By Bl Chennai Bureau

Copyright thehindubusinessline

Baanhem Ventures, the creator of TN’s mainstream start-up reality show Startup Singham, has closed its second round of funding, bringing on board marquee business leaders as advisors and investors to power the second season of the show.

The new investors are Gopal Srinivasan, Chairman & Managing Director, TVS Capital Funds; Girish Mathrubootham, Founder & Executive Chairman, Freshworks; Mithun Sacheti, Founder, CaratLane; K Mahalingam, Partner/Director, TSM Group of Companies; Mohan Karuppiah, CEO & Co-Founder, IppoPay; Shyam Sekhar, Founder, ithought Financial Consulting LLP; Ashwini Asokan, Founder, Mad Street Den, Vue.ai; and Madhusudanan Rangarajan, Managing Director, M2P Fintech.

Founded by Hemachandran and Balachandar, Baanhem Ventures combines investment, mentorship, and storytelling to create a launchpad for entrepreneurs.

In its inaugural season, the platform helped 35 start-ups secure over ₹40 crore in funding commitments, with ₹13 crore already disbursed across sectors. For the second season, the show will see participation by 25 start-ups and around ₹150 crore will be up for investments by the panel of investors.

1,500 applications

Baanhem Ventures said it received over 1,500 applications from across Tamil Nadu for the first season, and the show has helped make entrepreneurship a dining table conversation.

Speaking at the event, Gopal Srinivasan of TVS Capital recalled management guru CK Prahalad saying that entrepreneurs are this era’s freedom fighters. “So the freedom for us today is economic, social and cultural freedom,” he said.

Entrepreneur Kumar Vembu, who is already a chief mentor for the show, said, “Entrepreneurship is Tamil Nadu’s economic backbone. What Baanhem Ventures is enabling through Startup Singam is genuinely inspiring, and I welcome our new shareholders to help make startups in our state grow bigger and better.”

Published on September 24, 2025