneurship as Practice.txt

@@ -1,76 +0,0 @@
-Entrepreneurship as Practice’: A Philosophy and A Tool kit for Student Startups
-
-Gautam Mirsha
-
-    May 30, 2025	
-
-When we think of entrepreneurship, we often picture flashy success stories, Steve Jobs in a garage, Elon Musk launching rockets, or a startup founder ringing the bell at the NYSE. But beneath the glamour lies a gritty reality: entrepreneurship isn’t just a title or a destination. It’s a practice – a daily, messy, hands-on process of creating, adapting, and persisting. In this article, we’ll explore what “Entrepreneurship as Practice” really means, why it matters, and how you can embrace it to turn your ideas into action.
-
-What Does “Entrepreneurship as Practice” Mean?
-
-The phrase “Entrepreneurship as Practice” comes from a growing field of study that shifts the focus from entrepreneurs as mythical geniuses to entrepreneurship as something you do. It’s less about who you are and more about what you practice, day in and day out. Think of it like learning to play the guitar: you don’t become a musician by dreaming about it; you pick up the instrument, strum a few awkward chords, and keep going until it sounds right.
-
-Researchers like Saras Sarasvathy, who developed the concept of “effectuation,” argue that entrepreneurs don’t always start with a grand plan. Instead, they begin with what they have – skills, networks, resources; and build from there. It’s a practical, improvisational approach. Rather than waiting for the perfect moment or a fully formed vision, you start small, experiment, and adjust as you go.
-
-The Core Elements of Entrepreneurship as Practice
-
-So, what does this look like in real life? Let’s break it down into a few key practices that define this approach:
-
-    Starting with What You’ve Got
-
-Forget the stereotype of the entrepreneur with a million-dollar idea and venture capital on speed dial. Entrepreneurship as practice begins with your current reality. What skills do you have? Who do you know? What can you afford to risk? A graphic designer might start freelancing with a laptop and a Wi-Fi connection, while a home cook might sell meals to neighbours. The point is to use what’s in your hands rather than chasing what’s out of reach.
-
-    Learning by Doing
-
-The theory is great, but entrepreneurship thrives in action. Every step, whether it’s building a prototype, talking to a customer, or failing spectacularly, teaches you something. Take Airbnb: its founders didn’t sit around theorizing about the sharing economy. They rented out air mattresses during a conference when hotels were booked, learned what worked, and iterated from there. Practice beats perfectionism every time.
-
-    Embracing Uncertainty  
-
-If you’re waiting for a risk-free path, you’ll never start. Entrepreneurship as practice means getting comfortable with ambiguity. You won’t have all the answers: Will this product sell? Can I trust this partner? But you move forward anyway. It’s about making decisions with limited information and adapting when the unexpected hits.
-
-    Building Relationships
-
-No entrepreneur succeeds alone. This approach emphasizes collaboration, reaching out to mentors, customers, or even competitors to co-create opportunities. It’s less about having a Rolodex of VIPs and more about nurturing the network you already have. A coffee chat today could lead to a partnership tomorrow.
-
-    Iterating Relentlessly
-
-Your first idea probably won’t be your best. Entrepreneurship as practice is about constant refinement. Launch a minimum viable product (MVP), gather feedback, tweak it, and repeat. Think of it like sculpting: you start with a rough block and chip away until something beautiful emerges.
-
-Why this Mindset Matters?
-
-In a world obsessed with overnight success, “Entrepreneurship as Practice” offers a refreshing reality check. It democratises the entrepreneurial journey, making it accessible to anyone willing to roll up their sleeves. You don’t need a trust fund, an Ivy League degree, or a genius IQ, just a willingness to act and learn.
-
-This approach also builds resilience. When you see entrepreneurship as a practice, failures don’t define you; they’re just part of the process. A product flops? You tweak it. A pitch gets rejected? You refine it. Over time, these small, deliberate actions compound into something bigger.
-
-Plus, it’s empowering. Instead of waiting for permission or the “right” conditions, you take control. You’re not at the mercy of market trends or gatekeepers, you’re shaping your path, one practical step at a time.
-
-How to Put it into Practice?
-
-Ready to give it a shot? Here’s a roadmap to start practising entrepreneurship today:
-
-Step 1: Assess Your Means
-
-Grab a notebook and jot down three things: what you’re good at, who you know, and what resources you can access (time, money, tools). This is your launchpad. For example, if you’re a writer with a decent social media following and a laptop, you have enough to start a blog or offer editing services.
-
-Step 2: Pick a Small Experiment
-
-Choose a low-stakes way to test your idea. If you’re dreaming of a bakery, don’t lease a storefront yet, bake a batch of cookies and sell them at a local market. The goal is to act quickly and learn fast.
-
-Step 3: Talk to People
-
-Reach out to potential customers, friends, or industry folks. Ask questions: What do they need? What would they pay for? Their feedback will guide your next move. Pro tip: listen more than you pitch.
-
-Step 4: Reflect and Adjust 
-
-After your experiment, ask yourself: What worked? What didn’t? What surprised me? Use those insights to tweak your approach. Maybe your cookies sold out because of the unique flavour, double down on that.
-
-Step 5: Keep Going
-
-Entrepreneurship isn’t a one-and-done event. It’s a rhythm. Build momentum by repeating this cycle; act, learn, adapt, until you’ve got something sustainable.
-
-The Bigger Picture
-
-At its core, “Entrepreneurship as Practice” is about self-agency. It’s a reminder that you don’t need to wait for someone else to greenlight your dreams. Whether you’re launching a side hustle, a nonprofit, or a tech startup, the power lies in starting where you stand and building as you go.
-
-So, what’s your next move? Maybe it’s sketching a business idea on a napkin or emailing a potential collaborator. Whatever it is, don’t overthink it, just do it. Entrepreneurship isn’t about having all the answers; it’s about practising until you find them. And who knows? A year from now, you might look back and realize that today’s small step was the start of something extraordinary.
-

data/GUESSS India Podcast Q&A Extraction guide.txt

@@ -1,428 +0,0 @@
-# GUESSS India Podcast Q&A Extraction Guide
-## Template for Research Team
-
----
-
-## Overview
-This document provides a structured framework for extracting Q&A pairs from GUESSS India podcast transcripts. Use this template to create comprehensive datasets that will train the GUESSS India chatbot.
-
----
-
-## Part 1: Basic Metadata Questions
-
-### Extract the following information first:
-
-1. **What is the episode number?**
-2. **Who is the GUESSST (guest) in this episode?**
-3. **What is the guest's current role and organization?**
-4. **How many years of experience does the guest have in the entrepreneurship/innovation ecosystem?**
-5. **What are the guest's previous key roles or positions?**
-6. **What is the most memorable quote from this episode?**
-7. **What are the 3-5 main topics discussed in this episode?**
-
----
-
-## Part 2: Core Content Questions
-
-### Category A: About the Guest's Journey
-
-8. **How did the guest get started in the entrepreneurship/innovation ecosystem?**
-9. **What major milestones has the guest achieved in their career?**
-10. **What challenges did the guest face early in their journey?**
-11. **What kept the guest motivated during difficult times?**
-12. **How has the guest's role evolved over the years?**
-13. **What does the guest consider their biggest achievement?**
-
-### Category B: Student Entrepreneurship
-
-14. **What percentage/statistics about student entrepreneurship are mentioned?**
-15. **What does the guest think about students becoming entrepreneurs?**
-16. **Should all students think about entrepreneurship? Why or why not?**
-17. **At what stage should students start thinking about entrepreneurship?**
-18. **What are the main challenges students face in entrepreneurship?**
-19. **How can students validate their business ideas?**
-20. **What mistakes do student entrepreneurs commonly make?**
-21. **How should students balance academics and entrepreneurship?**
-22. **What support do student entrepreneurs need most?**
-23. **How is student entrepreneurship different from regular entrepreneurship?**
-
-### Category C: Entrepreneurial Mindset
-
-24. **How does the guest define entrepreneurial mindset?**
-25. **Can entrepreneurial mindset be taught or is it innate?**
-26. **What traits characterize someone with entrepreneurial mindset?**
-27. **How can students develop entrepreneurial thinking?**
-28. **What's the difference between entrepreneurial mindset and being an entrepreneur?**
-29. **Can someone have entrepreneurial mindset while working in a job?**
-30. **How can faculty help develop entrepreneurial mindset in students?**
-
-### Category D: The Startup Journey
-
-31. **What are the stages from idea to successful startup according to the guest?**
-32. **What is the difference between a solution, innovation, product, and startup?**
-33. **How should entrepreneurs validate their problem statements?**
-34. **When should an idea move from concept to prototype?**
-35. **What frameworks or methodologies does the guest recommend?**
-36. **How long does the typical startup journey take?**
-37. **What are the critical decision points in a startup's journey?**
-
-### Category E: Incubation Centers
-
-38. **What role do incubation centers play in the ecosystem?**
-39. **When should a startup join an incubation center?**
-40. **What services should good incubation centers provide?**
-41. **How is incubation different from acceleration?**
-42. **What are the challenges faced by incubation centers?**
-43. **How should incubation centers measure success?**
-44. **What is the relationship between incubation centers and host institutions?**
-45. **Should incubation centers focus on funding or mentoring?**
-46. **How can incubation centers be financially sustainable?**
-47. **What innovations in incubation models does the guest discuss?**
-
-### Category F: Role of Educational Institutions
-
-48. **What role should colleges/universities play in student entrepreneurship?**
-49. **How can faculty contribute to the entrepreneurship ecosystem?**
-50. **What changes should educational institutions make to support entrepreneurship?**
-51. **How should entrepreneurship be integrated into curriculum?**
-52. **What is the balance between placements and entrepreneurship?**
-53. **How can institutions create an entrepreneurial culture?**
-
-### Category G: Ecosystem and Support Systems
-
-54. **What stakeholders are important in the entrepreneurship ecosystem?**
-55. **What role do government policies/schemes play?**
-56. **How important is collaboration vs competition in the ecosystem?**
-57. **What role do associations (like ISBA) play?**
-58. **How can different ecosystem players work together?**
-59. **What gaps exist in the current ecosystem?**
-60. **What initiatives has the guest seen that worked well?**
-
-### Category H: Funding and Resources
-
-61. **What does the guest say about funding for startups?**
-62. **When should startups raise funding?**
-63. **What types of funding are available for student startups?**
-64. **How much funding is appropriate at different stages?**
-65. **Should incubation centers provide funding or just connect to investors?**
-66. **What are alternatives to traditional funding?**
-
-### Category I: Family and Social Support
-
-67. **What role do parents play in student entrepreneurship decisions?**
-68. **How can students convince families about entrepreneurship?**
-69. **How should the entrepreneurship decision be made?**
-70. **What cultural barriers exist to student entrepreneurship?**
-71. **How can society's perception of entrepreneurship change?**
-
-### Category J: Metrics and Success
-
-72. **How does the guest define success in entrepreneurship?**
-73. **What metrics should be tracked for student startups?**
-74. **How should incubation centers measure their impact?**
-75. **What happens to student entrepreneurs after graduation?**
-76. **How many student startups typically succeed?**
-77. **What does failure mean in the startup context?**
-
-### Category K: Practical Advice
-
-78. **What specific frameworks or tools does the guest recommend?**
-79. **What should students do first when they have an idea?**
-80. **How can students find mentors?**
-81. **What resources are available for student entrepreneurs?**
-82. **What competitions or programs should students participate in?**
-83. **How can students build their entrepreneurial network?**
-
-### Category L: Future and Vision
-
-84. **What trends does the guest see in student entrepreneurship?**
-85. **How is the ecosystem evolving?**
-86. **What changes does the guest want to see in the next 5 years?**
-87. **What advice does the guest have for the next generation?**
-88. **What unfinished agenda or goals does the guest mention?**
-89. **What message does the guest have for students/faculty/policymakers?**
-
-### Category M: Specific Programs and Initiatives
-
-90. **What government schemes or programs are discussed?**
-91. **What is the guest's opinion on these programs?**
-92. **How have these initiatives impacted the ecosystem?**
-93. **What improvements are needed in existing programs?**
-
-### Category N: Challenges and Solutions
-
-94. **What are the biggest challenges in student entrepreneurship today?**
-95. **What solutions does the guest propose?**
-96. **What mistakes should be avoided?**
-97. **How can common problems be addressed?**
-
-### Category O: Comparisons and Perspectives
-
-98. **How does the guest compare different approaches to entrepreneurship?**
-99. **What differences exist between regions/institutions?**
-100. **How has entrepreneurship education evolved over time?**
-
----
-
-## Part 3: Extract Key Elements
-
-### For Each Q&A Pair, Capture:
-
-```json
-{
-  "id": "q[number]",
-  "question": "[Clear, standalone question]",
-  "answer": "[Comprehensive answer in guest's perspective, 2-5 sentences]",
-  "category": "[One of the categories above]",
-  "keywords": ["keyword1", "keyword2", "keyword3"],
-  "related_questions": ["q[x]", "q[y]"]
-}
-```
-
-### Additional Elements to Extract:
-
-**Key Insights** (10-15 bullet points)
-- What are the most important takeaways from this episode?
-
-**Recommendations by Stakeholder**
-- For Students: [List 5-7 actionable recommendations]
-- For Faculty: [List 5-7 actionable recommendations]
-- For Incubation Centers: [List 5-7 actionable recommendations]
-- For Institutions: [List 5-7 actionable recommendations]
-- For Policymakers: [List 5-7 actionable recommendations]
-
-**Statistics and Data Points**
-- Extract any numbers, percentages, or quantitative information mentioned
-
-**Frameworks and Models**
-- List any frameworks, models, or methodologies discussed
-
-**Success Stories or Case Studies**
-- Note any examples, stories, or case studies shared
-
-**Common Myths Debunked**
-- What misconceptions does the guest address?
-
-**Controversial or Unique Viewpoints**
-- What unconventional opinions does the guest share?
-
----
-
-## Part 4: Quality Guidelines
-
-### Ensure Each Q&A Pair:
-
-✅ **Is Self-Contained**: Can be understood without reading the full transcript
-✅ **Uses Clear Language**: Avoids jargon or explains technical terms
-✅ **Preserves Guest's Voice**: Maintains the guest's perspective and insights
-✅ **Is Accurate**: Directly reflects what was said in the transcript
-✅ **Is Actionable**: Provides practical value to readers
-✅ **Is Categorized**: Assigned to relevant category for easy searching
-✅ **Avoids Repetition**: Each Q&A adds unique value
-
-### Question Formulation Tips:
-
-- Start with: What, How, Why, When, Should, Can, Is
-- Make questions specific, not vague
-- Frame questions from user's perspective
-- Cover both theoretical and practical aspects
-- Include questions that challenge assumptions
-
-### Answer Formulation Tips:
-
-- Keep answers 2-5 sentences (50-150 words ideal)
-- Start with direct answer, then add context
-- Include specific examples when available
-- Attribute opinions clearly to the guest
-- Use quotes sparingly and only when impactful
-
----
-
-## Part 5: Minimum Extraction Targets
-
-### For a 2-hour podcast, aim to extract:
-
-- **40-60 Q&A pairs** minimum
-- **10-15 key insights**
-- **20-30 recommendations** across stakeholders
-- **5-10 statistics/data points**
-- **3-5 frameworks or models**
-- **2-5 success stories or examples**
-
----
-
-## Part 6: Special Instructions
-
-### Look for these specific elements:
-
-1. **GUESSS Survey References**: Any mention of GUESSS data, findings, or methodology
-2. **Numbers**: Percentages, statistics, years, quantities
-3. **Definitions**: When guest defines terms like entrepreneur, innovation, startup
-4. **Processes**: Step-by-step explanations of how to do something
-5. **Comparisons**: Before/after, different models, contrasting approaches
-6. **Challenges**: Problems, barriers, obstacles mentioned
-7. **Solutions**: Recommendations, suggestions, best practices
-8. **Personal Stories**: Guest's experiences and anecdotes
-9. **Future Predictions**: Trends, changes expected
-10. **Controversial Takes**: Opinions that challenge conventional wisdom
-
----
-
-## Part 7: Output Format
-
-### Deliver the final dataset as JSON:
-
-```json
-{
-  "podcast_metadata": {
-    "episode": [number],
-    "guest": "[Full name]",
-    "role": "[Current position]",
-    "organization": "[Organization name]",
-    "experience": "[Years of experience]",
-    "former_roles": ["role1", "role2"],
-    "key_quote": "[Most memorable quote]",
-    "recording_date": "[If available]",
-    "topics_covered": ["topic1", "topic2", "topic3"]
-  },
-  
-  "qa_pairs": [
-    {
-      "id": "q1",
-      "question": "[Question text]",
-      "answer": "[Answer text]",
-      "category": "[Category name]",
-      "keywords": ["keyword1", "keyword2"],
-      "timestamp": "[If available]"
-    }
-  ],
-  
-  "key_insights": [
-    "[Insight 1]",
-    "[Insight 2]"
-  ],
-  
-  "recommendations": {
-    "for_students": ["rec1", "rec2"],
-    "for_faculty": ["rec1", "rec2"],
-    "for_incubation_centers": ["rec1", "rec2"],
-    "for_institutions": ["rec1", "rec2"],
-    "for_policymakers": ["rec1", "rec2"]
-  },
-  
-  "statistics": [
-    {
-      "metric": "[What is measured]",
-      "value": "[The number/percentage]",
-      "context": "[What it means]"
-    }
-  ],
-  
-  "frameworks_mentioned": [
-    {
-      "name": "[Framework name]",
-      "description": "[Brief description]",
-      "use_case": "[When to use it]"
-    }
-  ],
-  
-  "success_stories": [
-    {
-      "title": "[Story title]",
-      "description": "[Brief description]",
-      "lesson": "[Key takeaway]"
-    }
-  ],
-  
-  "myths_debunked": [
-    {
-      "myth": "[Common misconception]",
-      "reality": "[What's actually true]"
-    }
-  ]
-}
-```
-
----
-
-## Part 8: Quality Checklist
-
-Before submitting, verify:
-
-- [ ] All metadata fields completed
-- [ ] Minimum 40 Q&A pairs extracted
-- [ ] Each Q&A has category assigned
-- [ ] All answers are 2-5 sentences
-- [ ] Key insights captured (10-15)
-- [ ] Recommendations for all stakeholder groups
-- [ ] Statistics extracted with context
-- [ ] No duplicate questions
-- [ ] JSON is valid and properly formatted
-- [ ] Guest's name spelled correctly throughout
-- [ ] All acronyms explained in first use
-- [ ] File named: `episode_[number]_[guest_last_name]_qa.json`
-
----
-
-## Part 9: Common Pitfalls to Avoid
-
-❌ **Don't:**
-- Create questions the guest didn't address
-- Paraphrase in a way that changes meaning
-- Skip important insights because they're hard to extract
-- Use overly technical language without explanation
-- Create overly long answers (keep to 50-150 words)
-- Duplicate similar questions with slight variations
-- Leave categories empty
-- Mix multiple topics in one Q&A pair
-
-✅ **Do:**
-- Stay true to what the guest actually said
-- Make questions searchable and practical
-- Extract both obvious and subtle insights
-- Explain context when needed
-- Keep user needs in mind
-- Cross-reference related questions
-- Flag unclear sections for review
-
----
-
-## Example of Good vs. Bad Extraction
-
-### ❌ Bad Example:
-
-**Q:** What did the guest say about students?
-**A:** They talked about how students should think about entrepreneurship and there are many challenges but also opportunities.
-
-*Problems: Vague question, incomplete answer, no actionable value*
-
-### ✅ Good Example:
-
-**Q:** Should all students become entrepreneurs?
-**A:** No, entrepreneurship should be provided as an opportunity, not forced on everyone. Just like institutions can't convert all students into sportsmen or orators, they can't make all students entrepreneurs. Students have their own aspirations, priorities, and preferences. The goal should be to develop entrepreneurial mindset in all students, which benefits them whether they become entrepreneurs or work for others.
-
-*Strengths: Clear question, comprehensive answer, actionable insight*
-
----
-
-## Questions? Contact Information
-
-If you encounter:
-- Unclear sections in transcript
-- Technical terminology you can't verify
-- Conflicting information
-- Sections with poor audio quality
-
-→ Flag these for review with timestamp and description
-
----
-
-## Final Note
-
-Remember: The chatbot will use these Q&As to answer user questions. Prioritize:
-1. **Accuracy** - True to what was said
-2. **Clarity** - Easy to understand
-3. **Completeness** - Sufficient detail
-4. **Usefulness** - Practical value for users
-
-Good luck with your extraction work! 🚀

data/In the last few years.txt

@@ -1,55 +0,0 @@
-
-
-In the last few years, India has made significant strides toward becoming a global hub for entrepreneurship. At the heart of this movement are Indian universities, which are beginning to play a crucial role in nurturing entrepreneurial skills and mindsets among their students. The GUESSS India 2023 report, a pioneering study, dives deep into the entrepreneurial spirit of Indian students and their universities’ roles in fostering this ecosystem. This report sheds light on both the progress made and the areas where Indian universities need to further enhance their entrepreneurial support.
-Universities as Catalysts for Entrepreneurship
-
-Universities are traditionally seen as institutions for academic knowledge and research, but in today’s fast-evolving world, they are increasingly being recognized as critical enablers of entrepreneurship. Across the globe, universities are adapting to the growing demand for innovation-driven education by incorporating entrepreneurial programs and providing the resources needed for students to turn their ideas into tangible ventures. In India, this transition is gaining momentum, with the GUESSS India 2023 report offering key insights into how universities are progressing in this regard.
-
-According to the report, Indian students are increasingly recognizing their universities as places that support entrepreneurial growth. When surveyed, students rated the entrepreneurial climate of their universities at 4.66 on a 7-point Likert scale. This relatively high rating reflects the sense that universities are no longer limited to fostering academic achievements alone but are becoming spaces where entrepreneurial ideas can take root and grow. However, as promising as this is, there remain critical gaps in support systems that need to be addressed.
-Creating an Environment for Entrepreneurial Growth
-
-One of the most notable findings from the GUESSS India 2023 report is the overall positive sentiment students hold toward their universities’ entrepreneurial climates. A score of 4.8 on the Likert scale, indicating that students feel their universities are encouraging them to engage in entrepreneurial activities, suggests that these institutions are actively promoting innovation. This is crucial because the environment in which students are encouraged to explore their entrepreneurial aspirations can have a profound impact on whether or not those ideas flourish.
-
-The report highlights several factors that contribute to creating a positive entrepreneurial environment within universities. These include:
-
-    Supportive Policies: The National Innovation and Startup Policy (NISP) 2019 and the New Education Policy (NEP) 2020 have laid the groundwork for universities to integrate entrepreneurship into their curricula and support systems. These policies encourage universities to establish innovation cells, provide incubation centers, and offer seed funding to student-led ventures. By aligning with national initiatives, universities are becoming integral to India’s broader mission of creating a startup-friendly ecosystem.
-    Encouraging Atmosphere: Students need an atmosphere that fosters creativity, risk-taking, and problem-solving. The report suggests that Indian universities are making strides in this area by offering platforms for students to engage in entrepreneurial activities, such as business idea competitions, hackathons, and entrepreneurship-focused workshops.
-    Access to Resources: One of the essential components of a robust entrepreneurial ecosystem is access to resources—both financial and physical. While many universities have established incubation centers and innovation labs, the report notes that these resources are not always widely accessible to all students. Bridging this gap is vital to ensuring that every student, regardless of background, has the opportunity to explore their entrepreneurial ambitions.
-
-Entrepreneurship Education: Key to Building Future Entrepreneurs
-
-A significant component of nurturing entrepreneurship is formal education. The GUESSS India 2023 report reveals that 49.8% of Indian students have been exposed to entrepreneurship education. However, while this number is encouraging, it also points to a considerable portion of students—58.8%—who have not yet participated in any entrepreneurship courses. This is a clear indication that while progress is being made, there is still much work to be done in terms of integrating entrepreneurship into the broader academic curriculum.
-
-Among the students who have engaged with entrepreneurship education, 40.4% have completed a compulsory course, while 22.7% have opted for elective courses. This shows that while entrepreneurship is being offered as an academic subject, it is still largely optional in many universities. Given the importance of entrepreneurial skills in today’s fast-paced, innovation-driven world, it is crucial that universities make entrepreneurship education more accessible, offering it as a core part of the curriculum for students across all fields of study—not just those in business programs.
-
-Furthermore, the report emphasizes the need for experiential learning. Entrepreneurship is not something that can be fully taught through lectures and textbooks alone. Students need hands-on experience in building businesses, working in teams, pitching their ideas to investors, and navigating the challenges of launching a startup. Universities that offer practical, real-world opportunities for students to engage in entrepreneurship are likely to see the greatest success in fostering the next generation of innovators.
-University Support Systems: The Backbone of Student Entrepreneurship
-
-In addition to formal education, students need access to a comprehensive support system if they are to succeed as entrepreneurs. The GUESSS India 2023 report highlights that 64.4% of students surveyed have received some form of support from their universities. This support comes in various forms, including mentorship, funding, technical assistance, and incubation space. However, the data also reveals that 35.6% of students have not received any support, indicating a gap that universities must work to fill.
-
-One of the most critical forms of support that universities can provide is mentorship. According to the report, 20.6% of students reported having access to mentorship programs, which provide them with valuable guidance from experienced entrepreneurs and business leaders. Mentorship is a vital resource for young entrepreneurs, as it helps them navigate the challenges of starting and growing a business. Having someone who has been through the entrepreneurial journey can offer insights, advice, and networks that are otherwise inaccessible to students.
-
-While mentorship is relatively well-established, other forms of support, such as financial assistance, are less prevalent. Only 9.7% of students reported receiving financial help from their universities, and 8.4% reported access to technical support. This indicates a need for universities to expand their support offerings, particularly in areas that require significant resources, such as seed funding, grants, and access to advanced technology.
-Incubation and Innovation Centers: Bridging the Gap Between Ideas and Execution
-
-A major development in Indian universities’ approach to entrepreneurship has been the establishment of incubation and innovation centers. Since 2018, the Ministry of Education’s Innovation Cell (MIC) has set up 14,422 Institute Innovation Councils (IICs) across higher education institutions. These centers act as bridges between students’ ideas and their execution, providing the physical space, tools, and resources needed to develop business prototypes, create business models, and ultimately launch startups.
-
-These incubation centers often provide a range of services, including mentorship, financial resources, access to investors, and technical expertise. For many student entrepreneurs, having access to such facilities can make the difference between a business idea remaining a dream and becoming a reality. The GUESSS report highlights the importance of these centers in shaping students’ entrepreneurial journeys, noting that students who engage with incubation centers are more likely to successfully launch their ventures.
-
-However, the report also notes that while these centers exist, they are not always accessible to all students. Expanding access to incubation and innovation centers should be a priority for universities, ensuring that students from all academic disciplines and backgrounds can benefit from these critical resources.
-The Importance of Tailored Support and Flexibility
-
-One of the key takeaways from the GUESSS India 2023 report is the need for universities to offer tailored support to meet the diverse needs of student entrepreneurs. Not all students require the same type of assistance—some may need help refining their business ideas, while others may need technical resources or financial backing. Universities must recognize that entrepreneurship is not a one-size-fits-all process and should offer a range of services that cater to different stages of the entrepreneurial journey.
-
-Additionally, the report highlights the importance of flexibility in how universities provide support. For instance, offering access to pitch competitions, hackathons, and venture-building programs can provide students with the real-world experience they need to refine their ideas and develop the confidence to present their businesses to investors. Similarly, creating platforms for students to engage with external stakeholders, such as industry leaders and venture capitalists, can help them secure the funding and mentorship they need to scale their ventures.
-The Road Ahead: Strengthening University Support for Entrepreneurship
-
-The GUESSS India 2023 report provides valuable insights into the progress Indian universities have made in creating a supportive entrepreneurial environment. However, it also highlights areas where improvement is necessary. As India continues to position itself as a global leader in entrepreneurship, universities must step up their efforts to provide students with the tools, resources, and education they need to succeed.
-
-Moving forward, universities should focus on expanding access to entrepreneurship education, making it a core part of the curriculum for students across all disciplines. Additionally, they must work to bridge the gap in support systems, ensuring that all students—regardless of background or academic focus—have access to the mentorship, funding, and technical assistance they need to bring their business ideas to life.
-
-Moreover, universities must continue to invest in their incubation and innovation centers, expanding these facilities and making them more accessible to a broader range of students. By doing so, they can help cultivate a new generation of entrepreneurs who are well-equipped to navigate the challenges of launching and scaling successful businesses.
-Conclusion
-
-The GUESSS India 2023 report paints a hopeful picture of the future of entrepreneurship in Indian universities. While there is much to celebrate, there is also significant room for growth. Universities have a critical role to play in shaping the next generation of entrepreneurs, and by building on the progress they have already made, they can create a vibrant and inclusive entrepreneurial ecosystem that empowers students to innovate, take risks, and drive India’s economy forward.
-

