While there have been successes and challenges in the path of many women developers in the country, the next decade seems uncertain. Two well-regarded professionals, Sairee Chahal, founder of the Sheroes app, and Gauri Angrish, known for starting the Caredose app, share their advice for budding developers, who want to make it big. “You have to be persistent with a great idea... and you have to push it along with serious momentum.” says Chahal.
Since 1999 she has seen some major turning points. “I’ve seen how the tech space has responded to the financial crises, which has certainly affected funding for startups — especially women-run ones. The ecosystem now, though, is ready but the resources aren’t stacked as high.”
Ask Angrish if she would have had the same opportunities as she does now, five years ago and she notes a “positive evolution for women in tech.” However, she adds, “I don’t think things have changed drastically enough to [have made] a difference in resources between now and five years ago.”
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Angrish, who was working in big pharma before starting Caredose, knew of the extent of the problem of medicine non-adherence. “What got me excited about trying to solve this problem was not only the sheer patient numbers, but also the fact that the problem impacted each and every entity in the healthcare spectrum — from pharmaceutical manufacturers to health insurance companies; from providers to public health systems.”
She then quit her corporate job to open a brick and mortar pharmacy in Delhi to get a tangible idea of the problems patients, as well as those in the supply chain, face. The research then culminated in Caredose, an app which helps people keep a track of medicine dosages every day.
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“I think the most impactful change has been in education. A lot of universities are building programmes that encourage women to explore the world of technology. They also carve out opportunities with companies to give students early exposure and therefore interest in tech,” says Angrish.
She says that while it has been great to see “the positive evolution towards a more equality driven mindset, we still have a long way to go.”
But Chahal says that women are naturally inclined towards community building. “The next few years will see a huge growth for collaboration. Technologists often find opportunity for this when they use the same coding language. This is how the community mobilises for stronger knowledge transfer,” she adds.
Within the reality that few start-ups even make it, things are “truly more difficult for women,” Chahal says. Mental and emotional strength are important because “rejection is just a part of the game,” she concludes.
Both SHEROES and Caredose are available on App Store and Google Play.