Go North Ventures CEO and founder Sanjay Jesrani, who is also an active member of Indian Angle Network, said start-ups were the next big thing to happen in the country and it was time to make use of the opportunity that they provide. He was, however, quick to add that only five per cent of the start-ups were surviving.
Delivering a lecture at TEDx held at GITAM University Hyderabad campus here on Thursday, Mr. Sanjay said that investing in start-ups was a risky experiment and suggested students that they start their career by dealing with a problem rather than a solution.
“Do something unique, do it better and do it differently. Form a team of two or three members for a start-up. Do not have any illusion that technology is everything. Its role is only 20 per cent and it is only a facilitator,” he said, adding that at least 10 to 15 years of commitment was required to sustain a new start-up.
He said that investors were ready to invest in start-ups if they were convinced about the growth involved in it. He suggested the students to read ‘failure stories’ of start-ups and understand the reasons why they failed.
Mr. Sanjay quoted the success of Flipkart, which rose with an investment of $10 million in 2008 to $16 Billion in 2015 and Uber taxi service that now stands with a market value of $65 billon.
Venky, a famous photographer from Karimnagar who made a mark in his field at the national level, said only hard work and sincere commitment would yield result and one should be patient enough till he/she reaches the goal. He asked the students to always have Plan B – some alternative to bank on if their experiment fails.
“I could have been a priest like my father if I had failed as a photographer,” he said answering a query from a student.
P.B. Sajan, architect and Joint Director of COSTFORD, said a large number of people were still living in slum areas. “About 17.2 per cent of urban families are living in slums. The number was much higher – 35.6 per cent – in the united Andhra Pradesh,” he said, adding that it was only 1.5 per cent in Kerala.
Ankur Thakuria, business development manager, talked about his travel to various countries and Thushar Lall about his passion for music.
