Suresh Sambandam, the founder and CEO of Kissflow, a Chennai-based SaaS company, has launched a new venture capital firm called MudhalVC. The firm aims to invest in startups based in Tamil Nadu, especially those in tier-2 and tier-3 cities. MudhalVC plans to invest around ₹125 crore over the next 3-4 years in two phases.
The initial ₹25 crore will come from Sambandam’s family sources to reduce risk for the second phase. The idea for MudhalVC came from Sambandam’s work with Idea Pattarai, a Dream Tamil Nadu initiative that supports early-stage founders in building global brands. Over the past 24 months, Idea Pattarai has connected with 1,000 founders through workshops, resulting in over 75 startups at various stages of mentorship.
15 of these startups have already received investments from MudhalVC.
MudhalVC invests in Tamil Nadu startups
MudhalVC has invested in a range of sectors, including food tech, electric vehicles, health tech, SaaS, and biotech.
Its portfolio includes companies like Amura, Bversity, BookingBee, MeenSatti, Mushroom MaMa, Pickmyad, Social Gallery, InspectionOne, Bad Boy, Correctmate, and Trashbotics. Investments range from ₹10 lakh to ₹1 crore. MudhalVC differentiates itself from traditional VC firms by investing time and money in founders even without a formal pitch deck, as long as they have a compelling idea and a committed team.
“MudhalVC places a strong emphasis on coaching entrepreneurs before offering capital,” Sambandam said. He also mentioned that there are few venture capitalists in Tamil Nadu, as most are based in Mumbai or Bangalore, and MudhalVC aims to bridge this gap in the ecosystem. After 2-3 years, MudhalVC plans to partner with limited partners (LPs) to make follow-on investments in the same startups, similar to the model used by YCombinator in Silicon Valley.
