Founder Toolkit

Brand names and active cheque writers aren’t the same list. Here’s who is actually backing Indian startups in 2026, mapped by stage, sector and cheque size, using Inc42’s Q3 deal …

Fewer investors are writing cheques in India, so mass pitching no longer works. Here’s a practical five-step filter to build a ranked shortlist by sector, stage, cheque size and recent …

Your first 100 customers rarely come from ads. Here are ten playbooks Indian founders use, from WhatsApp DMs and niche communities to founder-led sales, to find early buyers and keep …

The 80 IAC tax exemption can mean three tax-free years, but DPIIT recognition alone won’t get you there. Here are the six tests, and the turnover cap that changed in …

DPIIT recognition rejected? A rejected application can’t be edited, and the next one waits three months. Here are the nine usual reasons and the fix for each, before you reapply.

Ten numbers decide whether a funding round survives diligence. Here are the startup metrics for founders to know cold, with benchmark ranges for SaaS, D2C and deeptech, and how to …

Fifty-fifty feels fair until someone leaves. Learn how to set a co-founder equity split in India, protect it with vesting, handle founder cash and the option pool, and test your …

Pre-seed, seed or Series A? Here’s what each funding stage means for Indian startups in 2026: typical cheque sizes, dilution, investor expectations and real deals from recent funding rounds.

The TAM SAM SOM formula in three lines, worked step by step on one ₹100 crore market. See where Indian founders slip and how to build a SOM that investors …

Seven worked TAM SAM SOM examples for Indian startups, in rupees, from small-shop software to gig-worker fintech. See how to build a market size slide that investors can actually check.