data/The GUESSS India 2023.txt

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-
-
-“The GUESSS India 2023 survey is not just a report; it’s a call to action for all stakeholders invested in the future of India’s startup ecosystem. If we heed its insights, India’s youth can indeed become the entrepreneurs that drive the nation’s next wave of growth and innovation”.
-
-In an age where innovation and entrepreneurship are key building blocks of global economies, understanding the entrepreneurial spirit and career aspirations of the students is crucial. For a country like India with 66 percent population under the age of 35, the choices of these young minds will shape indias’ future. As the future generation of entrepreneurs is studying in institutions of higher education, their mindset holds key to the prosperity of the economy and the country . To understand what is inside the minds of Indian students – The GUESSS India 2023 Survey Report, a comprehensive survey captures this entrepreneurial spirit, offering rich insights into the career intentions of over 13,896 students across India. But why was this survey necessary, and what does it reveal about the aspirations of Indian students?
-The Need of GUESSS India
-
-India is at a crossroads. While the country is a burgeoning global startup hub with over 100 unicorns, there remains a gap in understanding how deep the entrepreneurial spirit runs among India’s youth. Traditional surveys often focus on employment statistics or overall economic trends, but the GUESSS India survey stands out by specifically exploring the entrepreneurial intentions of students at two key points in their lives—immediately after graduation and five years later.
-
-This focus on students is vital. They are the workforce of tomorrow, the future innovators, job creators, and economic drivers. By understanding their career aspirations policymakers, educators, and businesses can better tailor their support systems to foster the next wave of Indian entrepreneurs. GUESSS India is part of the global Global University Entrepreneurial Spirit Students’ Survey (GUESSS), an international research project that surveys students across more than 50 countries. It aims to uncover insights into students’ career choices and entrepreneurial intentions, making it one of the most comprehensive studies of its kind. What makes GUESSS India unique is the depth of its local focus, providing granular data specific to the Indian context while aligning with global trends. This dual perspective—global and local—makes GUESSS India a key resource for understanding how India’s youth are positioned in the global entrepreneurial landscape.
-GUESSS India 2023: Key figures and findings
-
-The GUESSS India 2023 survey, conducted across 100 institutions , engaged 13,800+ students to gauge their career intentions. The data revealed both reassuring and surprising trends. Here are the key takeaways:
-
-    69.7% of students plan to start their careers as employees immediately after graduation, with 44.9% intending to work in large businesses, 18.3% in public service, and 15.2% in academia.
-    Only 14% of students expressed a desire to start their own business immediately after graduation, but this figure more than doubles to31.4% five years later, indicating a growing interest in entrepreneurship over time.
-    3.8% of students plan to join their family business upon graduation, with this figure rising to 6.6% five years later.
-    Over time, students’ interest in employment decreases, with only 52.2% intending to remain employees five years after graduation, compared to 69.7% initially.
-
-This shift indicates a growing entrepreneurial mindset among Indian students, aligning with global trends. The GUESSS Global 2023 survey similarly showed that while 65.9% of students globally intended to be employees immediately after their studies, only 53.3% maintained that intention five years later. The proportion of students planning to become entrepreneurs globally also nearly doubled from 15.7% to 30%, similar to India’s rise from 14% to 31.4%.
-

data/To overcome this it was.txt

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-To overcome this, it was crucial to help participants shed these layers
-and embrace a common ground: the mindset of a student. At the outset
-of the program, we directly addressed the "elephant in the room"—the
-need to transition from a position of authority and expertise to one of
-openness and curiosity. We encouraged them to let go of preconceived
-notions and approach the program with the humility and eagerness of a
-learner. The adult learners also need to fulfill expectations of an external
-formal authority to comply with instructions (Lieb and Goodlad, 2005).
-We emphasized that continuous learning is essential for growth, and that
-to truly learn, one must adopt a student’s mindset. This meant letting go
-of defenses, preconceived judgments, and the weight of past
-achievements, and instead focusing on what could be learned with an
-open mind. By gently reinforcing this mindset shift, we helped
-participants become more receptive, collaborative, and engaged,
-ultimately creating a lighter, more cohesive learning atmosphere.
-3. Driving Collaborative Learning through
-Co-Creation
-After identifying participants' needs, the next step is to co-create the
-learning experience with them. The principle of co-creation posits that
-when individuals actively participate in building something, they become
-more invested and committed to it. This concept was central to our
-program’s design, turning participants into active contributors rather
-than passive recipients.
-Particularly, adult learners are usually more motivated to learn when they
-can validate their existing learnings (Merriam 2001). Accordingly, we
-encouraged participants to share their venture ideas, learning objectives,
-and professional experiences with the group. For example, in one
-exercise,
-we used participants' real venture ideas and formed smaller groups to
-develop these ideas further using entrepreneurial frameworks. This made
-Puran Singh, Oshin Goel 4
-the learning experience more tangible and engaging, as participants
-worked on real-life scenarios instead of hypothetical case studies. This
-hands-on approach fostered deeper commitment and interest, as
-participants were directly contributing to their own and their peers'
-learning journeys.
-Additionally, we created special sessions where participants could
-present their life, venture, or teaching experiences to the group. These
-20-minute talks gave participants a platform to share their insights and
-expertise, further embedding the co-creation process into the program.
-This not only gave them a voice but also gave the participants a sense of
-ownership in the program and its outcomes (Knowles, Holton, and
-Swanson 2005).
-Through these co-creation strategies, participants felt a stronger sense
-of ownership and engagement, making the learning experience more
-impactful and aligned with their real-world challenges and goals.
-Puran Singh, Oshin Goel 5
-At this stage in their lives, adult learners have typically moved beyond
-the structured learning of school and college. They seek deeper
-questions and self-discovery, driven by a desire to understand who they
-are and what they want to achieve (Daloz, 2012). This period of life—often
-between their late twenties to mid-forties—is marked by a heightened
-focus on personal development and self-awareness.
-In our program, we recognized the importance of addressing these
-deeper, often unanswered questions. We focused on helping participants
-uncover their own vision, goals, and values, and encouraged them to align
-their actions with their deeper aspirations. By creating a space for
-introspection and self-exploration, we empowered them to transform
-into better individuals, entrepreneurs, teachers, and professionals.
-This approach also leveraged the growing self-awareness that adults
-either possess or are beginning to appreciate. By focusing on personal
-vision and values, we fostered an environment This approach also
-leveraged the growing self-awareness that adults either possess or are
-4. Fostering Transformational Learning:
-Uncovering Personal Vision and Growth
-Puran Singh, Oshin Goel 6
-To ensure a well-rounded learning experience, we moved beyond the
-traditional classroom setup. The idea was to incorporate diverse
-activities that challenge participants intellectually, mentally, and
-physically, while also exploring their creative sides.
-We integrated activities such as morning yoga, trekking, and cultural
-performances, leveraging the natural beauty of our location and the
-varied interests of the participants. This approach allowed participants
-to engage in physical exercise, informal interactions, and fun activities,
-beginning to appreciate. By focusing on personal vision and values, we
-fostered an environment where participants looked inward, prioritized
-their own growth, and aligned their personal values with their
-professional goals. This shift in focus from external comparisons to
-internal reflection created a powerful foundation for personal and
-professional growth. It also fostered the right intent in the room, making
-participants more open to learning and collaboration, ultimately
-achieving the transformative outcomes that short-term programs strive
-for.
-5. Holistic Learning: Enriching Minds and
-Bodies
-7
-creating memorable experiences that went hand-in-hand with
-intellectual stimulation.
-By offering a mix of activities, we created opportunities for participants
-to showcase skills and talents that might not emerge in a standard,
-topic-focused environment. These experiences helped participants
-bond, fostered creativity, and allowed for a more holistic form of learning
-that went beyond traditional methods.
-This holistic approach not only enriched the learning experience but also
-created a sense of community and personal growth, making the program
-not just educational but truly transformative.
-6. Fostering Group Cohesion: Building a
-Network of Support and Collaboration
-One of the cornerstones of our entrepreneurship capacity development
-programs is the emphasis on group cohesion and networking.
-Participants, who are often professionals and entrepreneurs, deeply
-value the power of networking. We recognized this and made it a priority
-to create an environment where participants could build meaningful and
-lasting connections.
-From day one, we integrated numerous opportunities for participants to
-engage with each other through informal introductions, collaborative
-projects, and gamified activities. By working together on small goals and
-milestones, participants naturally built mutual trust and respect. It helps
-8
-In a program designed for adult learners, it's essential to recognize that
-the experience is not a typical structured classroom setting. Sessions
-need not necessarily go as planned as adult learners bring their own vast
-experience into the classrooms and are vocal with their feedback of the
-sessions (Beder and Darkenwald 1982). While participants come
-prepared for a defined schedule, the reality is that rigid adherence to a
-fixed agenda can stifle the rich, spontaneous contributions they bring.
-Recognizing this, we adopted a flexible, adaptive approach that allowed
-the program to evolve organically.
-fulfill one of the many motivations of adult learners, i.e., to form new
-social relations (Lieb and Goodlad, 2005). This approach enhanced the
-learning experience and laid the foundation for enduring professional
-relationships.
-We also incorporated group-based activities and even organized post-
-program retreats to strengthen these bonds. The result was a close-knit
-community where participants continued to collaborate and support
-each other long after the program concluded. This strong sense of group
-cohesion not only motivated participants to help each other grow but
-also created a collaborative and supportive learning environment that
-extended beyond the classroom.
-7. Go with the Flow: Embrace Flexibility
-9
-This meant being agile in adjusting content, delivery methods, and even
-the daily schedule based on participant feedback and engagement
-levels. For example, we discovered that participants enjoyed evening
-discussions and networking, so we adjusted our start times and
-incorporated evening sessions to better align with their preferences and
-energy levels.
-Flexibility also meant prioritizing engagement over rigid content delivery.
-If rich discussions and participant-led activities took precedence over
-covering every planned slide, we embraced that, understanding that the
-depth of engagement and the relevance to participants were more
-valuable. This approach not only kept the sessions lively and engaging
-but also ensured that participants felt a sense of ownership over the
-learning process.
-Ultimately, this adaptability created a dynamic, responsive learning
-atmosphere where participants felt empowered and respected, leading
-to a richer and more meaningful learning experience. By going with the
-flow and adapting to the group's evolving needs, we fostered an inclusive
-environment that truly resonated with adult learners.
-Concluding Remarks
-Designing a successful faculty development program goes beyond
-delivering content—it is about creating an environment where adult
-learners feel valued, supported, and empowered to grow both personally
-and professionally. By integrating strategies like co-creation, flexibility,
-10
-References
-Beder, H. W., & Darkenwald, G. G. (1982). Differences between
-teaching adults and pre-adults: Some propositions and findings.
-Adult education, 32(3), 142-155.
-Daloz, L. A. (2012). Mentor: Guiding the journey of adult learners (with
-new foreword, introduction, and afterword). John Wiley & Sons.
-Knowles, M. S., Holton, E., & Swanson, R. (2005). The adult learner: The
-definitive classic in adult education and human resource
-development (6th ed.). Burlington, MA: Elsevier.
-Lieb, S., & Goodlad, J. (2005, September). Principles of adult learning.
-Merriam, S. B. (2001). Andragogy and self-directed learning: Pillars of
-adult learning theory. New Directions for Adult and Continuing
-Education, 2001(89), 3.
-Pathways, P. (2004). Professional Development for Child Caregivers.
-Training Resource Manual. Adult Learning Principles. Available at:
-http://www.papathways.org/TRM_AdLearnPrinc.htm. Accessed
-February 5

data/Transform Classroom into.txt

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-
-Transform Classroom into Venture Space, Students into Entrepreneurs: Insights from a Pedagogical Experiment
-
-Dr. Aparna Rao
-
-    August 27, 2025	
-
-The timeless question continues – Is entrepreneurship inborn or acquired? Reflecting on this, I share my learning from an experiment I conducted about a decade ago with three batches of MBA students, covering over 1000 students.
-
-This pedagogical experiment required the students to read the book titled ‘The Story of My Experiments with Truth’ by Mahatma Gandhi, make a short class presentation, and then sell the book. That is right. They had to sell the copies of the book out there in the market.
-
-Of course the students were surprised. They had to understand the product. So they read the book and presented what they learnt. The students discussed Gandhian ideas, methods, beliefs, and values. One of the discussions also extended to debating the leadership styles of Adolf Hitler versus Gandhiji. The classroom was abuzz with intellectual discussions.
-
-But the most important question that lingered was: How are we going to sell the book? Most students had not read the book before, and many did not believe in or understand the ideas in the book. Regardless, the students were pushed towards the first principle of Entrepreneurs’ Manifesto – ‘Get out of the building.’ Hesitantly, they left the building, doubting the exercise but incentivized by marks and also by the fact that they get to keep the money from the book sale.
-
-The experiment raised the eyebrows of fellow faculty colleagues given the expectations of fieldwork and sales that students were required to do. However, the institute leadership extended full support, and gradually other stakeholders became more open to the experiment and began to see the merit of it. 
-
-The students were given clear deliverables. A batch of 360 was divided into sections comprised of 60 students each. Every section was regarded as a business unit. They were required to primarily sell the book. Every student had a target of ten books per week for three weeks, with half a day assigned especially for the fieldwork. The students worked out different roles among themselves. They had to coordinate with the supplier of books—Bombay Sarvoday Mandal. They had to ensure availability of stock, plan logistics and supply chain, keep financial records, monitor team performance, plan and execute business development, etc. 
-
-This experiment put the students through a real business experience. They learnt business by doing it. The criticism from non-believers of Gandhi taught them to stand firm on the business despite challenges. The emotional dilemmas of handling the team and managing the performance of fellow classmates built character in them. It also triggered a sense of adventure among the students, as some took the initiative to source a wider product range related to Gandhian values, trying to practice the concept of ‘bundling’. 
-
-The outcomes were nothing short of spectacular. 10000 copies of the book were sold that month. In fact, the vendor had to print additional copies to meet the demand. Students were enthused throughout the experiment. Very soon, media coverage followed. Positive words in the notable newspapers and citations for the institution from Bombay Sarvoday Mandal helped bring acceptance from faculty colleagues over time. Relatively, students were least resistant and most interested.
-
-This experimental project that we called ‘Jagruti’ yielded tremendous results in terms of student learning and entrepreneurial self-efficacy. What made the experiment special was the end-to-end student ownership, ranging from team name, logo, social media presence, outreach, exhibitions, and direct sales. The students were exposed to various business functions, including marketing, sales, finance, supply chain, and consumer behavior. For many students, this experiment shaped their entrepreneurial thinking and business acumen. It  boosted students’ confidence and also added to their professional CV also helping students score solid internship offers from some large MNCs. The students invariably said, “This is what a real MBA should do,” “Expose us to real-world problems,” “Working for a bigger purpose (beyond marks and money) is fulfilling and much more fun than working for work’s sake,” and “This experience will live with me forever.”
-
-In the following two years, I repeated the experiment with incoming batches. The very first cohort of students had formed a Facebook page for this experiment that invited a lot of engagement. The senior batch extended support to the incoming batch, providing advisory and mentoring to the new student teams. The initial hesitation and reluctance to explore field sales was overcome after the experience sharing by some of the senior students. 
-
-Several students from these batches have chosen and are walking the path of entrepreneurship. Even today, when these students connect with me, project ‘Jagruti’ comes up in the conversation without fail. This kind of connection with a class project – hand, head and heart, could be achieved only through the conviction that experience is the best teacher, and that entrepreneurial thinking and mindset can be developed through experiential methods.
-
-My reflections from these years tell me that entrepreneurship can indeed be nurtured through hands-on learning. I invite the entrepreneurship educators across the country to transform classrooms into venture grounds, theoretical knowledge into real-world skills, and students into entrepreneurs

data/Turning Entrepreneurial.txt

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-
-Turning Entrepreneurial Intention into Action: Reflections from Entrepreneurship Practicum Course at IIT Mandi
-
-Dr Puran Singh
-
-    June 2, 2025	
-
-India’s National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 and the National Innovation and Startup Policy (NISP) 2019 have set ambitious goals to promote entrepreneurship within higher education institutions. These policies aim to foster a robust entrepreneurial ecosystem by encouraging universities to nurture innovation and support student-led startups. However, despite this strong institutional push, findings from the GUESSS 2023 report tell a different story. While 38% of students report working on startup ideas, only 5% have taken the leap to establish active ventures. This raises a critical question: Why are so many students still hesitant to convert their ideas into real businesses? In this article, I reflect on entrepreneurship education and pedagogy as a standalone factor contributing to the low proportion of active student ventures.
-
-During my tenure as the head of the incubation center at IIT Mandi, I observed a significant gap: despite being a prestigious institution, only 10% of incubated ventures originated from within. This led me to ask—why weren’t more students pursuing entrepreneurship, despite the availability of resources and visible potential? We experimented with a full-semester entrepreneurship course, but found that while informative, the traditional format often failed to inspire actionable outcomes among students.
-
-To address this challenge, we pioneered an Entrepreneurship Practicum—a two-phase course combining theory with practice. Twelve student teams enrolled. The first phase condensed essential entrepreneurial frameworks into a focused 14-hour, studio-style training delivered over one intensive week before the semester began, ensuring students’ undivided attention. During this phase, teams developed their problem statements, conducted user research, and prepared an idea validation plan.
-
-At the end of Phase 1, four teams with stronger problem definitions were selected for Phase 2. By the time the semester started, these teams were equipped with the necessary theoretical foundation to begin building their ventures. Each received a small grant of INR 50,000 for prototyping and validation. Weekly mentoring by the incubation center and monthly industry mentor interactions followed. The students, fully engaged, built prototypes and piloted their solutions on the IIT Mandi campus.
-
-The entire ecosystem was activated to support them—access to labs, faculty, industry mentors, finance, time, and academic credit. The academic credit component allowed students to reduce their regular course load, freeing up time for venture development. This nurturing environment enabled a swift and meaningful transition from theory to practice.
-
-By semester’s end, the student teams had validated their ideas and demonstrated strong commitment. Three of the four teams went on to secure larger government grants through the incubation center for further venture development.
-
-The outcomes were both profound and instructive. A shorter, more intensive training followed by real-world action proved effective for aspiring student entrepreneurs. Immersed in venture creation, students moved from intention to action, experienced ownership, and developed entrepreneurial acumen and resilience—key traits for navigating startup journeys. Two students opted out of placements to continue with their ventures. Since then, one founder has attempted two follow-on ventures, another took his startup into the real world, and a third continues to explore new ideas passionately.
-
-If you’re wondering whether these ventures are “successful,” I would say—that wasn’t the goal. The goal was to help students experience the venture-building process and develop entrepreneurial self-efficacy. We simply let them loose in the world—better prepared, more confident, and hungry for more.
-
-Transforming entrepreneurship education requires bold experimentation and a deliberate shift towards experiential learning models like this. By equipping students with the tools, resources, and mindset necessary to embark on entrepreneurial journeys, institutions can foster a thriving ecosystem where innovation flourishes and dreams take flight.
-
-As we look ahead, it is imperative that institutions collaborate with ecosystem stakeholders to integrate action-oriented pedagogy into entrepreneurship curricula. The objective should not be the immediate success of ventures, but rather the development of students’ capacity to independently explore and pursue entrepreneurial opportunities. These young entrepreneurs will be the nation builders of tomorrow

data/Two Episodes That Changed.txt

@@ -1,67 +0,0 @@
-
-Two Episodes That Changed the Way I Think About Student Entrepreneurship
-
-Javeed Dar
-
-    May 28, 2025	
-
-As a first-year PhD scholar, I entered the world of research with a mind full of questions and curiosity. I knew I wanted to study entrepreneurship. I was familiar with the buzzwords such as “startup culture,” “innovation,” “founder mindset” that were referenced in classrooms, conversations, and conferences. But I hardly understood what it really means to become an entrepreneur. Through a couple of lived experiences during this course, I elaborate – why do some students act on their intentions, while others hesitate? The answer to this question changed not just how I looked at student entrepreneurship, but how I looked at research itself.
-Episode One: When Class Turned into a Startup Studio
-
-The first episode was during my very first semester at the School of Management, IIT Mandi, during a course on entrepreneurship. We were being introduced to Effectuation – a term I had come across in my course readings, but hadn’t quite grasped.
-
-The Professor was talking about an effectual logic that successful entrepreneurs use, rather than a rigid plan. For your understanding—the effectual logic says that entrepreneurial thinking is rooted in the resources you already have, the people you know, and the willingness to co-create a future, which is yet uncertain. After elaborating this logic, almost casually, he issued a challenge:
-
-“Go out and sell anything.”
-
-No guidelines. No budget. Just action.
-
-I watched my fellow classmates—who, until a few hours ago, were buried in case studies and frameworks—suddenly transform. The whole class was full of energy and enthusiasm. Some students teamed up to sell snacks on campus, others created handmade products, while a few leveraged their design skills to sell t-shirts. And then there were some who even started building mobile apps.
-
-Within a few days, the classroom became a marketplace. Learning became living. That day, I witnessed firsthand how students, when nudged towards action, can tap into something truly entrepreneurial.
-
-It wasn’t just exciting—it was eye-opening. Effectuation, it seemed, wasn’t just a theory. It was a way of doing. And it had just played out in front of me.
-Episode Two: The Book That Made It All Make Sense
-
-A few months later, as I began searching for a concrete research topic for my PhD, in one of our recent research guidance meetings, my doctoral supervisors recommended I read a book. The book was “Effectuation: Elements of Entrepreneurial Expertise” by Professor Saras D. Sarasvathy.
-
-By now, I had heard of the word Effectuation, of course. I had even encountered its five famous principles during that classroom episode I shared earlier. But reading the full book, page by page, was a rich experience altogether. Those principles became much more relatable.
-
-This wasn’t just another academic treatise. It was a journey—into the minds of expert entrepreneurs, into the messy world of decision-making under uncertainty, and into a radically different way of thinking about new venture creation.
-
-Sarasvathy’s research was grounded in a fascinating question: How do expert entrepreneurs think? Using cognitive science methods like “think-aloud protocols,” she uncovered that these entrepreneurs didn’t rely on prediction or perfect plans. Instead, they started with what they had—their identity, knowledge, and networks—and built ventures through constant interaction and adaptation.
-
-This way of thinking, known as effectual logic, stood in contrast to the more common causal logic taught in business schools. While the causal logic is rooted in, “What’s my goal and how do I get there?”, the effectual logic focuses on, “What can I do with what I have?”
-Connecting the Dots: From Classroom to Research Question
-
-Suddenly, the dots began to connect. That classroom challenge—“go out and sell anything”—wasn’t just a fun exercise. It was a live demonstration of effectuation. Students weren’t waiting for perfect plans; they were experimenting, adjusting, and learning by doing.
-
-But not all students behave this way, why?
-
-That question led me deeper into thinking about the intention-action gap in student entrepreneurship. I have seen several students interested in entrepreneurship. They attend workshops, join startup clubs, and talk about building “the next big thing.” But when it comes to acting on these ideas, most hesitate.
-
-The more I read Sarasvathy’s book, the more I began to realize that perhaps it wasn’t a lack of intention—but a lack of effectual mindset—that holds the students back.
-
-Could it be that we are teaching students about entrepreneurship, but not equipping them to think like entrepreneurs?
-
-Are we focusing too much on business plans and not enough on affordable loss, leveraging contingencies, and co-creating with stakeholders?
-The Researcher Within Me Was Awakening
-
-As a first-year researcher, reading this book raised more questions than answers. But that’s the beauty of research, isn’t it? Here are some interesting questions that dawned on me:
-
-    How do student entrepreneurs differ from expert entrepreneurs in their cognitive approach to venture building?
-    Can effectuation be taught, not just as a theory but as a lived experience?
-    How does peer interaction, mentorship, or institutional support impact the application of effectual logic?
-    And most importantly, how can effectuation be used to bridge the gap between entrepreneurial intentions and action, especially among students?
-
-I realized that my research wasn’t just about student startups or incubators or metrics of success. It was about understanding how students think, how they make decisions under uncertainty, and how their mindset shapes their actions.
-What Changed in Me
-
-Before reading this book, I saw student entrepreneurship as a series of outcomes: startups launched, competitions won, and investment raised. Now, I see it as a process of effectual evolution—a dance between the known and the unknown, the possible and the practical.
-
-I am no longer just a student of entrepreneurship. I am a student of entrepreneurial thinking. And as I begin my doctoral research journey, I carry with me the energy of that classroom challenge and the insight of Sarasvathy’s book.
-
-These episodes—one lived, one read—haven’t just shaped my research topic.
-
-They’ve shaped me.
-

data/Understanding Team Dynamics.txt

@@ -1,21 +0,0 @@
-
-Understanding Team Dynamics in Student Startups
-
-Neha Jaswal
-
-    June 2, 2025	
-
-In recent years, universities have become a fertile ground for innovation, with increasing numbers of students turning their ideas into ventures. But while much attention is given to ideation, funding, and market entry, one critical yet often overlooked factor determines whether these early-stage ventures gain traction or dissolve quietly: team!
-
-Student startups typically begin in informal settings, between classes, during hackathons, or through casual peer conversations. Teams often form quickly around shared enthusiasm, but as academic demands intensify and individual priorities shift, these loosely structured teams start to fragment. Founders frequently deal with high turnover, inconsistent commitment, and communication breakdowns, all of which severely hinder execution.
-
-A common pattern among student-led ventures is the shift from large, energetic teams to a lean core group within just a few months. Initial excitement gives way to practical constraints: exams, internships, and placement preparations often pull students away from consistent participation. What remains is a committed founder or, at best, a small pair, juggling product development, team coordination, and academic responsibilities simultaneously.
-
-This kind of instability creates internal friction and affects external perception. Investors and grant bodies often view team strength as a key indicator of a startup’s reliability. A venture with mostly part-time contributors, high turnover, or vague role definitions is perceived as high-risk, regardless of the quality of the idea or prototype. Without a stable team, founders often struggle to build credibility, secure funding, or even attract early users.
-
-Despite these challenges, many student entrepreneurs find creative ways to adapt. They bring in interns, collaborate with peers from other institutions, or leverage online platforms to maintain progress. Some even delay funding utilization, recognizing that resources are only as effective as the capacity to deploy them. These adaptive behaviours point to a key insight: while team instability is a reality, it is not insurmountable.
-
-However, this also highlights a gap in the support systems available to student ventures. While most incubators and university programs focus on ideation and product development, structured guidance on team-building, role definition, and commitment management is often missing. Founders need support not only in business strategy or technical development but also in building and retaining functional, motivated teams.
-
-To strengthen student entrepreneurship, institutions and support programs must offer training in leadership, collaboration, and conflict resolution. In essence, no startup succeeds on the strength of an idea alone. It is people, aligned, accountable, and committed, who turn ideas into impact. For student ventures in particular, investing in team stability is not optional; it’s foundational. Without it, even the best ideas risk being lost in the transition from classroom to market.
-

