Startup Founders, not Cricketers, are
the New Indian Idols
Vijay Shekhar Sharma, founder of ecommerce marketplace Paytm, on why
youth are able to connect with new-age entrepreneurs
Whom
do you idolise?“ At school or college, in competitions of every nature, from
friends and family members, the question of who one wants to be like in a few
years seems to crop up invariably. Over a decade ago, when I was growing up,
the answer would largely cover a few regular names. A celebrated cricketer, an
astronaut, maybe an actor, a social worker, a historical figure or perhaps a
businessman or two. Circa 2015, however, things are decidedly different.
The
same question quickly gets answers like Jack Ma, Steve Jobs, Lei Jun, Mark
Zuckerberg ...the list goes on. There is an equally large number of Indian
entrepreneurs and startup CEOs that a college-goer or a fresh professional
hero-worships ardently. The youngsters are closely following their
international idols' every step, every tweet, every interview as they have
become almost synonymous with that romantic notion of `following your passion'.
Many
of the top entrepreneurs in the country today are engineering graduates from
regular middle-class families. Most of them have no political connections,
great family wealth or business inheritance backing them. They are, therefore,
symbolic of completely self-made success. Unlike the earlier generations cess.
Unlike the earlier generations that often viewed business as the preserve of
those who have the clout and the luck to navigate through the country's
red-tapism, startup pundits make it clear that no obstacle is too large. In
addition, many entrepreneurs are viewed as mavericks. They have made a success
of their companies entirely on their own terms, doing things differently and
always taking the uncharted path. These elements make for a highly palatable
recipe as far as the youth goes.
Young
adults today don't want to be told what the set path is. They don't want to
believe that if they do things differently, success will elude them. This is
exactly what their startup idols personify. The new-age entrepreneur's zany
policies, belief in ideas against all odds, innovative strategies, courage,
confidence and complete disregard for traditional parameters of judgment
validate the youth's own desire for freedom, flexibility and love for the
unconventional.
What
also makes the new-age entrepreneurs connect with the youth is how they
leverage technology. Many of these founders and CEOs have either found a
solution to a real-life problem through technology or have just managed to make
life simpler and smoother using tech. Tech, as we all know, is something that
the youth is most passionate about and feels strongly about. A man who makes
booking a cab a matter of seconds is bound to be liked and admired by the
youth. He who makes a phone recharge possible in the middle of the night also
automatically becomes someone the young citi zen views with affinity.
The
fact is new-age entre preneurs have their finger on the pulse of the youth and
offer solutions and technologies that wow them.
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