Vikash Samota

Most of the good early stage VCs in India now have visibility of at least 1-2 IPOs/year in their portfolio for the next 3 years. Understandably, this is becoming a barometer for investor-partner selection by the best founders at the early stages.

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Some much needed positive news for the Indian gaming industry… IGPDA launches to support Make-in-India Gaming IP for the world! Proud to be a founding member of the newly launched Indian Game Publishers and Developers Association (IGPDA) — a united platform to amplify Indian creativity in gaming and take original IP to global audiences. This launch comes at a pivotal moment, with the Online Gaming Bill, 2025 laying the groundwork for structured growth and actively supporting social, casual, and cultural games. The focus is clear: build games that celebrate India’s stories, talent, and imagination. 🎮 From WCC to Ludo King, Indus, FAU-G, and more — Indian developers are ready to shape the future of gaming from India, for the world. IGPDA’s first proposed state partner is Maharashtra, with a vision to make Mumbai the global games hub. We’re just getting started. 🌐 Learn more: igpda.com Vishal Gondal #gaming #India

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Dream11's exit from their ₹358 crore BCCI sponsorship deal - with BCCI waiving penalties due to government regulations - reminded me of a costly lesson I learned during the early IPL mobile rights days. Back then, we had acquired IPL Mobile Digital rights and partnered with Nokia as our exclusive mobile partner. Everything was going well until legislation banned VAS services overnight. When we rushed to review contracts, I discovered a painful reality - Nokia had ironclad protection clauses for regulatory changes, but I had no such mirror provisions with my licensor. Nokia walked away clean. I was left holding the bag. The asymmetry in contract terms taught me that in regulated industries, you're only as protected as your weakest contractual link. Key takeaways for founders: 🔹 Mirror Your Risk Clauses - If you're giving downstream partners regulatory exit clauses, ensure you have identical protection upstream 🔹 Legislative Force Majeure - In sectors like gaming, telecom, or fintech, standard force majeure isn't enough. You need specific regulatory change provisions 🔹 Don't Bank on Goodwill - Dream11 got lucky with BCCI's understanding. Most contracts won't be this forgiving 🔹 Risk Cascade Analysis - Map how regulatory risks flow through your entire contract chain. One weak link can sink the ship The Dream11-BCCI situation shows institutional maturity in handling unforeseen regulatory challenges. But as founders, we can't rely on such understanding. Build your contracts assuming the worst-case scenario - because sometimes it happens. #Startups #Contracts #RiskManagement #IPL #Entrepreneurship #LessonsLearned Kalaari Capital Dream11

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Snapdeal co-founders Kunal Bahl and Rohit Bansal, through their early-stage fund Titan Capital, had invested just ₹57 lakh in Urban Company during its seed stage. That small cheque has now turned into a ₹110 Cr exit, marking an extraordinary 200X return. The exit came after Titan Capital sold its stake to Dharana Capital (Vy Capital’s arm), right before Urban Company’s IPO — which went on to be oversubscribed 103X. This makes it one of the most successful early startup bets in India’s ecosystem, highlighting the power of patient, high-conviction angel investing. #TitanCapital #UrbanCompany #ROI #IPO #StartupUpdates #AngelInvesting #VC #Fundraise #Exit #Profit #India via Startupro.in

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PVR is struggling as it does not produce the content it shows As Bollywood movie quality plummets, all streamers that produce content are benefitting PVR's competitive advantage of being a distributor for all has become a huge disadvantage Distributors who produce are winning

