The Morning Brief

As India's most valued startup Byju's faces a tough test from auditors, regulators and customers, EdTech is across the board is learning a harsh lesson in business realities. Has the dream run ended and do investors and founders need to upskill for new post-pandemic business realities. Host Dia Rekhi talks to Amit Ratanpal, founder and MD at BLinC investment management, Tarush Bhalla, Senior Assis...

When the Electricity (Amendment) Bill, 2022 was introduced in Parliament on August 8th, it sent shock waves across with the opposition, farmers and unions protesting. Sitting with dues of Rs 5.5 lakh crore, state-discoms are in dire need of an overhaul. But will this bill be the panacea for all the ills of the power sector? Host Kalpana Pathak speaks with Sanjiv Sahai - Former Power Secretary GOI;...

Market regulator SEBI sets sights on the booming PE, VC funding of startups. From valuation methodology to the valuation ‘manager’ SEBI is seeking answers from the hottest ecosystem that is now facing a funding winter. Host Arijit Barman talks to Sugata Ghosh, Associate Editor The Economic Times, Pratibha Jain, Head of Strategy and Group General Counsel at Everstone Group and Tushar Aggarwal, Foun...

India is the world's third-largest oil importer. But can there be a future without oil? Can the demand be reduced or increased in the coming years? Will renewable energy sources replace oil in the times ahead? To decode all of this, Host Kiran Somvanshi is joined by Shishir Joshipura, CEO & MD at Praj Industries; Anish Nazimudeen, Partner at The Boston Consulting Group and Dhananjay Srivastava...

As Indians continue to struggle with insomnia, sleep trackers, wearables and calming apps are sprouting and rapidly growing alongside mattress and bedware companies. Host Anirban Chowdhury talks to Mudit Dandwate, CEO and co-founder of Dozee and Ramakant Vempati, founder and president of Wysa about this market worth billions of dollars. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

India is the second most sleep-deprived country in the world. The pandemic has worsened Indians’ insomnia problem. It has led to a rise in cardiac, orthopaedic, nervous ailments. It has also resulted in lower cognition, focus and concentration. Sleep sellers are on the rise: mattress makers, sleep trackers, calming apps and sleep coaches are trying to make you sleep better. In part 1 of this two-p...

In the past eight months, we’ve seen a dramatic set of consumer-facing reforms being rolled out - on exaggerated claims in ads, to brands targeting children, to service charges at restaurants, to fake reviews on online platforms. Much needed and sweeping. But how will all these reforms be implemented? And what else is on the cards? Host Ratna Bhushan talks to Rohit Kumar Singh, Secretary, Departme...

Over five lakh students are flying out to pursue their education dream overseas despite soaring costs and rising risks in the job market. Why are freshmen fleeing and why are the Indian universities so behind the curve? Will a new brand of institutes change the Indian education landscape? Host Anupriya explores this brain drain with Ashish Dhawan, Chairman, Board of Trustees at Ashoka University,...

From a common man to the CEO, our daily commute is in the hands of Ola-Uber, the two most popular ride hailing service in India. Recently Kerala govt became the first state to launch its very own initiative called 'Kerala Savari' to take on private competition, offer comfortable services to passengers and equitable commissions to the drivers. Host Dia Rekhi goes on a road trip with Sri. Ranjith P....

India’s most valuable company Reliance Industries held its 45th AGM (Annual General Meeting) with big announcements. Host Kalpana Pathak analyses three major takeaways with veteran reporters from The Economic Times who have been tracking RIL - Writankar Mukherjee, Kalyan Parbat and Arijit Barman. We analyse: FMCG - is it the missing piece for retail growth? 5G - Is standalone the standout? Energy...

There is a hot new brew of business and you have to decode the coffee beans to get it. Is there a large enough coffee lovers’ market in a chai nation and are they willing to pay a premium for it? How does unit economics work if one is chasing growth over profitability to please VC investors? How important are the locations of cafes or what matters most is the delivery model? Between a cortado and...

India's digital payment ecosystem is taken by storm as the RBI opens the floodgates to a much-awaited discussion - Should transactions be free or paid for? Fintechs, banks and the digital ecosystem weighs in even as the government stands pat that UPI will remain free. Host Anupriya talks to Amrish Rau, CEO at Pine Labs, Rajnish Kumar, Chairman BharatPe, Akhil Handa, Chief Digital Officer at Bank o...

