Emails have become a critical form of communication. I remember when people said instant messaging would kill email. I was sceptical about writing off the longer form of communication. Emails continue to thrive today, and two years ago, it was an email from Anubhav Arora that affirmed my belief in them.

My friendship with Sparsh Gupta has probably resembled that of nature creating a beach. While I don’t have centuries to erode a mountainside away, Sparsh and I have been terraforming our relationship for the better part of a decade. Maybe even more.

Some people you meet at networking events and forget by the time you reach the buffet line. And then there is Kishore Natarajan. I first bumped into him at an event in the US in 2023. His company, Hyperverge, had just crossed $2 million in revenue from India, and he was beginning to think seriously […]

Some investors write cheques, while others transform ecosystems. Shailendra Singh belongs firmly in the second category.

“You know what, you should speak to Suren?” she said. I hadn’t yet met Surendran Balchandran (or Suren, as everyone knows him). But when Prukalpa vouches for someone, you don’t question it. Almost the same day, I pinged her asking for an introduction. What followed was one of the most surprising experiences of my life. He was quiet in early meetings—attending, taking notes, nodding along. But then came event day, and it was like watching a submarine surface. Suren was on top of everything, executing flawlessly, spotting failure points, and quietly putting processes in place to avoid them.

“I am in,” said Shashank Kumar, co-founder of Razorpay, leaning back on his chair. I hadn’t completed my pitch, but Shashank’s mind was made up. There wasn’t much to say, so I pocketed my iPhone, stood up, thanked him, and left. He had just agreed to sign a not-insignificant cheque for our efforts. 

Her Twitter persona was fierce, fearless, and formidable. She pulled no punches. I had found a line to connect with her. But I wasn’t convinced. I wanted to know more. So, I reached further into the ecosystem.

Before I move on, I want to introduce you to Mayank, founder of EPYC and one of the brightest minds I’ve met. Deeply rooted in the open-source and no-code world, Mayank brings a rare mix of hustle, heart, and humility.

It’s not often that I stumble across someone who is a natural giver. During these sessions, he would never hold back — that honesty and transparency hooked founders, who would speak about moments from the session for days. At that moment, I saw a genius in Kalyan… He reminds me of the famous Hindi proverb, ‘A tree laden with fruit bends low.’ Despite being a successful founder, Kalyan’s humility and empathy are visible