Alpha Women by Lumikai

From a secret college internship at Goldman Sachs to years spent shadowing Sanjeev Bikhchandani after IIM Ahmedabad, Kitty Agarwal’s path to venture capital was anything but conventional.

As Partner at Info Edge Ventures, Kitty has built her career on conviction, from choosing a path of her own to backing businesses with the potential to become much bigger than anyone initially imagined.

In Episode 6 of Alpha Women, Kitty sits down with Salone Sehgal, Founder and Managing Partner at Lumikai, to talk about her journey into venture capital managing over $500M of assets, the investment decisions that shaped her career, and what she looks for in founders today. She also reflects on navigating ambition, motherhood and the double standards women continue to face at work.

Watch the full conversation to hear Kitty’s perspective on trusting your judgement, backing potential and building a career on your own terms.

In partnership with Spotify | Media partner: Outlook Business

#AlphaWomen #KittyAgarwal #InfoEdgeVentures #VentureCapital #Investing

What does it take to back a startup through uncertainty, competition and the difficult decisions that shape its future?

In Episode 6 of Alpha Women, Salone Sehgal, Founder & Managing Partner of Lumikai, sits down with Kitty Agarwal, Partner at Info Edge Ventures, to discuss the judgement, patience and conviction behind venture capital.

The first woman in her Marwari business family to work outside the family business, Kitty forged a path into an industry that was unfamiliar to those around her. Over 13 years at Info Edge Ventures, she manages their $500M AUM fund and has worked across investments in companies including Zomato and Policybazaar.

In this conversation, Kitty reflects on the challenges Info Edge faced as competition intensified with Zomato, the decision to revisit an investment in Policybazaar, and the conviction required to navigate difficult investment cycles.

She also opens up about the realities of ambition and motherhood, including taking an investment committee call from the hospital shortly after giving birth, and learning to let go of unrealistic expectations of herself.

A conversation about venture capital, startup investing, high-conviction bets, risk-taking and the realities of building a career on your own terms.

Watch the full conversation with Salone Sehgal and Kitty Agarwal tomorrow, only on @LumikaiFund.

In partnership with Spotify | Media partner Outlook Business

#KittyAgarwal #InfoEdge #SanjeevBikhchandani #GoldmanSachs #IIM #Zomato #PolicyBazaar #VentureCapital #Investor #Startups #Funding

How do you build a profitable fintech and take it to an IPO that was 120x oversubscribed?

In Episode 5 of Alpha Women, Salone Sehgal, Founder & Managing Partner, Lumikai, sits down with Upasana Taku, Co-Founder and CFO of MobiKwik, to unpack what it takes to build a company through uncertainty, setbacks and constant pressure to deliver.

From bootstrapping MobiKwik and building a profitable business to navigating financial setbacks, a falling stock price and the journey to an oversubscribed IPO, Upasana shares the decisions and mindset that shaped her journey.

She also opens up about building as a woman in a traditionally male-dominated industry, the importance of resilience and self-belief, and why creating your own seat at the table matters.

A candid conversation about fintech, entrepreneurship, leadership, ambition and building against the odds.

Watch the full conversation with Salone Sehgal and Upasana Taku now, only on @LumikaiFund.

In partnership with Spotify | Media partner: Outlook Business.

#alphawomen #UpasanaTaku #mobikwik #fintech #ipo #entrepreneurship #womeninbusiness #womeninleadership #mobikwikipo #AlphaWomenByLumikai

In 2021, it was worth almost a billion dollars. Then, everything that could go wrong, went wrong.

In December 2024, she was able take it public the NSE & BSE and the IPO closed nearly 120x oversubscribed.

On this episode of Alpha Women, Salone Sehgal, Founder & Managing Partner, Lumikai, is joined by Upasana Taku, Co-Founder and CFO of MobiKwik and the first Indian woman to take a digital payments company public.

She pulls back the curtain on founding MobiKwik and taking it all the way to IPO, the discipline required to turn losses back into profits, the friction women still face, and always having her eyes on the prize.

