HYDERABAD: WeHub CEO Deepthi Ravula gets indignant every time someone asks her a question about women empowerment in relation to WeHub, the country’s only startup incubator for women. In a freewheeling interview with City Express, Deepthi sought to make it clear: “When we invest in entrepreneurship, the goal is to create enterprises. Do not equate WeHub with the empowerment of women,” she said. “We created WeHub to help women turn into entrepreneurs which will lead to economic freedom which then translates into participation in decision making. The point is, will an enabled ecosystem lead to empowerment? It is subjective,” she states.
Since the establishment of WeHub two years ago, it has been working on three sectors for creating a conducive atmosphere for women. Firstly they work on government liaisoning so that women are informed about the various government schemes. Secondly, they have an incubation programme where they handhold startups and expose them to various opportunities. Thirdly, they also works on collaborations.
While there have been many success stories through the years with many women entrepreneurs reaching new heights, there still remains a few problems that remain out of the WeHub’s control. For instance, even though a woman entrepreneur from Telangana may be working in We Hub, there maybe some social obstructions in her private space. To tackle this she has brought in a gender expert. “It is awkward for a woman if her family has no clue of what she is up to. So we are facilitating more interactions with their families as well. We are bringing the families together to help them understand that she is not just staying away from home, but accomplishing much more. We want to bring in that work ethic. We will invite them and they can witness what is happening here,” she said.
In future, she wants WeHub to be synonymous with the country and its startup ecosystem. 2020 goal for WeHub? “If someone thinks about India, they should think about Telangana and WeHub.” As of now, the startup incubator is getting heavy attention from the rest of the country with many states wanting to emulate.