data/Untitled document(2).txt

@@ -0,0 +1,59 @@
+This is a great idea for building a chatbot! Here are the comprehensive answers to those basic questions, drawn directly from the sources:
+________________
+
+
+1. what is guesss India
+GUESSS India is the India Chapter of the Global University Entrepreneurial Spirit Students' Survey (GUESSS).
+* Global Project: GUESSS is recognized as one of the largest entrepreneurship research projects in the world. The main research focus of the project is on students' entrepreneurial intentions and activities, including the topic of family firm succession.
+* Organization: The global GUESSS survey project was established in 2003 and is centrally coordinated by a global team at two Swiss universities: the University of Bern and the University of Saint Gallen.
+* Indian Initiatives: GUESSS India conducts a biennial survey, with the 2023 survey being the inaugural effort to capture the entrepreneurial spirit of Indian students. GUESSS India has also created the GUESSS India Cloud, which is designed as a dedicated knowledge hub to fuel entrepreneurship and the entrepreneurial spirit among students nationwide. The Cloud answers questions by providing expert advice, entrepreneurial journey stories, and insights from literature.
+________________
+
+
+2. hi/hello/who are you
+Hello! I am a chatbot created to provide insightful and detailed information about GUESSS India and its related research, projects, and key figures, drawing upon the provided transcripts and reports.
+________________
+
+
+3. Who runs Guesss India
+The GUESSS India Chapter is led by Dr. Puran Singh, who serves as the Country Delegate.
+* Dr. Puran Singh is also an Associate Professor of Entrepreneurship and Finance at the School of Management, Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Mandi.
+* Additionally, Dr. Singh is the ex-Director Incubation and the founding Faculty Incharge of IIT Mandi Catalyst, an emerging technology business incubator in the Himalayan Region.
+* The GUESSS India 2023 Survey was planned and implemented by a two-member national team consisting of Dr. Puran Singh and Dharmender K Yadav, who is a National Team Member and doctoral candidate at the School of Management at IIT Mandi. A core team of six members also coordinated the survey execution across the country.
+________________
+
+
+4. How can I participate
+You can participate in GUESSS India's activities primarily through the following avenues:
+1. GUESSS Survey: The main activity is the Global University Entrepreneurial Spirit Students' Survey, which is a biennial initiative. The survey is conducted using a web-based online questionnaire. The next round, GUESSS 2025, is currently planned.
+2. Campus Ambassador Network: You can join the network of Campus Ambassadors (students) who actively popularize the survey among diverse student groups in higher educational institutions. Campus Ambassadors were vital for enabling data collection in the 2023 survey.
+3. Research Collaboration: Researchers are warmly invited to collaborate with the GUESSS India team to utilize their extensive dataset for further research inquiries into student entrepreneurship.
+________________
+
+
+5. Campus ambassador benefits
+Campus ambassadors play a crucial role in the success of the GUESSS India Survey by actively popularizing it to encourage responses.
+* The sources note that 105 Campus Ambassadors participated in the 2023 survey.
+* These Campus Ambassadors were "suitably incentivized" to promote the survey among diverse student groups in their respective institutions. Their dedication and hard work were essential in reaching a wide student audience.
+________________
+
+
+6. contact information other several generic question
+You can find more details or reach out to the GUESSS India team using the following contact information:
+Contact Method
+	Details
+	Source
+	Website
+	www.guesssindia.in
+	
+
+	Email (Country Delegate)
+	puran@iitmandi.ac.in (Dr. Puran Singh)
+	
+
+	General Email
+	guesssindia@gmail.com
+	
+
+	Address
+	School of Management, IIT Mandi, Himachal Pradesh, India 175005

data/What s Holding Back Student.txt

@@ -1,27 +0,0 @@
-
-What’s Holding Back Student Entrepreneurs? A Closer Look at the Tech-First Trap
-
-Dr. Hari Babu
-
-    June 2, 2025	
-
-India produces over 1.5 million engineering graduates every year—bright, capable, and trained in some of the world’s most advanced technologies. Many of these students are drawn to entrepreneurship, eager to create something of their own. In fact, the GUESSS 2023 survey shows that 32.5% of Indian students are working on startup ideas. Yet, only 4.8% transition into active ventures.
-
-This drop—from idea to execution—raises an important question: what’s preventing student entrepreneurs from moving forward?
-
-While there are several contributing factors, one overlooked issue is the tendency to approach startups with a technology-first mindset. Many students begin their entrepreneurial journey by building something based on technologies they are excited about: AI, blockchain, IoT, or machine learning. However, the problem arises when the product is built before the problem is clearly understood. In this model, technology becomes the starting point rather than the tool used to solve a well-validated problem.
-
-This issue isn’t unique to students. A CB Insights 2018 report identified “no market need” as the number one reason startups fail. These failures don’t stem from poor technical execution—they stem from creating solutions in search of a problem.
-
-In student entrepreneurship, this often looks like technically sound products that struggle with user adoption or market relevance. The energy and skill are there, but the understanding of the user is not. This is where a user-first approach becomes essential.
-
-Entrepreneurship should begin not with technology, but with empathy—understanding the user, identifying real problems, and validating those problems before investing in development. This is the first step in design thinking, and one that is often overlooked in engineering-driven startup environments. 
-
-To support this shift, institutions must play a stronger role in emphasizing problem discovery, market validation, and business fundamentals. It is not enough to train students in how to build. We must also teach them what to build, for whom, and why.
-
-This involves integrating entrepreneurship education with real-world problem-solving, encouraging students to engage with users early and often, and building feedback loops before a single line of code is written. Structured mentorship, access to diverse networks, and exposure to customer behavior should be standard components of student startup programs.
-
-Ultimately, technology remains a critical enabler of innovation—but it cannot replace a clear understanding of user needs. To bridge the gap between nascent ventures (32.5%) and active ventures (4.8%), we must help student entrepreneurs shift their approach. They don’t need to abandon technology—they need to place it in the right sequence. Start with the user, then apply the tech. 
-
-This mindset doesn’t just improve their chances of startup success—it helps them build ventures that are meaningful, sustainable, and truly needed.
-

data/basic_ques.txt

@@ -1,178 +0,0 @@
-{
-  "guesss_india_basic_information": {
-    "metadata": {
-      "category": "Basic Information about GUESSS India",
-      "version": "2.0",
-      "last_updated": "January 2026",
-      "question_count": 20,
-      "country_delegate": "Dr. Puran Singh",
-      "institution": "School of Management, IIT Mandi",
-      "national_partner": "REVA University, Bangalore",
-      "established": "2023",
-      "contact_email": "puran@iitmandi.ac.in"
-    },
-    "questions_answers": [
-      {
-        "id": "basic_001",
-        "question": "What is GUESSS India?",
-        "answer": "GUESSS India stands for Global University Entrepreneurial Spirit Students' Survey India. It is the Indian chapter of the world's largest research project on student entrepreneurship. GUESSS India conducts comprehensive research to understand entrepreneurial intentions, activities, and career choices among students in Indian higher education institutions.",
-        "keywords": ["what is guesss", "guesss india", "about guesss", "definition"],
-        "category": "Introduction"
-      },
-      {
-        "id": "basic_002",
-        "question": "What does GUESSS stand for?",
-        "answer": "GUESSS stands for Global University Entrepreneurial Spirit Students' Survey. It is an international research project that studies student entrepreneurship across multiple countries, with GUESSS India being the Indian chapter.",
-        "keywords": ["guesss full form", "guesss meaning", "guesss acronym", "full form"],
-        "category": "Introduction"
-      },
-      {
-        "id": "basic_003",
-        "question": "What are the main objectives of GUESSS India?",
-        "answer": "The main objectives of GUESSS India are: (1) Understanding entrepreneurial intentions and activities among Indian university students, (2) Analyzing the impact of higher education on entrepreneurial mindset development, (3) Identifying factors that influence students' career choices, (4) Examining family business backgrounds and succession intentions, (5) Providing data-driven insights to policymakers and educational institutions to enhance entrepreneurship education in India.",
-        "keywords": ["objectives", "goals", "purpose", "aims", "mission"],
-        "category": "Purpose & Goals"
-      },
-      {
-        "id": "basic_004",
-        "question": "When was GUESSS India established?",
-        "answer": "GUESSS India was established in 2023 as part of the global GUESSS project. The global GUESSS initiative began in 2003 at the University of St. Gallen, Switzerland, and India joined this international research consortium in 2023 to contribute to understanding student entrepreneurship in the Indian context.",
-        "keywords": ["when", "established", "founded", "started", "2023", "year"],
-        "category": "History"
-      },
-      {
-        "id": "basic_005",
-        "question": "How many countries participate in GUESSS globally?",
-        "answer": "GUESSS is a truly global research project with participation from over 50 countries across all continents. India is a proud member of this international research network, contributing valuable insights about student entrepreneurship in the Indian higher education ecosystem.",
-        "keywords": ["countries", "global", "international", "worldwide", "50 countries"],
-        "category": "Global Reach"
-      },
-      {
-        "id": "basic_006",
-        "question": "What type of research does GUESSS India conduct?",
-        "answer": "GUESSS India conducts quantitative and qualitative research on student entrepreneurship. This includes large-scale surveys among university students to understand their entrepreneurial intentions, career aspirations, perceptions of university support for entrepreneurship, family business backgrounds, and actual entrepreneurial activities. The research provides valuable insights into the entrepreneurial ecosystem in Indian higher education.",
-        "keywords": ["research", "study", "survey", "type of research", "methodology"],
-        "category": "Research Methodology"
-      },
-      {
-        "id": "basic_007",
-        "question": "Who can participate in GUESSS surveys?",
-        "answer": "GUESSS surveys are designed for students enrolled in higher education institutions across India. This includes undergraduate students, postgraduate students, and doctoral students from universities, colleges, and technical institutes. The survey aims to capture diverse perspectives across different disciplines and academic levels.",
-        "keywords": ["who can participate", "eligibility for survey", "student participation", "participants"],
-        "category": "Participation"
-      },
-      {
-        "id": "basic_008",
-        "question": "Is GUESSS India affiliated with any university?",
-        "answer": "GUESSS India is led by Dr. Puran Singh, Assistant Professor at the School of Management, IIT Mandi. REVA University, Bangalore serves as the National Partner for GUESSS India. The project collaborates with multiple universities and higher education institutions across India to facilitate data collection and research dissemination.",
-        "keywords": ["affiliation", "university", "institution", "partnership", "reva university", "national partner", "iit mandi"],
-        "category": "Affiliations"
-      },
-      {
-        "id": "basic_009",
-        "question": "What is the vision of GUESSS India?",
-        "answer": "The vision of GUESSS India is to become the leading research platform for understanding and promoting student entrepreneurship in India. We aim to provide evidence-based insights that shape entrepreneurship education policy and practice, ultimately fostering a robust entrepreneurial ecosystem in Indian higher education.",
-        "keywords": ["vision", "future", "aspiration", "goal"],
-        "category": "Vision & Mission"
-      },
-      {
-        "id": "basic_010",
-        "question": "What is the mission of GUESSS India?",
-        "answer": "The mission of GUESSS India is to systematically study entrepreneurial intentions and activities among Indian university students, generate high-quality research data, collaborate with educational institutions to promote entrepreneurship, and provide actionable insights to stakeholders including students, educators, policymakers, and entrepreneurs.",
-        "keywords": ["mission", "purpose", "objective", "goal"],
-        "category": "Vision & Mission"
-      },
-      {
-        "id": "basic_011",
-        "question": "How does GUESSS India contribute to entrepreneurship education?",
-        "answer": "GUESSS India contributes to entrepreneurship education by providing empirical data on student entrepreneurial intentions, identifying gaps in current entrepreneurship education programs, offering insights on effective pedagogical approaches, helping universities benchmark their entrepreneurship support systems, and informing policy decisions related to entrepreneurship education in India.",
-        "keywords": ["contribution", "impact", "education", "entrepreneurship education", "benefits"],
-        "category": "Impact"
-      },
-      {
-        "id": "basic_012",
-        "question": "What makes GUESSS India unique?",
-        "answer": "GUESSS India is unique because it is part of the world's largest international research project on student entrepreneurship, provides comparative data across countries, uses standardized methodology ensuring reliability, focuses specifically on the Indian higher education context, and offers longitudinal insights into entrepreneurial trends among students.",
-        "keywords": ["unique", "special", "different", "distinctive", "uniqueness"],
-        "category": "Distinctive Features"
-      },
-      {
-        "id": "basic_013",
-        "question": "What are the key research themes of GUESSS India?",
-        "answer": "Key research themes include: (1) Entrepreneurial intentions and career choices, (2) Family business succession, (3) University environment and entrepreneurship support, (4) Entrepreneurial competencies and self-efficacy, (5) Start-up activities and founding processes, (6) Social and sustainable entrepreneurship, (7) Impact of entrepreneurship education.",
-        "keywords": ["themes", "topics", "research areas", "focus areas", "research themes"],
-        "category": "Research Themes"
-      },
-      {
-        "id": "basic_014",
-        "question": "How is GUESSS India funded?",
-        "answer": "GUESSS India operates through a combination of institutional support from participating universities, research grants, and collaborative partnerships with academic and industry stakeholders. The project prioritizes research integrity and maintains independence in its findings and recommendations.",
-        "keywords": ["funding", "financial support", "grants", "money", "finance"],
-        "category": "Funding"
-      },
-      {
-        "id": "basic_015",
-        "question": "What is the geographic coverage of GUESSS India?",
-        "answer": "GUESSS India aims for comprehensive geographic coverage across all states and union territories of India. We collaborate with universities and colleges from metropolitan cities, tier-2 and tier-3 cities, and rural areas to ensure diverse representation and capture regional variations in student entrepreneurship.",
-        "keywords": ["coverage", "geographic", "regions", "states", "nationwide", "india"],
-        "category": "Geographic Reach"
-      },
-      {
-        "id": "basic_016",
-        "question": "How many students participate in GUESSS India surveys?",
-        "answer": "GUESSS India targets thousands of students across multiple institutions in each survey cycle. The exact number varies by cycle, but the project aims for statistically significant samples that represent the diversity of Indian higher education. Past global GUESSS surveys have collected data from over 3 million students worldwide.",
-        "keywords": ["participants", "students", "sample size", "number", "how many"],
-        "category": "Participation"
-      },
-      {
-        "id": "basic_017",
-        "question": "What is the history of GUESSS globally?",
-        "answer": "GUESSS was initiated in 2003 at the University of St. Gallen, Switzerland. It has grown from a small European project to the world's largest research initiative on student entrepreneurship. The survey is conducted every 2-3 years. India joined this prestigious international consortium in 2023 under the leadership of Dr. Puran Singh from IIT Mandi, with REVA University as the National Partner, to contribute insights on student entrepreneurship in the Indian context.",
-        "keywords": ["history", "background", "origin", "started", "2003", "2023", "switzerland"],
-        "category": "History"
-      },
-      {
-        "id": "basic_018",
-        "question": "How does GUESSS India ensure research quality?",
-        "answer": "GUESSS India ensures research quality through: (1) Using internationally validated survey instruments, (2) Following rigorous data collection protocols, (3) Implementing strict quality control measures, (4) Maintaining ethical research standards, (5) Employing advanced statistical analysis techniques, (6) Peer review of findings, (7) Transparency in methodology and results.",
-        "keywords": ["quality", "reliability", "validity", "standards", "research quality"],
-        "category": "Research Quality"
-      },
-      {
-        "id": "basic_019",
-        "question": "What impact has GUESSS had globally?",
-        "answer": "Globally, GUESSS has generated over 500 academic publications, influenced entrepreneurship education policies in multiple countries, helped universities improve their entrepreneurship support systems, provided comparative insights across cultures and economies, and created the world's largest database on student entrepreneurship. GUESSS India aims to create similar impact in the Indian context.",
-        "keywords": ["impact", "achievements", "success", "results", "global impact"],
-        "category": "Impact"
-      },
-      {
-        "id": "basic_020",
-        "question": "Where can I learn more about GUESSS India?",
-        "answer": "You can learn more about GUESSS India by: (1) Visiting our official website, (2) Following us on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/guesssindia/, (3) Connecting on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/company/guesss-india/, (4) Watching our podcast on YouTube at https://www.youtube.com/@GUESSSIndiaPodcast, (5) Following our podcast Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/guesssindiapodcast/, (6) Emailing Dr. Puran Singh at puran@iitmandi.ac.in, (7) Attending our webinars and events.",
-        "keywords": ["learn more", "information", "website", "resources", "social media", "contact"],
-        "category": "Resources & Contact"
-      }
-    ],
-    "social_media_links": {
-      "instagram_main": "https://www.instagram.com/guesssindia/",
-      "linkedin": "https://www.linkedin.com/company/guesss-india/",
-      "youtube_podcast": "https://www.youtube.com/@GUESSSIndiaPodcast",
-      "instagram_podcast": "https://www.instagram.com/guesssindiapodcast/"
-    },
-    "contact_information": {
-      "country_delegate": "Dr. Puran Singh",
-      "designation": "Assistant Professor",
-      "institution": "School of Management, IIT Mandi",
-      "email": "puran@iitmandi.ac.in",
-      "national_partner": "REVA University, Bangalore"
-    },
-    "quick_facts": {
-      "established_year": "2023",
-      "global_network": "50+ countries",
-      "parent_organization": "GUESSS Global (University of St. Gallen, Switzerland)",
-      "research_focus": "Student entrepreneurship in higher education",
-      "survey_frequency": "Every 2-3 years",
-      "total_global_participants": "Over 3 million students worldwide"
-    }
-  }
-}

