One person has to make the start for the rest to follow it. Here is the story of a girl, Kriti Gupta, who has broken a stereotype by running her own IT company in Lucknow. TEX is the product of her hard-work and dedication which has also paved the way for other women to follow. Find out more about this young achiever and her journey from College to Entrepreneurship in this exclusive interview.
Find out more about this young achiever and her journey from College to Entrepreneurship in this exclusive interview.
Knocksense: How does it feel to run your own company?
Kriti: Exciting, challenging, nervous. You experience the whole range of emotions. But out of the three, I’d say excitement was the biggest one. The fact that I have been able to set something up on my own and of course with the help of my team fills me up with pride. To run a company is a task full of responsibilities because there is a constant pressure of delivering the product on time and maintaining its quality. This feeling is the one that keeps you alert, updated and motivated. You kinda move between faith and fear rapidly. Every day is interesting, maybe because it’s always going to be a challenge and challenges are always interesting.
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Knocksense: Does being a woman create any sort of difficulty in dealing with clients?
Kriti: I believe WORK should speak for your clients and not gender. However, the bias still exists in our society, and did come in my way too. During the initial days, a few clients showed doubt while discussing their respective projects, but when they saw the quality of work that TEX- Technology Exchange provided them with, all their doubts were erased and satisfaction is what they were left with!
Knocksense: Government currently is helping the startup culture grow in the state, have you been benefitted, by any means?
Kriti: Not yet! But I guess our new government will be supportive towards our venture and will help us establish a new high in the IT sector, in UP.
Knocksense: What made you take a job in Nepal? Were your parents supportive of your decision?
Kriti: I went to Nepal for an internship and got a job offer there. I feel very blessed and thankful to Mr. Upendra Shrestha (Founder Grafi Offshore) and Mr. Suraj Prajapati (Project Manager) for recognizing my work and providing me with an opportunity to work with Grafi.
Nothing is possible without parents and family support I believe. My parents have been my backbone in all my decisions. To let me work in Nepal, wasn’t an easy decision for them because I had never been away from home, before this. But they showed faith in me and my decisions (that’s my biggest strength) and helped me move out.
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Knocksense: How was your time in Nepal?
Kriti: I am pretty much lucky to have my maternal home in Kathmandu. Never thought that I would be staying at my uncle’s & granny’s place for so long. Mr. C L Rauniyar is my inspiration and I will always be thankful to him for all the motivation and support. Those are one of the best memories I have I must say! And I Still share many stories of Nepal with my employees during breaks!
Knocksense: How is the response of people in Lucknow?
Kriti: TEX aims at providing the best digital solutions to our clients! Lucknow, being closely rooted culture…people here are also seeking to be technology friendly for their business as well, and this is what we aim for.
Knocksense: What are your future plans?
Kriti: My future plan is to gear up Lucknow with some new technologies, like Artificial Intelligence, Virtual Reality, etc on a techie side. Apart from this, I would like to give a new high to ‘Discover Uttar Pradesh.’
TEX will be soon launching software products that will be helpful in multiple sectors. All this will eventually increase the employment and job opportunities for youth.
Knocksense: What message do you have for other women, who want to make their mark and step into entrepreneurship?
Kriti: Love what you do!! Women have a god’s gift of being a great multitasker, with loads of creativity at the same time. Believe in your dreams because dreams do come true!
