The Entrepreneurship Cell (E-cell) of IIT-B is conducting a reality show for budding entrepreneurs who have established their start-up. The event will give them a unique opportunity to pitch their ideas to investors to receive funding from them. The dynamic version of the conventional investor’s pitch called the Vulture’s Nest, started this week. The finals will be hosted in the first week of February during the e-summit 2010, which is the networking event held by the E-Cell.

As opposed to a conventional investor pitch, Vulture’s Nest will be more competitive and aggressive. The finals will have investors and a randomly selected audience, will make the event more dynamic, as against a routine pitch.

The entrepreneurs will get a chance to pitch their ideas to a panel of investors in 15 minutes. This is an excellent opportunity for start-ups to gain capital and visibility. Start-up firms don’t have access to large venture capitalists and private equity firms.

The contest will also go on air from January. While the United States and the United Kingdom have similar shows, it’s the first time that such an event is being conducted in India.

Applicants can submit forms to IIT-B till January 4, 2010. Those selected will pitch their ideas at auditions in Delhi, Bangalore and Mumbai on January 16 and 17. The final round will have 10 candidates pitching to four investors, one of whom is US-based venture capitalist Taj Haslani. All 10 participants might get funding, if the panellists like their business propositions. This competition will actively help entrepreneurs, since they will be able to interact with investors and get a chance to directly get funds for their firms.
The E-Cell aims at nurturing latent entrepreneurial spirit of young students and provide them with opportunities for excellence. To register for the competition online, contestants can visit our website www.ecell.in.
— Palash Jhabak