Till a few years ago, there was a commonly cracked joke about Bangalore, "If you throw a stone anywhere in Bangalore, it is bound to hit an engineer". A few years down the line, the joke has had a slight transition. It is said that now, if you throw a stone in Bangalore, it is most likely to hit an entrepreneur".
Bangalore is indeed the startup capital of the country. Be it in terms of new startups seeing light of day, the number of incubators & accelerators, the quantum of funds raised by Bangalore based startups, the number of successful startups, the number of Unicorns, by each of these standards the city of Bangalore reigns supreme as the best city for startups in India.
The Silicon Valley of India has had more tech-startups founded since 2016 than Mumbai and Delhi combined, say official numbers. The city saw a total of 1,200 tech-startups being founded in 2018 alone and had over 7,200-7,700 registered startups by the end of 2018.
Since 2016, Bangalore based startups also raised more capital that Delhi and Mumbai based startups combined. In 2019, the StartupBlink Startup Ecosystem Ranking placed Namma Bangalore as the 11th most favorable city in the world to start a tech startup.
The foundation of Bangalore's entrepreneurial spirit was laid back in the 1940s. Post India's independence, Bangalore's first phase of growth began. Driven primarily by public policies initiated by the national government, the city was establishments of Central Public Sector Undertakings (CPSUs), industrial estates for modern small-scale industries, government-funded public R&D institutions and public & private educational institutions.
Then came the phase of growth came in the 1980s and 1990s. The most prominent step was Texas Instruments establishing its presence in the city.
Bangalore also saw the emergence of new-age startups such as Wipro and Infosys. There has been no turning back since. The city is today home to some of the most revered entrepreneurs and startups that have reshaped the Indian business landscape and have brought the country to the global map.
A city with one of the youngest populations in the country, a host of well-established higher education institutions, pleasant weather and ample opportunities, Bangalore has provided more incentives for startups to set-up shop in the city. The city provides equal opportunity to all enterprising individuals irrespective of their gender.
Bangalore is thus a leading city for women entrepreneurs as well. The current edition of Women Entrepreneur magazine shines the spotlight on a few such women entrepreneurs who have built innovative companies. Read on to know more about their inspirational entrepreneurial journey.
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