<p class="bodytext">An upcoming Kannada podcast titled ‘Mundhe Banni’ aims to ignite the spirit of entrepreneurship across Karnataka by spotlighting homegrown success stories. </p>.<p class="bodytext">The idea has been on creator Vasant Shetty’s mind for over six years. “I was curious why there’s a cultural resistance to entrepreneurship in Karnataka,” he says. “Growing up, our parents and peers never encouraged us to start businesses or create jobs,” adds the Bengaluru-based entrepreneur.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Shetty traces this resistance to deeper structural and historical factors. Citing the book, ‘India’s New Capitalists’ by Harish Damodaran, he explains that north-western communities had early exposure to mercantile systems under British rule — unlike Karnataka. “The book also notes that southern India suffers from a ‘Vaishya vacuum’ (a lack of strong mercantile communities),” he adds.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Though the Mysore kings were entrepreneurial, many of their initiatives became government-run or nationalised. Karnataka has seen some success stories like Infosys and Zerodha, Shetty notes, but he believes “a knowledge-based economy must now emerge in tier-2 and tier-3 towns”. “With AI disruption, everything is getting automated. Students and fresh graduates, especially from small towns, may have to turn to entrepreneurship as IT jobs shrink,” he adds.</p>.<p class="bodytext">The podcast will feature hour-long episodes in Kannada once every fortnight. They will spotlight the journeys, struggles, and successes of entrepreneurs from towns like Hassan, Hubballi, Gadag, and Bagalkote.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Co-hosted by Shetty and Kiran Kodlady, it launches in early August and will be available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube, and more.</p>.<p class="bodytext"><span class="italic">For updates, visit mundhebanni.com.</span></p>
<p class="bodytext">An upcoming Kannada podcast titled ‘Mundhe Banni’ aims to ignite the spirit of entrepreneurship across Karnataka by spotlighting homegrown success stories. </p>.<p class="bodytext">The idea has been on creator Vasant Shetty’s mind for over six years. “I was curious why there’s a cultural resistance to entrepreneurship in Karnataka,” he says. “Growing up, our parents and peers never encouraged us to start businesses or create jobs,” adds the Bengaluru-based entrepreneur.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Shetty traces this resistance to deeper structural and historical factors. Citing the book, ‘India’s New Capitalists’ by Harish Damodaran, he explains that north-western communities had early exposure to mercantile systems under British rule — unlike Karnataka. “The book also notes that southern India suffers from a ‘Vaishya vacuum’ (a lack of strong mercantile communities),” he adds.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Though the Mysore kings were entrepreneurial, many of their initiatives became government-run or nationalised. Karnataka has seen some success stories like Infosys and Zerodha, Shetty notes, but he believes “a knowledge-based economy must now emerge in tier-2 and tier-3 towns”. “With AI disruption, everything is getting automated. Students and fresh graduates, especially from small towns, may have to turn to entrepreneurship as IT jobs shrink,” he adds.</p>.<p class="bodytext">The podcast will feature hour-long episodes in Kannada once every fortnight. They will spotlight the journeys, struggles, and successes of entrepreneurs from towns like Hassan, Hubballi, Gadag, and Bagalkote.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Co-hosted by Shetty and Kiran Kodlady, it launches in early August and will be available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube, and more.</p>.<p class="bodytext"><span class="italic">For updates, visit mundhebanni.com.</span></p>