Entrepreneurship

It was very evident, soon after the reforms of 1991 - that there was a pent up energy waiting to be unleashed. Almost all sections of society have been swept up by the the personal desire to take charge of their own lives. My memory of INdia is that young people looked for jobs - first in administration and banks, then in sensible large companies and now in high tech fast growing firms where salaries are better.

But there has been a bigger shift over the past 5 - 10 years - where the next generation are aspiring to be the entrepreneurs they presently work for! And this drive is being fostered by teh growth of Indian venture capital, the unleashing of innovation from Universities and research centres and all in all it seems that there will be another dam burst of energy.

There is an underlying trend - that Indians are able to spot and follow a rational economic model - money is to be made, home comforts attained and progress to the next level.

What we need to see - and will this happen as India gets more wealthy - is whether the young buck Indian entrepreneurs start to think about how to make a difference to those people who are at the bottom of the pyramid? Will they aspire to starting ventures that enable them to do well by doing good?

And this may well come to seeing role models of such aspiration and success. We need more of this and less of the bar room culture that is fast becoming the norm in Bangalore!