TRUST ME I KNOW WHAT I'm DOING

Abhay is joined by pioneering seed-stage venture capitalist Vani Kola, founder and managing director of Kolaari Capital. They talked about rituals and routines, dealing with ambiguity and guardrails, and how accelerate closing the equity gap for women entrepreneurs in tech.

(0:00 - 3:04) Introduction
(3:04) Rituals, basic skills and values, anchors
(19:02) Dealing with ambiguity as an founder or funder, navigating guardrails
(36:07) India as a governance leader in tech, accelerating pathways for women, nostalgia, building trust
(55:30) Conclusion

So I’m always eager to learn from leaders who more often than not are able to manage contrasts.  Now contrasts come in all different shapes and forms and they are literally all around us in every professional and personal environment and my hypothesis is that successful leaders find a way maybe through their own journey to manage small and large contrasts with progressively increasing clarity, patience, and purpose. So it was really a treat to share a conversation with Vani Kola, the founder and managing director of Kalaari Capital, an early stage venture capital firm in India.  Vani is originally from Hyderabad, and after an engineering degree, came to the US to complete her Masters and went on to a career as a serial entrepreneur in Silicon Valley for over two decades.  She then returned to India to pioneer among the first homegrown Indian seed-stage venture firms with Kalaari Capital, using a philosophy that includes recognizing ambitious first-time entrepreneurs and helping them to scale up. Now mind you, she started this at a time in the mid-2000’s when opportunities for growth and scale for ecommerce, tech, healthcare and many other sectors in India were at the ripening stage.  Vani has navigated and executed successfully through the endless contrasts of an evolving seed-stage venture ecosystem: new vs old, disruptive revolutions vs steady institutions, profiteering innovation vs collective responsibility, and skepticism vs trust… they’re at the core of the face to face conversations that investors and entrepreneurs are having everyday.  Vani has been mentoring, and developing some of India’s top founders and unicorn companies, with not just a keen eye on returns, but on the responsibility too to accelerate women as leaders in entrepreneurship, doing it all with a meditative sense of purpose and a growth mindset of sharing (by the way, you really have to check out her great newsletter called Kolaidoscope on LinkedIn). I had met her briefly once when she spoke at a panel discussion on tech and India’s future, and it was great to catch up with her again to talk about everything from ambiguity and nostalgia, to the guardrails of tech, policy making, and even what she misses about Silicon Valley.  But we started by chatting about the basics of daily skills and anchors, and especially if she had any self- driving and governing rituals or routines?

Thanks again and if you’re enjoying these, please don’t forget to share this with a friend, take a moment to write a kind review, or drop a line to us at [email protected].  

Again, a big shout out to Indiaspora for being that one of a kind gathering ground for doing good. Remember that conversation is the antidote to apathy and the catalyst for relationship building. 

Isabella Sreyashii Sen, co-CEO of Hazelnut Media, joins Abhay to share her journey of finding home in Singapore and how her background informs her storytelling approach. She discusses the importance of empathy in media, the challenges of independent film production, and the role of the Indian diaspora in shaping global narratives. Isabella highlights the need for patience, gender equity, and the power of community.

(0:00 - 2:33) Introduction
(2:33) Part 1 - Singapore, foundational background
(14:48) Part 2 - ladders and challenges, social causes, gender equity
(29:47) Part 3 - levers of power, connections in the diaspora
(41:00) Conclusions

Thank you to INDIASPORA!

Abhay shares a conversation with Satyajit Hange, co-founding farmer of Two Brothers Organic Farms, located in Bhodani, a rural village in Maharasthra.  They chatted about generational influences on his journey, grappling with the challenges of running an eco-conscious enterprise,  and even the impact of his Vedic philosophy on his mission, vision, and values.