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Agilitas x Virat Kohli partnership is one of the masterstroke deals I have seen in recent times. Virat invests 40 CR in Agilitas for a 1.94% stake, putting Agilitas’s valuation around 2000 CR. 📈 In turn, Agilitas acquires one8world, making Virat a co-founder and shareholder. They now get two very important growth levers: ⬇️ 1. A powerful manufacturing (via Mochiko Shoes - a 600 CR+ footwear brand that Agilitas acquired in 2008 ), 2. India’s biggest athlete — exclusively aligned. Easily becomes a 4000 CR revenue brand in the next 5 years. Footwear + retail scale requires capital — but this partnership compresses customer acquisition, product cycles, and brand-building like few others. Even Virat said in his podcast with Abhishek Ganguly, the co-founder of Agilitas that, “I didn’t want a brand deal… I wanted to build something that outlives me.” And Abhishek said something even beautiful - “An ambition to build from India but be globally relevant.” This isn’t marketing. This is legacy building with shared skin in the game. And that is how startups work - shared ambition with one goal (to make the company big) and food (read stake) in the table for everyone! A company that can be built in the long term with culture, capital, and conviction aligned. This might be the first time in India, where an athlete joins hands with a sport company to re-imagine and build the sport ecosystem of India - truly revolutionalising the game with a clear vision. 🙌

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This is big win for Indian consumer tech ecosystem. OEMs can now develop Android TV OS version and not forced to include Google Play store and other Google services in India. Google will no longer be the default operating system or app store for Android TVs running in India. Play store will be optional from now. More power to the consumer. #opensource https://lnkd.in/e5ptfq6N

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Will this brand hit a growth ceiling soon? Is current growth based on strong brand/product For founders and even VCs evaluating 50 cr plus revenue brands who don’t have an offline presence yet and want to look at marketing metrics beyond LTV/CAC to answer these questions 10 metrics that can help 1. Total Media Spends as percentage of revenue This is a very hard metric without any assumptions and difficult to manipulate Plot Monthly Data for total Media spends across platforms ( Amazon, FB, Google etc) as a percentage of total Net E-commerce Revenue( Marketplaces, D2C etc) If this remains constant/reduces as the brand scales, it is a huge positive If this increases, needs double clicking 2. Advertising driven Sales At early stages, brands rely on pure performance marketing to drive sales. But this reliance should come down as the brand scales. Plot Monthly Data for percentage of Sales on e-commerce platforms directly driven by Ecom Ads, and percentage of sales on D2C directly driven by paid media If both remain constant/reduces as the brand scales, it is a positive 3. Organic Visits and Brand Searches For consumer brands, it is important to reduce their reliance on performance marketing by working on organic acquisition channels, improving brand awareness and good of word of mouth Tracking Organic Visits and brand search volumes on marketplaces and search engines are good ways to understand this If awareness improves, brand searches always improve. Both on marketplaces as well as google 4. Amazon Reviews and Ratings At scale, Amazon Reviews and Ratings are very difficult to game and gives a very true picture of quality and customer experience Rather than overall ratings and reviews, plot the monthly data of ratings Often early adopters are more considerate and rate new products better But if the monthly ratings remain consistently high with growing scale, it means the products are really good. And has a wider PMF beyond early adopters 5. Conversion Rates Conversion rates trends tell a lot about product-price-market-fit, and about the future scope of growth Look at monthly trends on conversion rates. With scale, conversion rates should go up on both Amazon and D2C A lowering conversion rate often means the in-market audience/core affinity TG is getting exhausted It is a big red flag if it happens as, it often indicates that future growth by paid media is going to be difficult and expensive 6. Repeats Repeat purchases are often the difference between the life and death for CPG brands with AOV on the lower side Look at monthly data on M1 and M3 repeats depending on the consumption cycle If these numbers keep on improving/keeps constant even when the brand moves and scales beyond its early adopters and core affinity TG, it is a big positive as it indicates product market fit at a bigger scale The remaining points are in the blogpost the link to which is in the first comment

