Hello Everyone,
Its a bright Monday morning and Good morning.
I believe it has been more than three years since we as a group started thinking of startups, and wanting to help them, and at that point in time, showcasing some of the best startups India has produced – even amidst some of the adverse conditions for startup entrepeneurs – has been the way we have been doing our deed. Proto.in has build a fabulous reputation over the years, a 2000+ active and vibrant community, our presence felt in more than 13 cities across the country – and all of this built at a (monetary) cost that is extremely hard to agree. The passion and commitment of the team and YOUR suport is what has made it all happen.
We have a 120+ active volunteer group, and an extremely strong core team, and I do realize that none of them are really going to step up to the place unless, I give them the option and the chance to. Proto.in has to live on, and with the way the community adores it, I believe it will.
But here will be the true test of it. I will be stepping back into the background starting in the next few days, leaving the things in the hands of the core team, and you. Ravi Shankar, and Sudhir Syal will be the key champions who will be leading this forward. And they are set on stone that Proto.in Pune is going to rock. And I believe them.
I would request all of you personally to extend your support to them to make this happen.
As for me, I am starting to think, with the outburst of showcase events (TiE Summits, E-Summits, NASSCOM’s Emerge 50, NEN’s Hottest Startups, HeadStart etc), that we are all probably looking at one directon while there is a larger gap to fill. I am not anymore convinced that a showcase event alone is what will build the ecosystem, we have to go beyond that and support, nurture, and built a backbone first. The initiatives we’ve been playing with – Startup Lunch, The Chat etc, are giving us proof for that. I will be taking the time to perhaps visit a few places, and some of the other ecosystems, to understand, and get a slightly different perspective towards this mission that we started off with, a thousand days ago.
Thanks again for all your support, and I once again request that you contribute to making the startups win in India.
Regards,
Vijay Anand
Advisor, Proto.in
I warmly welcome this move and regard it as the sign of a true visionary and also the only way to achieve scale.
Vijay,
Here’s wishing you all the very best in your endevors to help nurture startups and learn what’s going on in various other ecosystems.
Best wishes and kind regards,
Praval