Dare2Dream Awards Season 3

MSMEs are an indispensable part of the Indian economy comprising 30 per cent of the GVA (Gross Value Added). Additionally MSME exports consist of 49.5 per cent of total exports and 95 per cent of the industrial units in the country providing employment to almost 100 million people. The MSME sector drives dynamism within the economy and is critical to India’s quest of transitioning to a US $5 trillion economy. Enterprises included within the MSME sector typically require lower capital to jumpstart operations; this opens up vast opportunities for employment of the almost 1.2 million graduates produced in the country. Most importantly this prevents thousands of people from falling below the poverty line as MSMEs are also deeply integrated with the rural economy in India with more than half of them operating in rural areas.

The third season of the Dare2Dream Awards 2021 presented by TV9 Network and sponsored by SAP India, aimed to recognize SMEs in India, which have innovatively defied the challenges of the pandemic. The award ceremony had a total of 1147 nominations and it was attended by approximately 2100 attendees. The event was live-streamed on Facebook and more than 256000 viewers tuned in to watch the live telecast. The awards recognized more than 150 MSMEs and were held in several Indian cities. The award categories were as follows:

• Company of the Year
• Business Transformation through Technology
• Emerging Company of the Year
• Business Person of the Year
• Women Entrepreneur of the Year
• Young Business Leader
• Inspirational Leader

Top policymakers joined as keynote speakers and congratulated the winners. There was also a special Guiding Light segment that celebrated India’s inspirational icons—pioneers who have left their mark through outstanding achievements in sports, medicine, social work, and education.

The D2D award ceremony commenced on November 30 in the city of New Delhi. Shri BB Swain, Secretary, Ministry of Micro Small and Medium Enterprises, Govt of India, was the chief guest and the keynote speaker. Shri BB Swain stated that the driving force behind the success of the MSMEs through the pandemic was their positive attitude, willingness to take risks, prudent strategies, successful identification of products and markets, and the ability to turn adverse situations into opportunities. He concluded by applauding and congratulating the winners.

Suhas Lalinakere Yathiraj was Guiding Light guest speaker and shared his wisdom and insights with our audience. Suhas spoke of how he hoped to inspire the youth and entrepreneurs alike to Dare to Dream and follow up their dreams with discipline, hard work, and determination. He said that it was important to try and fail rather than not try at all, because life would always be full of ups and downs and that one must be focused on the goal and overcome one’s fear of losing. The winners for November 30 can be found here.

The December 1 edition of the awards took place in Mumbai. Subhash Desai, the Minister for Industries and Mining, Govt. of Maharashtra was the keynote speaker. He spoke of how some of the largest corporates today were small entrepreneurs when they got started, and that MSMEs today should pursue the same goal through their hard work, determination, and taking advantage of relevant government schemes.

Dr. Prakash and Dr. Mandakini Amte graced us with their presence on the occasion of the Dare2Dream Awards held in Mumbai as our Guiding Lights. While relating his experiences, Dr. Prakash Amte spoke of being inspired by his father Baba Amte, who often stated that ‘Work is Worship’, and that this tenet had guided many of his endeavors. Dr. Prakash and Dr. Mandakini Amte stressed the importance of selfless service and emphasized that the satisfaction and happiness gained from serving others were much more enduring than that derived from material possessions. The winners for December 1 can be found here.

The next award ceremony was held in Ahmedabad on December 2. Our chief guest on this occasion was Shri J. Ranjeeth Kumar Commissioner, MSMEs, Govt of Gujarat. He spoke of several government measures to help MSMEs including the MSEFC Delayed Payment Monitoring System. He praised TV9 for recognizing outstanding MSMEs and congratulated the winners.

Our Guiding light speaker on this instance was a world-renowned cardiologist and is well-known for his pioneering work in the interventional cardiology domain, Dr. Tejas M. Patel. He spoke about his aspirations as a youth and the factors that drove his ambitions. He also spoke of his goal to bring India to the forefront when it came to cardiology and most of his efforts have been driven by this goal. Dr. Patel also gave the audience some valuable tips for maintaining a healthy heart including yoga, cardio, and meditation. The winners for December 2 can be found here.