data/campus_ambassador_program.txt

@@ -1,489 +0,0 @@
-{
-  "metadata": {
-    "project": "GUESSS India Chatbot - Campus Ambassador Program",
-    "version": "v2.0",
-    "last_updated": "2026-01-25",
-    "author_role": "Research Scholar Assistant",
-    "description": "Comprehensive Q&A dataset for Campus Ambassador Program with improved answers, aliases, and metadata",
-    "total_questions": 28
-  },
-  "knowledge_base": {
-    "campus_ambassador_program": [
-      {
-        "q_id": "CA_001",
-        "category": "Program Overview",
-        "question": "What is the Campus Ambassador Program?",
-        "aliases": [
-          "What is the CA program?",
-          "Tell me about the Campus Ambassador program",
-          "Explain campus ambassador initiative",
-          "What does campus ambassador program do?"
-        ],
-        "answer": "The Campus Ambassador Program is a student-led outreach initiative where selected students represent GUESSS India on their campus. As a Campus Ambassador, you'll promote the GUESSS survey among your peers, organize awareness activities, engage with students about entrepreneurship research, and serve as a bridge between the GUESSS India national team and your institution. It's an opportunity to develop leadership skills while contributing to India's largest student entrepreneurship research initiative.",
-        "short_answer": "A student-led program where ambassadors promote GUESSS India survey on their campus and engage peers in entrepreneurship research.",
-        "keywords": ["Campus Ambassador", "student-led", "outreach", "GUESSS survey", "promotion", "peer engagement"],
-        "related_questions": ["CA_003", "CA_005", "CA_006"],
-        "source": "GUESSS India Official Materials"
-      },
-      {
-        "q_id": "CA_002",
-        "category": "Eligibility",
-        "question": "Who is eligible to apply to be a Campus Ambassador?",
-        "aliases": [
-          "Eligibility for Campus Ambassador",
-          "Who can become a CA?",
-          "Can I apply for campus ambassador?",
-          "What are the requirements to be a CA?",
-          "Am I eligible for campus ambassador program?"
-        ],
-        "answer": "To be eligible for the Campus Ambassador Program, you must be a currently enrolled student (undergraduate or postgraduate) at a participating institution in India. You should be passionate about student entrepreneurship, have good communication skills, and be willing to commit time for outreach activities. Specific eligibility criteria—such as year of study, full-time/part-time status, and minimum enrollment requirements—are defined in each recruitment cycle's announcement. Check the official GUESSS India website or your institutional coordinator for the latest eligibility details.",
-        "short_answer": "Currently enrolled undergraduate or postgraduate students at participating institutions are eligible. Specific criteria vary by recruitment cycle.",
-        "keywords": ["eligibility", "enrolled students", "undergraduate", "postgraduate", "requirements", "participating institutions"],
-        "related_questions": ["CA_003", "CA_004", "CA_011"],
-        "source": "GUESSS India Official Materials"
-      },
-      {
-        "q_id": "CA_003",
-        "category": "Eligibility",
-        "question": "Can alumni or non-enrolled students apply?",
-        "aliases": [
-          "Can alumni be campus ambassadors?",
-          "Are former students eligible?",
-          "Can I apply after graduation?",
-          "Alumni eligibility for CA program",
-          "Do you need to be currently enrolled?"
-        ],
-        "answer": "No, alumni and non-enrolled students are generally not eligible for the Campus Ambassador Program. The program is specifically designed for current students who are actively part of the campus community and can engage with their peers effectively. This ensures ambassadors have direct access to student networks, campus facilities, and institutional channels. However, if you're an alumnus interested in supporting GUESSS India, please check the official program announcement for any special roles or alternative ways to contribute, or contact the national team for other volunteer opportunities.",
-        "short_answer": "No, the program is designed for currently enrolled students only. Alumni are generally not eligible but may explore other volunteer opportunities.",
-        "keywords": ["alumni", "non-enrolled", "not eligible", "current students", "enrollment requirement"],
-        "related_questions": ["CA_002", "CA_022"],
-        "source": "GUESSS India Official Materials"
-      },
-      {
-        "q_id": "CA_004",
-        "category": "Application Process",
-        "question": "How do I apply to become a Campus Ambassador?",
-        "aliases": [
-          "How can I apply for Campus Ambassador?",
-          "How to sign up as a CA?",
-          "Application process for campus ambassador",
-          "Where to apply for CA program?",
-          "Steps to become a campus ambassador"
-        ],
-        "answer": "To apply for the Campus Ambassador Program: (1) Wait for the recruitment announcement on the GUESSS India website and social media channels, (2) Access the official application form link (shared via the website, institutional coordinators, or social media), (3) Fill out the application form completely with accurate information about yourself, your motivation, and your outreach plans, (4) Submit the form before the deadline, and (5) Wait for selection notifications. Applications are typically reviewed within 1-2 weeks after the deadline. Keep an eye on your email and the official GUESSS India channels for updates. If you have questions during the application process, contact your institutional coordinator or the GUESSS India team.",
-        "short_answer": "Apply through the official application form during recruitment periods. The link is shared on the GUESSS India website and through institutional coordinators.",
-        "keywords": ["apply", "application form", "recruitment", "process", "how to apply", "sign up"],
-        "related_questions": ["CA_005", "CA_011", "CA_020"],
-        "source": "GUESSS India Official Materials"
-      },
-      {
-        "q_id": "CA_005",
-        "category": "Application Process",
-        "question": "What information is asked in the Campus Ambassador application?",
-        "aliases": [
-          "What is in the CA application?",
-          "Sample CA application questions",
-          "What details are needed to apply?",
-          "Application form questions for campus ambassador",
-          "What will I be asked in the CA application?"
-        ],
-        "answer": "The Campus Ambassador application typically asks for: (1) Personal details: name, email, phone number, (2) Institution details: college/university name, degree program, year of study, enrollment ID, (3) Motivation: why you want to be an ambassador, what interests you about student entrepreneurship, (4) Experience: prior outreach, event organization, or leadership experience, (5) Availability: hours per week you can commit, expected duration of involvement, (6) Outreach plan: which channels and methods you'll use to promote the survey (social media, clubs, events, etc.), (7) References: faculty contact or institutional coordinator details (if requested), and (8) Agreement to program terms and data privacy policies. You may also be asked situational questions about how you'd handle specific outreach scenarios.",
-        "short_answer": "The application asks for personal and institution details, motivation statement, prior experience, availability, outreach plans, and sometimes faculty references.",
-        "keywords": ["application questions", "form details", "what to provide", "requirements", "information needed"],
-        "related_questions": ["CA_004", "CA_026"],
-        "source": "GUESSS India Official Materials"
-      },
-      {
-        "q_id": "CA_006",
-        "category": "Roles & Responsibilities",
-        "question": "What are the main responsibilities of a Campus Ambassador?",
-        "aliases": [
-          "Role of a Campus Ambassador",
-          "What does a CA do?",
-          "Campus ambassador duties",
-          "Responsibilities of campus ambassadors",
-          "What will I do as a CA?"
-        ],
-        "answer": "As a Campus Ambassador, your main responsibilities include: (1) Promoting the GUESSS India survey across your campus through approved channels, (2) Coordinating with your institutional contact person (faculty coordinator or administrator), (3) Organizing awareness activities such as info sessions, social media campaigns, or campus stalls (with approvals), (4) Distributing approved promotional materials (posters, digital assets, sample messages), (5) Encouraging fellow students to participate in the survey and explaining its importance, (6) Answering basic questions about the survey and directing detailed queries to the national team, (7) Tracking and reporting your outreach metrics (students reached, events organized, survey completions), (8) Maintaining ethical standards and data privacy throughout all activities, and (9) Providing feedback to help improve the program. You're essentially the face of GUESSS India on your campus!",
-        "short_answer": "Promote GUESSS survey, organize awareness activities, coordinate with institutional contacts, use approved materials, encourage participation, and report outreach metrics.",
-        "keywords": ["responsibilities", "duties", "role", "tasks", "what to do", "ambassador work"],
-        "related_questions": ["CA_001", "CA_007", "CA_013", "CA_014"],
-        "source": "GUESSS India Official Materials"
-      },
-      {
-        "q_id": "CA_007",
-        "category": "Support & Resources",
-        "question": "What support and materials will ambassadors receive?",
-        "aliases": [
-          "What resources do CAs get?",
-          "Do ambassadors get promotional materials?",
-          "Support for campus ambassadors",
-          "What help will I get as a CA?",
-          "Materials provided to ambassadors"
-        ],
-        "answer": "Campus Ambassadors receive comprehensive support including: (1) Promotional assets: ready-to-use posters, social media templates (for Instagram, LinkedIn, Facebook), sample email and WhatsApp messages, infographics about GUESSS India, (2) Training materials: onboarding presentation, program guidelines document, FAQ sheet, best practices guide, (3) Official branding: access to GUESSS India logos, color schemes, and brand guidelines, (4) Communication support: dedicated point of contact at the national team, access to an ambassador WhatsApp/email group for peer support, (5) Reporting templates: simple forms to track and submit your outreach activities, and (6) Recognition materials: digital badge for social media, official appointment letter, and certificates upon completion. The national team is always available to answer questions and provide guidance throughout your tenure.",
-        "short_answer": "Ambassadors receive promotional assets, training materials, official branding, communication support from the national team, reporting templates, and recognition materials.",
-        "keywords": ["support", "resources", "materials", "promotional assets", "templates", "help", "guidance"],
-        "related_questions": ["CA_006", "CA_008", "CA_014", "CA_015"],
-        "source": "GUESSS India Official Materials"
-      },
-      {
-        "q_id": "CA_008",
-        "category": "Training",
-        "question": "Is there any training or onboarding for Campus Ambassadors?",
-        "aliases": [
-          "Do CAs get training?",
-          "Onboarding for Campus Ambassadors",
-          "Training session for ambassadors",
-          "How are ambassadors prepared?",
-          "Is there orientation for CAs?"
-        ],
-        "answer": "Yes! All selected Campus Ambassadors go through a mandatory onboarding process. This typically includes: (1) An orientation webinar or virtual session (60-90 minutes) covering program goals, expectations, and best practices, (2) Written documentation: detailed program handbook, FAQ document, and quick-start guide, (3) Training topics covered: understanding GUESSS India's mission, how to promote the survey ethically, data privacy and confidentiality rules, using promotional materials and templates, planning effective outreach activities, reporting procedures and metrics, and handling common questions from students, (4) Q&A session: opportunity to ask questions and clarify doubts, and (5) Peer learning: introduction to other ambassadors for collaboration and support. The onboarding ensures you're well-prepared and confident to represent GUESSS India on your campus. Additional support is available throughout your tenure.",
-        "short_answer": "Yes, selected ambassadors receive onboarding through webinars and documentation covering program goals, outreach practices, data privacy, and reporting procedures.",
-        "keywords": ["training", "onboarding", "orientation", "preparation", "webinar", "learning"],
-        "related_questions": ["CA_007", "CA_016"],
-        "source": "GUESSS India Official Materials"
-      },
-      {
-        "q_id": "CA_009",
-        "category": "Benefits & Recognition",
-        "question": "Will Campus Ambassadors receive a stipend or certificate?",
-        "aliases": [
-          "Do CAs get payment?",
-          "Certificate for ambassadors?",
-          "Compensation for campus ambassadors",
-          "Are ambassadors paid?",
-          "What do ambassadors get in return?"
-        ],
-        "answer": "Benefits for Campus Ambassadors vary by recruitment cycle and available resources. Typically, ambassadors receive: (1) Certificates: Official Certificate of Participation and/or Letter of Appreciation from GUESSS India upon successful completion, (2) Recognition: Digital badges for LinkedIn/social media, public acknowledgment on GUESSS India platforms, (3) Learning: Valuable experience in outreach, communication, event management, and leadership, (4) Networking: Access to a community of student leaders and GUESSS India team members, (5) Resume enhancement: Credible experience with a nationally recognized research initiative. Regarding stipends: Some cycles may offer stipends, reimbursements for approved expenses, or gift vouchers depending on budget availability. This is clearly stated in each recruitment announcement. Even without monetary compensation, the experience, skills, and recognition make the role valuable for your personal and professional development.",
-        "short_answer": "Ambassadors typically receive certificates, letters of appreciation, and recognition. Stipends or reimbursements depend on available budget and are stated in recruitment announcements.",
-        "keywords": ["stipend", "certificate", "payment", "benefits", "compensation", "recognition", "rewards"],
-        "related_questions": ["CA_023", "CA_025"],
-        "source": "GUESSS India Official Materials"
-      },
-      {
-        "q_id": "CA_010",
-        "category": "Commitment",
-        "question": "How long is the Campus Ambassador commitment?",
-        "aliases": [
-          "Duration of CA role",
-          "How long do CAs serve?",
-          "Time commitment for campus ambassador",
-          "How many months is the CA program?",
-          "Program duration for ambassadors"
-        ],
-        "answer": "The Campus Ambassador commitment typically lasts for the duration of the survey outreach period, which usually ranges from 6-12 weeks (approximately 1.5 to 3 months). The exact duration and expected time commitment are specified in each recruitment announcement. On average, ambassadors are expected to dedicate 3-5 hours per week to outreach activities, though this may vary based on your campus size and planned activities. The role is designed to be flexible around your academic schedule. Peak activity periods are usually during the survey launch and mid-campaign pushes. Timelines are shared clearly during onboarding so you can plan accordingly. If you face scheduling conflicts or need to adjust your commitment, communicate proactively with your coordinator.",
-        "short_answer": "Typically 6-12 weeks during the survey outreach period, requiring 3-5 hours per week. Exact duration is specified in recruitment announcements.",
-        "keywords": ["duration", "commitment", "time", "how long", "period", "weeks", "months"],
-        "related_questions": ["CA_002", "CA_019"],
-        "source": "GUESSS India Official Materials"
-      },
-      {
-        "q_id": "CA_011",
-        "category": "Selection",
-        "question": "How are Campus Ambassadors selected?",
-        "aliases": [
-          "Selection criteria for CAs",
-          "How do you pick ambassadors?",
-          "What determines CA selection?",
-          "How are ambassadors chosen?",
-          "Selection process for campus ambassador"
-        ],
-        "answer": "Campus Ambassadors are selected through a merit-based evaluation process. The selection criteria typically include: (1) Application quality: clarity, completeness, and thoughtfulness of your responses, (2) Motivation: genuine interest in student entrepreneurship and GUESSS India's mission, (3) Communication skills: ability to articulate ideas and engage peers effectively, (4) Prior experience: demonstrated outreach, leadership, event organization, or club involvement (though not mandatory), (5) Outreach plan: feasibility and creativity of your proposed promotion strategies, (6) Availability: realistic time commitment matching program needs, (7) Faculty recommendation: if required and provided, and (8) Institutional diversity: ensuring representation across departments and student groups where possible. Applications are reviewed by the GUESSS India team, and selections are typically announced within 1-2 weeks of the deadline. All applicants receive notification about their status.",
-        "short_answer": "Selection is based on application quality, motivation, communication skills, prior experience, outreach plan feasibility, availability, and sometimes faculty recommendations.",
-        "keywords": ["selection", "criteria", "how selected", "evaluation", "merit-based", "chosen"],
-        "related_questions": ["CA_004", "CA_005", "CA_012", "CA_024"],
-        "source": "GUESSS India Official Materials"
-      },
-      {
-        "q_id": "CA_012",
-        "category": "Selection",
-        "question": "How many ambassadors are chosen per campus?",
-        "aliases": [
-          "Number of CAs per college",
-          "How many ambassadors per institute?",
-          "Multiple ambassadors per campus?",
-          "How many students selected per college?",
-          "Campus ambassador quota"
-        ],
-        "answer": "The number of Campus Ambassadors selected per institution varies based on several factors: (1) Campus size: larger institutions may have 2-5 ambassadors, while smaller ones typically have 1-2, (2) Student population: more students generally means more ambassadors needed for effective coverage, (3) Application quality: number of qualified candidates from an institution, (4) Program needs: strategic priorities for that recruitment cycle, and (5) Department diversity: preference for ambassadors from different departments/schools. The recruitment announcement usually indicates whether single or multiple ambassadors are being recruited per campus. Having multiple ambassadors allows for better coverage, peer support, and division of outreach responsibilities. If you're one of several ambassadors from your institution, you'll likely work as a team under coordination of your institutional contact person.",
-        "short_answer": "Depends on campus size and program needs. Larger institutions may have 2-5 ambassadors; smaller ones typically have 1-2. Details provided in recruitment notices.",
-        "keywords": ["number", "how many", "per campus", "multiple ambassadors", "quota", "team size"],
-        "related_questions": ["CA_011", "CA_021"],
-        "source": "GUESSS India Official Materials"
-      },
-      {
-        "q_id": "CA_013",
-        "category": "Reporting",
-        "question": "What metrics will ambassadors report?",
-        "aliases": [
-          "What should CAs track?",
-          "Reporting requirements for ambassadors",
-          "What data do ambassadors submit?",
-          "Metrics for campus ambassadors",
-          "What to report as CA?"
-        ],
-        "answer": "Campus Ambassadors are expected to track and report the following metrics: (1) Outreach reach: approximate number of students you contacted or exposed to the campaign (via social media, emails, posters, events), (2) Survey completions: estimated number of survey responses attributable to your outreach efforts (if trackable through unique links or codes), (3) Activities conducted: number and type of events organized (info sessions, stall activities, club presentations), (4) Materials distributed: quantity of posters displayed, social media posts made, emails sent, WhatsApp messages shared, (5) Engagement: attendance at events, response rates to communications, student feedback or questions received, and (6) Challenges and learnings: any obstacles faced and suggestions for improvement. The national team provides a simple reporting template (usually a Google Form or Excel sheet) with clear instructions. Reporting is typically done weekly or bi-weekly, and takes only 10-15 minutes. Accurate reporting helps GUESSS India understand program impact and improve future cycles.",
-        "short_answer": "Ambassadors report students reached, survey completions, events organized, materials distributed, engagement levels, and challenges faced. Templates provided by the national team.",
-        "keywords": ["metrics", "reporting", "track", "data", "measure", "outcomes", "KPIs"],
-        "related_questions": ["CA_006", "CA_024"],
-        "source": "GUESSS India Official Materials"
-      },
-      {
-        "q_id": "CA_014",
-        "category": "Promotion Guidelines",
-        "question": "How should ambassadors promote the survey (approved channels)?",
-        "aliases": [
-          "Promotion channels for CAs",
-          "How to promote GUESSS on campus?",
-          "Approved ways to promote survey",
-          "What channels can ambassadors use?",
-          "Methods for promoting GUESSS"
-        ],
-        "answer": "Campus Ambassadors should use the following approved channels and methods: (1) Social media: official college/department pages (with admin approval), student group pages, your personal accounts with GUESSS branding, (2) Email: institutional mailing lists (with permission), department-specific lists, student club newsletters, (3) WhatsApp/Telegram: class groups, club groups, hostel groups (with member consent and avoiding spam), (4) Physical materials: posters in approved notice boards, hostel common areas, library, cafeterias, department corridors, (5) In-person events: classroom announcements (with faculty permission), club meetings, entrepreneurship cell events, campus stalls or info desks (with institutional approval), and (6) Institutional channels: collaboration with training & placement cell, entrepreneurship cell, innovation cell, or student affairs office. ALWAYS use provided templates and approved messaging. Get necessary permissions before using official institutional channels. Avoid spamming or intrusive promotion that could create negative perception. Focus on informative, respectful outreach that highlights the value of participation.",
-        "short_answer": "Use approved channels: institutional emails, social media, WhatsApp groups, physical posters, in-person events, and collaboration with institutional cells—always with appropriate permissions.",
-        "keywords": ["promotion", "channels", "approved methods", "how to promote", "outreach channels", "marketing"],
-        "related_questions": ["CA_006", "CA_007", "CA_015", "CA_018", "CA_027"],
-        "source": "GUESSS India Official Materials"
-      },
-      {
-        "q_id": "CA_015",
-        "category": "Content Guidelines",
-        "question": "Are ambassadors allowed to create their own promotional content?",
-        "aliases": [
-          "Can CAs make custom posts?",
-          "Create own CA content?",
-          "Custom promotional materials",
-          "Can I design my own posters?",
-          "Modify GUESSS content?"
-        ],
-        "answer": "Campus Ambassadors may adapt messaging for local relevance and cultural fit, but with important guidelines: (1) Core content: Use provided templates as the foundation—don't alter key facts, survey links, deadlines, or program descriptions, (2) Localization: You can translate content to regional languages, add campus-specific references, or customize examples to resonate with your audience, (3) Creativity: You may create supplementary content (e.g., Instagram stories, memes, infographics) that align with GUESSS branding, (4) Pre-approval required: Any substantial changes, new designs, or significantly different messaging must be reviewed and approved by the GUESSS India communications team before use, (5) Brand consistency: Always use official logos, colors, and fonts as per brand guidelines—don't create unofficial versions, and (6) Accuracy: Never make claims, promises, or statements not authorized by GUESSS India. When in doubt, ask your coordinator. The goal is to maintain professionalism and accuracy while allowing you to connect authentically with your campus community.",
-        "short_answer": "You may adapt messaging for local relevance but must use approved core content and templates. Substantial changes require pre-approval from the communications team.",
-        "keywords": ["custom content", "create own", "adapt", "modify", "localization", "brand guidelines", "approval"],
-        "related_questions": ["CA_007", "CA_014", "CA_016"],
-        "source": "GUESSS India Official Materials"
-      },
-      {
-        "q_id": "CA_016",
-        "category": "Best Practices",
-        "question": "What are common mistakes ambassadors should avoid?",
-        "aliases": [
-          "What not to do as CA",
-          "Common CA errors",
-          "Mistakes to avoid as ambassador",
-          "Ambassador don'ts",
-          "What should CAs not do?"
-        ],
-        "answer": "Avoid these common mistakes: (1) Unapproved claims: Never promise incentives, prizes, or benefits not officially authorized by GUESSS India, (2) Altering survey content: Don't modify survey questions, links, or core program descriptions, (3) Misrepresentation: Don't exaggerate the survey's purpose or claim it guarantees specific outcomes for participants, (4) Privacy violations: Never share participant data or responses; don't pressure students to share personal information, (5) Spamming: Avoid excessive, repetitive messaging that annoys students; respect opt-out requests, (6) Ignoring approvals: Don't bypass institutional permissions for events, official channels, or physical materials, (7) Going off-brand: Don't use unofficial logos, colors, or create unauthorized versions of GUESSS branding, (8) Neglecting reporting: Submit your metrics on time—incomplete data affects program evaluation, (9) Solo decision-making: When uncertain, always consult your coordinator rather than guessing, and (10) Negativity: If you encounter challenges, escalate constructively rather than complaining publicly. Remember: you represent GUESSS India—professionalism and accuracy matter.",
-        "short_answer": "Avoid making unapproved claims, altering content, spamming, violating privacy, bypassing approvals, using wrong branding, neglecting reporting, and making solo decisions without guidance.",
-        "keywords": ["mistakes", "avoid", "errors", "don'ts", "what not to do", "common problems"],
-        "related_questions": ["CA_008", "CA_014", "CA_015", "CA_017"],
-        "source": "GUESSS India Official Materials"
-      },
-      {
-        "q_id": "CA_017",
-        "category": "Data Privacy",
-        "question": "Will ambassadors have access to participant data?",
-        "aliases": [
-          "Can CAs see survey responses?",
-          "Ambassador access to data",
-          "Do ambassadors see student answers?",
-          "Privacy of survey responses",
-          "Can CAs view participant information?"
-        ],
-        "answer": "No. Campus Ambassadors do NOT have access to individual survey responses or participant-level data at any point. Student survey responses are completely confidential and handled exclusively by the GUESSS India research team under strict data privacy protocols. Your role is limited to promotion and outreach—you only track and report aggregate metrics (e.g., \"approximately 100 students reached\" or \"10 students attended the info session\"). You should never ask students to share their survey responses with you, collect personal information beyond what's needed for outreach, or attempt to identify who has or hasn't participated. This confidentiality is essential to maintaining research integrity and student trust. If students ask about data privacy, assure them that their responses are anonymous, secure, and used only for research purposes as stated in the survey's privacy policy.",
-        "short_answer": "No, ambassadors do not have access to individual survey responses. Participant data is confidential and handled only by the research team. Ambassadors report aggregate outreach metrics only.",
-        "keywords": ["data privacy", "confidentiality", "access to data", "survey responses", "participant information", "privacy"],
-        "related_questions": ["CA_013", "CA_016"],
-        "source": "GUESSS India Official Materials"
-      },
-      {
-        "q_id": "CA_018",
-        "category": "Events & Activities",
-        "question": "Can ambassadors organize on-campus events or stalls?",
-        "aliases": [
-          "Host events as CA",
-          "Can CAs run campus stalls?",
-          "Organize awareness events",
-          "Event permission for ambassadors",
-          "Can I set up a GUESSS stall?"
-        ],
-        "answer": "Yes! Campus Ambassadors are encouraged to organize awareness events and activities, subject to institutional approvals. Common events include: (1) Information sessions: 30-60 minute presentations about GUESSS and student entrepreneurship, (2) Campus stalls: interactive booths in high-traffic areas (library, cafeteria, main quad) where students can learn about the survey and participate on-site, (3) Club presentations: sessions with entrepreneurship cells, student clubs, or departmental associations, and (4) Social media campaigns: coordinated online campaigns with contests or challenges. Before organizing any event: (1) Get institutional approval from relevant authorities (student affairs, department head, campus administration), (2) Coordinate with your institutional contact person, (3) Use approved GUESSS materials and messaging, (4) Submit an event plan to your national team coordinator for guidance, (5) Follow all campus regulations for events, and (6) Document the event with photos/videos (with participants' consent) for reporting. The national team can provide event planning tips and materials to make your event successful.",
-        "short_answer": "Yes, ambassadors can organize awareness events, stalls, and presentations with proper institutional approvals and using approved GUESSS materials and messaging.",
-        "keywords": ["events", "stalls", "organize", "campus activities", "information sessions", "awareness programs"],
-        "related_questions": ["CA_014", "CA_027"],
-        "source": "GUESSS India Official Materials"
-      },
-      {
-        "q_id": "CA_019",
-        "category": "Resignation",
-        "question": "What happens if I need to step down as an ambassador?",
-        "aliases": [
-          "Resign as CA",
-          "Stop being an ambassador",
-          "Leave CA program",
-          "Can I quit as campus ambassador?",
-          "How to resign from CA role?"
-        ],
-        "answer": "If you need to step down from the Campus Ambassador role, follow these steps: (1) Notify immediately: Inform your GUESSS India coordinator as soon as you know you need to step down—don't delay, (2) Provide reasons: Briefly explain why (personal, academic, health, other commitments)—this helps improve the program, (3) Handover: If you've conducted any activities, provide records of your outreach efforts, metrics, and any pending tasks to your coordinator, (4) Transition: If possible, help identify or brief a replacement ambassador from your campus, (5) Official exit: Complete any resignation formality as outlined in your onboarding materials (this may be a simple email confirmation), and (6) Feedback: Share any suggestions for improving the ambassador experience. There's no penalty for stepping down—life happens, and the team understands. However, early and clear communication helps ensure continuity of outreach at your institution. If you're facing temporary challenges, discuss with your coordinator—they may be able to adjust expectations or provide support rather than requiring full resignation.",
-        "short_answer": "Notify the GUESSS India coordinator immediately with reasons, handover outreach records and pending tasks, and complete any official exit formality. Clear communication is appreciated.",
-        "keywords": ["resign", "step down", "leave", "quit", "exit", "handover"],
-        "related_questions": ["CA_010", "CA_020"],
-        "source": "GUESSS India Official Materials"
-      },
-      {
-        "q_id": "CA_020",
-        "category": "Contact & Support",
-        "question": "Who should I contact for questions about the Campus Ambassador role?",
-        "aliases": [
-          "Contact for CA program",
-          "Who to contact for ambassador queries?",
-          "Help for campus ambassadors",
-          "CA program support email",
-          "Who do I ask CA questions?"
-        ],
-        "answer": "For Campus Ambassador questions and support, contact: (1) Primary contact: Your designated campus ambassador coordinator at the GUESSS India national team—email and phone details are provided in your recruitment confirmation and onboarding materials, (2) Institutional contact: Your faculty coordinator or institutional point person for campus-specific approvals or local issues, (3) General inquiries: Use the contact form on the official GUESSS India website (guesssindia.in) or email the general support address (typically provided during onboarding), (4) Social media: Send a direct message to GUESSS India's official Instagram or LinkedIn pages for non-urgent queries, and (5) Peer support: Your fellow ambassadors through the WhatsApp or email group created during onboarding. For urgent issues (technical problems during an event, urgent approvals needed), use the phone contact provided. The team is committed to supporting you throughout your ambassador journey, so don't hesitate to reach out whenever you need guidance, have questions, or encounter challenges.",
-        "short_answer": "Contact your campus ambassador coordinator (details in onboarding materials), institutional contact person, or use the GUESSS India website contact form. Support is available via email, phone, and social media.",
-        "keywords": ["contact", "support", "help", "questions", "coordinator", "reach out", "assistance"],
-        "related_questions": ["CA_008", "CA_019"],
-        "source": "GUESSS India Official Materials"
-      },
-      {
-        "q_id": "CA_021",
-        "category": "Teamwork",
-        "question": "Are ambassadors expected to work in teams or alone?",
-        "aliases": [
-          "Teamwork for CAs",
-          "Do CAs work in groups?",
-          "Solo or team work for ambassadors?",
-          "Collaboration among CAs",
-          "Individual or group ambassador work?"
-        ],
-        "answer": "Campus Ambassadors may work individually or in teams depending on campus size and program structure: (1) Individual ambassadors: At smaller institutions or when you're the sole ambassador, you'll work independently but with support from the national team and institutional coordinator, (2) Team ambassadors: At larger campuses with multiple ambassadors, you'll typically form a team that divides responsibilities (e.g., one focuses on social media, another on events, another on specific departments), (3) Collaboration benefits: Teams can cover more ground, support each other, share ideas, and organize larger events, (4) Coordination: If working in a team, designate a lead coordinator for communication with the national team, but ensure all members participate actively, and (5) Inter-campus collaboration: Ambassadors from different institutions may also collaborate through the WhatsApp group, sharing best practices and successful strategies. The working model will be clarified during selection and onboarding. Whether solo or in a team, you'll be part of a larger community of GUESSS India ambassadors nationwide.",
-        "short_answer": "Both models exist: ambassadors may work individually or in teams depending on campus size. The structure is clarified during selection and onboarding.",
-        "keywords": ["teamwork", "collaboration", "individual", "group work", "team", "solo"],
-        "related_questions": ["CA_012", "CA_027"],
-        "source": "GUESSS India Official Materials"
-      },
-      {
-        "q_id": "CA_022",
-        "category": "Eligibility",
-        "question": "Can a student be a Campus Ambassador at more than one institution?",
-        "aliases": [
-          "Multiple-campus CA",
-          "Ambassador at two colleges",
-          "Can I represent multiple institutions?",
-          "CA for more than one college",
-          "Dual campus ambassador role?"
-        ],
-        "answer": "No, typically a student should serve as a Campus Ambassador only for their enrolled institution. The program is designed so ambassadors leverage their existing presence, networks, and access within their own campus community. Representing multiple institutions would be logistically challenging and potentially dilute the quality of outreach at each campus. However, if you have exceptional circumstances (e.g., jointly enrolled in two institutions, dual degree programs), you must confirm with the national coordinator before applying. In such cases, you'd need approval from both institutions and clear capacity to manage outreach at both locations. For most students, focusing your energy on thorough, quality outreach at your home institution creates the most impact and aligns with program goals.",
-        "short_answer": "No, students should be ambassadors only for their enrolled institution. Exceptional circumstances require prior approval from the national coordinator.",
-        "keywords": ["multiple institutions", "two colleges", "dual campus", "more than one", "eligibility"],
-        "related_questions": ["CA_002", "CA_003"],
-        "source": "GUESSS India Official Materials"
-      },
-      {
-        "q_id": "CA_023",
-        "category": "Recognition",
-        "question": "Will ambassadors be given an official appointment letter or certificate?",
-        "aliases": [
-          "Ambassador certificate",
-          "Official letter for CAs",
-          "Appointment letter for campus ambassador",
-          "Do CAs get official documents?",
-          "Certificate of participation for CA"
-        ],
-        "answer": "Yes! Selected Campus Ambassadors typically receive: (1) Appointment letter: An official letter or email confirming your selection as a Campus Ambassador for GUESSS India, including your tenure period and basic responsibilities, (2) Certificate of Participation: Upon successful completion of your tenure and meeting minimum outreach requirements, you'll receive an official digital certificate that you can print or share on LinkedIn, (3) Letter of Appreciation/Recommendation: High-performing ambassadors may receive letters of appreciation or recommendation that acknowledge specific contributions and can be used for academic or professional purposes, (4) Digital badge: A GUESSS India Campus Ambassador badge for your email signature and social media profiles, and (5) LinkedIn endorsement: Permission to list \"GUESSS India Campus Ambassador\" as an experience on your professional profile. All documentation is provided digitally via email. The exact documentation package is detailed in program terms for each recruitment cycle. These materials add credibility to your resume and demonstrate your leadership and outreach experience to future employers or graduate programs.",
-        "short_answer": "Yes, selected ambassadors receive an official appointment letter, and upon completion, a certificate of participation. High performers may get letters of appreciation or recommendation.",
-        "keywords": ["appointment letter", "certificate", "official documents", "recognition", "letter of appreciation"],
-        "related_questions": ["CA_009", "CA_024"],
-        "source": "GUESSS India Official Materials"
-      },
-      {
-        "q_id": "CA_024",
-        "category": "Evaluation",
-        "question": "How will ambassador performance be evaluated?",
-        "aliases": [
-          "Assessment of CAs",
-          "How are ambassadors judged?",
-          "Performance review for campus ambassadors",
-          "Evaluation criteria for CAs",
-          "How is CA success measured?"
-        ],
-        "answer": "Campus Ambassador performance is evaluated based on multiple factors: (1) Outreach reach: Number of students you successfully engaged or exposed to the campaign (quantitative), (2) Survey completions: Number of verified survey responses attributable to your efforts (where trackable), (3) Activity diversity: Range and creativity of outreach methods used (events, social media, physical materials, collaborations), (4) Quality of reporting: Timeliness, accuracy, and completeness of your submitted metrics and updates, (5) Adherence to guidelines: Following program rules, using approved materials, maintaining brand standards, respecting data privacy, (6) Professionalism: Communication responsiveness, coordination with institutional contacts, representation of GUESSS India values, (7) Innovation: Creative approaches that worked well and could be replicated by others, and (8) Peer collaboration: Support provided to fellow ambassadors and constructive participation in the ambassador community. Evaluation is holistic, not just numbers-based—quality matters as much as quantity. The national team provides feedback during and after your tenure. Top-performing ambassadors may be recognized publicly and invited for future leadership opportunities with GUESSS India.",
-        "short_answer": "Performance is evaluated on outreach reach, survey completions, reporting quality, guideline adherence, professionalism, creativity, and peer collaboration. KPIs and templates provided by the national team.",
-        "keywords": ["evaluation", "performance", "assessment", "criteria", "measurement", "success metrics"],
-        "related_questions": ["CA_013", "CA_023"],
-        "source": "GUESSS India Official Materials"
-      },
-      {
-        "q_id": "CA_025",
-        "category": "Academic Recognition",
-        "question": "Do ambassadors get academic credit or internship recognition?",
-        "aliases": [
-          "Academic credit for CA",
-          "Internship for ambassadors",
-          "Can CA count as academic credit?",
-          "University recognition for CA role",
-          "Does CA count as internship?"
-        ],
-        "answer": "Academic credit or internship recognition depends on your institution's specific policies and is not automatically granted by GUESSS India: (1) Institutional discretion: Each university has its own rules about awarding credit for external engagement, co-curricular activities, or volunteer work, (2) What GUESSS provides: Official letters and certificates documenting your role, responsibilities, time commitment, and skills developed—you can submit these to your institution's credit committee or academic office, (3) How to pursue credit: Speak with your faculty advisor, department head, or student affairs office about whether Campus Ambassador work can count toward credit hours, internship requirements, or co-curricular transcripts, (4) Prior arrangement recommended: If academic credit is important to you, explore this before starting the role and get any necessary approvals in writing from your institution, and (5) Alternative recognition: Even without formal credit, the experience is valuable for your resume, graduate school applications, and professional development. GUESSS India will support your request with necessary documentation, but cannot guarantee your institution will grant credit—that decision rests with your college/university.",
-        "short_answer": "Academic credit depends on institutional policies. GUESSS India provides letters and certificates that institutions can consider for credit or co-curricular recognition, but approval rests with your college.",
-        "keywords": ["academic credit", "internship", "university recognition", "credit hours", "co-curricular"],
-        "related_questions": ["CA_009", "CA_023"],
-        "source": "GUESSS India Official Materials"
-      },
-      {
-        "q_id": "CA_026",
-        "category": "Application",
-        "question": "What are sample questions I might answer during the application?",
-        "aliases": [
-          "Sample CA application questions",
-          "Example questions for ambassador form",
-          "Application question examples",
-          "What will I be asked when applying?",
-          "Typical CA application prompts"
-        ],
-        "answer": "Here are typical Campus Ambassador application questions you might encounter: (1) Motivation: \"Why do you want to be a GUESSS India Campus Ambassador?\" or \"What interests you about student entrepreneurship research?\" (2) Experience: \"Describe any prior outreach, event organization, or leadership experience you have.\" (3) Outreach strategy: \"Which channels will you use to promote the GUESSS survey on your campus (social media, email, events, etc.)?\" (4) Commitment: \"How many hours per week can you realistically commit to ambassador activities?\" (5) Understanding: \"In your own words, what is GUESSS India and why should students participate?\" (6) Problem-solving: \"How would you encourage a reluctant student to participate in the survey?\" (7) Collaboration: \"Have you worked with student clubs or faculty on campus initiatives? Describe one example.\" (8) Creativity: \"Propose one innovative idea for promoting the survey at your campus.\" (9) Availability: \"Confirm your availability for the outreach period (dates).\" (10) References: \"Provide contact details for a faculty member or institutional coordinator who can support your application (if required).\" Prepare thoughtful, specific answers that demonstrate genuine interest and practical thinking.",
-        "short_answer": "Sample questions include: Why do you want to be a CA? Describe prior outreach experience. Which channels will you use? How many hours can you commit? Propose an innovative promotion idea.",
-        "keywords": ["sample questions", "application examples", "prompts", "what to expect", "typical questions"],
-        "related_questions": ["CA_004", "CA_005"],
-        "source": "GUESSS India Official Materials"
-      },
-      {
-        "q_id": "CA_027",
-        "category": "Collaboration",
-        "question": "Can ambassadors collaborate with student clubs and societies?",
-        "aliases": [
-          "Work with clubs",
-          "Partner with societies as CA",
-          "Collaborate with student organizations",
-          "Can CAs team up with clubs?",
-          "Student club partnerships for ambassadors"
-        ],
-        "answer": "Yes! Collaborating with student clubs and societies is highly encouraged and can significantly amplify your outreach: (1) Which clubs: Entrepreneurship cells, E-cells, innovation clubs, management societies, technical clubs, departmental associations, cultural committees—any student organization whose members might be interested in entrepreneurship research, (2) How to collaborate: Approach club leadership with a proposal to present about GUESSS during a club meeting, co-host an awareness event or webinar, share survey links through club communication channels, organize a joint stall or campaign, or sponsor club events with GUESSS branding (with approvals), (3) Benefits: Access to club's member base and communication platforms, credibility through association with established clubs, shared resources and planning for events, and increased student engagement through familiar channels, (4) Requirements: Get approval from club leadership before using their platforms, ensure all messaging uses approved GUESSS templates, follow institutional rules for joint events and co-branding, and give appropriate credit to collaborating clubs in your reporting. Such partnerships are win-win: clubs get valuable content for members, and you get expanded reach. Document these collaborations as successful strategies in your reports!",
-        "short_answer": "Yes, collaborating with student clubs is encouraged and amplifies reach. Get club leadership approval, use approved messaging, follow institutional rules, and credit partners in reporting.",
-        "keywords": ["clubs", "societies", "collaboration", "partnership", "student organizations", "E-cell"],
-        "related_questions": ["CA_014", "CA_018", "CA_021"],
-        "source": "GUESSS India Official Materials"
-      },
-      {
-        "q_id": "CA_028",
-        "category": "Communication",
-        "question": "What is an example outreach message template for ambassadors?",
-        "aliases": [
-          "Sample outreach message",
-          "Template message for promoting survey",
-          "Example CA promotion message",
-          "How to write outreach message?",
-          "Message format for promoting GUESSS"
-        ],
-        "answer": "Here's a sample outreach message template (adapt with official details):\n\n**For WhatsApp/Email:**\n\"Hi everyone! 👋\n\nI'm [Your Name], Campus Ambassador for GUESSS India at [Institution Name].\n\nGUESSS India is the country's largest student entrepreneurship research survey, and we need YOUR voice! Whether you dream of starting a business or not, your perspective matters.\n\n📊 Takes just 10-12 minutes\n🎓 Open to all students (UG/PG/PhD)\n🔒 Completely anonymous and confidential\n🌟 Help shape India's entrepreneurship ecosystem\n\n👉 Participate here: [Official Survey Link]\n⏰ Deadline: [Date]\n\nQuestions? Reply to this message or contact [Coordinator Email].\n\nLet's make our campus heard! 🚀\n\n#GUESSIndia #StudentEntrepreneurship #[YourCollege]\"\n\n**For Social Media:**\n\"📢 Calling all [College Name] students!\n\nJoin thousands of students nationwide in GUESSS India 2025—India's biggest student entrepreneurship survey!\n\n✨ Your 10 minutes can shape the future of student startups in India\n✅ All students welcome—no entrepreneurship experience needed\n🔗 Link: [Survey URL]\n⏳ Closes: [Date]\n\n#GUESSIndia #StudentVoice #Entrepreneurship #[CollegeName]\"\n\n**Important:** Always use official links, replace placeholders with actual details provided by GUESSS India, include deadline dates, add coordinator contact for authenticity, and maintain respectful, professional tone. Get this approved by your coordinator before mass distribution!",
-        "short_answer": "Sample message includes: brief introduction, GUESSS India explanation, participation benefits, survey link, deadline, contact info. Always use official links and approved templates. Get coordinator approval before distributing.",
-        "keywords": ["message template", "sample message", "outreach text", "promotion message", "example", "WhatsApp template"],
-        "related_questions": ["CA_007", "CA_014", "CA_015"],
-        "source": "GUESSS India Official Materials"
-      }
-    ]
-  }
-}

