Capture the excitement in India!

Murlidhar S, co-founder and CEO of MeritTrac Services and Adhvith Dhuddu, founder and CEO of AliveNow Inc, discuss entrepreneurship and more over a quick chat.

Adhvith Dhuddu: I’ve lived in the US for nearly five years and worked for a couple of years. But being a patriotic person, I always wanted to come back to India and do something. I’ve been reading a lot about entrepreneurship and there was this one sentence that caught my eye. On a question of what to choose, there was this line that said — find a vacuum and try to fill it. I always had several ideas, but this line made me push to do something and that’s how AliveNow was born. So, what triggered your start?
Murlidhar S: Before starting MeritTrac Services, I was working for several firms too. However, I had ideas about wanting to do something for India and that’s when we decided to start this firm. Why did you give up your nine-to-five job?

AD: I just wanted the freedom to do what I want. And that thought helped me to chart my own path and work in my space. The fact that I need not report to anyone helped me identify my needs. Secondly, I wanted to make more money. There was this fundamental rule in entrepreneurship that said if you don’t want to make more money, don’t get into the field. However, I always wanted to give back to charity at some point as well. I am sure the reasons for every entrepreneur keep changing...
MS: Of course, the reasons are diverse. For me, it was all about going on a path that triggered me. I’ve worked for several companies, but there was a joy of creating something on my own. It was more of solving a need for me!

AD: That’s what triggered me as well. If I could solve a problem, I could be a businessman. So, how difficult was it for you to overcome hurdles?
MS: After a few years of our launch, there was a close-down because of the 9/11 problem. There was a time for when we had no hope and no salary. However, the dream to make it big was always there. So much so that we didn’t even want to diverse into another field for money. We stuck to our innovation and believed in our dream. It’s all about courage and teamwork!

AD: That’s great. As far as our company is concerned, we’ve grown to a certain level. How do you think such firms should take it to the next level?
MS: Once you know that you are growing, ideas need to be structured. You should have a grand vision to put a bigger plant. It tries to help you on what can be done and vice versa. A good company also needs a counterpoint. I’m glad that a lot is happening in India. Instead of going abroad, it’s time people capture the excitement here!

— Murlidhar S is the CEO of MeritTrac Services, India’s largest Skills Assessment and Examinations Company. He’s a successful new-age entrepreneur, who has used his professional training and corporate experience to create a unique company in the area of Assessments, which in 2000 was an unknown area of business.

— Adhvith Dhuddu started AliveNow in August 2009. It is a full-service social media management firm, offering a wide array of social media related services like social media marketing, social media analytics, social media application development, social media strategy, social media ad planning, social media audits for brands, organisations, celebrities and non-profits of all sizes.