(0:00 - 3:10) Introduction
(3:10) Part 1 - nostalgia, typical farming day, tensions and purpose
(19:29) Part 2 - combating forces, leaving the corporate world for farming, competition 
(35:37) Part 3 - suprises from visitors, Vedic literature and "swadharma", conversations with previous generations
(49:04) Conclusion

OK - so in my book and in my mind, earth day really is everyday and lately, with each successive day, it seems like when it comes to the earth and climate, retro is actually quite innovative. So I’ve been asking myself the following almost “time machine” question. And here it is:  How would our foremothers and forefathers from a few generations ago react if they saw a slice of our current world and enviroment? I know they would be fascinated with so many improvements and major advances, but it seems that we would have a lot to learn from them to maybe urgently integrate into our practices today of how we preserve and conserve, treat the land we inhabit, and live consciously with engagement.  It’s certainly a question that was top of mind, as I shared a conversation with Satyajit Hange, one of the co-founding farmers of Two Brothers Organic Farms.  Satyajit is a 4th generation farmer in Bhodani (भोडणी), which is about ½ way between Pune and Solapur in Maharashtra. After going away to boarding school and then starting his post-MBA career in the marketing, banking, and education sectors, Satyajit felt his purpose was meant to be elsewhere, and so he, along with his brother Ajinkya, started Two Brothers Organic Farms to make a difference in sustainable rural agriculture.  Foundationally, they’ve been committed to 100% organic nutrition, humane indigenous animal welfare and farming practices using intercropping, heirloom seeding, and a superb focus on soil health and even bee pollination.  But one of the more amazing by-products of this has been the galvanizing effect on the community with training and education not only for their own teams, but for thousands of local farmers.  I particularly would also call out a spirit of activism, advocating for food labeling transparency and even the tech to monitor a traceable pathway back to the origin of each product. It’s a pretty 2025 way of respecting practices that were likely quite normal back several generations ago, and while Satyajit and Two Brothers Organic Farms have come a long way from sharing delicious papayas at local fruit stands to now distributing food across the globe, when I caught up with him to chat about it all, I first wanted to know how much of his ongoing journey has been driven by that inherent nostalgia for farming life that has run so deep for many generations in his family?

Learn more about Satyajit, his brother Ajinkya, and their work at twobrothersfood.com

Periodically on TRUST ME I KNOW WHAT I’m DOING , we share a SPOTLIGHT conversation and feature brief chats with an individual from the community about a special topic or a unique endeavor. 

So it’s springtime in a lot of our global areas, where traditionally, things everywhere are starting to bloom. And with melting snow and healthy rains it also means that water is flowing freely to activate dormant soil and nurture the land so that communities and villages can thrive.  Or at least that’s the idea, but in today’s reality, more and more rural land is suffering at the hands of a climate in crisis.  This is especially true in rural India, where the cyclic pressures of growth, urbanization, social exodus to the cities, and drained resources, have made yesterday’s once fertile land turn into today’s eroded dry deserts.  So I was intrigued to learn more about one group’s mission to try and bend the narrative away from that erosion to one of holistic abundance and empowerment, and it was absolutely wonderful to share some time catching up with Sagar Dharia, one of the trustees of Vanarai, an organization deeply committed to rural grass roots conservation and sustainable land restoration.  Vanarai was started nearly 40 years ago by Sagar’s grandfather, the late Padma Vibhushan Dr. Mohan Dharia, whose vision was to bring together stakeholders and make villages more self-reliant through education, watershed management, health, sanitation, and farming.  Working with over 250 villages across Maharashtra and other states, Vanarai has succeeded in integrating a strong rural development strategy by rejuvenating water and soil, reviving farming practices and economies, and stimulating social change through education and community building.  I have to tell you that it is an inspiring design of community activism and energy that’s based on climate science, thoughtful planning, social science, and a modern strategy that doesn’t ignore the challenges of rural development in a rapidly evolving India.  Ultimately, cultivating relationships and trust are at the core of this very  eco- conscious people movement, and so I asked Sagar why he believes that rural villages are so relevant to India’s successful future?

You can learn more about Vanarai's ongoing work at VANARAI.ORG or get in touch with them at [email protected]

Comedian, writer, and actor Sindhu Vee joins Abhay for a broad conversation about her new comedy special Alphabet, how her journey has informed her comedy, and the way she measures success.  Mangoes, Amitabh Bachchan, and love letters were all of course included!