data/convo_ques.txt

@@ -1,263 +0,0 @@
-{
-  "metadata": {
-    "project": "GUESSS India Chatbot – Basic Conversational Layer",
-    "version": "v1.0",
-    "total_questions": 50,
-    "contact_emails": {
-      "support": "support@guesssindia.in",
-      "editorial": "editorial@guesssindia.in"
-    }
-  },
-  "basic_conversation": [
-    {
-      "id": 1,
-      "question": "Hello",
-      "answer": "Hello! I’m the official virtual assistant for GUESSS India. How can I help you today?"
-    },
-    {
-      "id": 2,
-      "question": "Hi",
-      "answer": "Hi there! I’m here to help you with information about GUESSS India, its programs, and resources."
-    },
-    {
-      "id": 3,
-      "question": "Hey",
-      "answer": "Hey! Feel free to ask me anything about GUESSS India."
-    },
-    {
-      "id": 4,
-      "question": "Who are you?",
-      "answer": "I’m a virtual assistant created to provide accurate and reliable information about GUESSS India."
-    },
-    {
-      "id": 5,
-      "question": "What is your name?",
-      "answer": "I don’t have a personal name, but you can think of me as the GUESSS India Assistant."
-    },
-    {
-      "id": 6,
-      "question": "What do you do?",
-      "answer": "I answer questions related to GUESSS India, including surveys, programs, campus ambassadors, podcasts, and general information."
-    },
-    {
-      "id": 7,
-      "question": "What can you help me with?",
-      "answer": "I can help you understand GUESSS India, guide you to the right resources, explain programs, and direct you to official contacts when needed."
-    },
-    {
-      "id": 8,
-      "question": "Are you a real person?",
-      "answer": "No, I’m an AI-based assistant designed to share verified information from GUESSS India."
-    },
-    {
-      "id": 9,
-      "question": "Are you human?",
-      "answer": "I’m not human, but I’m designed to communicate clearly and responsibly."
-    },
-    {
-      "id": 10,
-      "question": "Who made you?",
-      "answer": "I was developed for the GUESSS India website to support students, faculty, and visitors."
-    },
-    {
-      "id": 11,
-      "question": "What is GUESSS India?",
-      "answer": "GUESSS India is part of the Global University Entrepreneurial Spirit Students’ Survey, which studies entrepreneurial intentions, behavior, and mindsets among students in India."
-    },
-    {
-      "id": 12,
-      "question": "Is your information reliable?",
-      "answer": "Yes. My responses are based on approved and verified information provided by the GUESSS India team."
-    },
-    {
-      "id": 13,
-      "question": "Can you answer everything?",
-      "answer": "I can answer questions related to GUESSS India. For highly specific or administrative queries, I may guide you to the appropriate contact."
-    },
-    {
-      "id": 14,
-      "question": "What if you don’t know the answer?",
-      "answer": "If I don’t have confirmed information, I’ll let you know and suggest contacting the GUESSS India team directly."
-    },
-    {
-      "id": 15,
-      "question": "Can I trust you?",
-      "answer": "You can trust me for official and factual information related to GUESSS India."
-    },
-    {
-      "id": 16,
-      "question": "Do you collect personal data?",
-      "answer": "No. I do not store or collect personal data. Any official data collection is handled through secure GUESSS platforms."
-    },
-    {
-      "id": 17,
-      "question": "Can you help with the GUESSS survey?",
-      "answer": "Yes, I can explain the purpose of the survey and guide you on participation."
-    },
-    {
-      "id": 18,
-      "question": "Can you help students?",
-      "answer": "Yes. I’m designed to support students by answering common questions about GUESSS India initiatives."
-    },
-    {
-      "id": 19,
-      "question": "Can you help faculty members?",
-      "answer": "Yes. Faculty members can use me to learn about institutional participation and research-related information."
-    },
-    {
-      "id": 20,
-      "question": "Can you help campus ambassadors?",
-      "answer": "Yes. I can explain the Campus Ambassador program, roles, and application process."
-    },
-    {
-      "id": 21,
-      "question": "Can you give contact details?",
-      "answer": "Yes. For support-related queries, email support@guesssindia.in. For editorial or content-related queries, email editorial@guesssindia.in."
-    },
-    {
-      "id": 22,
-      "question": "How do I contact GUESSS India?",
-      "answer": "You can contact GUESSS India via email at support@guesssindia.in for general support."
-    },
-    {
-      "id": 23,
-      "question": "What is the editorial email?",
-      "answer": "For editorial or content-related matters, please write to editorial@guesssindia.in."
-    },
-    {
-      "id": 24,
-      "question": "Can you help with podcasts?",
-      "answer": "Yes. I can answer basic questions about the GUESSS India podcast and guide you to official information."
-    },
-    {
-      "id": 25,
-      "question": "Do you give career advice?",
-      "answer": "I don’t provide personal career advice, but I can share information about GUESSS India programs and research."
-    },
-    {
-      "id": 26,
-      "question": "Are you available all the time?",
-      "answer": "Yes. I’m available 24/7 on the GUESSS India website."
-    },
-    {
-      "id": 27,
-      "question": "Can you help me apply for programs?",
-      "answer": "I can explain the application process and eligibility, but actual applications must be submitted through official forms."
-    },
-    {
-      "id": 28,
-      "question": "Do you replace the GUESSS team?",
-      "answer": "No. I support the GUESSS India team by answering common questions and guiding users."
-    },
-    {
-      "id": 29,
-      "question": "Are you connected to the global GUESSS network?",
-      "answer": "Yes. GUESSS India operates as part of the global GUESSS research network."
-    },
-    {
-      "id": 30,
-      "question": "Can you explain things simply?",
-      "answer": "Yes. I aim to explain information clearly and in simple language."
-    },
-    {
-      "id": 31,
-      "question": "Can you talk like a human?",
-      "answer": "I try to communicate naturally while keeping information accurate and professional."
-    },
-    {
-      "id": 32,
-      "question": "Can you make mistakes?",
-      "answer": "I aim to avoid mistakes, but if something seems unclear, it’s best to verify through official contacts."
-    },
-    {
-      "id": 33,
-      "question": "Can I give feedback about you?",
-      "answer": "Yes. Feedback can be shared with the GUESSS India team via support@guesssindia.in."
-    },
-    {
-      "id": 34,
-      "question": "Do you learn from conversations?",
-      "answer": "I don’t learn in real time. My responses are updated only when my data is officially revised."
-    },
-    {
-      "id": 35,
-      "question": "Are you connected to social media?",
-      "answer": "No. I only operate within the official GUESSS India website."
-    },
-    {
-      "id": 36,
-      "question": "Can you answer off-topic questions?",
-      "answer": "I focus only on GUESSS India–related topics to ensure accuracy."
-    },
-    {
-      "id": 37,
-      "question": "What should I do if I face a technical issue?",
-      "answer": "For technical issues, please contact support@guesssindia.in."
-    },
-    {
-      "id": 38,
-      "question": "Can you guide international users?",
-      "answer": "I primarily support GUESSS India, but I can explain how it fits into the global GUESSS framework."
-    },
-    {
-      "id": 39,
-      "question": "Can you explain research terms?",
-      "answer": "I can explain basic research-related terms used within GUESSS India."
-    },
-    {
-      "id": 40,
-      "question": "Can you help with reports?",
-      "answer": "I can explain reports at a high level, but detailed data access is managed by the research team."
-    },
-    {
-      "id": 41,
-      "question": "Can you tell me what you cannot do?",
-      "answer": "I cannot provide personal opinions, unverified information, or access confidential data."
-    },
-    {
-      "id": 42,
-      "question": "Are you updated regularly?",
-      "answer": "Yes. My content is updated when the GUESSS India team provides new verified data."
-    },
-    {
-      "id": 43,
-      "question": "Can you help first-time visitors?",
-      "answer": "Absolutely. I’m designed to help first-time visitors understand GUESSS India easily."
-    },
-    {
-      "id": 44,
-      "question": "Can you explain things step by step?",
-      "answer": "Yes. I can explain processes in a structured and step-by-step manner."
-    },
-    {
-      "id": 45,
-      "question": "Are you part of customer support?",
-      "answer": "I assist with common questions, while the GUESSS India support team handles official requests."
-    },
-    {
-      "id": 46,
-      "question": "Can you redirect me to the right team?",
-      "answer": "Yes. If needed, I will guide you to support@guesssindia.in or editorial@guesssindia.in."
-    },
-    {
-      "id": 47,
-      "question": "Can you help with content corrections?",
-      "answer": "For content corrections or editorial matters, please contact editorial@guesssindia.in."
-    },
-    {
-      "id": 48,
-      "question": "Are you safe to use?",
-      "answer": "Yes. I am designed to be secure and to respect data privacy standards."
-    },
-    {
-      "id": 49,
-      "question": "Why should I use this chatbot?",
-      "answer": "I help you quickly find accurate information about GUESSS India without searching through multiple pages."
-    },
-    {
-      "id": 50,
-      "question": "Thank you",
-      "answer": "You’re welcome! If you have more questions about GUESSS India, I’m here to help."
-    }
-  ]
-}

data/gip_ep11.txt

@@ -1,355 +0,0 @@
-{
-  "podcast_metadata": {
-    "episode": 11,
-    "guest": "Dr. K Suresh Kumar",
-    "role": "Executive Director, PSG STEP",
-    "experience": "25+ years in incubation",
-    "former_role": "President of Indian STEP and Business Incubators Association (7 years)",
-    "key_quote": "Entrepreneurship is service to society; money is a byproduct, not the goal"
-  },
-  "qa_pairs": [
-    {
-      "id": "q1",
-      "question": "What is GUESSS and what does it do?",
-      "answer": "GUESSS is a global initiative primarily focused on doing surveys to understand students' entrepreneurial spirit. In India, the first survey was conducted in 2023 with participation from about 14,000 students from across the country. The initiative aims to gather data about student entrepreneurship and now also includes conversations with ecosystem stakeholders to give voice to the data.",
-      "category": "About GUESSS"
-    },
-    {
-      "id": "q2",
-      "question": "Why is 26% of students with ideas reaching incubation centers considered a good number?",
-      "answer": "According to Dr. Suresh Kumar, 26% is a huge number because student entrepreneurship in educational institutions is just picking up, and there are limited incubation centers across the country compared to the number of higher education institutions. Incubation centers have small teams with limited bandwidth, so reaching 26% of students who have ideas is actually a significant achievement.",
-      "category": "Student Entrepreneurship Statistics"
-    },
-    {
-      "id": "q3",
-      "question": "What is the difference between a solution, innovation, product, and startup?",
-      "answer": "A solution is what students initially provide based on their acquired knowledge. An innovation involves integrating technologies to move from solution to product. A product is the result of innovation that can potentially be commercialized. A startup happens when someone decides to become an entrepreneur and take the product to market. It's a progression: solution provider → innovator → entrepreneur.",
-      "category": "Entrepreneurship Fundamentals"
-    },
-    {
-      "id": "q4",
-      "question": "When does an incubation center's role truly begin?",
-      "answer": "Incubation centers have a major role to play when a student decides to become an entrepreneur. Once they've moved from being a solution provider to an innovator and then decided to form a company and take their product to market, that's when incubation centers should invest their efforts, time, energy, and money to make them successful entrepreneurs.",
-      "category": "Incubation Centers"
-    },
-    {
-      "id": "q5",
-      "question": "Is entrepreneurship a valid career option for students?",
-      "answer": "Yes, entrepreneurship is absolutely a valid career option. However, students need to understand it's a journey with its own process, similar to preparing for civil services or higher education. They need to be prepared to sacrifice time, effort, and potentially money, and understand that returns may not be immediate like traditional placements.",
-      "category": "Career Guidance"
-    },
-    {
-      "id": "q6",
-      "question": "How should students validate their problem statements?",
-      "answer": "Students should first validate whether their identified problem is actually a pain point, not just a problem. They need to quantify the qualitative pain point in terms of time, effort, or money that the problem currently consumes. If they can quantify the damage the problem causes, the solution becomes easier to justify and take to market.",
-      "category": "Problem Validation"
-    },
-    {
-      "id": "q7",
-      "question": "What frameworks should entrepreneurship faculty use with students?",
-      "answer": "Faculty should provide frameworks to channel students' thought processes, such as Business Model Canvas (BMC) or customer discovery frameworks. The key is not to make students think in different angles at one time, but to channel their thoughts using appropriate frameworks based on the stage they're at. Different frameworks work for different students and stages.",
-      "category": "Teaching Entrepreneurship"
-    },
-    {
-      "id": "q8",
-      "question": "What are the stages from idea to market for a student startup?",
-      "answer": "The journey includes: Ideation → Proof of Concept (PoC) → Prototype → Minimum Viable Product (MVP) → Product → Market Testing → Commercially Viable Product → Scale-up. In science-based ventures, these are also measured as Technology Readiness Levels (TRL). Students need to understand where they stand in this journey and what each stage requires.",
-      "category": "Startup Journey"
-    },
-    {
-      "id": "q9",
-      "question": "Should educational institutions expect all students to become entrepreneurs?",
-      "answer": "No. As an institution, the role is to give opportunities. Just like institutions can't convert all students into sportsmen or orators, they can't make all students entrepreneurs. Entrepreneurship should be provided as an opportunity alongside other career paths like placements, higher education, or civil services. Students have their own aspirations, priorities, and preferences.",
-      "category": "Educational Philosophy"
-    },
-    {
-      "id": "q10",
-      "question": "Why do students choose entrepreneurship if there's no immediate CTC?",
-      "answer": "True entrepreneurs don't see entrepreneurship as just about money. They identify a problem or pain statement and are passionate about giving a solution to society. Money becomes a byproduct, not the main product. Entrepreneurship is a service, similar to being a doctor or teacher, where you make money by providing good service and addressing societal needs.",
-      "category": "Entrepreneurial Motivation"
-    },
-    {
-      "id": "q11",
-      "question": "What is entrepreneurial mindset and how is it different from being an entrepreneur?",
-      "answer": "Entrepreneurial mindset is about thinking entrepreneurially even when working for others. Every individual is an entrepreneur in their personal life - they plan, budget, compare alternatives, and make decisions. If you apply the same thinking to your work in an organization, you have an entrepreneurial mindset. An entrepreneur applies this mindset to their own business, while an intrapreneur applies it within someone else's organization.",
-      "category": "Entrepreneurial Mindset"
-    },
-    {
-      "id": "q12",
-      "question": "Can entrepreneurship be taught or is it innate?",
-      "answer": "Entrepreneurship is essentially common sense. Whatever you do for personal decisions - looking at alternatives, value for money, budget considerations - just needs to be extended to business. It's not alien thinking; it's the same thought process applied differently. Through frameworks and practice, this can become subconscious, just like experienced businessmen automatically think about target markets and revenue models.",
-      "category": "Teaching Entrepreneurship"
-    },
-    {
-      "id": "q13",
-      "question": "What is the difference between an innovator and an entrepreneur?",
-      "answer": "An innovator is someone who can find solutions to multiple problems and may want to work on five different solutions simultaneously. An entrepreneur focuses on the process of taking a solution to market. Entrepreneurs talk in business terms with timelines and targets, try to quantify qualitative statements, and ensure their product reaches the right customer. They're focused on execution and market fit.",
-      "category": "Entrepreneurship Fundamentals"
-    },
-    {
-      "id": "q14",
-      "question": "When do students actually see success or failure in their startup?",
-      "answer": "Students start their startup when they are students, but when they see whether it's a success or challenge, they're no longer students - they've graduated. If they start in third year and want to see results in three years, they'll be working on growth after graduation. The definition of student startup is they started during the student period, but their growth happens after graduation.",
-      "category": "Student Startups"
-    },
-    {
-      "id": "q15",
-      "question": "What role do parents play in student entrepreneurship decisions?",
-      "answer": "Parents should be kept informed about their child's entrepreneurship journey. It's about having a conversation or deliberation with parents, students, and faculty about what the student wants to do, what ecosystem support exists, and what happens if it succeeds or fails. It's about taking calculated risks, not just risks. When parents understand the process and potential outcomes, they're more likely to support the decision.",
-      "category": "Family Support"
-    },
-    {
-      "id": "q16",
-      "question": "Should faculty try to convert all students into entrepreneurs?",
-      "answer": "No. As an entrepreneurship faculty member, the goal shouldn't be to convert students into entrepreneurs, but to make them think entrepreneurially. This entrepreneurial mindset will benefit them whether they become entrepreneurs or work for others, potentially helping them reach leadership positions faster in corporate careers.",
-      "category": "Teaching Philosophy"
-    },
-    {
-      "id": "q17",
-      "question": "What is the relationship between host institutions and incubation centers?",
-      "answer": "The host institution is critical to incubation center success - they provide resources, space, and support. The incubation center should be a separate entity but aligned with the host institution's growth strategy. The head of the incubation center has a critical role in managing multiple stakeholders while maintaining this relationship. Without host institution support, an incubation center cannot survive sustainably.",
-      "category": "Incubation Centers"
-    },
-    {
-      "id": "q18",
-      "question": "What is the elephant and rubber band story in incubation?",
-      "answer": "The host institution is like a big elephant, and the incubation center is a small entity tied to it with a thin thread (representing the relationship). The CEO or faculty in charge must ensure this thread doesn't break, as it's the source of all support flowing to the incubation center. The thread must be strong enough and flexible enough so the elephant's movements don't break it, and the incubation center shouldn't venture too far from the elephant.",
-      "category": "Incubation Management"
-    },
-    {
-      "id": "q19",
-      "question": "How have IICs and government initiatives impacted incubation centers?",
-      "answer": "Initiatives like IICs (Institute Innovation Councils), Atal Innovation Mission, and other government programs have significantly reduced the load on incubation centers by handling awareness creation and motivation activities. This allows incubation centers to focus on their core role of supporting mature startups rather than spending resources on early-stage awareness. These initiatives create a better pipeline of prepared students for incubation centers.",
-      "category": "Ecosystem Development"
-    },
-    {
-      "id": "q20",
-      "question": "What stops students from thinking about entrepreneurship as a career?",
-      "answer": "Several factors: 1) Cultural conditioning from school days to become engineer/doctor, not entrepreneur, 2) Institutions focus admissions on placement records, not entrepreneurship, 3) Family expectations and dreams of placements with good CTC, 4) Entrepreneurship being seen as an alternative only when placements dip, 5) Parents may not understand or support the entrepreneurship journey without proper information.",
-      "category": "Barriers to Entrepreneurship"
-    },
-    {
-      "id": "q21",
-      "question": "Should incubation centers focus on student startups or external startups?",
-      "answer": "Incubation centers should primarily cater to their host institution's students, as that's a key stakeholder. However, they shouldn't refuse student support - rather, they should direct students based on their stage to appropriate opportunities like hackathons, challenges, and innovation competitions. Once students mature through these experiences, they can return to the incubation center better prepared.",
-      "category": "Incubation Strategy"
-    },
-    {
-      "id": "q22",
-      "question": "How should incubation centers handle financial sustainability after government funding ends?",
-      "answer": "The first support should come from the host institution. Government could also consider tapering support gradually (e.g., covering only manpower costs for years 6-10) rather than stopping abruptly after 5 years. This allows centers to focus on generating revenue for utilities and expansion rather than worrying about salaries. Centers surviving 10+ years typically find sustainable revenue models.",
-      "category": "Sustainability"
-    },
-    {
-      "id": "q23",
-      "question": "What are the two core values for successful incubation?",
-      "answer": "1) Empathy towards entrepreneurs - listen to their needs and if the same problem is repeated by multiple entrepreneurs, create that service or access it through collaboration. 2) Cost-effectiveness - provide services at affordable prices by converting capital expenditure to recurring expenditure, making state-of-the-art facilities accessible without entrepreneurs bearing the full cost.",
-      "category": "Incubation Values"
-    },
-    {
-      "id": "q24",
-      "question": "Should incubation centers have readymade services or tailored services?",
-      "answer": "Incubation centers should have tailor-made services, not readymade services. If five entrepreneurs ask for the same support, that indicates a need - the incubation center should then create that service or get it through collaboration. The definition of services should depend on queries from entrepreneurs, treating them as customers whose pain points need to be addressed.",
-      "category": "Service Design"
-    },
-    {
-      "id": "q25",
-      "question": "What is the distributed incubation network model?",
-      "answer": "Post-COVID, the association developed the distributed incubation network model, which includes: 1) Virtual incubation (remote support), 2) Hybrid incubation (combination of physical and remote), 3) Co-incubation (multiple incubators supporting one startup), 4) Hub and spoke model (one incubator supporting multiple institutions). This was released as a concept note at the ISBA conclave in 2022.",
-      "category": "Incubation Models"
-    },
-    {
-      "id": "q26",
-      "question": "Should incubation centers compete or collaborate?",
-      "answer": "Incubation centers should collaborate, not compete. If an entrepreneur needs a facility that one incubator doesn't have, they should connect them to another incubator that does. The days of competition are gone. Through associations like ISBA, 175+ incubators can collaborate, practice co-incubation, and share resources to better serve entrepreneurs.",
-      "category": "Ecosystem Collaboration"
-    },
-    {
-      "id": "q27",
-      "question": "What is co-incubation and how does it work?",
-      "answer": "Co-incubation is when three incubators come together, with roles clearly defined: one is the anchor incubator that identified the startup, another provides specific infrastructure or equipment access, and a third might provide other services. They collectively agree on their contributions and charges, ensuring the startup gets comprehensive support without any single incubator providing duplicate services.",
-      "category": "Collaboration Models"
-    },
-    {
-      "id": "q28",
-      "question": "Should incubation centers become funding agencies?",
-      "answer": "While funding has become important and unavoidable, the core incubation process should focus on admitting early-stage startups, giving them infrastructure access, facilities, and ensuring they move to the next level. Funding should support this process, not replace it. When funding becomes the primary focus, incubation managers start playing dual roles as investment managers and portfolio managers, which can dilute the core incubation mission.",
-      "category": "Funding vs Incubation"
-    },
-    {
-      "id": "q29",
-      "question": "Should funding be rationed across many startups or concentrated?",
-      "answer": "This is an individual incubator's decision based on their ecosystem and desired results. However, startups should also have an incubator selection process. If a startup needs 5 lakhs but an incubator only gives 2 lakhs due to rationing policies, the startup should look for other funding sources or incubators that match their needs rather than trying to change the incubator's policy.",
-      "category": "Funding Strategy"
-    },
-    {
-      "id": "q30",
-      "question": "How should success of an incubation center be measured?",
-      "answer": "Success shouldn't be measured by outcomes like number of startups funded or exits achieved. Instead, focus on process: if your incubation process is proper - from selecting startups, to evaluating founding teams, to connecting startups with your resources - the outcomes will happen automatically. True success is when a startup comes with objectives and the incubation center can help them achieve those objectives, whatever they may be.",
-      "category": "Success Metrics"
-    },
-    {
-      "id": "q31",
-      "question": "What are the only two metrics Dr. Suresh Kumar uses for success?",
-      "answer": "1) If a startup comes with an objective (e.g., generate employment for 100 people in 3 years) and the incubation center can provide services to help achieve it, that's success. 2) The startup's metrics become the incubation center's metrics - if they can contribute to the startup achieving its goals through connections, investor networks, and support, that defines success. It's about meeting the entrepreneur's objectives, not imposing external metrics.",
-      "category": "Success Metrics"
-    },
-    {
-      "id": "q32",
-      "question": "What role does ISBA play in the incubation ecosystem?",
-      "answer": "ISBA (Indian STEP and Business Incubators Association) brings 175+ incubation centers together for collaboration, capacity building through workshops and training programs, CEO connects for peer learning, representation to central and state governments, creating mentor pools accessible across the country, and developing frameworks like the distributed incubation network model. It has helped incubators get tax exemptions and enabled investment capabilities for society-registered incubators.",
-      "category": "Ecosystem Support"
-    },
-    {
-      "id": "q33",
-      "question": "What challenges do incubation center CEOs face career-wise?",
-      "answer": "The incubation industry isn't lucrative for career growth. You often start as a CEO with no clear next step. Longevity matters because results come after 5 years, but if a CEO has to generate their own salary after 5 years, many move to corporate innovation roles, investment firms, or consulting where compensation is better. This creates talent retention challenges for incubation centers.",
-      "category": "Career Challenges"
-    },
-    {
-      "id": "q34",
-      "question": "Should students be called 'student entrepreneurs' or just 'entrepreneurs'?",
-      "answer": "Once students have moved from solution provider to innovator and decided to form a company to take their product to market, they should be treated as entrepreneurs, not student entrepreneurs. This recognition motivates them to behave and work like entrepreneurs. The term 'student entrepreneur' should only be used for stakeholder communication about specific support programs, not in direct interaction with the entrepreneurs themselves.",
-      "category": "Terminology"
-    },
-    {
-      "id": "q35",
-      "question": "How can Gen Z students be engaged with entrepreneurship frameworks?",
-      "answer": "Gamification is the answer for any generation when processes seem boring. However, once a student decides to become an entrepreneur (not just a solution provider), they should be treated as an entrepreneur regardless of generation. The mindset has changed, so stop using age-based labels and recognize their commitment. Frameworks become internalized through practice, just like experienced business people who no longer need to consciously apply them.",
-      "category": "Teaching Methods"
-    },
-    {
-      "id": "q36",
-      "question": "What is the journey from student to entrepreneur?",
-      "answer": "Students start as solution providers (identifying problems and giving solutions with limited knowledge). They become innovators when they integrate technologies and develop products. They become entrepreneurs when they decide to take entrepreneurship as a career, form a team, register a company, and focus on taking the product to market with defined timelines and targets. It's a progression that requires different mindsets and skills at each stage.",
-      "category": "Entrepreneurial Journey"
-    },
-    {
-      "id": "q37",
-      "question": "Why are student projects not automatically converted to startups?",
-      "answer": "Not every student project can be converted into a startup or innovation. Students often create solutions based on limited knowledge acquired during their education. The myth that all 15 final year projects should become products is unrealistic. Only projects with commercial potential and teams with entrepreneurial aspirations should be considered for incubation. It's a funnel - many start, few qualify.",
-      "category": "Student Projects"
-    },
-    {
-      "id": "q38",
-      "question": "What is the role of faculty in student entrepreneurship?",
-      "answer": "Faculty should guide students on how to validate problem statements and solutions, teach frameworks for channeling thought processes, help students understand the difference between problems and pain points, and assist in quantifying qualitative pain points. They should provide opportunities for entrepreneurship without forcing it, similar to how they provide opportunities for sports, higher education, or civil services. The goal is to develop entrepreneurial mindset in all students.",
-      "category": "Faculty Role"
-    },
-    {
-      "id": "q39",
-      "question": "How important is the alignment between incubation centers and host institutions?",
-      "answer": "Critical. Incubation center activities should align with the host institution's growth strategy and objectives for the next 5-10 years. If this alignment exists, the support will constantly come. The head must understand the institution's vision and plan incubation activities that support entrepreneurs while also supporting institutional goals. This alignment is more important than hierarchical positions or designations.",
-      "category": "Strategic Alignment"
-    },
-    {
-      "id": "q40",
-      "question": "What should be the next big focus for incubation associations?",
-      "answer": "Building a strong mentor pool accessible to all member incubators across the country. As incubators go deeper into niche areas like assistive technologies, social innovation, medtech, biotech, and climate change, not all cities have relevant experts. By collectively creating a mentor pool through the association, even tier-2 and tier-3 incubators can confidently incubate deep tech startups knowing they can access expertise when needed.",
-      "category": "Future Direction"
-    },
-    {
-      "id": "q41",
-      "question": "What happens to student entrepreneurs after graduation?",
-      "answer": "This is a critical data point that GUESSS should track: out of students who started during college, how many continue 1-3 years after graduation? How many pivot to different ideas but remain entrepreneurs? How many join corporates, and did their entrepreneurship journey help them get better positions faster? These outcomes would provide valuable evidence to convince students about entrepreneurship as a viable path.",
-      "category": "Post-Graduation Outcomes"
-    },
-    {
-      "id": "q42",
-      "question": "Should incubation centers in different geographies operate differently?",
-      "answer": "Yes. In cities like Bangalore or Chennai with existing entrepreneurial ecosystems, incubation centers may get startups from day one. But in tier-3 or tier-4 towns where entrepreneurship itself is minimal, incubation centers must first promote the concept of entrepreneurship in the region. Selling the concept alone can take 2-3 years before actual incubation begins. Geographic context matters significantly.",
-      "category": "Regional Differences"
-    },
-    {
-      "id": "q43",
-      "question": "How should virtual incubation be approached?",
-      "answer": "Virtual incubation should only be offered when an incubator can provide valuable services remotely that aren't available in the startup's location. If a startup needs mentoring and no mentor exists in their location, virtual support makes sense. However, if another incubator exists in their region, refer them there instead. Virtual incubation should be about providing genuine service, not just collecting fees or inflating numbers.",
-      "category": "Virtual Incubation"
-    },
-    {
-      "id": "q44",
-      "question": "What is the hub and spoke model in incubation?",
-      "answer": "When government won't sanction another incubation center in the same city (e.g., 'IIT Madras already has one, other institutions can't get one'), the existing incubation center takes responsibility to reach out to other institutions and bring them on board. Instead of competing, the established center becomes a hub supporting multiple institutions as spokes, expanding the ecosystem collaboratively.",
-      "category": "Collaboration Models"
-    },
-    {
-      "id": "q45",
-      "question": "Why is longevity of incubation center leadership important?",
-      "answer": "Results of an incubation center only come after 5+ years. If leadership changes before seeing results, continuity is lost. However, if a CEO must stay beyond 5 years, they face the challenge of generating their own salary without government support, which drives many talented leaders to better-paying corporate roles. This creates a tension between the need for continuity and the reality of career sustainability.",
-      "category": "Leadership"
-    },
-    {
-      "id": "q46",
-      "question": "How should conflicts between faculty coordinators and CEOs be handled?",
-      "answer": "Clarity on roles and responsibilities from the start prevents most conflicts. The administration of the host institution is the kingpin of all boards and positions created. Before creating positions like faculty coordinator, CEO, or various boards, take time to define clear roles and responsibilities for each stakeholder. Most conflicts arise from unclear role definitions and misalignment with the host institution's strategy.",
-      "category": "Governance"
-    },
-    {
-      "id": "q47",
-      "question": "Should entrepreneurship be connected with placement rates?",
-      "answer": "No. Entrepreneurship and placements should coexist as separate, equally valid career paths. Currently, entrepreneurship is seen as an alternative only when placement rates dip, which is wrong. Institutions market themselves on placement records, not entrepreneurship success. This culture needs to change so entrepreneurship is valued independently, not as a backup option.",
-      "category": "Institutional Culture"
-    },
-    {
-      "id": "q48",
-      "question": "What is informed decision-making in student entrepreneurship?",
-      "answer": "An informed decision involves the student, faculty, and parents all understanding what entrepreneurship entails, what support the ecosystem provides, what the journey looks like, and what happens if it succeeds or fails. When all stakeholders make the decision together with full information, families are more likely to support the entrepreneurship journey. It's about transparency and realistic expectations.",
-      "category": "Decision Making"
-    },
-    {
-      "id": "q49",
-      "question": "How did COVID impact the incubation ecosystem?",
-      "answer": "COVID accelerated innovation in incubation models, leading to the development of virtual, hybrid, and co-incubation frameworks. Despite the challenges of COVID, the ecosystem got a boost with multiple government agencies launching new programs. Organizations like ISBA played an important role in continuous capacity building during this period, conducting online programs and training when physical meetings weren't possible.",
-      "category": "COVID Impact"
-    },
-    {
-      "id": "q50",
-      "question": "What makes PSG STEP successful after 25+ years?",
-      "answer": "Two core values: 1) Empathy towards entrepreneurs - listening to their needs and creating or accessing services based on repeated pain points, 2) Cost-effectiveness - providing affordable services by converting CapEx to OpEx. Also important: alignment with host institution goals, building networks through associations like ISBA, expanding into new technology areas (biotech, nanotech, biomedical) based on entrepreneur needs, and maintaining a lean, entrepreneur-minded team.",
-      "category": "Case Study"
-    }
-  ],
-  "key_insights": [
-    "Only 26% of students with ideas reach incubation centers - this is actually a good number given ecosystem maturity",
-    "Entrepreneurship is service to society; money is a byproduct, not the goal",
-    "Student startups begin during student period but see growth after graduation",
-    "Incubation centers should have tailor-made services, not readymade services",
-    "The journey: Solution Provider → Innovator → Entrepreneur",
-    "Entrepreneurial mindset matters more than entrepreneurship as a job",
-    "Host institution support is critical - incubation centers cannot survive alone",
-    "Collaboration between incubators is more important than competition",
-    "Success metrics should be based on helping startups achieve their objectives, not external numbers",
-    "Virtual, hybrid, and co-incubation models are the future of the ecosystem"
-  ],
-  "recommendations": {
-    "for_students": [
-      "Think entrepreneurially even if you don't become an entrepreneur",
-      "Validate your problem statement - ensure it's a pain point, not just a problem",
-      "Understand the journey from solution to product to market",
-      "Make informed decisions with family and faculty involvement",
-      "Don't chase money as the primary goal - focus on solving problems"
-    ],
-    "for_faculty": [
-      "Provide frameworks to channel student thinking, don't force entrepreneurship",
-      "Guide students in quantifying qualitative pain points",
-      "Create opportunities for entrepreneurship alongside other careers",
-      "Help students understand their stage in the entrepreneurship journey",
-      "Develop entrepreneurial mindset in all students, not just potential founders"
-    ],
-    "for_incubation_centers": [
-      "Practice empathy towards entrepreneurs - listen and create needed services",
-      "Align activities with host institution's strategic goals",
-      "Collaborate with other incubators through co-incubation models",
-      "Focus on process quality rather than outcome metrics",
-      "Build strong mentor pools accessible across geographies",
-      "Consider virtual, hybrid, and hub-spoke models for broader reach"
-    ],
-    "for_ecosystem": [
-      "Continue capacity building through associations like ISBA",
-      "Develop distributed incubation network models",
-      "Create strong mentor pools for niche technology areas",
-      "Track student entrepreneur journeys post-graduation",
-      "Change institutional culture to value entrepreneurship alongside placements"
-    ]
-  }
-}

