Inside AppsForBharat: Building a Category-Creator in $60B Faith Market with Prashant Sachan | That One Idea S04 E08

India's Next Wave of Consumption Will be Driven by Women, ft. Swetha, Neha & Navneet | TOI S04E11

Key moments in the episode: (00:00): Highlights (02:15): Neha's childhood growing up in a joint Marwari family in Bombay (04:54): Swetha grew up playing hockey for U16 Karnataka (07:40): Navneet's childhood growing up in a Punjabi, male-dominated society (12:56): The 4Ms in a woman's life - Marriage, Mobility, Motherhood, Medical Care (and Menopause) (16:35): Sisters in Sweat started with overflowing love on WhatsApp group (19:12): Is it FinTech? No, it is FemTech (25:52): Engagement loops that bring women back to the sports field (30:17): Women are prolific networkers (33:20): Are women reactive in taking care of their health? (38:27): Women in Tier II+ towns are eager to join the formal workforce (44:01): Rapid-fire Q&A (48:44): An ideal coming back-to-work kit (54:44): A no-brainer product for women that doesn't exist today (56:30): The 1 thing Indian women need to do to change the status quo (58:21): What excites them about the future Relevant Links: WaterBridge Ventures: https://www.waterbridge.vc/ HerKey: https://www.herkey.com/ FemTech India: https://www.femtechindia.com/ Sisters in Sweat: https://sistersinsweat.com/ LinkedIn Profiles: Anjali Sosale: https://www.linkedin.com/in/pinkamma/ WaterBridge Ventures: www.linkedin.com/company/waterbridgeventures Neha Bagaria: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nehabagariaherkey/ HerKey: https://www.linkedin.com/company/herkeyofficial/  Navneet Kaur: https://www.linkedin.com/in/navneet-kaur-80109b227/   FemTech India: https://www.linkedin.com/company/femtechindiaorg/ Swetha Subbiah: https://www.linkedin.com/in/swethasubbiah/ Sisters in Sweat: https://www.linkedin.com/company/sistersinsweat/ You can also listen to this podcast on: YouTube: https://youtu.be/YoWJEDL7ies Disclaimer: The information in this podcast (“Content”) is solely for educational and information purposes. The content does not reflect the views or opinions of WaterBridge Ventures and/or any of its members. The content is not intended to be legal or other expert advice or services and should not be used in place of consultation with appropriate professionals. The content shall not be reproduced, distributed, shared, or relied upon in any manner whatsoever, in whole or part, without prior written permission of WaterBridge Ventures. In no event shall WaterBridge Ventures and/or any of its members be liable for any liability, loss, injury or risk which is incurred or suffered as a direct or indirect result of the use of the contents.

Lal Chand Bisu, Founder of Kuku FM, on Scaling India's Largest Audio Platform | That One Idea S04 E10

Born in a tiny village in the district of Sikar in Rajasthan, Bisu spoke only Shekhawati (a Rajasthani dialect) till Class X. He learnt Hindi during his +2, and English after he joined IIT Jodhpur. Learning a new language accompanied every His was the first student intake batch, in 2008. The institute entrusted him to set up the labs, fests, competitions and culture. Initiative and institution was ingrained in him from a very early age. Entrepreneurship for him was a natural choice. Today, Kuku is the largest audio platform in India, streaming 1.4B minutes of content every month, created by 50K+ creators in 10+ languages. Key moments in the episode: : (00:00): Highlights (01:50): Growing up amidst storytelling in Sikar, Rajasthan (06:26): Setting eyes on being the first entrepreneur from IIT Jodhpur (10:10): Latching on to audio content before it became a global rage (15:30): India does not listen to podcasts (18:57): How to build an enduring audio platform (22:02): Subscription vs micro-transactions - who wins? (26:50): Kuku's first customer was a shopkeeper, listening to Bhagavad Gita (32:30): Power users compound - hold 'em close (34:50): GenAI first, since 2022 (38:25): People are loyal to specific form factors (41:24): Scaling what matters - high-quality, original, exclusive content (44:53): Managing without a marketing team (50:12): For young founders who are raising their first VC dollars (52:27): Never give advice unless asked Relevant Links: WaterBridge Ventures: https://www.waterbridge.vc/ Kuku FM: https://kukufm.com/ LinkedIn Profiles: Anjali Sosale: https://www.linkedin.com/in/pinkamma/ WaterBridge Ventures: www.linkedin.com/company/waterbridgeventures You can also listen to this podcast on: YouTube: https://youtu.be/2GkffkDkUhc Disclaimer: The information in this podcast (“Content”) is solely for educational and information purposes. The content does not reflect the views or opinions of WaterBridge Ventures and/or any of its members. The content is not intended to be legal or other expert advice or services and should not be used in place of consultation with appropriate professionals. The content shall not be reproduced, distributed, shared, or relied upon in any manner whatsoever, in whole or part, without prior written permission of WaterBridge Ventures. In no event shall WaterBridge Ventures and/or any of its members be liable for any liability, loss, injury or risk which is incurred or suffered as a direct or indirect result of the use of the contents.

