Making learning fun and lively
This Mumbai-based startup
harnesses the power of the Net to gamify children's learning.
Sukhada Tendulkar and
Mandar Desai were passionate about kids' learning. They had strong beliefs on
how children can be made to learn the necessary skills to help kids `stay atop
their game', as they grow to take on various life and career challenges. So,
the two founded edutech startup Shirsa Media Labs in October 2013. “It was a
step towards translating our ideas into reality,“ says Tendulkar, Co-founder
and CEO.
Besides passion, the
opportunity in the edutech space was also promising. “With 25% of our
population below the age of 15, and children increasingly spending more time on
the Internet, the opportunity to harness the Net for their learning was huge,“
says 31-year-old Tendulkar.
Mumbai-based Shirsa offers
two learning products, Planet of GUI (POG) and NewsPIK.Planet of GUI is a
virtual world for kids between the age of six and 12. It offers several
goal-oriented activities and engaging learning material including videos,
online games, worksheets, eBooks and science experiments. “Here we provide
personalised, ageappropriate content and recommend new content based on the
user's behaviour on the platform,“ says Tendulkar. NewsPIK is a digital
newspaper for kids. The Shirsa team curates news articles, events, quizzes and
oth er information, so children are aware of the world around them. “It is
stimulates the young minds and keeps them informed,“ says Tendulkar. Children
earn reward points for reading news and these points are redeemable on the POG
platform, allowing them to unlock content of their liking--videos, games,
ebooks, etc.
Shirsa products aim to
engage each child along with their respective parents in personalised
educational entertainment. The focus is on blending learning skills with
knowledge of a subject and delivering a gamified learning experience to the
child. “Our vision is to make education fun and rewarding, and we aim to become
the onestop solution for all edutainment needs of the children,“ says
Tendulkar.
Founded with an initial
investment of `30 lakh from the founders, the startup clocked close to `1 crore
in revenue in 2015-16. “Our user base has seen a 100% year-on-year growth and
we will see a much sharper growth this year,“ says Tendulkar. Currently, 1.5
lakh retail users and 100-plus schools are using Shirsa's products.
When the founders started
out, they faced two major challenges. The first was to connect with industry
experts who could provide feedback on their business idea and its viability.
The other was to build a strong team that understood the founders' vision and
was committed to this cause. “A combination of our home-work, conviction,
flexibility, networking, and trust among key team members, along with a bit of
luck helped us meet these challenges,“ says Tendulkar.
Shirsa runs lean operations
and has a staff of just 20. “We follow the strategy of spend wise and are never
get too aggressive. Organic growth and prudent use of capital is a smart way to
grow the company,“ says Tendulkar, a former banker.
Even as B2C edutech
companies have faced challenges due to low Internet penetration and adoption, the
founders have shifted their focus from B2B to B2C now.“This has been an
intentional shift because of the growth potential of the B2C channel,“ says
Tendulkar. The startup has set an ambitious target of reaching 10 lakh users by
end2016. “With greater Internet adoption bandwith prices will come down and
this will help us. Meanwhile, focus on light, 2Gfriendly solutions helps us
reach retail consumers,“ says Tendulkar.
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VINAY
DWIVEDI
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ET30MAY16
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