The Indian startup ecosystem has touched the proverbial tipping point – high-quality entrepreneurs, good ideas and the very important funding ecosystem in the form of angels, seed capital, growth capital and PEs. Yet, for all the excitement and focus in this space, the true ‘unicorn’ seems elusive. Where is the Indian original big idea - the AirBnB, Uber or Amazon for that matter? What is missing in India, which the West, and especially the Valley seems to have an abundance of? Let’s explore...
The Indian Unicorn
“I don’t think we have as many really disruptive startups in India as we do overseas.” Ratan Tata’s view recently reported across key business dailies set the Indian startup world abuzz. While some talked about the successes of our very own unicorns, others pointed out that most Indian startups were simple geo-clones of successful global companies. Some talked about the scale achieved by the Indian startups, with references to the recently concluded ‘Big Billion Sale’, while others questioned the global appeal of their businesses.
