Year 2009, I was approached by one of the network of entrepreneurs (N*N), who started their operation in India to mentor their startups.
Max of them are idea stage student's or SME who wanted to start business so that they can get funding.
As a passionate entrepreneur, I wanted to give back to the community, and hence I said YES.
While talking to these students' I realized I can't JUST STICK to gaming n animation, I have to understand business more, understand banking more, explore various different business and their models more.
While speaking to them, my take was, these students are clueless what to start and where to go, and what to do.
Hence I started visiting nearby downtown area's local business places, office area's to learn more on how traditional business happens.
I became sales person in one sales and marketing company for a month, just to learn how they buy garments from village people and sell it in market, at the end of month, I took an exit from the company without taking the salary, while I was submitting my resignation letter HR asked my reason to leave and why I am not taking payment.
I said I wanted to learn the pipeline, I should pay you for the learning, don't want payment, she was super surprised and probably felt I am an alien.
Next few months, while developing game and tech solution I started spending time in local village areas, understand and learn ways of production, their pain, problems and was thinking if one day I can create an option for them to grow as an ecosystem.
Govt on those days wanted to make clusters and wanted resources to train them – example gems and jewelry – they wanted someone to teach them in CAD, somehow I was attached to that and went to a nearby village to train on CAD, CAM, – while training locals told me they don't need these training in reality, and asked if I can give them market connect.
It registered in my brain that in reality business-people/ clusters need market connect/ orders.
I started thinking if I can make something decent to make a market place in our games so that we can sell these products somehow?
Bengal was definitely not my place to think on the same and in that time there was less amount of download at least in Bengal.
App market just started and we started with a humble step in app market.
As I was moving in factory places, making solutions for different business, that time, we've been approached by coal-mine owner from Australia – who used to sponsor Australia cricket team that time.
We made corporate presentations for them and Slowly I entered in stock market that time to learn and understand the ball games.
I am glad that when I started as I am not from accounts background, one of the leading entrepreneur shared me a book to understand accounts, they are into logistics business, I learned a bit about the same and as I am life-long student I started digging more.
Hopped into da books of my father (He is a CS n a LLB, holds Masters in Mathematics etc a long list haha ) - my GOD, my hero, his books gave me more knowledge to understand another layer of business.
I started digging more into layers of business from different angels, while mentoring I started sharing those small inputs I got, surprisingly I found less number of people are serious, didn't understood why!!
Creating a company and requiting people meaning building nation for me, that's what everyone of us are doing – big or small it doesn't matter.
I meet another amazing CS, DKK while mentoring others, a real gentleman and humble person. The entire network in east started by another amazing person AG, eventually he started acting like my elder brother.
We have spent time/ hours/ days/ months while working with Eastern India based startups. While doing activities on that same time, some people didn't like the growth, I never realized the same.
All along I used to be a striker in football, a person who used to win cricket and chess, never ever realize I've to understand politics (that's a subject by da way) .
I don't know what you will call me, MAD, crazy, passionate!! I used to love anyone and everyone who ever is doing business or innovation, when two of the business club asked me to be mentor and start helping others, I did it- out of love out of passion.
Passion have its own advantage and disadvantage – I was not like water that time, I was more like a fire may be. Some people asked heavy money from us, and I denied – stormy nights? Hell yah, I saw hell, they attacked my office – broke almost everything, 70% of new recruits JUST run away and they started accusing me with completely wrong things – without relevance.
This part – I must say, only three girls and two boys stood beside me – RD & SB – both were new recruit, next day after storm, I was supposed to visit one mentoring session and guide few startups in one program of N*N .
I went with a bold step, I was late, AG asked me why I am late (he never saw me late) – mentoring started surprisingly I was calm, no one ever knew what happened.
Moral – then doing business needs giving money to unwanted people? Else you can't sustain?
End of the mentoring session, AG da asked me what happened, I shared a bit, he was shocked, he was the only person who asked me, do I need any help? Yah he tried to do whatever he could in near future.
Why I went to mentor startups next day ! As I gave words, hence I must "be there" - moral of the story whatever happens in your life, for me if I give words I used to try 99% to keep that.-- good or bad ?

I don't want to know.

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