The Young Turks of India

With 51% of its population of 1.1 billion under 25, India is a young nation. The youth is making its strong presence felt in all sectors. Even politics-the last bastion of age-worn thespians- has been invaded by young turks. No wonder then that the tribe of young entrepreneurs is slowly and steadily growing.

Starting your own business is always fraught with risks, but these youngsters have devised a unique combination of creativity and sound business sense to spin success stories.

Innovate, Innovate, Innovate

Giving a miss to tried and tested “safe” ways, these young entrepreneurs swear by original thinking. Ideas fresh from the oven are turned into viable money making businesses. This new breed of entrepreneurs is engaged in creating value- identifying unique market opportunity and filling the void by providing a smart way out.

Harsh Narang, founder, Phokatcopy and a student of Delhi’s prestigious Indian Institute of Technology came up with one such idea. Having seen students spend enormous amounts on photocopying notes, Harsh thought what if there could be a way of providing photocopying facility free of cost, getting advertisers to foot the bill? Thus, was born Phokatcopy, the name itself a street-smart pun on free copying.

The ‘Cool’ factor

These new age entrepreneurs have a hand firmly on the pulse of the youth. With a natural instinct for ideas that will appeal to young people, they know how to package products and services in a way that can target the burgeoning young population.

From tattoo parlours to nail art bars, candle making to customized clothing ranges, there is no dearth of novel ideas which are aimed at a wide spectrum of youth.

The eye catching 1469- Pure Panjabi store on Janpath bears testimony to the fact that a cleverly conceptualized idea has a ready market. The store has hit upon a unique way of preserving Panjabi heritage and popularizing it through cool, new ideas. He store has everything- from tees with wacky slogans to books and CD’s to kirpans and parandis.

New ventures, New voices

One of the important motivating factors behind starting self-owned companies is that it allows these young people to be their own boss. The work culture is very different as traditional hierarchies between boss and employee are replaced by bonding over food and drinks.

Being different is the principle that these youngsters abide by. Not for them the mundane routines of 9-to-5 jobs or being mere cogs in the wheel of giant organizations. They choose to march to their own beat.

Instead of getting absorbed in the mainstream, these youngsters felt the need to make their own voices heard. New media provides the perfect platform for alternative, unconventional voices.

theCheeZeway.com, the brainchild of students Shishir Thade and Hashmeet, is an online e-zine that is managed and run by students, inviting contributions from young people. The site has plans to diversify and introduce CheeZe TV, which will offer a brand new platform for talented people to air their opinions and worldviews without going through mechanics of the corporatized world of television production.

With so many youngsters opting to stay off the beaten track, entrepreneurship in India is sure to receive a shot in the arm. In the years to come, India’s overwhelmingly young business honchos may prove to be a great demographic dividend.