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In a recent interview, the CEO of a Gurugram-based startup said that Delhi is a better place for doing business than Bengaluru. Metrolife asked startups based in India’s Silicon Valley to weigh in on the debate.
Access to resources
Savitha Reddy is the founder of Language Station, an online language-learning platform. She says, “Easy access to investors along with an abundance of co-working spaces and incubation centres makes it easier for startups to grow here.”
Even Vaishnav C, founder of MyDearPa, an elderly care startup, feels Bengaluru offers “easy accessibility to resources”. Despite facing infrastructural issues, he says, “Bengaluru’s ecosystem offers unparalleled opportunities for networking and customer engagement.” Bengalureans are more open to trying new services and products than people in other cities, he emphasises.
State support
Prashanth D G is the co-founder of Brewed Games, an indie video game development company. “The Karnataka government has policies to benefit the AVGC-XR (animation, visual effects, gaming and comics, and extended reality) sector,” he says.
Moreover, the city’s ecosystem offers proximity to venture capitalists and platform partnerships with giant corporations such as Google and Apple.
However, he says that the city’s infrastructure is “under stress” and there is a need to create more startup hubs in India to support the entrepreneurial scene.
Huge talent pool
Insurtech startup Covrzy’s regulatory board is based in Hyderabad while the operations office is in Bengaluru. “The number of qualified candidates who apply for a job opening in Bengaluru is astounding,” says its cofounder Veera Thotta. The problem of high rentals and traffic snarls pale in comparison to the networking potential the city offers and also the talent pool it attracts, he says.
Dilip Ramesh of Thinkerbell Labs, which makes self-learning Braille device Annie, says most people are happy to move to Bengaluru and that’s a big plus for startups looking to hire good talent. He is the cofounder and CTO of the startup.
Inclusive
Ramesh wanted to start his company in Pune or Goa initially but zeroed in on Bengaluru after his college seniors gave “positive feedback about the expansive ecosystem here”.
The ecosystem is so inclusive that “even real-estate brokers were aware of what we were looking for in terms of an office space”, he adds. It also helps that the BIAL airport offers connectivity around the world, which enhances economic growth, he points out.
What happened?
In an interview with YouTuber Ishan Sharma in early October, Shantanu Deshpande, CEO of Bombay Shaving Company, claimed that Delhi is “1,000 percent” better than Bengaluru to launch a business. He said that Delhi has a “less froth, more substance” mindset.
Even Zomato’s CEO Deepinder Goyal said at a recent awards event that it is not essential to have a base in Bengaluru for entrepreneurial success.