Prahlad Kakkar, Mahesh Murthy to speak at entrepreneurship workshop Ascent07 at IIM Calcutta

IIM C is organising event Ascent07 in association with the National Entrepreneurship Network (NEN) and TiE (The Indus Entrepreneurs). The event will be an opportunity for learning and interacting with the people like ad-filmmaker Mr. Prahlad Kakkar, venture capitalist Mr. Mahesh Murthy, Chairman of Globsyn group of companies Mr. Bikram Das Gupta, founder of Burrp.com Mr. Deap Ubhi, founder of Ready to go? magazine Mr. Arjun Jindal and founder of Intelsys group Mr. Saumen Chakraborty. The event is a precursor to the international B-plan contest i2I.

According to IIM-C, Ascent 07 promises opportunities for learning and interacting with people who have been there and done it all in the world of entrepreneurship.

According to information shared by IIM-C with MBAUniverse.com, The event will follow the Entrepreneurship Cells objective of fostering entrepreneurship on campus; Ascent 07 would be an A-Z of entrepreneurship workshop covering all aspects of Entrepreneurship. Such events that the Entrepreneurship Cell has planned for has been met with student interest a reflection of the fact that Entrepreneurship as a career option is spreading rapidly in Indian B-schools.

The workshop begins with venture capitalist Mr Mahesh Murthys session on Entrepreneurship, Business Plans and Funding. Murthy has funded 10 start-ups in India and three overseas -- all of which are successful companies today. His previous work experience includes being the creative consultant for MTV Hong Kong, country head of Channel V India and VP Marketing for iCat Seattle.

Mr Murthys session will be followed by Mr. Prahlad Kakkar. He is one of the best-known ad-filmmakers in our country, who claims that everything he does is an extension of a hobby or a passion. His entrepreneurial ventures include restaurants, a cigar factory and scuba diving schools. He would be sharing his experiences of entrepreneurship, his philosophy of work and opportunities in the media sector.

A session on The Leap of Faith Entrepreneurship as a Career Option by Mr. Bikram Das Gupta, Chairman of Globsyn group of companies, will be held on July 22. An IIT Kharagpur alumnus, Mr. Das Gupta is one of the pioneers of the IT revolution in India. This would be followed by a session on Managing a Start-Up, Managing Growth: The Tale from an Entrepreneur by Mr. Saumen Chakraborty, founder of Intelsys group.The next session would be on Marketing for your Start-Up, how to create a Buzz about your Company by Mr. Deap Ubhi and Mr. Arjun Jindal. The session will highlight Bootstrapped Marketing and PR efforts to market your start-up. Mr. Ubhi and Mr. Jindal, will talk about their own experiences.

The workshop will culminate with a panel discussion on Potholes and Pitfalls for Entrepreneurs addressed by Mr Ubhi, Mr Jindal, and Mr Chakraborty. The floor will then be open for a question and answer session.
NEN is a not-for-profit initiative of the Wadhwani Foundation, working to inspire, educate and support the next generation of high-growth entrepreneurs in India. The Indus Entrepreneurs (TiE) is a network of entrepreneurs and professionals dedicated to the advancement of entrepreneurship; it is associated with the entrepreneurial activities at IIM-C.