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Big news for the streaming industry. The latest Ormax OTT Audience Report 2025 shows India now has 601.2 million OTT users — that’s about 41% of the population. Out of this, 148.2 million are paid subscribers. More Indians than ever before are ready to pay for content. What really stood out: Connected TVs are exploding. 129.2 million people now watch OTT on bigger screens — that’s an 87% jump in just one year. Around 35–40 million homes now have access. India, once a mobile-first OTT market, is clearly shifting to the living room experience. Shailesh Kapoor, Founder & CEO of Ormax Media, put it well: “This year, the sharp rise in Connected TV audiences is particularly striking for a market long regarded as mobile-first.” Why audiences love OTT The rise of OTT isn’t just about technology — it’s about experience. People love it because: Freedom → Watch what you want, when you want. Personalization → Shows that fit your taste, not one-size-fits-all TV. Regional connect → Stories in local languages feel closer to home. Binge factor → Entire seasons ready in one go. Ad-free premium → Smooth, uninterrupted viewing. Affordable → Unlimited content for the price of a dinner out. In short, OTT gives control back to the audience — and that’s why adoption keeps growing. What’s driving growth? Cheaper broadband Smart TVs in every price range Demand for regional & vernacular content India’s OTT audience grew 10% this year (slower than 2023-24, but still huge). The diversity across age, gender, class, and geography makes it clear: OTT is no longer niche — it’s mass entertainment. Where’s the opportunity? Content creators → Vernacular stories, micro-dramas, thrillers, family shows — the audience is waiting. With TV screens back in play, longer formats are also making a comeback. Film & media production houses → Platforms need volume + variety. With Connected TVs, the bar for quality is higher, and demand for cinematic production is only rising. Media & advertisers → 60 crore OTT users mean sharper targeting, while 14 crore paid users open doors for hybrid models — ads + subscriptions + micropayments. My take OTT is no longer “just mobile entertainment.” It’s becoming India’s new television. The big question: who will dominate? The established giants — or the new-age players betting big on vernacular OTT and micro-dramas? One thing’s certain: this is the sunrise decade for OTT in India. Like OTT a decade ago, today’s early movers — creators, production houses, and entrepreneurs — will define tomorrow’s giants. If you’re launching your own OTT platform, Pls connect DM me or call now at +91 7017235483, or visit us at www.mogiio.com Source: Ormax Media Brian Mac Mahon Ashutosh Kumar - Jha #OTT #ContentCreators #VernacularOTT #Media #MicroDrama

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Excited to share this News, 888vc, Our Early-stage venture capital firm based in Bangalore, India has launched platfrom Gro8 backed by ₹175 crore (US$ 20M) fund to back startups focused on AI, deep tech, Enterprise SAAS and sustainability over the next three years. 💡 Key Focus Areas: 🔹 Average ticket size of ₹2–4 crores 🔹 Sector Agnostic Angel fund 🔹 Focus on globally scalable solutions 🔹 Launch of GRO8 angel platform for cross-border funding, mentorship & market access 📌 If you’re building in AI, deep-tech, or sustainability with ambitions to grow globally, let’s talk. Read more here: https://lnkd.in/gtUcYkrx #888vc #gro8 #venturecapital #angelinvestments #startups

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Everyone talks infra in fintech, infra in healthcare... But who’s building infra for brands? Dixon Technologies India Limited is. 85% rev from just assembling phones — no brand, just backend. Exporting 10–12M phones in FY26. 62M by FY27. From OEM to ODM — ₹1,500Cr laptops, 48% fridge OEM share. ₹9K Cr capex → ₹16K Cr FCF. Only 4% EBITDA, but fat 44% RoCE. Brands burn margins on CAC, Dixon quietly builds them back :) https://lnkd.in/gryMU9_f

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Pleased to announce that Karekeba Ventures, among others, has invested in Stylework SaaS-based co-working/managed workspace aggregator Stylework on Wednesday announced the closure of Rs 30-crore Pre-Series B funding, which is planned to be deployed towards technology enhancement, domestic and international market expansion, and hiring key leadership personnel. Of the total funding, the company had achieved the first close of Rs 10-crore led by Equentis Angel Fund last month, with participation from Karekeba ventures /Cogniphy AIF Fund alongside continued subscriptions from Lets Venture Fund, MoneyVyapaar, HNIs and other strategic investors, Stylework said. Karekeba Ventures Kshitiz Anand Vishal Nikumbh

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