The tier II and III cities face many problems due to prevailing conditions unlike the metros, where infrastructure is good.
Hence, it is here the major chunk of ideation is happening to address the pain points and help society lead a decent life.
There is no better place than an educational institution, which is an R&D centre where various domain faculties prevail. A student who utilizes this environment to optimum levels would yield best results.
This idea to foster the right kind of ecosystem that encourages startups on campuses is the need of the hour.
Most of the accelerators and incubators restrict themselves to cater to the creamy layer of students in the metros.
However, Mumbai based MILLION MINDS, an initiative by GRAPHENE MEDIA Pvt Ltd chose a different path since its inception in 2016.
This innovate ideology of creating level playing fields for the students living away from the metros has helped the organization carve a niche in the segment.
MILLION MINDS networks the founders and mentors and organizes entrepreneurship enhancement sessions at colleges. These sessions highlight the need of entrepreneurship and suggest a third alternative for graduating students after higher education and placements.
MILLION MINDS is the brainchild of Founder & CEO – Mr. Sanjoy Chakrabarty, COO, Co-founder – Ashish Lala and Project Director – Upendra Rai. The trio share a common vision and would like to support startup ecosystem on campuses like their global counterparts.
In their own words the management reveals, “MILLIONMINDS, launched in 2016, is a startup support platform for aspiring student entrepreneurs from campuses across India, with major focus on tier II & III cities, where we believe that despite dearth of resources, there is immense potential. In our endeavor to deliver the best of the startup space at Indian campuses, we have created a collaborative ecosystem, bringing together all stakeholders of the startup arena.
Currently, MILLIONMINDS has collaborated with over 500 campuses, across more than 90 cities in the country to deliver its Entrepreneurship Program that has been effectively designed to nurture a startup dream at every step and guide the venture’s journey from ideation to execution. Few of the campuses that have collaborated with us include –
- Zeal Education Society, Pune
- Arya Group Of Colleges, Jaipur
- Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi
- Maharaja Sayajirao University, Vadodara
- Prestige Institute Of Engineering Management And Research, Indore
- Sri Sri University, Cuttack
- IIIT Bhubaneswar, Bhubaneshwar
- IIT Dhanbad, Dhanbad
- G B Pant Government Engineering College, New Delhi
- Babasaheb Ambedkar Technological University, Raigad
- Christ University, Bangalore
- Chitkara University, Patiala
The first interaction of the students with the startup world, through the program, is done through an interactive startup talk session. In “Accelerate: The Startup Talk” we invite a successful startup entrepreneur from the same city, with whose journey the audience can relate, to interact with the students and inspire them to become job creators, rather than job seekers.
The students, interested in further engaging with the startup ecosystem, are then enrolled in a comprehensive learning module, Axiom, which engages the students online and offline.
The students are given access to 50+ hours of online video course content that encapsulates 7 Modules–33 Chapters–220 Topics of Startup & Entrepreneurship knowledge shared by the Practitioners themselves – successful startup entrepreneurs and industry experts.
Once the student learns, the next step is to apply. This is made possible through “Experience-ships”, that are opportunities for students to work at startup organizations, to experience the energies of a startup, and understand how a startup business works.
At present, nearly 2000 students have registered for Axiom and are being engaged thoroughly through this learning module.
MILLIONMINDS has also conducted a pan-India startup event, under the patronage of Startup India, namely The Startup League (TSL). The event that was hosted in 17 cities in 2017-18, is a platform for students with innovative startup or product ideas to pitch and garner mentoring, funding and networking opportunities.
Over 600 idea registrations were recorded, of which 50 have qualified for the Grand Finale of TSL that would be hosted in July-August 2018.
These student teams are currently being provided with mentorship opportunities to develop their ideas into market-ready products. In the next academic year, MILLIONMINDS plans to have a grander TSL, hosting it across 50 cities and bring out the best from the Indian campuses.
TSL is not the only way students can access mentorship, funding, or incubation opportunities. Students with startup ideas or those who have begun work on their startup business can also approach MILLIONMINDS for their various purposes. MILLIONMINDS is completely dedicated towards being a strong support for budding student entrepreneurs.
Keeping in sync with our mission, MILLIONMINDS has also started creating Incubation Hubs, starting with 7 regions in Maharashtra in 2018. The mission is to reach every region and make facilities available for the young and enthusiastic minds, so that their startup dreams can soar high.
Starting with academic year 2018-19, MILLIONMINDS will also be conducting monthly Campus Adda sessions, wherein industry doyens from various sectors will be invited to interact, through online sessions, with 7000-10000 students from campuses across India. The idea is to engage these young minds in constructive conversations with individuals that they idolize.
MILLIONMINDS has also successfully launched, last month, India’s first radio show on Entrepreneurship, named Startup Charcha, through IET Group of Institutes’ Campus Radio Station. The show captures success stories of Indian startups from the founders themselves, and engages the student audience with interesting facts and insights.
The Entrepreneurship Program that is has a minimum market value of INR 85000, is delivered at every member campus by MILLIONMINDS for absolutely no cost, either to the institution nor to the students.
With its numerous initiatives, and strong network of over 550 Startup Entrepreneurs, 150 Campus Ambassadors (Campustars), and supportive organizations – IAN, SIDBI Startup Mitra, F6S, Venture Garage and the likes, MILLIONMINDS is solely committed to deliver the best of the Indian startup ecosystem at maximum campuses across the country, and foster entrepreneurial spirit among the country’s youth.”
WAY2WORLD admires such creative brains coming together on a platform to foster entrepreneurship among students. As we have been on a motto to turn the knowledge tribe into ‘JOB PROVIDERS’ rather than being ‘JOB SEEKERS.’ More such initiatives are needed across the nation for many more startups to grab the honors. With inputs from internet – RajKishan