College students in Delhi are launching informal start-ups that blends seamlessly into campus life (Photos: Piyush Srivastava, Muskan Gupta)
As education in India evolves and begins its slow move from theoretical to practical learnings, a few students have begun to take the matters in their own hands and out of the classrooms as a rising number have begun to experiment with entrepreneurship, launching low-cost ventures that fit right into campus life.
One such example is Piyush Srivastava, a Hotel Management student at Ashok Institute of Hospitality and Tourism Management in Delhi, who has started a food stall called ‘Dip and Melt’ in Dwarka, South-west Delhi, selling strawberry-with-chocolate and brownies.
“When I started ‘Dip and Melt’, my goal was not just to earn, it was to shift my mindset from being a job seeker to becoming a job provider,” Srivastava tells Media India Group.
“In the first month itself, I made a good profit and it has taught me more about running a business than any classroom ever could,” he adds.
It is not just men who are turning to entrepreneurship and neither is food the only go-to segment for starting a business. Muskan Gupta, a student at Salesian College, Siliguri, West Bengal has launched Resin by Muski, a DIY decor startup where she crafts and sells resin-made home decor items.
“I started Resin by Muski because I love creating things with my hands but it became more than a hobby,” Gupta tells Media India Group.
“At first I thought I would find a job after college like everyone else. Now I want to build something of my own. Running this business while studying has taught me resilience, planning and confidence I didn’t have before,” she adds.
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Why students are turning to informal startups
These informal startups operate on small scales and low budgets but the learning is real. Students managing these ventures quickly pick up skills in budgeting, customer service, product experimentation and teamwork.
“Every day brings a new challenge, whether it is managing orders, experimenting with flavours or making sure customers leave happy. It is learning by doing,” says Srivastava.
For many, running a small business while studying provides a practical understanding of how industries function and what it takes to make a venture profitable. “I have learned how to price products, plan production and balance creativity with what customers actually want. It is a real world learning that textbooks cannot teach,” Gupta adds.
More importantly, these experiences are shifting student mindsets. Instead of relying solely on seeking jobs after graduation, many are beginning to see entrepreneurship as a practical career path. “Seeing the stall grow day by day gives me confidence that I can create something sustainable from scratch,” says Srivastava.
“The excitement of turning an idea into a product that people love, motivates me to explore more creative ways and scale up in the future,” Gupta says.
Across colleges, small stalls, craft booths and creative ventures are popping up everywhere. They serve as informal sector where students can experiment, fail, adapt and grow all within the safety of a familiar environment.