Bombay Shaving Company Launches Anandi Fellowship for Young Entrepreneurs
New Delhi, September 22, 2026: Bombay Shaving Company has launched The Anandi Fellowship, an initiative aimed at identifying and supporting young entrepreneurial talent among students in Classes 11 and 12 and first-year undergraduate programmes.
The fellowship will provide selected students with access to internships, scholarships, founder mentorship and the opportunity to receive up to ₹1 crore in seed funding if they later pursue their own startup full-time.
The programme will begin with Anandi-NEAT 2026 (Nationwide Entrepreneurship Acumen Test), a two-hour, pen-and-paper assessment scheduled for the first week of December 2026. The test will assess entrepreneurial acumen and does not require prior startup experience, coaching or specialised preparation.
Students who qualify will be invited to a three-day Grit Bootcamp in Gurgaon in May 2027, with expenses covered. Founders and CEOs from startups and businesses will participate in the selection process and interact with participants during the bootcamp.
Selected Anandi Fellows will have access to four opportunities: an Entrepreneur-in-Residence opportunity at Bombay Shaving Company with a pre-placement offer carrying compensation of ₹25 lakh per annum; paid summer internships with a stipend of ₹1 lakh per month; a ₹1 lakh annual education scholarship through college; and up to ₹1 crore in future seed funding for fellows who choose to build a startup full-time.
The internship network includes Bombay Shaving Company, Urban Company, Elevation Partners, Country Delight, Mosaic Wellness, Z47 Partners, Atomberg, The Whole Truth, Sixth Sense, Allen, Qualia, Agilitas, GoKwik, Rebel Foods, Leap Scholar, Giga Capital and Treebo Hotels, among others.
The fellowship is open irrespective of a student's academic background or college, with participants free to pursue their preferred course and institution.
Shantanu Deshpande, Founder & CEO, Bombay Shaving Company, said:
“Entrepreneurship is usually discovered much later than it needs to be. By then, access, networks and financial circumstances have already shaped who gets the opportunity to build. The Anandi Fellowship is our attempt to change that equation, to find young people with the curiosity, grit and acumen to build, and give them real exposure, mentorship and eventually capital. We are not looking for students who have already built a company. We are looking for the potential to build one.”
Registrations for the Anandi Fellowship are currently open, with the Anandi-NEAT 2026 scheduled for the first week of December.