Episode 5 of Alpha Women, out at 3 PM on 28/08, watch it only on @LumikaiFund

In partnership with Spotify | Media partner: Outlook Business.

#alphawomen #mobikwik #UpasanaTaku #digitalpayments #fintech #ipo #womenleadership #nationalstockexchange #bombaystockexchange #SaloneSehgal

Before audiences watched Dhurandhar, Stree 2, or Laapataa Ladies...

Someone had to say yes.

That power player is Jyoti Deshpande.

As President of Jio Studios, Reliance Industries' media and content business, she has helped shape some of India's biggest films and one of the country's most ambitious entertainment businesses.

In this episode of Alpha Women, hosted by Salone Sehgal, Jyoti reveals how she thinks about allocating capital across a slate of films and taking risks. She describes high-stakes decision-making and how to balance instinct with commercial judgement. Jyoti shares the secrets behind a career which has delivered top-grossing films three years in a row.

00:00 - Precap & Introduction

02:41 - Meet Jyoti Deshpande

03:55 - Growing Up & Early Resilience

07:52 - Carving Her Path Between Creativity & Commerce

12:25 - Finding Allies & Breaking Barriers as a Woman Producer

16:54 - Leading Jio Studios

19:22 - The Method Behind Backing People & Ideas

24:03 - Why Stree Was Worth the Bet

25:54 - Trust, Instinct & Decision-Making

28:30 - Building a Slate: Strategy, Risk & Box Office

32:43 - Lessons from Laapataa Ladies and Baby John

34:25 - Failure & Tough Decisions

36:22 - Dhurandhar: Defying the Odds

43:12 - Inside the Making of Dhurandhar

48:04 - Crafting the Sound of Dhurandhar

50:39 - Marketing a Film for the Right Audience

52:14 - Building Great Partnerships

53:38 - A Global Vision for Indian Cinema

57:11 - What 'Alpha' Means to Jyoti

In partnership with Spotify | Media partner: Outlook Business.

#alphawomen #jyotideshpande #jiostudios #IndianCinema #bollywood #womeninbusiness #WomeninMedia #womenleadership #dhurandhar #LaapataaLadies #stree2 #mediaandentertainment #filmmaking

Who decides which stories millions of people watch?

For decades, Jyoti Deshpande has been one of the people making those decisions.

As President of Jio Studios (Media & Content Business - Reliance Industries Ltd), and the only woman to have led Eros, Viacom18, she has helped shape some of India's biggest films like Dhurandhar 1 & 2, Stree 2, and Laapataa Ladies.

In Episode 4 of Alpha Women, hosted by Salone Sehgal, Jyoti reflects on capturing the upside, thriving under pressure, and the responsibility that comes with making high-stakes creative decisions.

Episode 4 of Alpha Women, out 31/7, watch it only on @LumikaiFund

In partnership with Spotify | Media partner: Outlook Business.

#alphawomen #jyotideshpande #jiostudios #indiancinema #bollywood #womeninbusiness #WomeninMedia #womenleadership #dhurandhar #dhurandhar2 #dhurandharmovie #LaapataaLadies #stree2 #mediaandentertainment #filmmaking

The first hire at both WhatsApp and OpenAI in India and a founder straight out of college, meet Pragya Misra.

She hasn't just had a front-row seat to the rise of our generation's most consequential companies. She's helped lay the blueprint for them in India.

Pragya brings a calm, insightful presence to the conversation, shaped by years of meditation and competitive golf, as we get into what it takes to be the first with no playbook to follow, AI sovereignty and access, and the personal philosophy that anchors her.

She also reflects on the opportunities and realities for women building careers in AI and technology, and why greater representation will be critical to shaping the industry's future.

