E144: Dhruv Dhanraj Bahl (Founder & Managing Partner, Eternal Capital)

The Desi VC with Akash Bhat

Dhruv Dhanraj Bahl is the Founder & Managing Partner at Eternal Capital, a 120-crore fund investing in transformative startups across technology, healthcare, and consumer sectors in India. He is the former COO of BharatPe, and a leader with extensive experience in scaling businesses and driving operational excellence across Airtel, PayTM, and Fortis Hospitals, where he spearheaded growth and strategy initiatives.

This is the first of a two-part series, with the second part coming out next week. Stay tuned!

Episode Notes:

1. Introduction (1:45)
2. Dhruv’s transition from operator to investor (5:09)
3. Insights from launching a new fund in India in 2024 (16:20)
4. Developing investment skills and discipline as a venture fund manager (27:30)
5. Strategies for fund managers to unlock capital for portfolio companies in later rounds (42:30)
6. Perspectives of external vs domestic investors/LPs on India’s venture landscape (49:35)

Social links

1. Follow ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Dhruv on Twitter⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
2. Follow ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Dhruv⁠⁠ on LinkedIn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
3. Follow ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠The Desi VC on LinkedIn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
4. Follow ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Akash Bhat on Twitter⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
5. Follow ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Akash Bhat on LinkedIn⁠⁠