The Indian startup formula is bracingly simple. All you need are ‘open skies, cheap liquor and terrible friends. So ventures the trailer of 'Upstarts', a new Netflix original film probing the entrepreneurial spirit of young India.
Streaming from October 18, the film tracks the journey of Kapil (Priyanshu Painyuli), a graduate who develops a medicine-delivery app with his friends Yash (Chandrachoor Rai) and Vinay (Shadab Kamal). Together, they set up a profitable company and aspire to crack into the big league. Their friendship, however, is tested when they come into contact with Veer (Rajeev Siddhartha), a moneyed investor looking to make a mark on his own.
Priyanshu, who grew up in Bangalore, drew inspiration from his own life for the film. “After finishing my filmmaking course, I started a company called Capture Crew Productions with my friends. We made corporate ad films, music videos and stuff. I remember how driven we were to do something we love, and not just make money. It’s a world I can still connect to,” he said.
More than the business aspect, Priyanshu was interested in the emotional journey of an entrepreneur. “Later on in the film, you see Kapil become more aggressive. He has some tough decisions to make as CEO. At some point, his beliefs stop matching with those of his friends, and that’s where the conflict starts. If you think about it, none of them are wrong. It’s just a case of right versus right.”
Upstarts marks the directorial debut of Udai Singh Pawar. An alumnus of IIT-Kanpur, Udai worked for several years at Microsoft Research. He tracks the idea of Upstarts back to his days in the IT industry. “While in Microsoft, my job was to develop technology for education. I would take computers to faraway villages where schools didn’t even have walls. There was also a persistent healthcare and hygiene problem in these areas. While writing this film, we realised that such a problem can be easily addressed through an app.”
Actor Rajeev Siddhartha, who plays the billionaire investor Veer Diwan, spoke about the complex mindspace of his character. “Veer is not a bad guy. He is a rich, Harvard-educated heir who wants to prove himself and not be dependent on his father’s wealth."
Girl power
The female lead in 'Upstarts' is played by Sheetal Thakur. Her character, Jaya, runs her own startup and assists Kapil on his difficult journey. To prepare for the role, Sheetal researched about the top female entrepreneurs in India.