data/guesss_india_podcast.txt

@@ -1,216 +0,0 @@
-{
-  "guesss_india_podcast_qa": {
-    "about_the_podcast": [
-      {
-        "id": "podcast_001",
-        "question": "What is the GUESSS India Podcast?",
-        "answer": "The GUESSS India Podcast is a show where entrepreneurship begins—not in boardrooms, but in conversations that matter. Hosted by Dr. Puran Singh and Prerak Sharma, it dives into the real stories behind India's next generation of entrepreneurs. From students daring to dream to educators and enablers shaping innovation, each episode uncovers what it truly takes to build with purpose. This isn't just about business—it's about curiosity, courage, and the conversations that spark change.",
-        "category": "About Podcast",
-        "keywords": ["GUESSS India Podcast", "entrepreneurship", "student entrepreneurs", "innovation", "changemakers"]
-      },
-      {
-        "id": "podcast_002",
-        "question": "Who are the hosts of the GUESSS India Podcast?",
-        "answer": "The GUESSS India Podcast is hosted by Dr. Puran Singh and Prerak Sharma. Dr. Puran Singh is the Country Delegate for GUESSS India and an Associate Professor at IIT Mandi's School of Management. Prerak Sharma is the Marketing Strategist for GUESSS India. Together, they bring deep expertise in student entrepreneurship research and ecosystem building to every conversation.",
-        "category": "Hosts",
-        "keywords": ["hosts", "Dr. Puran Singh", "Prerak Sharma", "IIT Mandi", "GUESSS India"]
-      },
-      {
-        "id": "podcast_003",
-        "question": "What is the tagline of the GUESSS India Podcast?",
-        "answer": "The tagline of the GUESSS India Podcast is 'Where Ideas Ignite and Changemakers Emerge.' This captures the essence of the podcast as a platform where entrepreneurial ideas are sparked, nurtured, and where future changemakers are discovered, inspired, and empowered.",
-        "category": "Branding",
-        "keywords": ["tagline", "ideas ignite", "changemakers emerge", "inspiration"]
-      },
-      {
-        "id": "podcast_004",
-        "question": "Where can I listen to the GUESSS India Podcast?",
-        "answer": "You can listen to the GUESSS India Podcast on YouTube at @GUESSSIndiaPodcast (https://www.youtube.com/@GUESSSIndiaPodcast). The podcast is also available on major podcast platforms including Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can follow them on Instagram @guesssindiapodcast (https://www.instagram.com/guesssindiapodcast/) for episode updates, behind-the-scenes content, and announcements.",
-        "category": "Platforms",
-        "keywords": ["YouTube", "Apple Podcasts", "Spotify", "Instagram", "where to listen", "social media"]
-      },
-      {
-        "id": "podcast_005",
-        "question": "How often are new episodes of the GUESSS India Podcast released?",
-        "answer": "The GUESSS India Podcast releases new episodes weekly. Each episode features in-depth, long-form conversations with various stakeholders in India's entrepreneurship ecosystem, providing consistent, quality content for listeners interested in student entrepreneurship and innovation.",
-        "category": "Format",
-        "keywords": ["weekly episodes", "frequency", "release schedule", "regular updates"]
-      },
-      {
-        "id": "podcast_006",
-        "question": "What does GUESSST mean in the podcast?",
-        "answer": "GUESSST is a creative play on the word 'guests'—it refers to the featured guests on the GUESSS India Podcast. This unique spelling connects the guests to the GUESSS (Global University Entrepreneurial Spirit Students' Survey) brand while highlighting that each person who appears on the show brings valuable insights and stories about student entrepreneurship in India.",
-        "category": "Terminology",
-        "keywords": ["GUESSST", "guests", "terminology", "branding", "creative naming"]
-      },
-      {
-        "id": "podcast_007",
-        "question": "Who appears as guests (GUESSTs) on the podcast?",
-        "answer": "The podcast features diverse GUESSTs including: students who are building startups and daring to dream; educators and faculty members shaping entrepreneurship education; incubation center managers and ecosystem enablers; successful entrepreneurs sharing their journeys; policymakers and government officials; researchers in entrepreneurship; and other key stakeholders in India's innovation and startup ecosystem. Each guest brings unique perspectives on student entrepreneurship.",
-        "category": "Guests",
-        "keywords": ["guests", "students", "educators", "entrepreneurs", "ecosystem enablers", "incubation managers"]
-      },
-      {
-        "id": "podcast_008",
-        "question": "What topics are covered in the GUESSS India Podcast?",
-        "answer": "The podcast covers a wide range of topics including: student entrepreneurship journeys and challenges; entrepreneurial mindset development; incubation and acceleration programs; innovation in education; ecosystem building and collaboration; family and social support for student entrepreneurs; funding opportunities and resources; university support systems; government policies and initiatives; success stories and case studies; failure and resilience; and practical advice for aspiring student entrepreneurs. Each conversation provides actionable insights.",
-        "category": "Content",
-        "keywords": ["topics", "entrepreneurship", "student startups", "innovation", "ecosystem", "education"]
-      },
-      {
-        "id": "podcast_009",
-        "question": "What is the mission of the GUESSS India Podcast?",
-        "answer": "The mission is to uncover what it truly takes to build with purpose in India's entrepreneurship landscape. The podcast goes beyond business discussions to explore curiosity, courage, and the transformative conversations that spark real change. It aims to amplify voices of students, educators, and enablers shaping India's entrepreneurial future while providing both inspiration and practical guidance to aspiring changemakers.",
-        "category": "Mission",
-        "keywords": ["mission", "purpose", "change", "entrepreneurship", "inspiration", "guidance"]
-      },
-      {
-        "id": "podcast_010",
-        "question": "What makes the GUESSS India Podcast different from other entrepreneurship podcasts?",
-        "answer": "The GUESSS India Podcast is unique because it specifically focuses on student entrepreneurship in India, backed by rigorous research from the GUESSS Survey. Unlike general business podcasts, it centers on the student journey—from idea to execution—featuring real stories from India's campuses. It combines data-driven insights with human narratives, covering not just successes but also challenges, failures, and the ecosystem support needed. It's grounded in Indian context while being part of a global research initiative.",
-        "category": "Unique Value",
-        "keywords": ["unique", "student focus", "research-backed", "Indian context", "differentiation"]
-      },
-      {
-        "id": "podcast_011",
-        "question": "What is the format of the GUESSS India Podcast episodes?",
-        "answer": "The GUESSS India Podcast features long-form, in-depth conversation episodes. The hosts, Dr. Puran Singh and Prerak Sharma, conduct detailed interviews with GUESSTs, allowing for deep exploration of topics rather than surface-level discussions. Episodes typically run for an hour or more, giving guests space to share their complete stories, insights, and practical advice without time constraints.",
-        "category": "Format",
-        "keywords": ["long-form", "in-depth", "conversation", "interview format", "detailed discussions"]
-      },
-      {
-        "id": "podcast_012",
-        "question": "Why should students listen to the GUESSS India Podcast?",
-        "answer": "Students should listen because the podcast provides: real, relatable stories from fellow students who have taken the entrepreneurial leap; practical advice from educators and ecosystem enablers who support student startups; insights into navigating university systems and accessing resources; honest discussions about challenges, failures, and how to overcome them; information about funding, incubation, and support programs; inspiration and motivation from diverse entrepreneurial journeys; and research-backed understanding of what works in student entrepreneurship. It's learning from those who've walked the path.",
-        "category": "Value for Students",
-        "keywords": ["students", "learning", "practical advice", "inspiration", "resources", "relatability"]
-      },
-      {
-        "id": "podcast_013",
-        "question": "Why should educators and faculty listen to the GUESSS India Podcast?",
-        "answer": "Educators and faculty should listen to: understand student entrepreneurial aspirations and challenges better; learn about effective support systems and teaching methodologies; discover how other institutions foster entrepreneurship culture; gain insights from incubation center managers about what works; understand the gap between academic theory and entrepreneurial practice; learn how to guide students in their entrepreneurial journeys; and stay updated on trends, policies, and best practices in student entrepreneurship education. The podcast bridges the gap between teaching and enabling.",
-        "category": "Value for Educators",
-        "keywords": ["educators", "faculty", "teaching", "support systems", "best practices", "insights"]
-      },
-      {
-        "id": "podcast_014",
-        "question": "Why should incubation managers and ecosystem builders listen to the podcast?",
-        "answer": "Incubation managers and ecosystem builders gain: peer learning from other incubation center experiences across India; insights into challenges and solutions in supporting student startups; understanding of what students actually need vs. what is being provided; best practices in collaboration, co-incubation, and resource sharing; perspectives on sustainability and impact measurement; networking opportunities through the GUESSS community; and research-backed data on student entrepreneurship trends to inform program design. It's a knowledge-sharing platform for ecosystem professionals.",
-        "category": "Value for Ecosystem",
-        "keywords": ["incubation", "ecosystem", "managers", "peer learning", "best practices", "collaboration"]
-      },
-      {
-        "id": "podcast_015",
-        "question": "How is the GUESSS India Podcast connected to the GUESSS Survey?",
-        "answer": "The GUESSS India Podcast is directly connected to GUESSS (Global University Entrepreneurial Spirit Students' Survey) India. While the survey provides quantitative data—numbers, statistics, and trends about student entrepreneurship—the podcast gives voice to that data through real conversations. The hosts, led by Dr. Puran Singh (Country Delegate for GUESSS India), use podcast discussions to explore the 'why' behind the survey findings, share deeper insights, and make the research actionable for students, educators, and policymakers.",
-        "category": "Connection to GUESSS",
-        "keywords": ["GUESSS Survey", "research", "data", "insights", "connection", "complementary"]
-      },
-      {
-        "id": "podcast_016",
-        "question": "Can I be a guest on the GUESSS India Podcast?",
-        "answer": "Yes! The GUESSS India Podcast welcomes diverse voices from India's entrepreneurship ecosystem. If you are a student entrepreneur with a compelling story, an educator innovating in entrepreneurship education, an incubation manager with insights to share, a policymaker working on student entrepreneurship, or any ecosystem enabler making an impact, you can reach out through their social media channels on Instagram (@guesssindiapodcast) or YouTube (@GUESSSIndiaPodcast) to express your interest in being a GUESSST.",
-        "category": "Participation",
-        "keywords": ["guest", "participation", "how to apply", "GUESSST", "contact"]
-      },
-      {
-        "id": "podcast_017",
-        "question": "What language is the GUESSS India Podcast in?",
-        "answer": "The GUESSS India Podcast is primarily conducted in English, making it accessible to students and educators across India's diverse linguistic landscape. However, conversations flow naturally, and guests may include Hindi or other Indian language phrases when contextually relevant, reflecting the authentic, conversational nature of the show.",
-        "category": "Language",
-        "keywords": ["English", "language", "accessibility", "bilingual", "conversation"]
-      },
-      {
-        "id": "podcast_018",
-        "question": "What is the typical length of a GUESSS India Podcast episode?",
-        "answer": "GUESSS India Podcast episodes typically run for 60-90 minutes or longer, following a long-form conversation format. This extended duration allows for deep, meaningful discussions where guests can share complete stories, elaborate on complex topics, and provide detailed practical advice without being rushed. The format prioritizes depth over brevity.",
-        "category": "Duration",
-        "keywords": ["length", "duration", "long-form", "60-90 minutes", "extended conversation"]
-      },
-      {
-        "id": "podcast_019",
-        "question": "Is there a transcript available for GUESSS India Podcast episodes?",
-        "answer": "Transcripts may be available for select episodes. For the most current information about transcripts and accessibility features, check the GUESSS India website (guesssindia.in) or reach out to the team through their social media channels on Instagram (@guesssindiapodcast) or YouTube (@GUESSSIndiaPodcast). The team is committed to making content accessible to all audiences.",
-        "category": "Accessibility",
-        "keywords": ["transcript", "accessibility", "text version", "documentation"]
-      },
-      {
-        "id": "podcast_020",
-        "question": "How can I support the GUESSS India Podcast?",
-        "answer": "You can support the podcast by: subscribing to the YouTube channel (@GUESSSIndiaPodcast); following on Instagram (@guesssindiapodcast); listening and sharing episodes with your network; leaving ratings and reviews on podcast platforms; engaging with content through comments and discussions; sharing your feedback and topic suggestions; participating in the GUESSS survey when it opens; and spreading awareness about student entrepreneurship in India. Community support helps the podcast reach more aspiring student entrepreneurs.",
-        "category": "Support",
-        "keywords": ["support", "subscribe", "share", "engage", "community", "spread awareness"]
-      },
-      {
-        "id": "podcast_021",
-        "question": "What kind of actionable insights can I expect from the podcast?",
-        "answer": "Listeners gain actionable insights including: step-by-step guidance on starting a venture while studying; how to access university resources and incubation centers; frameworks for validating ideas and finding product-market fit; strategies for building teams and finding co-founders; navigation of family conversations about entrepreneurship; funding sources and how to approach them; time management between academics and startups; avoiding common mistakes through others' experiences; building networks and finding mentors; and understanding when to persist vs. when to pivot.",
-        "category": "Learning Outcomes",
-        "keywords": ["actionable insights", "practical advice", "learning", "guidance", "frameworks", "strategies"]
-      },
-      {
-        "id": "podcast_022",
-        "question": "Who is Dr. Puran Singh?",
-        "answer": "Dr. Puran Singh is the Country Delegate for GUESSS India and an Associate Professor at the School of Management, IIT Mandi. He leads GUESSS India's research initiatives to understand and foster student entrepreneurship across the country. With deep expertise in entrepreneurship research and education, he brings an academic yet practical perspective to the podcast, bridging research insights with real-world application.",
-        "category": "Hosts",
-        "keywords": ["Dr. Puran Singh", "IIT Mandi", "Country Delegate", "research", "academic"]
-      },
-      {
-        "id": "podcast_023",
-        "question": "Who is Prerak Sharma?",
-        "answer": "Prerak Sharma is the Marketing Strategist for GUESSS India and co-host of the GUESSS India Podcast. He brings expertise in marketing, communications, and ecosystem building to the show. His role involves amplifying the voices of student entrepreneurs, making research accessible to wider audiences, and building the GUESSS India brand as a knowledge hub for student entrepreneurship.",
-        "category": "Hosts",
-        "keywords": ["Prerak Sharma", "Marketing Strategist", "communications", "ecosystem building"]
-      },
-      {
-        "id": "podcast_024",
-        "question": "What are some featured episodes or GUESSTs on the podcast?",
-        "answer": "The podcast has featured diverse GUESSTs including Dr. K Suresh Kumar (Executive Director, PSG STEP, and former President of ISBA) discussing incubation ecosystems, student entrepreneurs sharing their startup journeys, educators explaining innovative teaching methods, and various ecosystem enablers. Episode 11 with Dr. Suresh Kumar, for example, explored the journey from student to innovator to entrepreneur, the role of incubation centers, and building India's entrepreneurship ecosystem.",
-        "category": "Episodes",
-        "keywords": ["episodes", "featured guests", "Dr. Suresh Kumar", "case studies", "conversations"]
-      },
-      {
-        "id": "podcast_025",
-        "question": "How does the podcast address failure in entrepreneurship?",
-        "answer": "The podcast addresses failure openly and honestly. GUESSTs share real stories of setbacks, pivots, and challenges they faced. Discussions explore why startups fail, how to learn from failure, the emotional aspects of entrepreneurship, building resilience, and understanding that failure is part of the entrepreneurial journey. The podcast normalizes failure as a learning experience rather than an endpoint, helping students understand calculated risk-taking.",
-        "category": "Content Themes",
-        "keywords": ["failure", "challenges", "resilience", "learning", "setbacks", "honest discussions"]
-      },
-      {
-        "id": "podcast_026",
-        "question": "Does the podcast discuss funding for student startups?",
-        "answer": "Yes, funding is a regular topic. Episodes cover various funding options including government schemes (like NIDHI-PRAYAS, NIDHI-EIR, Startup India Seed Fund), incubation center grants, angel investors, venture capital, competitions and challenges, bootstrapping strategies, and when to seek funding vs. when to delay. GUESSTs share their experiences navigating funding, what investors look for, and common mistakes to avoid.",
-        "category": "Content Themes",
-        "keywords": ["funding", "investment", "grants", "government schemes", "angel investors", "bootstrapping"]
-      },
-      {
-        "id": "podcast_027",
-        "question": "How does the podcast help with entrepreneurial mindset development?",
-        "answer": "The podcast dedicates significant discussion to entrepreneurial mindset—exploring what it means, how it differs from just starting a business, and how students can develop it. GUESSTs explain that entrepreneurial mindset applies to any career, not just entrepreneurship. Topics include problem-solving approaches, calculated risk-taking, resilience, creative thinking, learning orientation, and how to think entrepreneurially even while working for others. It's about developing a way of thinking, not just a job title.",
-        "category": "Content Themes",
-        "keywords": ["entrepreneurial mindset", "thinking", "problem-solving", "skills development", "mindset"]
-      },
-      {
-        "id": "podcast_028",
-        "question": "What role do universities play according to the podcast?",
-        "answer": "The podcast explores universities' critical role as: providers of resources, infrastructure, and state-of-the-art facilities; creators of entrepreneurial culture and opportunities; connectors to industry, mentors, and networks; supporters through incubation centers and innovation cells; educators through entrepreneurship courses and programs; and validators of student entrepreneurship as a legitimate career path. Discussions also address gaps between what universities provide and what students actually need.",
-        "category": "Content Themes",
-        "keywords": ["universities", "institutions", "support systems", "resources", "education", "culture"]
-      },
-      {
-        "id": "podcast_029",
-        "question": "Can I suggest topics or questions for future podcast episodes?",
-        "answer": "Absolutely! The GUESSS India Podcast welcomes topic suggestions and questions from the community. You can share your ideas through comments on YouTube videos, direct messages on Instagram (@guesssindiapodcast), or by engaging with their social media posts. The team values community input in shaping conversations that matter most to students, educators, and the ecosystem.",
-        "category": "Engagement",
-        "keywords": ["suggestions", "topics", "questions", "community input", "engagement", "feedback"]
-      },
-      {
-        "id": "podcast_030",
-        "question": "What is the podcast's perspective on entrepreneurship as a career choice?",
-        "answer": "The podcast presents entrepreneurship as a valid, legitimate career choice alongside placements, higher education, and civil services—not as a backup option or alternative when placements fail. It emphasizes informed decision-making, understanding the journey, family involvement, and calculated risk-taking. The perspective is balanced: entrepreneurship isn't for everyone, and that's okay. The goal is to develop entrepreneurial mindset in all students, whether they start ventures or work for others.",
-        "category": "Philosophy",
-        "keywords": ["career choice", "entrepreneurship", "informed decisions", "balanced perspective", "career path"]
-      }
-    ]
-  }
-}

data/guesssindia_CAs.txt

@@ -1,39 +0,0 @@
-How does Guesss india collects its data
-GUESSS (Global University Entrepreneurial Spirit Students’ Survey) is the world’s largest research project on student entrepreneurship, spanning over 57 countries. Being a part of GUESSS India connects you to a prestigious global initiative and offers a unique platform to achieve both personal and professional growth. Here’s what you gain as a Campus Ambassador:
-Develop Leadership Skills
-Take charge of GUESSS India initiatives on your campus and demonstrate your ability to lead, organize, and influence.
-Become a Student Thought Leader
-Enable GUESSS Cloud by interviewing fellow students and curating stories, podcasts, or insights on their entrepreneurial mindset.
-Gain Research Experience
-Contribute to a real-world research project by facilitating data collection for the GUESSS India 2025 Survey.
-Stand Out Nationally
-Join an exclusive cohort of 100+ Campus Ambassadors across India and enhance your resume with a national-level leadership role.
-Earn Financial Rewards
-₹10,000 Grand Prize for the CA with the highest number of valid survey responses nationwide.
-Upto ₹5,000 Incentive for achieving the minimum response target (predefined based on your campus size).
-Receive Recognition & Certification
-Certificate of participation in the CA program.
-Additional certificate(s) for exceptional performance in promoting the GUESSS India 2025 Survey or GUESSS Cloud.
-Honorable mention on the official GUESSS India website.
-Get Access to Expert Mentorship
-Engage with leading entrepreneurs, researchers, and ecosystem experts to refine your startup ideas, gain insights, and seek guidance.
-Program Structure
-The GUESSS India Campus Ambassador Program 2025 is a fully remote engagement opportunity, allowing students to contribute from anywhere without the need for travel or physical presence. All responsibilities are designed to be completed online, requiring an estimated 4–6 hours per week.
-The engagement period runs through December 2025, with activities spread across key phases:
-Timeline
-Event
-June – July 2025
-Campus Ambassador Recruitment (Applications & Interviews)
-Training for GUESSS Cloud Interviews
-August 2025
-GUESSS Survey Training and Orientation of CAs
-September – December2025
-GUESSS India 2025 Survey Period Begins
-January 2026
-Announcement of Awards
-Certificate Distribution
-Are you ready to Discover the Entrepreneur in you?
-Apply for Campus Ambassador Program 2025
-If you’re currently enrolled in a college or university in India and are excited to take on a leadership role, we invite you to apply for the GUESSS India Campus Ambassador Program 2025.
-Application Deadline: September 10, 2025
-