00:00 - Precap

01:07 - Episode Introduction

01:52 - From WhatsApp's First Hire to OpenAI's First Hire

06:03 - Women in AI & Big Tech Representation

08:07 - Is AI Egalitarian? Addressing Inequality in India

10:29 - Relationship between India, OpenAI & Data Sovereignty

13:05 - Golf, Grit & Growing Up

16:50 - Career Choices, Corporate Life & Finding Your Path

19:39 - The Entrepreneurial Journey: Lessons & Challenges

21:24 - Looking Inward: Meditation & Self-Reflection

23:35 - The Reality of Being a Woman Athlete

25:36 - India's Place in the Global AI Landscape

28:59 - What “Alpha” Means to Pragya Misra

30:47 - Conclusion

In partnership with Spotify | Media partner: Outlook Business

#PragyaMisra #OpenAI #AlphaWomen #WomenInTech #WomenInAI #Alpha

What does it take to be the first person Sam Altman hires in one of the world's most consequential market?

The answer: Pragya Misra.

Before heading Strategy & Global Affairs for OpenAI India, Pragya founded her own company straight out of college and later became WhatsApp's first hire in India. In this episode, we unpack what makes her who she is, and what these companies saw when they came calling.

Hosted by Salone Sehgal, Founder and Managing Partner, Lumikai, this is your front-row seat to the women rewriting the rules in India.

Episode 3, live this week, only on @LumikaiFund

In partnership with Spotify | Media partner: Outlook Business

#PragyaMisra #SamAltman #OpenAI #AlphaWomen #WomenInTech #WomenInAI #WhatsApp #Alpha

Most people know Karuna Nundy from the outcomes. This conversation is about the thinking behind them.

In Episode 2 of Alpha Women, Karuna Nundy speaks with Salone Sehgal about why litigation feels like “living or dying,” why hard work creates brilliance, and how power, incentives and political economy shape justice itself.

The conversation moves from courtrooms to institutions, from feminism to AI, and from public perception to the emotional discipline required to operate in systems where the stakes are consistently high.

Karuna reflects on excellence, endurance, structural inequality, and why becoming “undeniable” is often the price women pay to be heard.

A sharp conversation on law, ambition, technology and what it takes to sustain conviction over decades.

00:00 - Precap

01:20 - Introducing Karuna Nundy

02:57 - Episode Introduction

03:36 - Karuna Nundy on Her Career & Love for Litigation

06:38 - Lessons from Losses & the Fight for Justice

11:56 - Excellence, High Standards & Uncertain Outcomes

14:39 - Patriarchy, Gender Bias & Women in Law

27:02 - Navigating a Male-Dominated Profession

31:34 - Gender Constructs, Biology & Workplace Balance

42:16 - Family, Money & Generational Shifts

48:24 - Balancing Corporate Law with Human Rights Work

51:32 - Winning the Paytm Telecom Case

53:05 - Criminal Law & Exploring Different Specialisations

55:32 - AI, Technology & the Future of Legal Work

1:01:58 - From Girlhood to Womanhood: The Idea of Alpha Women

1:06:08 - What “Alpha” Means to Karuna Nundy

1:07:05 - Outro

Subscribe to Alpha Women for conversations with women shaping business, law, capital and culture in India.

In partnership with Spotify | Media Partner: Outlook Business

#KarunaNundy #AlphaWomen #IndianLaw #LeadershipPodcast #WomenInLaw #AI

Karuna Nundy’s public persona has long been shaped by her legal accolades.

Senior Advocate of the Supreme Court of India. Human rights lawyer. Commercial litigator. One of TIME’s 100 most influential people in the world.

But Episode 2 of Alpha Women is not a retelling of accolades.

It is a closer look at the person behind them. The ambition, conviction and discipline required to build authority inside some of the country’s most powerful institutions.

What it cost to sustain excellence over two decades when outcomes were rarely hers to determine. What it has meant to be undeniable in rooms not designed for her. And whether anything has actually changed for women, or have we just gotten better at talking about it?

Hosted by Salone Sehgal, Founder and Managing Partner of Lumikai.

Episode 2 premieres May 22.

▶️ Subscribe on YouTube →    • Alpha Women by Lumikai  

In partnership with Spotify | Media partner: Outlook Business