In recent times, a curious intersection has emerged between the glitzy world of Bollywood and the cricketing arena: both industries are increasingly turning their attention towards the dynamic landscape of startups. Traditionally known for their prowess in entertainment and sports, Bollywood celebrities and cricketers are now actively involving themselves in the startup ecosystem, either as investors, promoters, or keen participants.
So here we will discuss why Bollywood and Cricketers are Investing in Startups…
Investing in Startups – But Why?
Stars investing in startups or extra business lines in Hollywood is not new. But this trend is being followed by our Bollywood biggies nowadays.
The idea of entrepreneurship, then the thought with which the celebrities are capitalizing on a startup, is also very different for each. The factors besides reasons may vary from promoting their interest in society, easy money, supplementary income, relatable cause or the risk-taking ability, strong sense of social responsibility, belief in produce and service, enough capital, or simply mounting money further. By involving themselves supplementary rather than just being brand ambassadors, it seems they are fortifying their financial future.
The list of Bollywood celebrities joining the investment bludgeon is enormous, but let’s look at a few:
Priyanka Chopra
Priyanka Chopra Jonas believes in ‘Power over the Business.’ She quantified in one of her interviews that the right entrepreneur will be able to recognize the gap in the market and act upon it by creating the opportunity to permit the business to monetize. She believes if there is something new in the market (sustainability, good product, and a reasonable price), that determination works. With this understanding, she launched Anomaly (beauty/hairline product), Holberton School (education startup), and Bumble (dating app). With her investment in Bumble in 2018, the company threw its services in India. Priyanka also believes in social responsibility besides takes it very seriously.
Deepika Padukone
Deepika Padukone, owner of a dress line, All About You, stated in an interview with Financial Times that she picked her investments in startups just like she would choose her film scripts. Thus, the investments in Bellatrix Aerospace (Space company), Blu Smart (Electric taxi), Epigamic (Greek Yogurt company), and Furlenco (furniture rental) besides Frontrow (learning platform). Like her unique choices, her reasons are also very different. The risk involved excites her, and she discovers interacting with people from an entirely different world is really interesting. Her investments are purpose-driven and improve value. She likes to get involved and engage with the brand intensely. These principles explain her investments.
Katrina Kaif and Alia Bhat
Katrina Kaif and Alia Bhat’s investments in Nykaa, where Alia called it an indecently emotional decision.
Bollywood actors Alia Bhatt and Katrina Kaif, who were investors in Nykaa, saw their shareholding valued at nearly 10X of their initial investment.https://yourstory.com/2021/11/alia-bhatt-katrina-kaif-nykaa-falguni-nayar
Anushka Sharma
Anushka Sharma in Digit (insurance startup), and Aishwarya Rai invested in Ambee (monitors air quality).
Amitabh Bachchan
The living legend, Amitabh Bachchan, laterally with his son, Abhishek Bachchan, invested $250,000 in Ziddu.com in 2015 (Singapore grounded block-chain research start-up). Akshay Kumar invested in GOQii. Similarly, Ayushmann Khuranna combined the club by investing in The Man Company.
Sachin Tendulkar
Sachin Tendulkar, the ‘Master Blaster’ of Indian cricket, too obligated his tryst with startups. It started this year when the tech unicorn Unacademy roped him in using a strategic investor and brand ambassador in February. Conferring to the partnership terms, Tendulkar will serve as a brand ambassador for the startup while conducting a series of live collaborating classes on the platform.
In July, Tendulkar made a fair investment of $2 Mn in resynthesis, a new-age digital entertainment besides technology startup that forayed into gaming, digital entertainment, and interest-based community platforms.
MS Dhoni
Mahendra Singh Dhoni is a past international cricketer who served as the captain of the Indian cricket team for over a decade in the limited-over format and six years in test cricket. He is presently the captain of Chennai Super Kings (CSK), a squad of the Indian Premier League (IPL) in Tamil Nadu, where he is affectionately known for employing Thala (Leader).
Apart from being considered one of the greatest Indian team captains to date, he also helped CSK win four times in the IPL — making him the most successful IPL captain after Rohit Sharma.
Yuvraj Singh
Yuvraj Singh is a former Indian international cricket player who played all set-ups of the game for the country. He is known for his hostile batting skills and match-winning all-round recitals in international games.
Earlier last month, he invested in consumer electronics brand Nothing during its $50 Mn funding round that saw participation from film producer Karan Johar and others.
Nothing is a consumer electronics product founded by Chinese-born Swedish entrepreneur Carl Pei, famous for cofounding OnePlus. This extra consumer electronics brand began as an enthusiast-focused mobile phone business.
Conclusion
Celebrities are putting their wealth into an outperforming market. It’s always about the choices we make in the present which make wealth in the future. It’s about the asset you choose, we all know diversifying across asset class is a good idea and so here is your opportunity to invest in startups with less risk. Try out Pepcorns, and watch out for the live deals.
Also Read:
Factors to Consider Before Investing in a Startup
Amazon Founder Jeff Bezos World Richest Person Who’s got Rich After Investing in Startups