(0:00 - 2:49) Introduction
(2:49) Part 1 - consuming comedy, South Asian roots
(15:00) Part 2 - integrating and enduring, love letters, mothering
(33:20) Part 3 - brand and mission, "I kick you and you hug me", measuring success
(48:08) Conclusion

Abhay is joined by the creator of the Hulu series Deli Boys, Abdullah Saeed, to chat about everything from vulnerability and courage with storytelling, to cultivating trust on this project, to weaving partition into the show, to finding comfort and humor in the absurd.  Simpsons and Tan France references were part of the overall gentle charm of this conversation.
(0:00 - 2:54) Introduction
(2:54) Part 1 - Underachieving, Courage and vulnerability
(15:02) Part 2 - Comedy juxtapositions, South Asian cultural approaches in American storytelling
(34:45) Part 3 - Explosive turns, Building trust, Mirrors and windows, longevity
(46:52) Conclusion

Author, writer, and journalist Sanjena Sathian rejoins TRUST ME I KNOW WHAT I'm DOING to chat about her new novel Goddess Complex, and the state of South Asian American millennial adulthood with attention to procreation, pregnancy, and parenting. 
Abhay was thrilled once again to step into the Sanjenaverse!
(0:00 - 2:53) Introduction
(2:53) Part 1 - the birth of a new book, narrative speed, tormented writing
(15:45) Part 2 - taking risks, regret or not, take aways for men, reproduction and the immigrant experience
(32:52) Part 3 - Balance and privilege, unlearning, frenemies and changes
(44:25) Conclusion

Abhay shares a chat with Nima Sherpa, the youngest human in the world to have climbed all 14 peaks over 8000m. Nima shares his journey through the world of climbing, the lessons learned, and the importance of mentorship. He discusses the unique perspective that youth brings to risk-taking and humility, the significance of Sherpa culture in mountaineering, and the evolving landscape of climbing as a profession. Nima emphasizes the need for environmental responsibility and the balance between tourism and conservation, while also reflecting on his personal growth and the aspirations for future generations of Nepali climbers.
(0:00 - 2:40) Introduction
(2:40) Part 1 - learning from an unsuccessful climb, taking risks
(15:15) Part 2 - growing as a leader, focus while climbing, Nepali mountaineering
(30:37) Part 3 - climate impact, favorites and injuries, staying peaceful and strong
(43:37) Conclusion

Periodically on TRUST ME I KNOW WHAT I’m DOING , we share a SPOTLIGHT conversation and feature brief chats with an individual from the community about a special topic or a unique endeavor. 

So ok, a while back , I had to think about making a will and living trust, and not to be morose or sad, but  it was a good exercise that forced me to think about things that are family heirlooms, or even the more basic question of what we find precious or beautiful and even enduring?  For a lot of people, tangible things like jewelry come to mind, and it's likely no newsflash that India has a fairly strong heritage and history with jewels and diamonds. Now,  in the 2025 that we live in,  technology is bending the curve and offering alternatives for everyone to be conscious of sustainable affordability, ethical choices, time, and rapidly evolving definitions of elegance and fashionable beauty in almost every corner of every consumer market. So, I was actually really curious to learn more about lab grown jewelry, and it was really great to share a Spotlight conversation with Ricky Vasandani.  Ricky grew up all over the world in a family that successfully scaled a legacy diamond jewellery business over decades. With a background in marketing and entrepreneurship,  and success in both the sports and Food and Beverage domains, he turned his attention to co-found Solitario as an emerging Indian lab grown diamond producer with an expanding domestic and international retail footprint.  In fact, just recently, Solitario finished a round of pre-ipo funding - a solid positioning in a market that’s expected to skyrocket in the next few years.  We caught up to talk about his global journey and experiences, about lab-grown jewelry and the storytelling that it deserves when making choices, but I first asked him to share the obvious, which was to tell me more about the jewelry he was currently wearing…

Abhay is joined by Sree Sreenivasan journalist and CEO/Co-Founder of Digimentors, for a broad conversation from August of 2024 about his experiences in journalism and media.  He is also the co-founder and current president of the South Asian Journalists Association. Sree is a passionate, talented, and humble soul and tells some amazing stories  - apologies in advance to any avid fans of Leonid Brezhnev.
(0:00 - 2:45) Introduction
(2:45) Part 1 - global citizenship, first feeling like a journalist
(17:58) Part 2 - journalistic objectivity, cultivating relationships
(38:20) Part 3 - media and institutions, unlearning
(49:53) Conclusions

Sree Sreenivasan shares his journey as a journalist and digital consultant, reflecting on his diverse background and the importance of storytelling in media. He discusses the challenges facing journalism today, particularly in representing the rich diversity of society, and the need for media to adapt in a rapidly changing digital landscape. Sree emphasizes the significance of community, the role of digital immigrants, and the necessity of unlearning to stay relevant in the field. The discussion also touches on the impact of social media and the evolving nature of communication in our lives.