data/guesssindia_Guess_cloud.txt

@@ -1,53 +0,0 @@
-
-What Is
-GUESSS India
-Cloud?
-GUESSS India Cloud is a dedicated knowledge platform designed to inspire, inform, and engage Indian students on their entrepreneurial journey. This platform aims to:
-image
-Inspire students through real-life stories of Indian student entrepreneurs.
-Create awareness by sharing diverse perspectives from entrepreneurship enablers, educators, and ecosystem leaders.
-Inform policymakers and institutions with research-based insights drawn from the experiences and aspirations of student entrepreneurs.
-By bridging the gap between student aspirations, expert perspectives, and policy dialogue, GUESSS India Cloud plays a vital role in shaping a more inclusive and dynamic student entrepreneurship ecosystem in India.
-Cloud - Dimensions
-GUESSS Cloud operates across four key dimensions, each contributing uniquely to the discourse on student entrepreneurship in India.
-Perspective
-Expert Opinions
-Stories
-Student Startup Journeys
-Insights
-Research-Based Contributions
-Cases
-Real-World Startup Scenarios
-Explore
-Cloud
-Perspectives
-At the heart of GUESSS Cloud is Perspective—a series of concise, experience-driven opinion pieces authored by entrepreneurship educators, entrepreneurs, policymakers, mentors, and startup ecosystem enablers. These articles highlight specific theoretical or practical dilemmas, decision-making challenges, or policy issues relevant to the student entrepreneurship ecosystem. They aim to stimulate thought and dialogue on enabling student-led ventures in India.
-Dr. Aparna Rao
-August 27, 2025
-Transform Classroom into Venture Space, Students into Entrepreneurs: Insights from a Pedagogical Experiment
-In this article, Prof. Aparna Rao shares a powerful classroom experiment where MBA students read and sold Gandhi’s autobiography, managing real-world sales, logistics, and marketing. The project fostered entrepreneurial thinking, teamwork, and self-efficacy, demonstrating how experiential learning can effectively transform students into entrepreneurs....
-Read more
-Neha Jaswal
-June 2, 2025
-Understanding Team Dynamics in Student Startups
-Neha Jaswal highlights the often-overlooked challenge of team dynamics in student startups, revealing how early enthusiasm gives way to instability—and why building aligned, committed teams is crucial for venture success....
-Dr. Hari Babu
-What’s Holding Back Student Entrepreneurs? A Closer Look at the Tech-First Trap
-Hari Babu underscores the tech-first mindset of students that often leads to creating solutions in search of a problem, emphasizing the need for a user-first approach in entrepreneurship....
-See More Perspectives
-Stories bring alive the entrepreneurial journeys of student founders, both current and recently graduated.  Through candid interviews and narratives, this section normalizes the challenges and uncertainties of entrepreneurship and shares student-centric solutions to overcome them.  The goal is to inspire more students to start their first ventures while still in college.
-Javeed Dar
-May 28, 2025
-Two Episodes That Changed the Way I Think About Student Entrepreneurship
-As a first-year PhD scholar, I entered the world of research with a mind full of questions and curiosity. I knew I wanted...
-See More Stories
-Insights offer short, research-backed articles that explore emerging trends, challenges, and strategies in student entrepreneurship. Authored by faculty members and doctoral researchers, these pieces present academic viewpoints grounded in theoretical frameworks and empirical research, helping readers better understand the evolving student entrepreneurship landscape.
-Oshin Goel
-June 3, 2025
-Seven Ideas for Designing and Delivering Effective FDPs
-October 14, 2024
-Why GUESSS India? Igniting the Entrepreneurial Spirit of Indian Students
-October 10, 2024
-Indian Students and the Entrepreneurial Spirit
-hello
-

data/guesssindia_about.txt

@@ -1,79 +0,0 @@
-
-What is
-GUESSS
-The Global University Entrepreneurial Spirit Students’ Survey (GUESSS) is an international research project that aims to understand and analyze the entrepreneurial intentions and activities of students across the globe. Established in 2003, GUESSS is coordinated by the University of St. Gallen and the University of Bern in Switzerland. It has grown to include participation from 57 countries in 2023, providing valuable insights into the entrepreneurial mindset of students globally. The ninth round for Global GUESSS Survey in 2023 received 226,718 responses from 57 countries.
-What Is
-GUESSS INDIA
-GUESSS India is the largest research initiative of its kind in the country, conducting a comprehensive survey of students across Indian higher educational institutions. This biennial project examines the entrepreneurial mindset, intentions, and activities of students, with the goal of generating actionable insights for student entrepreneurs, ecosystem enablers, and policymakers. 2023 marked the maiden GUESSS India Survey covering 13896 students across 1298 institutions across 31 states/UTs of India.
-Our
-Vision
-GUESSS India aspires to be the leading research initiative focused on exploring and promoting student entrepreneurship in India, contributing to the country’s economic growth and innovation ecosystem.
-Mission
-Our mission is to understand the entrepreneurial mindset and career aspirations of Indian students, supporting the next generation of change-makers as they shape their future careers.
-Objectives
-This GUESSS survey is conducted across Indian higher educational institutions, capturing a diverse range of students from various academic disciplines and levels of education. The survey aims to achieve the following objectives:
-image
-To generate actionable insights for aspiring student entrepreneurs, enablers, and policymakers to foster a vibrant student entrepreneurship culture within Indian higher educational institutions.
-To assess the aspirations and motivations of Indian students toward entrepreneurship.
-To analyze the evolving career intentions of Indian students in relation to entrepreneurship.
-To evaluate students' perceptions of the entrepreneurial culture and available support at their universities.
-Global
-GUESSS, or the Global University Entrepreneurial Spirit Students’ Survey, is a comprehensive research initiative established in 2003. It aims to analyze the entrepreneurial intentions and activities of students globally. Coordinated by teams from the University of Bern and the University of St. Gallen in Switzerland, GUESSS has expanded significantly over the years, involving 57 national teams and gathering over 226,718 responses worldwide in its latest iteration.
-The project employs a web-based anonymous survey to explore various dimensions of student entrepreneurship, including career choices, entrepreneurial intentions, and the socio-demographic profiles of students. The theoretical foundation of GUESSS is based on the Theory of Planned Behavior, which connects attitudes, subjective norms, and perceived behavioral control to entrepreneurial intentions. By incorporating factors such as university environment and family influence, GUESSS provides valuable insights into the dynamics of student entrepreneurship across different cultural contexts.
-For Academic Research Publications visit:
-GUESSS Academic Publications
-India Team
-Dr. Puran Singh
-Linkedin
-Country Delegate, GUESSS India
-GUESSS India is led by Prof. Puran Singh at IIT Mandi, who serves as the Country Head. He is Associate Professor of Entrepreneurship and Finance at the School of Management at IIT Mandi. He is ex-Director Incubation and the founding Faculty Incharge of IIT Mandi Catalyst, an emerging technology business incubator in the Himalayan Region.
-He has served on the Governing body of ISBA. He is also a member of CII’s Northern Region Committee on Entrepreneurship.
-Rajeev Kumar
-Regional convenor GUESSS India ( EAST)
-Rajeev Kumar has over nine years of experience in the startup and innovation ecosystem, specializing in incubation, policy engagement, and energy management. He leads startup initiatives at Siksha ‘O’ Anusandhan University, Bhubaneswar, connecting grassroots entrepreneurs with global opportunities. Earlier, he served at the Atal Innovation Mission, NITI Aayog, and worked in the Prime Minister’s Office on technology and governance.
-A finalist at MIT Policy Hackathon 2023, he holds certifications from Harvard Business School, ISB, and Oxford. As a mentor for NITI Aayog, MeitY, and Startup Odisha programs, he supports founders. His journey reflects resilience, rising from rural roots to national leadership.
-Dr. Aparna Rao
-Regional Convenor, GUESSS INDIA (West)
-Dr. Aparna Rao is an Associate Professor at NMIMS Navi Mumbai and Director of Sricone Consulting Pvt. Ltd. With over three decades of experience in academia and entrepreneurship, she is an author, advisor, and startup mentor. A certified entrepreneurship educator, Dr. Rao has mentored numerous startups through leading platforms like IIT Bombay and  Start-up India. Her work spans education, innovation, and community entrepreneurship, making her a trusted voice in guiding emerging entrepreneurs and fostering impactful ventures.
-Dr. B.L. Lakshmi Meera
-Regional Convenor, GUESSS INDIA (South)
-Dr. Meera is a catalyst for innovation and entrepreneurship with over two decades of experience spanning technology, business, and research. She has been instrumental in designing and leading programs that nurture sustainable entrepreneurial ecosystems and formulate transformative policies for academia, industry, and government. Currently, she spearheads innovation initiatives at Forge, driving collaborative platforms that unite students, researchers, and institutions to scale innovation and entrepreneurship across India.
-Dharmender Yadav
-Head of Survey
-Dharmender K Yadav is a doctoral candidate at the School of Management at Indian Institute of Technology Mandi. His research interests include student entrepreneurship, entrepreneurship education, and geography of entrepreneurship. He has a Master’s Degree from Banaras Hindu University and an MPhil from the Delhi School of Economics.
-Gautam Mishra
-Head of Data
-Gautam is researching in the area of entrepreneurial personality traits. He is a B. Com. and M. Com from Guru Ghasidas Vishwavidyalaya, Bilaspur and also an MPhil with a gold medal from Dr. C. V. Raman University. He is an entrepreneur himself and also has teaching experience as visiting faculty at the Atal Bihari Vajpayee University, Bilaspur.
-Javeed Dar
-Head of Operations
-Javeed is researching the embeddedness of entrepreneurial development, from intention formation to actualization. He holds a Masters in Craft Management, Design, and Entrepreneurship from the Craft Development Institute, Srinagar. He is Young Awardee by the Governor of Jammu Kashmir, leading youth peace initiatives in Kashmir. He regularly writes columns on national and international platforms.
-Oshin Goel
-Head of Sponsorship
-Oshin is currently researching in the area of Entrepreneurship education with specific focus on pedagogies. She runs her own venture by the name of Vibrant Dots which provides activites and games based learnings in leaderhsip, team skills and selfdevelopment. The training programmes are conducted for corporate professionals as well as college and school students. She is an alumna of the second batch of IPM, IIM Indore. She has also been a visiting faculty as well an online tutor in the area of management.
-Prerak Sharma
-Head of Strategy
-Prerak is pursuing MBA-DS & AI at IIT Mandi. He brings a sharp strategic mindset and a passion for creative problem-solving to GUESSS India. Known for his agility and openness to learning, Prerak thrives in dynamic environments where critical thinking is key. He is deeply motivated by helping turn others’ visions into reality, believing that true satisfaction lies in enabling impactful ideas to take shape. With a blend of analytical insight and innovative drive, he plays a pivotal role in shaping the strategic direction of the project.
-Vishwmitra Shrivastava
-Creative Director
-GUESSS India
-Faculty Fellow
-Simran Sodhi
-Assistant Professor, IMT Gaziabad
-Ramesh Bapra
-Associate Professor, Shaheed Sukhdev College of Business Studies, University of Delhi
-Dr. Toral Shah
-Asst Professor, NMIMS Mumbai
-Prof. Rama Venkatachalam
-Professor, St. Mira’s college for Girls, Pune
-Dr. Moirangthem Momocha Singh
-Dean Student Welfare & Chairman HMC, Associate Professor
-GUESSS India Team
-Be our partner
-Contact us
-Address
-School of Management, North Campus, IIT Mandi, Kamand, Distt. Mandi H.P. 175005
-Email
-support@guesssindia.in
-editorial@guesssindia.in
-Subscribe to GUESSS India
-

data/guesssindia_colaborate.txt

@@ -1,64 +0,0 @@
-What is guesss india
-GUESSS India is the official Indian chapter of the GUESSS Global project, which spans 50+ countries, providing an international platform for collaboration and impact. GUESSS India is the largest research initiative on student entrepreneurship in the country, dedicated to understanding the entrepreneurial mindset of students and enabling venture creation during their academic journey.
-Since its inaugural survey in 2023, GUESSS India has gained significant attention from students, entrepreneurs, government stakeholders, and the media.
-image
-Students with a demonstrated interest in entrepreneurship and/or leadership, particularly those who have taken up significant responsibilities in their institute or in student-led clubs, especially E-Cells.
-Individuals who have worked on innovation, R&D, or product development projects and are passionate about turning ideas into impact.
-Students actively pursuing a startup idea or exploring the entrepreneurial path with a clear orientation toward venture creation.
-We invite prospective partners and sponsors to join us in a mutually rewarding collaboration aimed at empowering the next generation of student entrepreneurs.
-How to Contribute to GUESSS 2025
-Survey
-We are inviting faculty members and entrepreneurship enablers to serve as institutional anchors for the GUESSS India 2025 Survey. As an anchor, you will play a crucial role in:
-Disseminating the web-based survey among students in your institution and nearby colleges/universities.
-Encouraging student participation to ensure meaningful and diverse representation in this national-level research initiative.
-If you are passionate about advancing student entrepreneurship and wish to contribute to a globally recognized project, we would love to hear from you.
-Write to us at:
-editorial@guesssindia.in
-Join us in shaping the future of student entrepreneurship in India.
-GUESSS Cloud is a knowledge repository dedicated to advancing conversations around student entrepreneurship in India. We invite faculty members, entrepreneurship enablers, and entrepreneurs to contribute short articles based on their experiences and insights.
-We welcome contributions across four key dimensions:
-Perspective
-Opinion pieces on student entrepreneurship
-Stories
-Real-life narratives of student entrepreneurs
-Insights
-Reflections from teaching, mentoring, or literature
-Cases
-Classroom cases on student ventures
-If you have taught entrepreneurship, mentored student startups, worked on entrepreneurship policy, or conducted relevant research, we would love to feature your voice.
-To contribute, write to us at:
-Be part of shaping the student entrepreneurship discourse in India.
-Take me to GUESSS Cloud
-Become an Institutional Partner
-GUESSS India invites educational institutions and entrepreneurship support organizations to partner with us in shaping a vibrant student entrepreneurship ecosystem across the country.
-As an institutional partner, you can contribute in several impactful ways:
-Facilitate the GUESSS Survey at your institution or across a network of institutions.
-Enable access to students and faculty for research-oriented interactions and data collection.
-Leverage your resources or network to support GUESSS India initiatives and outreach.
-Host GUESSS-related events such as workshops, panel discussions, or report launches on your campus.
-Explore innovative collaborations that promote entrepreneurial thinking among students.
-We are open to creative partnerships that align with our shared vision of empowering student entrepreneurs and advancing entrepreneurship research in India.
-To explore collaboration, contact us at:
-support@guesssindia.in
-Become an Sponsor
-GUESSS India is a research-driven initiative committed to building a robust knowledge hub for student entrepreneurship. While the project is powered by a dedicated team of researchers, advisors, and ecosystem enablers who contribute voluntarily, several programmatic activities require financial and in-kind support.
-We invite philanthropic foundations, entrepreneurship support organizations, government bodies, and corporate entities to partner with us as sponsors. Your support will help us scale our impact, enable nationwide outreach, and contribute to a research initiative that fosters both social and economic development.
-To express interest in sponsoring GUESSS India, write to us at:
-Download Brochure
-Faculty Fellow Program
-The GUESSS India Faculty Fellows Program invites faculty members from Indian higher education institutions who are passionate about entrepreneurship, innovation, and student development to join a national movement. Faculty Fellows act as key enablers of the GUESSS India mission to strengthen the culture of entrepreneurship in Indian campuses through research, engagement, and knowledge dissemination.
-This program is part of the Global University Entrepreneurial Spirit Students’ Survey (GUESSS) initiative, conducted in over 50 countries, and is led in India by Dr. Puran Singh (IIT Mandi).
-For more information or to discuss collaboration opportunities, please contact Dr. Puran Singh, Country Delegate, GUESSS India.
-Email:
-puran@guesssindia.in
-Learn More
-GUESSS India Fellowship Program
-The GUESSS India Entrepreneur Fellowship provides a platform to talented students/budding startups to entrepreneurially lead and build sub-initiatives within GUESSS India. It is an opportunity for students/aspiring entrepreneurs to practice entrepreneurship and gain rich learnings, while contributing to GUESSS India’s mission.
-The applicants must have a growth mindset, focus on execution, ability to learn on the go, and entrepreneurial grit. Early stage entrepreneurs are most welcome to apply for this fellowship program if their business offering aligns with the proposed roles. These roles are flexible – fellows can work onsite/remotely/full time/part time.
-Become a Student Campus Ambassador
-Student Campus Ambassadors (CAs) are the vital link between GUESSS India and aspiring student entrepreneurs across the country. As last-mile enablers, they lead the implementation of the GUESSS Survey on their campuses, helping us capture diverse perspectives from across India.
-If you’re a student currently enrolled in a higher education institution in India and are excited to play a leadership role in a national research initiative, we encourage you to apply.
-Visit the
-Campus Ambassador page
-to learn more and stay updated on application calls.
-

data/guesssindia_home.txt

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-GUESSS India – Exploring Student Entrepreneurship Nationwide
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-Where Ideas Ignite and Changemakers Emerge
-The GUESSS India Podcast, hosted by Dr. Puran Singh and Prerak Sharma, dives into the real stories behind India’s next generation of entrepreneurs. From students daring to dream to educators and enablers shaping innovation, each episode uncovers what it truly takes to build with purpose. This isn’t just about business—it’s about curiosity, courage, and the conversations that spark change.
-Latest Episode
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-2023 Report
-The maiden effort to survey Indian students' Entrepreneurial Spirit
-This report marks a significant milestone in our journey to understand and foster student entrepreneurship in India.
-33%
-Indian Students in process of starting up.​
-4.8%
-Indian Students already running an active startup.
-14%
-Indian Students planning to Startup after graduation.
-Why GUESSS India?
-The primary goal of GUESSS India is to explore and understand the entrepreneurial intentions, attitudes, and behaviours of Indian students. This survey is conducted across the Indian higher educational institutions, encompassing a diverse range of students from various academic disciplines and educational levels.
-Foster entrepreneurship among Indian students by knowledge and resources for growth
-Create a knowledge hub to help aspiring student entrepreneurs take their first step toward starting a venture
-Assess the entrepreneurial spirit of Indian students through in-depth research initiatives
-Message from the Country Delegate –
-Dr. Puran Singh
-Country Delegate, GUESSS India
-GUESSS India, the country chapter of the Global University Entrepreneurial Spirit Students’ Survey, is dedicated to advancing student entrepreneurship through research, surveys, and knowledge sharing. Our mission is to capture the spirit, aspirations, and challenges of student entrepreneurs while providing valuable insights for educators, policymakers, and industry leaders. We aim to build an inclusive ecosystem that fosters entrepreneurial thinking and action among students. With the support of students, faculty, partners, and collaborators, we strive to strengthen India’s entrepreneurial landscape and shape the future of its next generation of innovators.
-A knowledge hub for Student Entrepreneurship
-See more
-Dr. Aparna Rao
-August 27, 2025
-Perspective
-Transform Classroom into Venture Space, Students into Entrepreneurs: Insights from a Pedagogical Experiment
-In this article, Prof. Aparna Rao shares a powerful classroom experiment where MBA students read and sold Gandhi’s autobiography, managing real-world sales, logistics, and marketing. The project fostered entrepreneurial thinking, teamwork, and self-efficacy, demonstrating how experiential learning can effectively transform students into entrepreneurs....
-Read more
-Neha Jaswal
-June 2, 2025
-Understanding Team Dynamics in Student Startups
-Neha Jaswal highlights the often-overlooked challenge of team dynamics in student startups, revealing how early enthusiasm gives way to instability—and why building aligned, committed teams is crucial for venture success....
-Dr. Hari Babu
-What’s Holding Back Student Entrepreneurs? A Closer Look at the Tech-First Trap
-Hari Babu underscores the tech-first mindset of students that often leads to creating solutions in search of a problem, emphasizing the need for a user-first approach in entrepreneurship....
-Take me to GUESSS Cloud
-Campus Ambassador Program
-Discover the Entrepreneur in You
-The GUESSS India Campus Ambassador Program is live! It is a unique opportunity for students to develop leadership skills, get entrepreneurial exposure and connect with a vibrant community of changemakers.
-Lead, Learn, and Inspire
-For students in Indian higher educational institutions
-Incentives, Certificates, and Recognition
-Frequently Asked Questions
-What is GUESSS India?
-The GUESSS India is a comprehensive survey on student entrepreneurship across India, conducted as part of the Global University Entrepreneurial Spirit Students’ Survey (GUESSS) initiative. It provides insights into the entrepreneurial intentions, activities, and perceptions of Indian students, benchmarking them against global peers.
-How often is the GUESSS survey conducted?
-The GUESSS survey is conducted biennially (every two years), allowing for longitudinal analysis to track changes in entrepreneurial intentions and activities over time. The next round of the GUESSS India Survey is scheduled for 2025, providing opportunities to observe trends and developments in student entrepreneurship.
-What is GUESSS Global
-GUESSS (Global University Entrepreneurial Spirit Students Survey) is a biennial global research project initiated by the University of St. Gallen, Switzerland, in 2003. It aims to understand entrepreneurial intent, behavior, and influencing factors among students worldwide. In 2023, 57 countries participated in the survey, collecting data from more than 300,000 students.
-What is GUESSS India Cloud
-GUESSS Cloud is a dedicated knowledge repository addressing key issues relevant to student entrepreneurship in India. It serves as a platform to generate knowledge that inspires entrepreneurial action, equipping students with insights, research, and expert opinions.
-How many students participated in the GUESSS India 2023 Survey?
-The GUESSS India 2023 Survey received responses from 13,896 students across 1298 higher education institutions in India, making it one of the most comprehensive studies on student entrepreneurship in the country.
-How was the GUESSS India 2023 Survey conducted?
-The GUESSS India 2023 Survey was conducted using an online questionnaire distributed to students across 156 higher education institutions in India. The survey covered a wide range of questions aimed at understanding students’ career intentions, entrepreneurial activities, and perceptions of their university’s entrepreneurship climate.
-What types of institutions were included in the survey?
-The survey primarily targeted the Top 100 Institutions from the NIRF 2023 Innovation Category and 88 Centrally Funded Technical Institutions (CFTIs). Additionally, several other higher educational institutions were included in the survey. Overall, students enrolled in 1298 Indian institutions provided their responses for the survey. The coverage includes universities, technical institutes, colleges, and other higher education establishments, ensuring a diverse representation of students from various academic backgrounds.
-What methodology was used for data collection?
-The survey utilized an online questionnaire distributed via institutional networks, social media channels, and strategic partners who had direct communication with Indian students. A network of on campus Campus-Ambassadors was leveraged by the survey team. The questionnaire consisted of a mix of multiple-choice questions, and Likert-scale rating questions to capture the data.
-How is the distinction between nascent and active entrepreneurs made in the survey?
-Students were classified as nascent entrepreneurs if they were in the process of starting a venture but had not yet generated consistent revenue for more than three months. Active entrepreneurs are those whose ventures have moved beyond the nascent stage and have been operational long enough to generate revenue and/or pay wages for at least three months.
-How does the GUESSS India 2023 Report ensure representative data?
-The survey’s sample includes students from a diverse range of academic institutions, regions, and fields of study, ensuring that the data reflects the variety of experiences within India’s student population. The inclusion of both undergraduate and postgraduate students, across different types of institutions, helps provide a broad and representative dataset.
-How does the GUESSS India 2023 Report contribute to understanding the Indian startup ecosystem?
-The report provides a detailed analysis of student entrepreneurial aspirations, highlighting opportunities and challenges in nurturing the next generation of entrepreneurs in India. It helps universities, incubators, policymakers, and investors understand key trends and areas where more support is needed to turn entrepreneurial intent into successful ventures.
-How does India compare to other countries in the GUESSS survey?
-India ranks highly in terms of entrepreneurial intent and nascent venture activity among top startup economies. However, it lags behind its global peers, such as the US and Germany, in terms of active ventures – students running revenue-generating businesses. This reflects a strong entrepreneurial pipeline but also indicates the need for enhanced support to bridge the gap between intent and execution.
-Why is the GUESSS India 2023 Report important for universities and educators?
-The report highlights the crucial role universities play in fostering entrepreneurship among students. It reveals that 63% of student entrepreneurs receive university support, and students rate the university entrepreneurship climate in India as highly positive (4.7/7). The findings offer universities a roadmap for enhancing their entrepreneurship curricula, programs, and incubation facilities to better support student ventures.
-What impact does the GUESSS India 2023 Report have on the future of India’s startup ecosystem?
-The report demonstrates the vast potential of India’s student entrepreneurs to contribute to the country’s startup ecosystem. With nearly one-third of students aspiring to become entrepreneurs within five years, the findings highlight the need for continued investment in education, incubation, and policy support to cultivate the next generation of successful founders.
-How can the media and stakeholders access the full GUESSS India 2023 Report?
-The full report will be available for download following the official launch at ISBAcon 2024 in Hyderabad on October 18, 2024. For more information or to get a copy of the report, please visit
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data/guesssindia_survey.txt

