YourStory: India’s premier destination for entrepreneurship journeys

ORF: YourStory is often described as India’s biggest and most definitive platform for startups and entrepreneur-related stories, news, resources and research reports. How did you envision this powerful idea of a new-age media house? Shradha Sharma: I have always been a strong believer in the power of stories. But when I saw early on in my career that traditional media firms only wanted to tell the stories of big brands and successful people, I felt an overwhelming need to give a voice to aspiring changemakers and entrepreneurs. That is why I started YourStory in 2008, so that we can together make people’s stories matter. So that we listen to people’s stories and create a culture of listening, valuing and learning from each other. Naturally, the stories I began telling were those of changemakers, entrepreneurs and innovators — people who wanted to change the status quo, people who had a hunger in them, a fire in their belly, an unending drive to do good, and yet very little means to do that when they started their journeys. I started by telling the stories of young doers, their dreams and hopes, and through them, inspiring so many more across the country. I remember the many naysayers at the time, who told me YourStory will not work. They told me, “Who will be interested in stories of such unknown people?” And of course, the very important question that many people from across industries had: “How will you ever make money telling such stories?” Still, I persisted. And over the past 12 years, we have told more than 100,000 stories — stories that inspire hope and innovation and ignite change. For more than a decade now I have tried to live by and find answers to these questions: How do you spread positivity in our thoughts and in our lives, when negativity is rampant and sells like hot cake? How do we make positive and inspirational storytelling a sustainable, revenue-making business model, at a time when sensational headlines and negative news are seen as the only operating models for media firms? How do you give a voice to people whose stories were never told because they were not successful enough? How do you make every story matter? These were the questions that led me to start YourStory and these are the questions in my mind and heart that I am consistently trying to live by and find answers to with YourStory. ORF: How has technology and digital media enabled your journey as a tech-entrepreneur? In your view, how are these new paradigms democratising access to entrepreneurship? SS: I believe that like everything else technology and the internet have many strengths, creating many avenues for growth and new opportunities to innovate. At the same time, this can also give rise to a new set of challenges. But if there’s one thing that technology can be credited for, it is of being an equaliser, creating opportunities for people from all walks of life to aspire and go on to do more than they could imagine in the pre-tech era. I believe I too would not have been able to create YourStory and reach so many millions of people if not for the democratising power of technology. In the Indian startup ecosystem, I have seen first-hand the power of technology and digital media in creating a growing number of Indian entrepreneurs who’ve built global companies that have become household names across the world. Going forward too — particularly with the acceleration in digital adoption on account of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and the new normal of contactless interactions — I believe that technology and digital media will play a more important role than ever before. This in turn will allow for more entrepreneurs to emerge from across the country, thanks to the removal of physical barriers and challenges in this truly flat world we live in today. ORF: What advice would you give budding journalists and media enthusiasts on capitalising new opportunities in the digital era? SS: I would urge budding journalists and media enthusiasts to capitalise on new opportunities that continue to emerge in the digital era. You cannot not evolve as a journalist. You cannot afford to be rigid in your skills or your way of operating. You have to continuously learn. You must constantly be alert and pick up signals; you will realise that the signals come from the simplest of things, but the trick is in being open to change. But most importantly, try to cut through the jargon and stand out from the clutter. ORF: YourStory has a special segment called HerStory where you feature many rising stars of our time. What are some powerful trends you observe in the women in technology space that will make Indians proud? SS: Over the past decade, we have seen a growing number of Indian women rise to prominence. Many of their stories we have chronicled and celebrated on HerStory. While there is still scope for improvement in this area, I firmly believe that we will continue to see more and more women rise to prominence in the fields of science, technology, arts, and in business and entrepreneurship. Already, we have had prominent and successful Indian women making a mark in the technology space. And this trend will continue. We have seen first-hand that women only need an entry into the playground; once that access to the playground is provided, once the infrastructure is made available, it will unleash an unprecedented growth in the number of successful women in technology and other areas.

• Gender
• Media and Internet
• Cyber and Technology
• India
• Changemakers
• Digital Era
• innovation
• startup ecosystem
• Women in Technology

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