What was initially planned as a fireside chat between Ashok Jhunjhunwala of IIT Madras and CEO of The Hindu Group LV Navaneeth, at the two-day Deep Tech Summit 2026 organized by The Hindu Group with SRM Institute of Science and Technology (SRMIST), turned out to be a motivational gathering full of energy and inspiring technocrats, entrepreneurs, academics and optimism.
The session titled ‘From Lab to Nation: How India Can Build a Global Deep Tech Ecosystem’ covered a wide span of time – from Professor Jhunjhunwal’s return to India in the 1980s, the key success principles of IIT Madras Research Park, business dos and don’ts, the need for solutions to everyday problems between two kinds of startups, between two kinds of mentorship.
Asked what initially convinced him that India needed a completely different model, Professor Jhunjhunwala recalled his return from the US in 1981 and the absence of interaction between industry and academia. Together with a bunch of students, he started building things for industry. “That was the beginning!” he said.
And was the industry promising? “I also realize that you have to really reach out to the top person in the industry. They have the vision to take risks. If you go from the bottom, you’re not going to be able to do that,” he said.
Curious about the IIT Madras Research Park (IITMRP) model, which is often cited as one of the most successful industry-academia collaboration models in the country, Mr. Navaneeth sought to understand the key principles behind its design and asked what lessons other universities should learn from it.
“We first looked at IIT Madras Research Park as a startup. Yes, you can take seed money from somewhere, but apart from that, it has to be driven by a strong business model. So apart from the seed money, you don’t get any grant. Apart from the seed money, you have to raise money either through venture capital or loans. For that, your business plan has to be very strong and the banks have to be convinced Jhun.
Another important thing for such an institute, he added, was: “We cannot have interference from either the government or the institute. Because the government does things in its own way. If you depend on government funding, of course they will interfere.” Even the institute has its own priorities, he said, stressing: “If you let them interfere, they’ll never let you build.”
Prof Jhunjhunwala recalled how a newspaper article published his quote that helped him get his first check of ₹ 1 lakh from the chairman of WS Industries. One year’s hard work led to the prototype being built, he said, and he went on to recall how the chairman had used the prototype to cut costs, stressing that it was the kind of acumen that business leaders have.
Maintaining optimism, Professor Jhunjhunwala told Mr Navaneeth, “I’ll probably stop living if I’m not optimistic. A lot of things are going to go wrong. I’m very unhappy with a lot of things. I feel terrible at night. Sometimes I don’t sleep. But the next morning you have to go back to your work and go for it. And you can’t work hard.”
As for real-world challenges, the professor said how heavy rains affected car traffic on his way to the top. “And we haven’t found a solution. Who’s going to solve this problem? We’re the ones who have to solve it. So today I’m building a consortium of scientists across the country along with 8-10 startups. So we’re going to find a technological solution. That’s the kind of thing we have to do. I’m not afraid of failure.”
When it comes to business, Professor Jhunjhunwala said he usually asks budding enthusiasts about their background. “Basically, I ask them two things. First, I get to know them and their family and try to understand their financial situation and family obligations. I want to understand if they are in a position to take a risk. Because business is about risk. At least two to three years you will be making zero.”
The second thing he asks them is about their failures. “Tell me about your failures and what you did after the failures? How do you get up, overcome the failure and restart? Because business is also about failures, getting up and restarting. I have not seen any startup succeed without two, three, four, five failures.”
He told Mr. Navaneeth, “There are two kinds of mentoring that every startup needs. One is technology mentoring, where they have to solve a technical problem, and people in technology can help mentor them. The other is business mentoring. Basically, anyone who’s been in business, who’s been through difficulties handling cash flow.”
On mentoring, Professor Jhunjhunwala said: “Your experience, listening to them will help. Be very clear. You’re not going to tell them what to do. In fact, it would be foolish for them to listen to you and do exactly what you say. You’re a mentor. You’re going to give advice. It’s up to them to decide whether to take the advice or not. The second important thing is not for them.”
This is what he wanted to share with the youth: “Accept the challenge. Work hard. This is what you were trained to do. You can do miracles. If you believe, take on the impossible and do it. That’s what I’ll tell you. Nothing more. And be honest with yourself. You’ll enjoy life. The money will come. Don’t run after the money. I’ll do it!”
Published – 06 Apr 2026 22:56 IST