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-GUESSS India 2025 – Student Entrepreneurship Survey Insights
-Skip to content
-About us
-GUESSS Survey
-Survey 2025
-Survey 2023
-GUESS SURVEY 25 Live Dashboard
-GUESSS Cloud
-Campus Ambassadors
-Collaborate
-GUESSS India Survey LIVE
-GUESSS India 2025 Survey
-Live Dashboard
-Update
-Survey Last Date Extended • New Date: 19 December 2025
-LIVE
-26176+
-Responses
-and counting
-These responses are being collected by
-from institutions across the country.
-Each response reflects active participation and outreach by our network of ambassadors representing
-colleges nationwide
-Campus Ambassador
-Leaderboard
-Team Alpha
-Team Bravo
-Team Charlie
-Team Delta
-Team Echo
-Team Gamma
-Team Hawks
-Team Ibiza
-🏆 Team Alpha - Top 10 Campus Ambassadors
-Shruthilaya Suresh
-Hindusthan College of Engineering and Technology
-CA-015
-(417 responses)
-K.S.Suriyan
-KPR Institute of Engineering and Technology
-CA-086
-(351 responses)
-Satish Chandra Pamarthi
-Koneru Lakshmaiah Education Foundation
-CA-081
-(200 responses)
-Dharmender
-Indian Institute of Technology Mandi
-CA-500
-(176 responses)
-vivek kumar
-University of Hyderabad
-CA-118
-(126 responses)
-Twinkal Soni
-National Institute of Technology Kurukshetra
-CA-127
-(120 responses)
-Tanmay raj
-Kalinga Institute of Industrial Technology
-CA-218
-(113 responses)
-Manvendra Singh
-Banaras Hindu University
-CA-128
-(104 responses)
-Siddharth
-Parul University
-CA-053
-ANUP
-Sant Longowal Institute of Engineering and Technology
-CA-061
-(103 responses)
-Total Team Responses:
-2506
-🏆 Team Bravo - Top 10 Campus Ambassadors
-Raghunatha T
-Indian Institute of Technology Delhi
-CA-094
-(449 responses)
-SHAIK GOUSE KAREEM
-CA-227
-(312 responses)
-Om Ahuja
-Chandigarh Engineering College Mohali
-CA-001
-(268 responses)
-Ujjwal Chopra
-Dr. Y.S. Parmar University of Horticulture and Forestry
-CA-141
-(245 responses)
-K Karishma
-CA-222
-(222 responses)
-Parvathy C S
-CA-196
-(186 responses)
-Rabina Dayal
-CA-149
-(168 responses)
-Vivek Ranjan Sahoo
-Siksha 'O' Anusandhan
-CA-108
-(151 responses)
-Arti Ashiwal
-CA-225
-(131 responses)
-VIVEK MAANJU
-Lovely Professional University
-CA-049
-(109 responses)
-3235
-🏆 Team Charlie - Top 10 Campus Ambassadors
-Prathik AD
-Reva University
-CA-211
-(1609 responses)
-Shubham Kumar
-Central University of Rajasthan
-CA-154
-(183 responses)
-Hemant Malawat
-CA-097
-(140 responses)
-MUTHUVEL MUKESH K
-M.Kumarasamy College of Engineering
-CA-125
-(137 responses)
-Subrata Sahu
-Jaypee Institute of Information Technology
-CA-372
-(87 responses)
-Aditya Sonwane
-Shivaji University
-CA-155
-(62 responses)
-Vindula Deepthi Naga Suharsini
-Vignan's Institute of Information Technology
-CA-033
-(55 responses)
-Sanjana Vijaykumar Angadi
-CA-199
-(51 responses)
-Elzeeta Antony
-Nirmala College Muvattupuzha
-CA-093
-(40 responses)
-Aditya Kumar Mishra
-Amity University Jharkhand
-CA-045
-(36 responses)
-2643
-🏆 Team Delta - Top 10 Campus Ambassadors
-Saran R K
-Kumaraguru College of Technology
-CA-366
-(604 responses)
-Sibasish Padhihari
-Centurion University of Technology and Management
-CA-172
-(559 responses)
-Basu Chatterjee
-College of Engineering & Technology Bhubaneswar
-CA-175
-(256 responses)
-Sahaya Adlin Queen S
-Loyola College
-CA-232
-(167 responses)
-Deepu SureshKumar maury
-Fergusson College
-CA-056
-(158 responses)
-P.T.BALAJI
-PSNA College of Engineering and Technology Dindigul
-CA-044
-(142 responses)
-Moturu Monish
-CA-189
-Ruchit dedaniya
-International Management Institute Bhubaneswar
-CA-355
-Suganth S
-Sri Krishna College of Technology
-CA-166
-Karthik R
-Panimalar Engineering College
-CA-245
-(119 responses)
-3150
-🏆 Team Echo - Top 10 Respondents
-Khushal
-Jawaharlal Nehru Government Engineering College, Himachal Pradesh
-CA-317
-(102 responses)
-Jai singh
-Sardar Patel University, Mandi, Himachal Pradesh
-CA-260
-(81 responses)
-RAUSHAN PRAKASH
-Oriental Institute of Science and Technology, Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh
-CA-274
-(75 responses)
-Divya Sorathiya
-Rajasthan School of Arts, Jaipur, Rajasthan
-CA-320
-(49 responses)
-chandana kota
-Kommuri Pratap Reddy Institute of Technology, Hyderabad, Telangana
-CA-359
-(42 responses)
-Atharva suresh dhawale
-Sanjivani University, Kopargaon, Maharashtra
-CA-280
-(41 responses)
-Palkin Jyoti Gautam
-Amity University, Mohali, Punjab
-CA-316
-(33 responses)
-deepak kumar
-Rajkiya Engineering College, Kannauj, Uttar Pradesh
-CA-289
-(30 responses)
-Vishal Guleria
-CA-258
-Mansi Satish Gupta
-Institute of Chemical Technology, Odisha Campus, Bhubaneswar
-CA-354
-Total Team Echo Responses:
-693
-🏆 Team Gamma - Top 10 Respondents
-Neha Jaswal
-CA-901
-(880 responses)
-Nikhil Ojha
-Indian Institute of Technology Patna
-CA-412
-(132 responses)
-Dhanishtha
-Indian Institute of Science Education and Research Pune
-CA-675
-Sparsh Malik
-Chitkara University
-CA-584
-Gautam Mishra
-Kalinga University Raipur
-CA-1000
-(130 responses)
-Muskan
-CA-479
-(115 responses)
-Rakesh mahakhuda
-CA-578
-Avinash B Lagdhir
-CA-514
-Yashvardhan Singh Shaktawat
-CA-672
-(48 responses)
-Aruna Sundari S
-Tata Institute of Social Sciences
-CA-426
-(35 responses)
-Total Team G Responses:
-2156
-🏆 Team Hawks - Top 10 Respondents
-Akshit Rai Kakkar
-Kurukshetra University
-CA-525
-(317 responses)
-Shravan Kumar Yadav
-Vinayaka Mission's Research Foundation
-CA-642
-(221 responses)
-Syed Daniya Begum
-St. Ann's College for Women
-CA-626
-BEERAKA MOHAN MANI SHANKAR
-Aditya Engineering College
-CA-570
-(118 responses)
-Saladi Manikyamba Harshitha
-Pandit Dwarka Prasad Mishra Indian Institute of Information Technology Design and Manufacturing Jabalpur
-CA-459
-(26 responses)
-Prerna Digamber Bhadane
-MGM Institute of Health Sciences Navi Mumbai
-CA-424
-(20 responses)
-Vittal B Patil
-CA-468
-(9 responses)
-Bhanu meena
-Indian Institute of Technology Dharwad
-CA-400
-(7 responses)
-Ajay kushwah
-Devi Ahilya Vishwavidyalaya
-CA-548
-SIDDHARTH GADHAVE
-Army Institute of Technology
-CA-574
-(5 responses)
-Total Team H Responses:
-894
-🏆 Team Ibiza - Top 10 Respondents
-MUVENDHIRAN S
-The Erode College of Pharmacy and Research, Tamil Nadu
-CA-445
-(1055 responses)
-A.Dio Snowin
-Fisheries College and Research Institute, Thoothukudi, Tamil Nadu
-CA-666
-(954 responses)
-Harshvardhan Anandrao Deshmukh
-VIT Bhopal University, Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh
-CA-484
-(280 responses)
-Shardul Rajendra Parihar
-Nutan Maharashtra Institute of Engineering and Technology, Talegaon, Maharashtra
-CA-419
-Rahul Singh Rathore
-Guru Ghasidas Vishwavidyalaya, Chhattisgarh
-CA-715
-(116 responses)
-Aanchal SureshKumar Maury
-JSPM's Jayawant Institute of Management Studies, Maharashtra
-CA-476
-(72 responses)
-A kushitha
-Apollo University, Andhra Pradesh
-CA-466
-Mehr Chand Mahajan DAV College for Women, Chandigarh
-CA-1002
-(52 responses)
-sakharapalli sarath chandra kumar
-Rajiv Gandhi University of Knowledge Technologies, Andhra Pradesh
-CA-519
-(47 responses)
-Aaryan Sodhi
-CA-900
-(45 responses)
-Total Team I Responses:
-3734
-Region-wise Responses
-Select Region
-Southern
-Northern
-Western
-Central
-Eastern
-North Eastern
-State-wise Responses
-Select State
-State
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-West Bengal
-Andaman & Nicobar
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-Ladakh
-Lakshadweep
-Other
-iPad
-Lucky Draw Eligibility
-Your efforts matter — and we’re celebrating them!
-Campus Ambassadors who have achieved
-75+ verified responses
-are now
-officially qualified
-for the
-GUESSS India iPad Lucky Draw
-Huge reward… for your huge hustle.
-Tap below to see the champions who made it!
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-School of Management, North Campus, IIT Mandi, Kamand, Distt. Mandi H.P. 175005
-Email
-support@guesssindia.in
-editorial@guesssindia.in
-Subscribe to GUESSS India
-First Name
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-Subscribe
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-Apply for Campus Ambassador Program [For Indian Students]
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-Quick questions:
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data/guesssindia_survey2023.txt

@@ -1,73 +0,0 @@
-GUESSS India 2023 – Student Entrepreneurship Survey Report
-Skip to content
-About us
-GUESSS Survey
-Survey 2025
-Survey 2023
-GUESS SURVEY 25 Live Dashboard
-GUESSS Cloud
-Campus Ambassadors
-Collaborate
-GUESSS India Survey LIVE
-GUESSS India 2023 Survey
-The GUESSS India 2023 Survey marked the inaugural edition of a nationwide study on student entrepreneurship, conducted under the Global University Entrepreneurial Spirit Students’ Survey (GUESSS) initiative. This comprehensive survey offered valuable insights into the entrepreneurial intentions, activities, and perceptions of Indian students—benchmarking them against global peers.
-The survey gathered responses from 13,896 students across 1,298 higher education institutions, making it the largest and most comprehensive study on student entrepreneurship in India to date.
-The survey sample focused primarily on Institutions ranked in the Top 100 of NIRF Innovation Rankings, and
-Centrally Funded Technical Institutions (CFTIs).
-In addition, it included a diverse mix of other higher education institutions, covering a broad spectrum of geographies, academic disciplines, and degree levels. The inclusion of both undergraduate and postgraduate students ensured a robust and representative dataset, capturing the variety of experiences and aspirations among India’s student population.
-GUESSS INDIA 2023 Team, IIT MANDI
-GUESSS INDIA 2023 Report Launch at ISBACON 2024, Hyderabad
-GUESSS India
-2023 Survey Report
-Inside the minds of Indian students
-The GUESSS India 2023 Survey Report was officially launched at ISBAcon 2024 in Hyderabad on October 18, 2024. It offers an in-depth analysis of student entrepreneurial aspirations, shedding light on both the opportunities and challenges in fostering the next generation of entrepreneurs in India. The report reveals the immense potential of student entrepreneurs to contribute meaningfully to the country’s growing startup ecosystem.
-Notably, nearly one-third of students surveyed expressed a desire to start their own ventures within the next five years—an encouraging indicator of India’s entrepreneurial future. These findings underscore the urgent need for sustained investment in entrepreneurship education, campus-based incubation, and supportive policy frameworks to nurture and empower future founders.
-Download Report
-2023 Insights
-The GUESSS India 2023 Survey Report presents several compelling insights for stakeholders in the student entrepreneurship ecosystem in India. Key findings include:
-image
-38% of Indian students are engaged in some stage of venture creation. with 33% in the nascent phase and 4.8% actively running revenue-generating businesses.
-While 70% of students plan to pursue employment immediately after graduation, this number drops to 52% over the next five years, with 31% aspiring to become entrepreneurs.
-Indian students exhibit the highest entrepreneurial intent globally, scoring 4.6 on a 7-point scale, compared to the global average of 3.7.
-63% of student entrepreneurs report receiving some form of university support for their entrepreneurial activities.
-Download Highlights PDF
-Media Coverage
-The report was widely covered in print, digital, and social media. GUESSS 2023 reached over 10 million students through an email campaign and engaged over 20,000 students through the survey. The social media campaign for GUESSS report release gained over 1 lac impressions within 3 months.
-Visit Press Room
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-Useful Links
-Send a Message
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-Press Room
-Resources
-GUESSS India Team
-Be our partner
-Contact us
-Address
-School of Management, North Campus, IIT Mandi, Kamand, Distt. Mandi H.P. 175005
-Email
-support@guesssindia.in
-editorial@guesssindia.in
-Subscribe to GUESSS India
-First Name
-Last Name
-Subscribe
-Copyright © 2025 GUESSS INDIA
-Powered by
-Upstack Media
-Apply for Campus Ambassador Program [For Indian Students]
-Apply for Campus Ambassador Program
-Apply Now
-Know how to Win iPad Air 🎁?
-GUESSS India Assistant
-Online
-Quick questions:
-What is GUESSS India?
-Who runs GUESSS India?
-Campus Ambassador benefits
-How can I participate?
-Contact information

data/guesssindia_survey2025.txt

@@ -1,78 +0,0 @@
-GUESSS India 2025 – Student Entrepreneurship Survey Insights
-Skip to content
-About us
-GUESSS Survey
-Survey 2025
-Survey 2023
-GUESS SURVEY 25 Live Dashboard
-GUESSS Cloud
-Campus Ambassadors
-Collaborate
-GUESSS India Survey LIVE
-GUESSS India 2025 Survey
-What Is
-GUESSS India
-Survey?
-The GUESSS India Survey is a web-based, anonymous national survey designed to explore the entrepreneurial aspirations, career intentions, and socio-demographic characteristics of students enrolled in Indian higher education institutions.
-Grounded in the Theory of Planned Behavior, the survey investigates how students’ attitudes, subjective norms, and perceived behavioral control influence their entrepreneurial intentions and career choices. It provides deep insights into the mindset and motivations of the next generation of entrepreneurs.
-By capturing data across a wide spectrum of institutions and disciplines, the GUESSS India Survey contributes to evidence-based research, supports entrepreneurship education, and informs policy and institutional strategies to foster student entrepreneurship in India.
-2025 Survey
-The GUESSS India 2025 Survey aims to engage over 30,000 students from higher education institutions across India, making it one of the most expansive studies on student entrepreneurship in the country.
-Scheduled to run from September to December 2025, this year’s survey will feature broader outreach and increased student participation, strengthening the national conversation around entrepreneurship in academia.
-The survey is entirely web-based and will be distributed to students through institutional partners and an active network of Campus Ambassadors—student leaders who facilitate outreach and engagement at their respective colleges and universities.
-Career Choice Intention
-University Entrepreneurship Climate
-Entrepreneurship Education
-Entrepreneurship Action
-Entrepreneurship Intent
-Entrepreneurship Traits
-GUESSS 2025
-Roadmap
-The GUESSS India 2025 team has set ambitious goals to deepen awareness and drive greater participation from students across India. With a strong focus on outreach, engagement, and actionable insights, the 2025 edition of the survey will be executed in five key phases.
-Expected Outcomes of Survey
-GUESSS India 2025 aims to make a significant impact on the student entrepreneurship ecosystem in India. Through its research-driven insights and thought leadership initiatives, it aspires to become a go-to knowledge platform for student entrepreneurs, entrepreneurship enablers, and policymakers alike.
-By capturing the aspirations, challenges, and actions of India’s emerging entrepreneurs, GUESSS 2025 will help inform academic strategies, ecosystem development, and evidence-based policymaking, strengthening the foundation for future innovation and venture creation.
-Campus Ambassador Program
-Discover the Entrepreneur in You
-The GUESSS India Campus Ambassador Program is live! It is a unique opportunity for students to develop leadership skills, get entrepreneurial exposure and connect with a vibrant community of changemakers.
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data/guesssindia_survey2025dashboard.txt

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-GUESSS India 2025 – Student Entrepreneurship Survey Insights
-Skip to content
-About us
-GUESSS Survey
-Survey 2025
-Survey 2023
-GUESS SURVEY 25 Live Dashboard
-GUESSS Cloud
-Campus Ambassadors
-Collaborate
-GUESSS India Survey LIVE
-GUESSS India 2025 Survey
-Live Dashboard
-Update
-Survey Last Date Extended • New Date: 19 December 2025
-LIVE
-26176+
-Responses
-and counting
-These responses are being collected by
-from institutions across the country.
-Each response reflects active participation and outreach by our network of ambassadors representing
-colleges nationwide
-Campus Ambassador
-Leaderboard
-Team Alpha
-Team Bravo
-Team Charlie
-Team Delta
-Team Echo
-Team Gamma
-Team Hawks
-Team Ibiza
-🏆 Team Alpha - Top 10 Campus Ambassadors
-Shruthilaya Suresh
-Hindusthan College of Engineering and Technology
-CA-015
-(417 responses)
-K.S.Suriyan
-KPR Institute of Engineering and Technology
-CA-086
-(351 responses)
-Satish Chandra Pamarthi
-Koneru Lakshmaiah Education Foundation
-CA-081
-(200 responses)
-Dharmender
-Indian Institute of Technology Mandi
-CA-500
-(176 responses)
-vivek kumar
-University of Hyderabad
-CA-118
-(126 responses)
-Twinkal Soni
-National Institute of Technology Kurukshetra
-CA-127
-(120 responses)
-Tanmay raj
-Kalinga Institute of Industrial Technology
-CA-218
-(113 responses)
-Manvendra Singh
-Banaras Hindu University
-CA-128
-(104 responses)
-Siddharth
-Parul University
-CA-053
-ANUP
-Sant Longowal Institute of Engineering and Technology
-CA-061
-(103 responses)
-Total Team Responses:
-2506
-🏆 Team Bravo - Top 10 Campus Ambassadors
-Raghunatha T
-Indian Institute of Technology Delhi
-CA-094
-(449 responses)
-SHAIK GOUSE KAREEM
-CA-227
-(312 responses)
-Om Ahuja
-Chandigarh Engineering College Mohali
-CA-001
-(268 responses)
-Ujjwal Chopra
-Dr. Y.S. Parmar University of Horticulture and Forestry
-CA-141
-(245 responses)
-K Karishma
-CA-222
-(222 responses)
-Parvathy C S
-CA-196
-(186 responses)
-Rabina Dayal
-CA-149
-(168 responses)
-Vivek Ranjan Sahoo
-Siksha 'O' Anusandhan
-CA-108
-(151 responses)
-Arti Ashiwal
-CA-225
-(131 responses)
-VIVEK MAANJU
-Lovely Professional University
-CA-049
-(109 responses)
-3235
-🏆 Team Charlie - Top 10 Campus Ambassadors
-Prathik AD
-Reva University
-CA-211
-(1609 responses)
-Shubham Kumar
-Central University of Rajasthan
-CA-154
-(183 responses)
-Hemant Malawat
-CA-097
-(140 responses)
-MUTHUVEL MUKESH K
-M.Kumarasamy College of Engineering
-CA-125
-(137 responses)
-Subrata Sahu
-Jaypee Institute of Information Technology
-CA-372
-(87 responses)
-Aditya Sonwane
-Shivaji University
-CA-155
-(62 responses)
-Vindula Deepthi Naga Suharsini
-Vignan's Institute of Information Technology
-CA-033
-(55 responses)
-Sanjana Vijaykumar Angadi
-CA-199
-(51 responses)
-Elzeeta Antony
-Nirmala College Muvattupuzha
-CA-093
-(40 responses)
-Aditya Kumar Mishra
-Amity University Jharkhand
-CA-045
-(36 responses)
-2643
-🏆 Team Delta - Top 10 Campus Ambassadors
-Saran R K
-Kumaraguru College of Technology
-CA-366
-(604 responses)
-Sibasish Padhihari
-Centurion University of Technology and Management
-CA-172
-(559 responses)
-Basu Chatterjee
-College of Engineering & Technology Bhubaneswar
-CA-175
-(256 responses)
-Sahaya Adlin Queen S
-Loyola College
-CA-232
-(167 responses)
-Deepu SureshKumar maury
-Fergusson College
-CA-056
-(158 responses)
-P.T.BALAJI
-PSNA College of Engineering and Technology Dindigul
-CA-044
-(142 responses)
-Moturu Monish
-CA-189
-Ruchit dedaniya
-International Management Institute Bhubaneswar
-CA-355
-Suganth S
-Sri Krishna College of Technology
-CA-166
-Karthik R
-Panimalar Engineering College
-CA-245
-(119 responses)
-3150
-🏆 Team Echo - Top 10 Respondents
-Khushal
-Jawaharlal Nehru Government Engineering College, Himachal Pradesh
-CA-317
-(102 responses)
-Jai singh
-Sardar Patel University, Mandi, Himachal Pradesh
-CA-260
-(81 responses)
-RAUSHAN PRAKASH
-Oriental Institute of Science and Technology, Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh
-CA-274
-(75 responses)
-Divya Sorathiya
-Rajasthan School of Arts, Jaipur, Rajasthan
-CA-320
-(49 responses)
-chandana kota
-Kommuri Pratap Reddy Institute of Technology, Hyderabad, Telangana
-CA-359
-(42 responses)
-Atharva suresh dhawale
-Sanjivani University, Kopargaon, Maharashtra
-CA-280
-(41 responses)
-Palkin Jyoti Gautam
-Amity University, Mohali, Punjab
-CA-316
-(33 responses)
-deepak kumar
-Rajkiya Engineering College, Kannauj, Uttar Pradesh
-CA-289
-(30 responses)
-Vishal Guleria
-CA-258
-Mansi Satish Gupta
-Institute of Chemical Technology, Odisha Campus, Bhubaneswar
-CA-354
-Total Team Echo Responses:
-693
-🏆 Team Gamma - Top 10 Respondents
-Neha Jaswal
-CA-901
-(880 responses)
-Nikhil Ojha
-Indian Institute of Technology Patna
-CA-412
-(132 responses)
-Dhanishtha
-Indian Institute of Science Education and Research Pune
-CA-675
-Sparsh Malik
-Chitkara University
-CA-584
-Gautam Mishra
-Kalinga University Raipur
-CA-1000
-(130 responses)
-Muskan
-CA-479
-(115 responses)
-Rakesh mahakhuda
-CA-578
-Avinash B Lagdhir
-CA-514
-Yashvardhan Singh Shaktawat
-CA-672
-(48 responses)
-Aruna Sundari S
-Tata Institute of Social Sciences
-CA-426
-(35 responses)
-Total Team G Responses:
-2156
-🏆 Team Hawks - Top 10 Respondents
-Akshit Rai Kakkar
-Kurukshetra University
-CA-525
-(317 responses)
-Shravan Kumar Yadav
-Vinayaka Mission's Research Foundation
-CA-642
-(221 responses)
-Syed Daniya Begum
-St. Ann's College for Women
-CA-626
-BEERAKA MOHAN MANI SHANKAR
-Aditya Engineering College
-CA-570
-(118 responses)
-Saladi Manikyamba Harshitha
-Pandit Dwarka Prasad Mishra Indian Institute of Information Technology Design and Manufacturing Jabalpur
-CA-459
-(26 responses)
-Prerna Digamber Bhadane
-MGM Institute of Health Sciences Navi Mumbai
-CA-424
-(20 responses)
-Vittal B Patil
-CA-468
-(9 responses)
-Bhanu meena
-Indian Institute of Technology Dharwad
-CA-400
-(7 responses)
-Ajay kushwah
-Devi Ahilya Vishwavidyalaya
-CA-548
-SIDDHARTH GADHAVE
-Army Institute of Technology
-CA-574
-(5 responses)
-Total Team H Responses:
-894
-🏆 Team Ibiza - Top 10 Respondents
-MUVENDHIRAN S
-The Erode College of Pharmacy and Research, Tamil Nadu
-CA-445
-(1055 responses)
-A.Dio Snowin
-Fisheries College and Research Institute, Thoothukudi, Tamil Nadu
-CA-666
-(954 responses)
-Harshvardhan Anandrao Deshmukh
-VIT Bhopal University, Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh
-CA-484
-(280 responses)
-Shardul Rajendra Parihar
-Nutan Maharashtra Institute of Engineering and Technology, Talegaon, Maharashtra
-CA-419
-Rahul Singh Rathore
-Guru Ghasidas Vishwavidyalaya, Chhattisgarh
-CA-715
-(116 responses)
-Aanchal SureshKumar Maury
-JSPM's Jayawant Institute of Management Studies, Maharashtra
-CA-476
-(72 responses)
-A kushitha
-Apollo University, Andhra Pradesh
-CA-466
-Mehr Chand Mahajan DAV College for Women, Chandigarh
-CA-1002
-(52 responses)
-sakharapalli sarath chandra kumar
-Rajiv Gandhi University of Knowledge Technologies, Andhra Pradesh
-CA-519
-(47 responses)
-Aaryan Sodhi
-CA-900
-(45 responses)
-Total Team I Responses:
-3734
-Region-wise Responses
-Select Region
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-Western
-Central
-Eastern
-North Eastern
-State-wise Responses
-Select State
-State
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-Manipur
-Meghalaya
-Mizoram
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-Ladakh
-Lakshadweep
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-iPad
-Lucky Draw Eligibility
-Your efforts matter — and we’re celebrating them!
-Campus Ambassadors who have achieved
-75+ verified responses
-are now
-officially qualified
-for the
-GUESSS India iPad Lucky Draw
-Huge reward… for your huge hustle.
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-Address
-School of Management, North Campus, IIT Mandi, Kamand, Distt. Mandi H.P. 175005
-Email
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-Subscribe to GUESSS India
-First Name
-Last Name
-Subscribe
-Copyright © 2025 GUESSS INDIA
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-Apply for Campus Ambassador Program [For Indian Students]
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-Online
-Quick questions:
-What is GUESSS India?
-Who runs GUESSS India?
-Campus Ambassador benefits
-How can I participate?
-Contact information

data/ndian Students and the.txt

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-ndian Students and the Entrepreneurial Spirit
-
-Javeed Dar
-
-    October 10, 2024	
-
-Indian Students and the Entrepreneurial Spirit: Key Takeaways from the GUESSS India 2023 Report	
-
-    “As the startup ecosystem in India continues to thrive, the latest GUESSS India 2023 report has revealed a telling insight: Indian students, once largely focused on traditional employment, are now increasingly setting their sights on entrepreneurship as a long-term career choice. The survey offers an illuminating look at this shift, providing policymakers, educational institutions, and the corporate world with crucial data to guide the future of India’s workforce”.
-
-At the heart of every nation’s progress lies the potential of its youth. India’s youth is on the cusp of an entrepreneurial revolution. As India positions itself to become the world’s third-largest economy, the career aspirations of its students are shifting. The GUESSS India Survey report 2023 offers a fascinating window into this transformation, it examines these transformations in an interesting way and explains how though a large number of students continue to seek traditional employment after graduating, a growing number are embracing world of entrepreneurship. This isn’t just a trend; it’s a movement.
-
-The report led by Prof Puran Singh, at Indian institute of technology Mandi, provides valuable insights into the entrepreneurial intention, attitude and behaviour of Indian students enrolled in higher education institutions, emphasizing that students in India are not only envisioning bigger goals but also actively strategizing on how to transform those aspirations into actual achievements. For policymakers, educators, and business leaders, this presents a critical juncture that demands prompt action to nurture and uphold this entrepreneurial spirit.
-A Shift in Career Aspirations
-
-The GUESSS India 2023 survey reveals a striking shift in the career intentions of Indian students. Immediately after graduation, a significant 69.7% of students plan to enter traditional employment, but five years later, that number drops dramatically to 52.2%. In contrast, the desire to start entrepreneurial ventures more than doubles, from 14% at graduation to 31.4% five years down the line.
-
-This data presents a remarkable shift: while students may initially seek the stability of a traditional job, their long-term aspirations are increasingly entrepreneurial. The draw of entrepreneurship, where innovation meets independence, is becoming more irresistible to India’s youth as they envision themselves creating something new and lasting.
-The Entrepreneurial Tide is Rising
-
-The proportion of students intending to become entrepreneurs grows significantly over time. Students with family business background also demand a higher preference for entrepreneurship , With 15.6% intending to start their own ventures upon graduation, compared to 12.8% of students without a business background. 26% of Indian students are linked to an incubation centre , indicating they have access to support services and approximately 49% of students have engaged in entrepreneurship courses higher than the global average of 41.2% .
-Global Trends, Local Insights
-
-This shift is not unique to India. Globally, the GUESSS 2023 report reveals similar trends, with 65.9% of students worldwide planning to start their careers as employees immediately after graduation, and 53.3% intending to remain in traditional employment five years later. Meanwhile, the proportion of students planning to become founders globally jumps from 15.7% to 30% over the same period. However, India’s numbers tell a particularly compelling story. The entrepreneurial inclination of Indian students is rapidly catching up with global figures, driven by a unique combination of policy support, cultural shifts, and the country’s own booming start-up ecosystem.
-A Supportive Environment for Aspiring Entrepreneurs
-
-Several factors contribute to the entrepreneurial ambitions of students in India. The country’s startup ecosystem is thriving, bolstered by government efforts to foster innovation through programs such as Start-up India and the New Education Policy (NEP), which advocates for entrepreneurship within higher education. Additionally, educational initiatives that incorporate hands-on entrepreneurial training into their curricula, along with increasing media coverage of successful start-ups, are motivating a new wave of individuals to explore the possibility of establishing their own businesses. Such innitiatives are playing pivotal role in making entrepreneurship a mainstream aspiration, bringing start-up culture into Indian living rooms and motivating students to think big. These influences, coupled with India’s recent growth as a global start-up hub with more than 100 unicorns, have provided a solid foundation for students to see entrepreneurship as a viable, even desirable, career path.
-Beyond the Classroom: What Policymakers Can Do
-
-The GUESSS India 2023 report is not just a snapshot of student aspirations—it is a call to action for policymakers and educational institutions. To maintain and fuel this entrepreneurial drive, specific interventions are needed:
-
-    Enhanced Entrepreneurial Education: The growing entrepreneurial aspirations among students highlight the importance of integrating entrepreneurship education and practical experiences into academic curricula. That means , Universities and colleges need to focus on hands-on learning, offering start-up incubation centers, mentoring programs, and collaboration with industry leaders. Entrepreneurship must be an integral part of the education system, allowing students to experiment and innovate.
-    Cultivating Entrepreneurial Spirit : There needs to be a cultural shift in how society views entrepreneurship. While shows like Shark Tank India have helped, we need more initiatives that celebrate and support entrepreneurship as a legitimate, respected career option, rather than a risky alternative to traditional employment. India must persist it’s efforts through awareness programes, bootcamps , Competitions to motivate students to consider entrepreneurship as viable career path.
-    A Simplified Regulatory Framework: Making it easier to start and operate a business in India should be a priority. Simplified tax laws, easier access to licenses, and reduced bureaucratic red tape can help more young entrepreneurs take the plunge.
-
-Conclusion: A New Generation of Innovators
-
-The GUESSS India 2023 report highlights a significant evolution in the career aspirations of Indian students. While many still begin their professional journey in traditional employment, the lure of entrepreneurship is growing stronger. Policymakers, educators, and the private sector must come together to support this transition, creating an ecosystem where students can easily move from corporate roles to entrepreneurial ventures. India’s future is entrepreneurial, and this generation of students is ready to lead the charge. By harnessing their passion, creativity, and drive, India has the potential to become not just a global economic powerhouse but a leader in innovation and entrepreneurial excellence. The entrepreneurial spirit of India’s youth is not just a trend—it’s a movement that could define the nation’s future.
-