Starting from the Ground Up

Something is brewing in small-town India, and it’s not just new roads and shopping malls. It’s a slow, steady shift, noticeable only when you stop to pay attention - in conversations that linger, in local businesses beginning to think long-term, in people choosing to stay, not because they have to, but because they want to. Bihar, for instance, has always been a paradox - rich in history, talent, and spirit, yet often overlooked in conversations about growth. The brightest leave to chase opportunity elsewhere, leaving behind people, potential, and ideas that remain undercapitalized. And the narrative? Still shaped by those who’ve never lived it. Moving back home has made me question how far a small town can actually take you, if you let it. The challenge is not merely geographical, it’s cognitive. Can ambition thrive in areas where infrastructure is lacking? Can innovation exist without an ecosystem? In big cities, ambition is contagious and growth is a default setting. The ecosystem pushes you forward - the infrastructure, the people, the pace. But in small towns, growth has to be intentional. Every step forward is a choice. You don’t just build, you justify why you’re building. You don’t just dream, you negotiate your right to. The absence of an ecosystem forces you to build one, piece by piece. There’s something deeply grounding about starting from a place that doesn’t offer you leverage. A small town teaches you to work with what you have, and that scarcity, paradoxically, becomes your sharpest tool for innovation. If there is one lesson this journey keeps reinforcing, it’s that growth doesn’t always look like acceleration. Sometimes, it’s found in early mornings, small wins, and showing up when no one’s clapping. It’s rarely linear, and often far from glamorous. But maybe that’s the point. To start from the ground up means: - Honoring legacy businesses and modernizing them without erasing their essence - Choosing patient capital over speculative hype - Building networks of collaboration instead of competition - And proving that ambition doesn’t have to migrate to thrive Building from the ground up isn’t about chasing momentum, it’s about creating your own pace. Your own logic. Your own version of growth. In a world obsessed with acceleration, maybe the deeper question is not how fast you can grow but how coherently you can.