Indian startup founders are impressing everyone with their skills and landing on the prestigious list of self-made entrepreneurs. Kiranakart might be a short-lived venture, but it created a buzz with Zepto, a 10-minute grocery delivery app that swiftly climbed to unicorn status this year. At just 21, its founder, Kaivalya Vohra, has become the youngest entrant on IDFC First Bank & Hurun India’s prestigious list of Top 200 self-made entrepreneurs of the millennium. Zepto, boasting an equity value of ₹11,645 crore as of September’s end, adds significant weight to Vohra’s achievement.
Hot on Vohra’s heels is 25-year-old Shashvat Nakrani, co-founder of BharatPe, who, along with Ashneer Grover, steered the fintech company to a valuation surpassing ₹24,000 crores. Nakrani, who left college at IIT, is still pushing BharatPe ahead, showing how determined young entrepreneurs can be in the startup world. Unlike other lists where business leaders are predominantly older, the average age on this roster is a youthful 44 years.
Breaking gender barriers, the youngest woman on the list is 35-year-old Ghazal Alagh, co-founder of Mamaearth. The company belongs to Honasa Consumer, which recently went public. Sharing the limelight is Saumya Singh Rathore, co-founder of the social gaming app WinZo, also at 35.
Falguni Nayar, who started Nykaa when she was 50, is now the leading self-made woman entrepreneur. The company is worth more than ₹50,000 crores and this shows how successful women can be in starting and running businesses.
While Radhakishan Damani, founder of D-Mart, holds the title of the top self-made entrepreneur, the majority of the top 10 most valuable companies on the list are startups. Sachin Bansal and Binny Bansal of Flipkart claim the second spot, with Deepinder Goyal of Zomato securing the third position. A whopping 68 unicorns made it onto the list, highlighting how lively and dynamic the Indian startup scene is.
