When Neeraj Jewalkar was looking at playschools to enrol his son, he was surprised that while technology had advanced by leaps and bounds, it somehow hadn’t entered learning environments in a big way. They are archaic, he felt, and the good ones are always expensive. The entrepreneur who had previously launched Trendyworks (a web products company recognised by NASSCOM as one of the top emerging product companies from India) set out to create next gen e-learning products. He believes his product is more affordable and user friendly than that of his competitors.
So far, under the Trendyworks label, he has launched an online national proficiency test for students of Classes I-X and now the Smartur 3D experience. “Smartur brings augmented reality to the classrooms making learning experiential, relatable and one with high recall value. We were welcomed by close to 500 schools in the US, and more in Europe where there is instant adaptability to new technology, before we brought it to India,” says Neeraj. With around 15 lakh schools in India, Neeraj believes this is a field with plenty of scope, provided you keep innovating. Fifteen schools in Hyderabad and a few more have become “Smartur” this year and they hope to take it to other cities soon for students of Classes III-X.
Neeraj is an Aerospace Engineering graduate from IIT-Kharagpur and had spent three years in Pune and Hyderabad working, before he started Trendyworks. Neeraj is of the opinion that in a market with strong players, price is the key differentiator. “While most schools charge every student on a monthly basis to employ better learning tools, Smartur comes with an annual fee model of `6,000 per subject, per school, per year. Smartur uses augmented reality, stereoscopic 3D and interactive 3D and Neeraj informs us that children and teachers love it instantly. Smartur will be sharing the freeware with schools across India. They have developed models for Chemistry, Biology, Maths and English, and aim to build content for the entire range of subjects in the coming months. Visit www.smartur.com/www.smartur3D.com.
— preethi@newindianexpress.com