Storytelling That Beats TikTok with 2X Engagement ft. Ranjeet Singh, Co-founder of Pratilipi | That One Idea S04 E09

Born in a very small village near Rae Bareilly, Ranjeet used to read 100+ books a year. Language to him was a tool to unite minds. But millions of (non-English speaking) Indians lacked a place to read and write in their own languages with dignity, discovery, and community. Ranjeet wanted to give every storyteller a voice in their own language Today, Pratilipi has created a language-first storytelling ecosystem across formats - stories, comics, audio, proving that regional and vernacular aren’t niches anymore. Relevant Links: WaterBridge Ventures: https://www.waterbridge.vc/ Pratilipi: https://www.pratilipi.com/ LinkedIn Profiles: Ranjeet Pratap Singh: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ranjeetpsingh/ Anjali Sosale: https://www.linkedin.com/in/pinkamma/ WaterBridge Ventures: www.linkedin.com/company/waterbridgeventures You can also listen to this podcast on YouTube: https://youtu.be/sMYGvNB1K_4 Disclaimer: The information in this podcast (“Content”) is solely for educational and information purposes. The content does not reflect the views or opinions of WaterBridge Ventures and/or any of its members. The content is not intended to be legal or other expert advice or services and should not be used in place of consultation with appropriate professionals. The content shall not be reproduced, distributed, shared, or relied upon in any manner whatsoever, in whole or part, without prior written permission of WaterBridge Ventures. In no event shall WaterBridge Ventures and/or any of its members be liable for any liability, loss, injury or risk which is incurred or suffered as a direct or indirect result of the use of the contents.

Inside AppsForBharat: Building a Category-Creator in $60B Faith Market with Prashant Sachan | That One Idea S04 E08

Prashant was born in an agrarian family in a village near Kanpur. His tryst with entrepreneurship started at the age of 18, when he started a customised T-shirts business.  Prashant started AppsForBharat / Sri Mandir App in 2020, following his deep insight that Indians are culturally bound together by their faith. Yet, nothing existed in India's $60B FaithTech/Digital Devotion market that could bring them closer to their deities daily.  Today, AppsFor Bharat has 40M+ downloads, and has raised $36M+ from marquee VCs to continue penetrating this consumer category.  Key moments in the episode:  (00:00): Highlights  (01:09): The meaning of "Faith", and its importance in our lives  (05:50): Sifting through experiments to discover Sri Mandir's value proposition  (10:04): Hitting PMF with profound user love  (12:25): Why choose an unproven market as a second time founder?  (14:59): Nudges that improve engagement - Punyamudras  (19:50): Scripting monetisation: the users will tell you what they want to pay for  (27:45): Bridging the trust gap between Indians and their devotion  (32:50): Understanding how temples make money  (36:30): Being online helps temples be top of mind  (39:36): 8X more people go to Varanasi than Goa  (43:16): Attracting investors in an unproven category  Relevant Links: WaterBridge Ventures: https://www.waterbridge.vc/ AppsForBharat: https://www.appsforbharat.com/en LinkedIn Profiles: Prashant Sachan: https://www.linkedin.com/in/prashantsachan/ Anjali Sosale: https://www.linkedin.com/in/pinkamma/ WaterBridge Ventures: www.linkedin.com/company/waterbridgeventures You can also listen to this podcast on YouTube: https://youtu.be/CpYTCI7nLsc Disclaimer: The information in this podcast (“Content”) is solely for educational and information purposes. The content does not reflect the views or opinions of WaterBridge Ventures and/or any of its members. The content is not intended to be legal or other expert advice or services and should not be used in place of consultation with appropriate professionals. The content shall not be reproduced, distributed, shared, or relied upon in any manner whatsoever, in whole or part, without prior written permission of WaterBridge Ventures. In no event shall WaterBridge Ventures and/or any of its members be liable for any liability, loss, injury or risk which is incurred or suffered as a direct or indirect result of the use of the contents.

Making Learning Addictive with Seekho, India's First Edutainment OTT ft Rohit Choudhary of Seekho | That One Idea S04 E07

After graduating from IIT Kanpur, Rohit joined Toppr, where he shaped one of India’s pioneering EdTech successes. Rohit eventually joined Lal Chand Bisu, his colleague at Toppr, at Kuku FM as a Product Lead. In 2020, while in lockdown, Rohit started Seekho, which now has over 20 lakh paying subscribers, and on its way to becoming Bharat’s ‘Netflix for Learning’. Relevant Links: WaterBridge Ventures: https://www.waterbridge.vc/ Seekho: https://seekho.in/ LinkedIn Profiles: Rohit Choudhary: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rohitchoudharydm/   Anjali Sosale: https://www.linkedin.com/in/pinkamma/ WaterBridge Ventures: www.linkedin.com/company/waterbridgeventures You can also listen to this podcast on YouTube: https://youtu.be/MgQz9y2qa-s Disclaimer: The information in this podcast (“Content”) is solely for educational and information purposes. The content does not reflect the views or opinions of WaterBridge Ventures and/or any of its members. The content is not intended to be legal or other expert advice or services and should not be used in place of consultation with appropriate professionals. The content shall not be reproduced, distributed, shared, or relied upon in any manner whatsoever, in whole or part, without prior written permission of WaterBridge Ventures. In no event shall WaterBridge Ventures and/or any of its members be liable for any liability, loss, injury or risk which is incurred or suffered as a direct or indirect result of the use of the contents.