Art education in India has an outdated model of teaching

Ritu Khoda, art educator and founder, Art1st Foundation speaks about the revolutionary changes needed in art education in India Ritu Khoda launched Art1st Foundation a decade ago with a social commitment to make art more action-oriented and relevant. A psychology graduate from Lady Shri Ram College for Women, New Delhi, and an MBA from Indian Institute of Management, Calcutta, Khoda believes that art is a language that ignites passion in children and adults. She has worked with leading psychologists and renowned artists to develop an art-integrated model of education, which…

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[Funding alert] Education financing startup Propelld raises Rs 15 Cr from Stellaris Venture Partners and India Quotient

Propelld, a Bengaluru-based fintech startup that enables student education loans, on Monday, announced that it has raised Rs 15 crore from Stellaris Venture Partners and India Quotient. Existing investor India Angel Network Fund (IAN Fund) also participated in the round. Other investors in the round include Raghunandan G, founder of Taxiforsure and Ramakant Sharma, founder of Livspace, who participated as members of Stellaris’ Founder Network. Bibhu Prasad Das, Founder, Propelld said, “We are expanding the education credit market by creating tailor-made loan products with inputs from our institute and NBFC partners,…

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India becomes investment darling for sovereign wealth and pension funds

London: Sovereign wealth funds are piling into India, buying stakes in everything from airports to renewable energy, attracted by political stability, a growing middle class and reforms making it more enticing for foreigners to invest. Wealth and state pension funds are expanding their horizons to private markets, to complement an existing focus on stocks and bonds. “India is popular with sovereign wealth funds,” said Tihir Sarkar, London-based partner at Cleary Gottlieb, which counts several prominent sovereign funds as clients. “Almost every jurisdiction in the western world is raising the bar for…

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[Funding Alert] Facebook debuts startup investment in India with Bengaluru-based Meesho

Meesho, a Bengaluru-based social commerce platform that helps resellers and emerging brands build businesses using social media, has bagged funding of undisclosed amount from social network giant Facebook. This is Facebook’s first investment in an India-based startup, and is a strong demonstration of the company’s commitment to the country’s vibrant internet ecosystem, the Silicon Valley company said in a statement. Founded by IIT Delhi alumni Vidit Aatrey and Sanjeev Barnwal in 2015, Meesho has created an alternate distribution channel by empowering housewives, young mothers, aspiring entrepreneurs, students, and teachers, to launch, build and promote their online businesses…

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India tops in investment in Dubai’s gold sector

Indians lead the top 10 nationalities investing in Dubai’s gold sector followed by the citizens of Pakistan, Britain, Saudi Arabia, Switzerland, Oman, Jordan, Belgium, Yemen and Canada, according to a new report. As many as 4,086 companies operate in the gold sector in Dubai and the number of investors stands at 62,125 including 60,012 businessmen and 2,113 businesswomen, the Business Registration and Licensing (BRL) sector in the Department of Economic Development (DED) said in its new report. The report includes statistics on the number of companies operating in Dubai, the…

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SoftBank arm may venture into India with Loginext investment

SoftBank Ventures Asia, an early-stage funding arm of Japan’s internet and telecommunication giant SoftBank, might enter the Indian market with an investment in logistics management software provider Loginext Solutions Pvt Ltd. According to various sources, SoftBank Ventures Asia has been in talks with Loginext since April. Interestingly, Loginext is backed by Vijay Shekhar Sharma’s Paytm, in which SoftBank has a major investment. Founded in 2000, SoftBank Ventures Asia is based in Korea and it scouts for start-ups with a strong potential in Asia, the US, Israel, and the EU, focussing…

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