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Startup Story, Stirring Minds, 2-A/3, Kundan Mansion, Asaf Ali Road, New Delhi, Delhi (2025)

12/08/2025

Carnelian Asset Management and Advisors Pvt Ltd, led by market veteran Vikas Khemani, has invested $15 million in luxury beauty & personal care brand Kimirica, fueling its journey from Rs 300 Cr to Rs 1,000 Cr in revenue within the next 3–4 years.

From being a homegrown alternative in a China-dominated hotel toiletries market to exporting to 70+ countries and partnering with 10,000+ luxury hotels & airlines, Kimirica is now doubling down on global expansion and D2C retail growth.

Highlights:

$15 Mn investment covering B2B (Kimirica Hunter) & D2C (Kimirica Lifestyle)

Building a 6 lakh sq. ft. manufacturing hub in Indore (Rs 1,500–2,000 Cr capacity)

Workforce is 55% women, indirectly supporting 3,000+ livelihoods

Plans for 10+ experiential stores in India & Middle East

Vikas Khemani calls it “one of the finest companies I’ve ever seen, both in infrastructure and vision.”

Read the full story here: https://startupstorymedia.com/carnelian-invests-15-mn-in-kimirica-to-drive-rs-1000-cr-revenue-target/

12/08/2025

🚀 Funding Alert | Home Services Revolution

Pronto, founded in 2024 by Anjali Sardana, has raised $11 million in Series A funding co-led by General Catalyst and Glade Brook Capital Partners LLC, with continued backing from Bain Capital Ventures.

The NCR-based quick services platform offers sub-10-minute on-demand househelp—including cleaning, laundry, and utensil washing—by connecting households with trained, background-verified workers via hyperlocal hubs.

With this fresh capital, Pronto aims to:
🔹 Expand to Mumbai & Bengaluru, followed by other metros
🔹 Establish micro-hubs in residential clusters
🔹 Onboard & train 10,000+ professionals
🔹 Invest in real-time operations tech & quality assurance

Board expansion includes Ajay Agarwal (Bain Capital Ventures), Paul Hudson (Glade Brook Capital), and Neeraj Arora (General Catalyst).

Currently, Pronto operates 6 hubs in NCR, fulfilling 1,000–2,000 bookings daily, and is growing 45% week-on-week.

Read the full story on Startup Story: https://startupstorymedia.com/insights-pronto-raises-11m-series-a-from-general-catalyst-and-glade-brook-capital-to-expand-instant-househelp-services/?amp=1

11/08/2025

Blinkit CEO Albinder Dhindsa leads ₹419 crore ESOP exercise at Eternal

In a major wealth-creation move, albinder dhindsa, ceo of blinkit, has exercised stock options worth ₹214.51 crore, leading a ₹419 crore ESOP exercise at eternal — the parent of zomato and blinkit.

Over 140 executives participated, including top leaders from blinkit, zomato, hyperpure, and district. Big names like rishi arora, rakesh ranjan, aditya mangla, and kunal swarup together accounted for 90% of the total value.

This comes as blinkit’s gross order value surged 140% YoY to ₹11,821 crore in Q1 FY25, outpacing zomato for the first time. With 1,544 dark stores and a target of 2,000 by December, blinkit is aggressively expanding in the quick commerce race against zepto, swiggy instamart, and bigbasket.

Stock option exercises like this not only reward past contributions but also signal confidence in long-term growth — even as eternal navigates competitive pressures and strategic investments.

Read more at: https://startupstorymedia.com/insights-blinkit-ceo-albinder-dhindsa-leads-%e2%82%b9419-crore-esop-exercise-at-eternal/

11/08/2025

Truemeds raises $85M to expand affordable healthcare access across India

Co-founders Akshat Nayyar and Dr. Kunal Wani have secured $85 million in Series C funding, led by accel and peak xv partners, with westbridge capital and info edge ventures also participating.

The funding will fuel new fulfillment centers in non-metros, expansion of engineering and product teams, and a bengaluru office launch. Truemeds also plans to introduce diagnostics services in four cities and invest heavily in AI & ML-powered patient care tools.

Founded in 2019, the mumbai-based e-pharmacy helps patients save up to 70% on monthly medicine costs, focusing on chronic care for conditions like diabetes, hypertension, and cardiovascular disease.

With revenue doubling in FY24 to ₹315 crore and a growing national footprint, Truemeds is on a mission to make affordable healthcare accessible for every Indian household.

Read more at: https://startupstorymedia.com/insights-truemeds-secures-85-million-series-c-funding-led-by-accel-and-peak-xv-partners/

08/08/2025

Zepto makes a bold move into online pharmacy!

Co-founders Aadit Palicha and Kaivalya V. have officially launched zepto pharmacy, promising 10-minute medicine delivery in select cities including mumbai, delhi ncr, bengaluru, and hyderabad.

After a year of fine-tuning operations, zepto is ready to compete with major players like Tata 1mg, PharmEasy, and Apollo Pharmacy, tapping into india’s rapidly growing online pharmacy market – projected to reach $12.71 billion by 2033.

With a vision to combine healthcare accessibility and ultra-fast delivery, zepto’s entry could reshape how millions of indians access essential medicines.

What are your thoughts – is this the future of healthcare in india?

Read more at: https://startupstorymedia.com/insights-zepto-enters-online-pharmacy-space-with-10-minute-medicine-delivery-service/

08/08/2025

DPDzero raises $7M Series-A to redefine India’s debt collections industry!

Founded by Ananth Shroff and Ranjith B.R., DPDzero is on a mission to build India’s best collections company — combining AI-driven multilingual collection agents, behavioural data, and a professional network of field agents to deliver high-efficiency, high-empathy debt recovery.

