He recently became a nationally known speaker when invited to participate in the Viksit Bharat Young Leaders Dialogue 2026 – Young Professionals Round-table, an initiative of the Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports, Government of India under MY Bharat, hosted by Elixir Foundation and Techno India University. The event featured a panel discussion on the future of India's startup ecosystem, titled ‘Making India Startup Capital of the World', where entrepreneurs, innovators, students, academicians and industry leaders shared their insights.
Instead of speaking a standard keynote, Rishav opted for a sincere and truthful discussion with the audience.
He shared during the session he said: “I don’t believe lectures can tech entrepreneurship.” “It can be learned by building, breaking, adapting, and rebuilding.” The best lessons are those that are learned through experience, not theory.
Instead of offering elaborate frameworks, he boiled his entrepreneurial experiences down to two principles that he believes have guided each step of his career.
The first was simple: Start before you feel ready.
Rishav says that many budding entrepreneurs sit and wait for years to have the perfect idea, perfect time, or perfect resources. The truth is that perfection is continually evolving. Progress is for those who start, listen to the market and grow with each step.
His second principle was equally powerful: Never give up.
Part of the journey of entrepreneurship is full of uncertainty, rejection, financial limitations, setbacks, and failures. It is not about not having to face up to these challenges; it is about facing them and continuing.
Rishav shared anecdotes about his own career, stating that talent isn't the only factor for the journey from where a person starts to where they end up.
"If you don't start today, you'll never discover where you could be five years from now. Every entrepreneur faces obstacles. What matters is not how many times you fall, but whether you continue moving forward. Starting early and refusing to quit have been the two most valuable decisions of my entrepreneurial journey."
These ideas have now been the backbone of Rishav's mission to bring entrepreneurship to the mainstream, accessible and execution-oriented for young entrepreneurs in India.
In Startup Like A Pro, which has been adopted by over 50,000+ people, he provides real startup case studies, untapped business ideas, execution strategies, and practical lessons learned from his close working relationships with startup founders. The platform doesn't aim to make money for people overnight; instead, it works to educate entrepreneurs about what really works in the process of establishing sustainable businesses.
In tandem, Rishav has personally mentored more than 100+ startups and aspiring entrepreneurs, which allows him to see that there are some common trends between thriving and unsuccessful businesses. Such experiences have led to his conviction that perfection is always less effective than execution and that practical advice is far more effective than theoretical advice.
His invitation for the Viksit Bharat Young Leaders Dialogue 2026 was also accompanied by another milestone – his participation was officially featured on the verified social media handles of the Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports' youth engagement initiative MY Bharat, highlighting his contribution to the discourse on innovation, entrepreneurship and youth leadership.
In the future, Rishav's goal is not just to create companies; it is to drive the change of others. Rishav's vision in the future is not to create companies; it's to change the world.
He feels that India's quest to emerge as a global leader in the start-up ecosystem is not going to be clubbed by just a few unicorns. It will be powered by millions of young people who want to build, innovate, solve a problem with a purpose, and create opportunities for others.
Entrepreneurship is for him more than a job; it is an engine of economic growth, job creation, innovation, and nation building.
As India moves towards the vision of Viksit Bharat @2047, Rishav Sadhu continues to work towards a single mission:
To motivate more people to begin, ensure more entrepreneurs' success, and support the innovation-driven India.
