Bollywood stars and cricket legends are increasingly backing Indian startups, with 10 celebrities investing in 34 startups across 49 funding rounds worth $458 million between 2021 and 2026, according to a Tracxn report. Shilpa Shetty Kundra leads the pack with 10 disclosed funding rounds, followed by MS Dhoni and Sachin Tendulkar with six each. The investments span diverse sectors including health-focused food brands, tech solutions, and personal care. Shraddha Kapoor focuses on fashion, mobility, and wellness with five disclosed rounds, while Virat Kohli invests in sports footwear, food tech, and consumer goods across five rounds. Alia Bhatt participates in four rounds aligned with sustainability and parenting, including early investments in eco-friendly home care startup Phool and sustainable mom-and-baby care brand Ed-a-Mamma.
India's startup ecosystem is experiencing a significant valuation reset, with at least 10 startups losing their unicorn status since 2024, according to data from Tracxn. A unicorn is defined as a company valued at $1 billion and beyond, but the current market conditions are forcing substantial corrections across the sector. As reported by The Times of India, the AI boom has triggered substantial foreign capital flight to the US, while investors are rejigging their approach to align with current business realities. The market correction is evident in companies like Slice, now operating as a small finance bank, which raised $100 million in a down round with its valuation more than halved to around $450-$470 million, representing a near 70% correction from its peak valuation of about $1.4 billion around 2022.
Slice, now operating as a small finance bank, raised $100 million in a down round with its valuation more than halved to around $450-$470 million. This represents a near 70% correction from its peak valuation of about $1.4 billion around 2022. In the edtech sector, Unacademy was acquired by rival upGrad in an all-stock deal valued at just over $200 million, representing a 94% decline from its peak valuation of $3.4 billion in 2021. According to The Times of India, investors are now assessing companies like Slice as banking firms rather than fintechs, reflecting the changing market dynamics. Notable celebrity investments include MS Dhoni's participation in solar energy company SolarSquare's $53 million Series C round and Sachin Tendulkar's deep conviction in auto e-commerce startup Spinny, where he participated in five separate funding rounds ranging from early angel stages to the massive $250 million Series E round that cemented its unicorn status.
Private market valuations are normalising after the excesses of the 2021 funding cycle, with investors now placing greater weight on fundamentals, growth efficiency and profitability. As reported by The Times of India, the recent withdrawal of mega IPOs, including PhonePe and Zepto which delayed their IPOs over valuation mismatch, serves as a clear indicator of this shift. Accel's new India $550 million fund, which will start deploying capital from next year, has a significant AI focus, highlighting the sector's current priorities. The celebrity investment trend reflects this fundamental shift, with stars like Shilpa Shetty Kundra backing food and beverage startup WickedGud and Alia Bhatt investing in eco-friendly home care startup Phool, demonstrating increased focus on sustainable and profitable ventures.
According to The Times of India, Siddarth Pai, founding partner at 3one4 Capital, explained that while India has substantial capital for early-stage deployment, significant allocation in growth to late-stage stages comes from foreign funds that are flocking to the US where AI activity is concentrated. Jashank Pohani, head of family office relationships at Artha Group, noted that companies raised on vanity metrics are now facing reality checks, as investors test whether previous rounds were justified and underwrite real numbers rather than stories. The current market environment reflects a fundamental shift from growth-at-any-cost to profitability-focused investments, with celebrities like Shraddha Kapoor doubling down on clean mobility with two separate seed investments in EV startup Chargeup and Anushka Sharma investing in food and wellness companies including healthy snack maker Slurrp Farm.