The December 3 edition of the Dare2Dream awards were held in Hyderabad. Karikal Valaven, IAS

Special Chief Secretary To Industries & Commerce, Govt of Andhra Pradesh, and E. Venkat Narasimha Reddy, Vice Chairman & MD, Telangana State Industrial Infrastructure Corporation were the keynote speakers. Mr. Reddy spoke of the importance of the ecosystem of MSMEs and noted that both the cost and ease of doing business should be conducive for the development of MSMEs. The Special Chief Secretary mentioned how the government has established MSME supporting cells for every district in Andhra Pradesh and loan restructuring schemes for the benefit of MSMEs.

Harika Dronavalli is a chess grandmaster, was the Guiding Light speaker for the Hyderabad edition of the awards. She spoke of the importance of learning from failures and advised that rather than dwelling on them, to focus on doing one’s best irrespective of the circumstances, and the importance of setting ambitious goals rather than taking a risk-free approach. The winners for December 3 can be found here.

The December 7 Dare2Dream awards were held in Bengaluru. Mr. Murugesh R Nirani, Minister for Large and Medium-Scale Industries, Government of Karnataka, was the chief guest and keynote speaker. He spoke of how the government was working to increase land allocations for MSMEs through new amendments and industrial policies for several districts.

Nalini Shekar, an entrepreneur and tireless social activist was the Guiding Light speaker for the award ceremony held in Bangalore. She has not only impacted the lives of waste pickers in a positive way but has also created an entirely new business model for waste management in the country. At the ceremony, she spoke about how she saw waste pickers as entrepreneurs and that she was very proud of how far they had progressed, with many of them even filing tax returns and employing more people in turn. The winners for December 7 can be found here.

The next edition of the Dare2Dream awards was held in Chennai on 8th December. The Industry Secretary, Govt of Tamil Nadu, Thiru S Krishnan, was our chief guest. He spoke of various measures that the government had taken to help MSMEs including quick processing of loans, innovation voucher schemes, seed grants, and cluster facilitation centers. He congratulated the winners for their tremendous efforts.

Ms. Vinisha Umashankar, a young pioneer, who has set a new precedent for what it means to be proactive was the Guiding Light speaker on this occasion. Vinisha has been widely applauded for her innovation of the Iron-Max which is solar-powered and has allowed vendors to forgo the use of coal which damages the environment. She spoke of her experiences and congratulated all the entrepreneurs who won awards and were working towards making the world a better place. The winners for December 8 can be found here.

The December 9 edition of the Dare2Dream awards was focused on MSMEs in North India and hosted two chief guests: Shahnawaz Hussain, Industry Minister, Govt of Bihar, and Gurkeerat Kotli, Industry minister, Govt of Punjab. Mr. Kohli noted that the MSME sector was the backbone of the MSME sector and stated that the government of Punjab has been focusing on encouraging MSMEs through several initiatives.

On the occasion of the Dare2Dream Awards – North India edition, it was our pleasure to host Anand Kumar, a mathematician and one of the most renowned tutors in the country, as our Guiding Light speaker. He spoke of how his inability to enroll at Cambridge University because of financial constraints motivated him to help other such students succeed. Specifically, he intended to help children from economically weak backgrounds gain admission to the prestigious IITs. He emphasized the importance of being grounded and setting challenging goals. The winners for December 9 can be found here.

The final chapter of the Dare2Dream Awards was held on 10th December in Kolkata. The keynote speaker for this occasion was Dr. Partha Chatterjee, Minister, Industry, Commerce & Enterprises, Govt of West Bengal. Dr. Chatterjee discussed the West Bengal government’s emphasis on industrial development and congratulated the winners.

Dola Banerjee, one of the top-ranked archers in the country and was the Guiding Light speaker for the Kolkata edition of the Dare2Dream Awards. She talked about her initial struggles while preparing for competitions and how her family’s unflinching support and disciplined training helped her tackle many challenges. Dola concluded by saying that Indian players who compete on an international level have come a long way, however, there was a need to gear up mentally to get ahead of international players. The winners for December 10 can be found here.