Dolo650 became a household medicine during the pandemic. … but the latest controversy of freebies being given to promote it has yet again brought the spotlight on the questionable marketing practices of pharma companies. Host Kiran Somvanshi probed the issue with stakeholders - Dr. Viranchi Shah, National President, Indian Drug Manufacturers Association (IDMA), Malini Aisola, National Co-convenor...

The Morning Brief’s 300th episode explores the growth of the audio broadcasting medium in India with a focus on the podcasting space. How fast is the segment growing? How has the pandemic got more listeners into this space? Are brands backing Indian podcasts with ads and sponsorships? Host Anirban Chowdhury talks with Dhruvank Vaidya, Head of Podcasts at Spotify India and Rohit Ohri, Chairman & CE...

From the gaming zone to the world championships and a podium finish at the Commonwealth Games, Indian eSports has truly come of age. Host Arijit Barman fastens his seat belts and goes on a virtual tour with Moin Ejaz, gamer and captain of the Indian Dota 2 team; Vishal Gondal, Father of Indian gaming, also CEO of Indiagames & Founder GOQii as well as Anurag Khurana, Founder and CEO of Penta Esport...

With the Covid19 pandemic receding, India’s government is planning to revamp Aarogya Setu into a major national health app. But there are grave concerns around the date safety and security of its several million users. All this, in the backdrop of rampant data breaches in India and the absence of data protection laws. What will the government do? Host Anirban Chowdhury talks to Apar Gupta, Executi...

Free India of 1947. The rise of public sector giants or temples of modern India as Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, our first Prime Minister called them, but the changing landscape did not kill the spirit of private enterprise. Host Dia Rekhi talks to ET's Vikram Doctor, Editor, Special Features and delves deeper into the lives and times of several businessmen to figure out what it was like to do business...

On the 75th anniversary we celebrate tales of endurance and entrepreneurship and how many survived the Partition. Host Dia Rekhi chronicles the life and times of Prahlad Chhabria, who started working when he was just 12 years old in Karachi and then set out for Mumbai and eventually Pune where he eventually settled and built the country’s leading cable and PVC pipes company Finolex. His son Prakas...

From moonlighting to hybrid to compulsory cooling off, to wellness leave. India’s workplaces are changing dramatically as we return to work post-pandemic, amid steep attrition and demand for flexibility. Host Ratna Bhushan talks to Swiggy HR head Girish Menon, Quess Corp chairman Ajit Isaac and Economic Times senior editor Saumya Bhattacharya. On Green Light for Moonlighting and more! See omnystud...

In the post-pandemic world, six out of ten people are said to be gravitating towards mock-meat in India. But why is a centuries old concept catching up now? Is it actually as healthy an option as we think? Are there health hazards associated? Kalpana Pathak is in conversation with Deepika Bhan, President - Packaged Foods for Tata Consumer Products (TCPL), Sohil Wazir, Chief Commercial Officer - Bl...

India just nixed its critical data protection bill that took five years to draft. Why? What will the new data protection laws be like? How will the govt balance the privacy of its citizens and the interest of Big Tech? Host Anirban Chowdhury talks to Surabhi Agarwal, ET’s tech editor; Amar Patnaik, MP, and member of the Joint Parliamentary Committee on the bill; and Prateek Waghre, policy director...

From being pet owners to becoming pet parents, there's a shift in the mindset of Indians. Businesses like Pet Grooming, Insurance, Logistics, and much more are booming thanks to the pandemic-induced interest in pets. Host Kiran Somvanshi explores the nuances of the small but fast-growing pet care industry in India with Salil Murthy - Managing Director of Mars Petcare India, Rashi Narang - Founder...

Latest quarterly results show improved parameters but beyond the headlines numbers, are all stakeholders buying the company's growth thesis and FoMo acquisitions? How soon can it deliver profits? Host Arijit Barman discusses the changing market dynamics and competitive landscape with Priyanka Sahay, Assistant Editor at ET Prime, Dhruv Dewan, co-founder at Thrive and Kabir Suri, Founder - Azure Hos...

Rate hikes and soaring inflation has pushed the U.S. Federal Reserve to hike rates at a pace last seen four decades back. Global central bankers are following suit. With the RBI set to deliver yet another hike at its August meet and global economy monitors such as the IMF downgrading growth warning of a global recession, we explore which is the lesser evil, higher rates or a global recession. Host...

More than one in two Indian consumers who use instant loan apps are vulnerable to extortion and data misuse, as per a report by LocalCircles. How easy is it for instant loan apps to be available on the play store? Why is there no licensing requirement or legal authentication, or verification done on these digital lenders? As a customer how can you spot these fraudulent dial-a-loan apps and how doe...