Meet Anoushka Jolly, a Class 8 student who became the youngest entrepreneur on reality show 'Shark Tank India' to win a funding for her idea. The 13-year-old appeared on the show to pitch her anti-bullying app called 'Kavach' for which she received Rs 50 lakh funding.
The aim of the app is simple and important, to spread across the nation and reach as many children and schools as possible and educate them regarding the importance of anti-bullying. It will also hold webinars and one-on-one talks across the country against bullying.
'Kavach' app will allow students and parents to report incidents of bullying anonymously, giving opportunity to schools and counsellors to tactfully intervene and take action. Jolly, the Pathways School, Gurugram, student wants to build a strong network of anti-bullying ambassadors, who will track the progress of those impacted directly or indirectly through the platform and application.
But here's an interesting thing. This isn't Jolly's first time standing against bullying. Her journey started years ago after she witnessed incidents of bullying.
The first event happened when Jolly's friends mocked her while she cried, an experience she shared on 'Shark Tank India' show while pitching her idea.
This incident was followed by another episode of bullying when she witnessed her fellow students mocking a six-year-old girl during a school function.
These scarring experiences pushed Jolly to form 'Anti Bullying Squad (ABS)' with the help of educational institutions, social organisations and experts.
It has so far helped over 2,000 students from over 100 schools and universities. The 13-year-old has been running ABS digital platform for over three years now.
The platform also allows people to better understand bullying and its consequences, along with taking a pledge to prevent the menace. It also sells anti-bullying merchandise, Jolly told PTI in an interview.
"However, during the process, I realised that most of these incidents do not get reported and hence, do not get resolved. So, I came up with an idea of creating a bullying reporting mobile app 'Kavach' to anonymously report incidents," Jolly told PTI.
The 13-year-old, daughter of a chartered accountant and an entrepreneur, has plans to take her entrepreneurial journey ahead.
"The idea was well received by judges of (Shark Tank), two of whom even stepped forward to invest in my app at Rs 50 lakh in valuation to help me widen its scale and reach," she added.
The sharks who stepped up to help Joly are Anupam Mittal, founder and CEO of People Group (Shaadi.com) and Aman Gupta, co-founder of boAt.
'Shark Tank India' is the indigenous version of 'Shark Tank', a global entrepreneurial reality show. In India, the show is currently running its first season and has selected 198 candidates out of 50,000 applications.