The round was led by GMO VenturePartners, SMBC Asia Rising Fund, and Blume Ventures (doubling down from their earlier investment), with participation from India Quotient, Sinarmas Group, and others.

In just 18 months, DPDzero’s revenue has grown 6X, serving top fintechs and NBFCs like Tata Capital, Moneyview, L&T Finance, and Manappuram Finance, with India’s largest banks expected to join soon.

With India’s credit economy heading towards $6T, DPDzero’s ethics-first and tech-led model is set to revolutionise collections turning it from a back-office function into a growth enabler and trust engine for financial institutions.

Read more at: https://startupstorymedia.com/insights-dpdzero-secures-7m-series-a-to-transform-debt-collections-with-ai-driven-solutions/

08/08/2025

Hyderabad-based HR tech unicorn Darwinbox, founded by Jayant Paleti, Rohit Chennamaneni, and Chaitanya Peddi, is in advanced talks with Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan (OTPP) for a $50 million investment, potentially pushing its valuation beyond $1 billion, according to sources.

The deal, a mix of primary and secondary share sales, will see Peak XV Partners partially exit with an impressive 10x return on its 2019 investment. Darwinbox, serving over 1,000 enterprises across 130+ countries, counts global brands like Starbucks, Nivea, Cigna, WeWork, and Crisil among its clients.

With global expansion in full swing across Asia-Pacific, West Asia, the UK, and the US, Darwinbox is set to cross $100 million in ARR by December 2025 — a testament to India’s growing dominance in enterprise SaaS.

This marks another significant bet by OTPP in the HR-SaaS segment, following their co-led $140M funding in Japan’s SmartHR earlier this year.

Read more at: https://startupstorymedia.com/insights-canadas-otpp-nears-50m-investment-in-darwinbox-valuation-set-to-cross-1-billion/

08/08/2025

Bengaluru-based women’s fashion startup OUTZIDR has raised $3.1 million (₹27 crore) in a pre-Series A round led by RTP Global, with participation from Stellaris Venture Partners.

Founded in 2024 by Nirmal Jain, Mani Kant Mani, and Justin Mario, Outzidr has made waves in the western wear space for women aged 18–28, launching 8,000+ styles and serving 100,000+ customers in just five months.

With this fresh funding, the brand plans to open its first offline store by March 2026 and strengthen its design, technology, and operations teams — while continuing to sell through its D2C platform and leading marketplaces like Ajio, Myntra, and Nykaa Fashion.

Read the full story here: https://startupstorymedia.com/insights-gen-z-womens-fashion-brand-outzidr-raises-3-1-million-in-pre-series-a-round-led-by-rtp-global/

08/08/2025

MapmyIndia has invested ₹25 crore in Zepto , valuing the quick-commerce unicorn at USD 6.1 billion.

As part of the strategic deal, Zepto will integrate MapmyIndia’s location APIs and SDKs to enhance delivery efficiency and customer experience. The move also boosts Indian ownership in Zepto ahead of its much-anticipated IPO.

This investment follows Elcid Investments’ ₹7.5 crore infusion last week and marks an uptick from Zepto’s previous USD 5 billion valuation, with reports hinting at a larger round valuing the company at USD 7 billion.

Read more at: https://startupstorymedia.com/insights-mapmyindia-invests-%e2%82%b925-crore-in-zepto-at-6-1-billion-valuation/

07/08/2025

Former Indian cricket captain and renowned entrepreneur MS Dhoni has invested in HOB (House of Biryan) | Biryani, Kepsa and More (HOB), a fast-growing, chef-led and tech-driven cloud kitchen brand that aims to take biryani global.

Founded in 2022 by Mohammed Bhol and Chef Mikhail Shahani, House of Biryan has rapidly expanded from a single kitchen to over 20 outlets across Mumbai, Delhi, and Dubai.

The brand is now preparing for its next big leap — international expansion to Australia, Japan, the UK, and North America, with a goal of establishing 120–150 kitchens globally and reaching a revenue of ₹450–550 crore in the next three years.

Read more at: https://startupstorymedia.com/insights-ms-dhoni-invests-in-house-of-biryan-aims-to-take-indias-comfort-food-global/

07/08/2025

Homegrown innovation gets a boost!
NUUK, the D2C home appliance brand founded by Gazal Kalra and Shalabh Gupta, has raised $2 million in a follow-on round from Vertex Ventures SEA and Good Capital bringing its total funding to over $10 million.

With a focus on design-first product development, Made-in-India manufacturing, and direct-to-consumer sales, Nuuk is redefining how Indian households experience kitchen and home appliances.

The fresh funds will power supply chain expansion, product development, and brand growth.

🛠️ Built for modern Indian homes
🇮🇳 Proudly made in India
💡 Innovation meets function

Read more at: https://startupstorymedia.com/insights-nuuk-secures-2-mn-in-follow-on-funding-from-vertex-ventures-sea-and-good-capital/

06/08/2025

Mumbai-based The Sleep Company has secured ₹480 Cr in a Series D funding round led by ChrysCapital and 360 ONE Asset, marking a major milestone in its growth journey.

Founded by Priyanka Salot and Harshil Salot, the brand has scaled to over ₹700 Cr ARR and now operates 150+ exclusive brand outlets across India. This fresh round of capital will fuel their expansion into new metro and Tier-1 markets, boost manufacturing, and power product innovation — all anchored by their proprietary SmartGRID® technology.

With 70% of sales coming from offline retail and a strong digital presence, The Sleep Company is redefining how India sleeps and sits — blending comfort, tech, and modern retail.

Read more at: https://startupstorymedia.com/insights-the-sleep-company-secures-%e2%82%b9480-cr-in-series-d-round-led-by-chryscapital-360-one-asset/

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