A modern India cannot be imagined without startups that stand as symbols of innovation, resilience, and economic growth. In 2025, the momentum of entrepreneurship continues to redefine the nation’s economic landscape, blending deep technology with traditional business acumen.
From AI-led solutions to disruptive consumer ventures, India’s young founders are converting challenges into opportunities and positioning the country as a global powerhouse for innovation.
Supported by progressive policy reforms, a cautious influx of venture capital, and a renewed surge in digital adoption, startups are thriving across domains such as fintech, mobility, D2C, healthtech, and sustainability. These entrepreneurs embody the spirit of transformation, driving India’s ambition to be a leader not just in scale, but in creativity and impact.
The Initiative
To celebrate this dynamic spirit, BW Disrupt, in association with BW Businessworld, organised the ninth edition of the BW Disrupt 40 Under 40 Awards.
The platform honours both entrepreneurs building disruptive ventures and intrapreneurs reshaping established organisations from within. Together, they form the vanguard of a new business era that thrives on bold ideas, execution, and long-term vision.
The Process
This year, BW Disrupt received over 250 nominations spanning diverse sectors including FMCG, mobility, fintech, D2C, AI, and education. After rigorous evaluation, the entries were whittled down to a carefully curated shortlist of 150 nominees who were invited to present before the eminent jury panel.
Each nominee underwent a multi-tier screening and evaluation against a defined set of parameters, major accomplishments, contributions to organisational growth, leadership journey, strategies for scale, sustainability initiatives, as well as their ability to transform weaknesses into strengths. This transparent and merit-driven approach ensured that only the most deserving names emerged as winners.
The Jury
The prestigious jury comprised some of the most respected names from the world of venture capital, private equity, entrepreneurship, and industry leadership. These eminent voices brought with them decades of experience and sectoral expertise, ensuring a holistic evaluation process and upholding the sanctity of the awards.
The Winners
| | WINNERS
| DESIGNATION | COMPANY | | 1 | Abhinav Gupta | Chief Executive Officer | Cars24 Arabia | | 2 | Aaryan Veer Kapoor | Head of Strategy and Growth | Gola Sizzlers | | 3 | Agnishwar Jayaprakar | Founder and CEO | Garuda Aerospace | | 4 | Alluru Uday Kiran | Co-founder and Head of Operations | Bhanzu | | 5 | Aman Batra | Chief Strategy Officer | InsuranceDekho | | 6 | Amol Anand | Director | Loom Solar | | 7 | Anirudh Sharma | Co-founder | Third Wave Coffee Roaster | | 8 | Anish Popli | Founder and CEO | ProcMart | | 9 | Ankit Agrawal | CEO | Skips Communication | | 10 | Ankit Kothari | Founder | Whatnot India | | 11 | Anurag Aggarwal
(Special Mention) | Founder | Humans of Telecom | | 12 | Arune Dhiren Chellaram | Executive Director | Featherlite Furniture | | 13 | Aryaman Vir | Founder and CEO | Morpho Dimensions | | 14 | Avi Mittal | Managing Partner and CEO | GoldenAce Ventures LLP. | | 15 | Debojit Sen | Founder and CEO | Crack-ED | | 16 | Devansh Jain Nawal | Founder | Culture Circle | | 17 | Gaurav Bagga | Senior Vice President, Tech & Product (CTPO Role) | Pristyn Care | | 18 | Gaurav Baid | Co-founder | Avataar | | 19 | Himanshu Chawla | Founder | Bakingo & FlowerAura | | 20 | Karan Chopra | Chairman and CEO | Table Space | | 21 | Keshav G V Reddy | CEO and Board Member | Equal | | 22 | Krishna Mohan Meenavalli | Founder and Executive Director | String Metaverse | | 23 | Navkaran Singh Bagga | Founder and CEO | Akvo Atmospheric Water Systems India | | 24 | Nishant Pittie | Founder and Chairman | EaseMyTrip.com | | 25 | Pankaj Goenka | Vice President | InsuranceDekho | | 26 | Pramod Nair | Co-founder and CPTO | LoadShare Networks | | 27 | Raghu Khanna | Chairman and Managing Director | CashurDrive Marketing | | 28 | Rajeev Kumar
(Special Mention) | Founder and Managing Director | WhiteApple LLP | | 29 | Rayan Malhotra | Founder and CEO | Neofinity Services | | 30 | Rikant Pittie | Co-founder | EaseMyTrip.com | | 31 | Santanu Basu | CEO | Lets Game Now | | 32 | Shefali Anurag | Co-founder | Coto | | 33 | Shivam Ginglani | Founder and CEO | Woodsmen Whiskey (Ginglani Distillers) | | 34 | Smrithi Ravichandran | Vice President | Flipkart Internet | | 35 | Sneha Katkar | Head of Product Strategy | Quick Heal Technologies | | 36 | Sonia Batra | Co-founder | Nandini Skin Care | | 37 | Sourabh Deorah | Co-founder and CEO | AdvantageClub.ai | | 38 | Srinivas Madhavam | Founder | Exprs Techno Logistics | | 39 | Srishti Tanwani | Co-founder and CEO | Indo Era | | 40 | Stanley Stephen | Managing Director | Small Ticket Funding | | 41 | Sunny Vaghela | Founder and CEO | TechDefence | | 42 | Syed Mohammad Onais Rafiq | Head of Business, Strategy and Media | CarDekho Group | | 43 | Tejas Khoday | Co- founder and CEO | FYERS | | 44 | Vaebhav Sharat Badal | CEO | Allcast Metals | | 45 | Vaibhav Gupta | Co-founder and CPO | KlugKlug | | 46 | Videt Jaiswal | Founder and CEO | Airblack | | 47 | Vipul Gupta | Founder | Re'equil India | | 48 | Vratika Gupta | CEO | Maison Sia |
|
