Deepa Sai

A week evaluating startups and coaching founders at CII IWN Tamil Nadu’s EntreprenHer 2.0

This year, I attended CII IWN Tamil Nadu’s EntreprenHer 2.0 as a startup jury member and investment advisor.

Alongside me were Arasi Arul, and Dhanush Ramesh Anitha, and a long list of investors.

We evaluated startups across sectors and then sat down one-on-one with every founder. That was the most valuable part of the programme for me. We could discuss their next steps, pitches, competitors, industry benchmarks and actual differentiation.

“One of a kind” is a phrase I see far too often in pitch decks.

In most cases, not finding another startup doing exactly the same thing simply means the market hasn’t been studied deeply enough. After a long conversation, I usually drop a few company names, and that is when the slap-on-the-face realisation arrives.

We also met founders with promising lab-stage innovations who had not fully considered what it would take or cost to run a market pilot.

A startup is not a college project, whether you are a student, lecturer, researcher or PhD scholar. You are building a potentially commercialisable business that must eventually survive customers, costs and competition.

When experienced investors and advisors challenge these claims, it isn’t to discourage founders. I would rather call out the red flags in the room and help them strengthen their thinking than let them repeat the same mistakes with another investor.

Beyond the jury sessions, I enjoyed watching Arasi speak on a panel for the first time. Ironically, I seem to have missed all her earlier panels! It was also lovely connecting with CII IWN members from other zones.

EntreprenHer 2.0 was not only about identifying promising ventures. It was about giving women founders the honest feedback and direction needed to build stronger, more investable businesses.