Zomato's Deepinder Goyal crowned India's top self-made entrepreneur
What's the story
Deepinder Goyal, the CEO of Eternal (formerly Zomato), has topped the IDFC FIRST Private & Hurun India's Top 200 Self-made Entrepreneurs of the Millennia 2025. His company's valuation has increased by 27% from last year's report to ₹3.2 lakh crore. Radhakishan Damani of Avenue Supermarts (DMart), who was last year's top self-made entrepreneur, has dropped to second place with a valuation of ₹3 lakh crore—down by 13% from last year.
New entrants
IndiGo co-founders enter top 3
Estranged co-founders Rahul Bhatia and Rakesh Gangwal of InterGlobe Aviation (IndiGo airline) have made a strong debut, directly entering the top 3 with a company valuation of ₹2.2 lakh crore. Paytm and Lenskart have also made their way into the top 10 of this prestigious list, while Razorpay and Zerodha have dropped out. This change highlights a shift in India's entrepreneurial landscape as newer consumer-centric ventures gain prominence.
Valuation growth
Total valuation of top 200 self-made entrepreneurs
The total valuation of the companies on IDFC FIRST Private & Hurun India's Top 200 Self-made Entrepreneurs list stands at ₹42 lakh crore in 2025. This is a significant increase from last year's ₹36 lakh crore, reflecting a growth rate of 15%. Bengaluru continues to be India's top start-up hub with 52 companies, despite a decline from last year. Mumbai and Gurugram follow closely behind with 41 and 36 companies, respectively.
Entrepreneur hotspots
Bengaluru leads in founder residences
Bengaluru continues to top the list of cities with the most number of founders, housing 88 entrepreneurs. Mumbai and New Delhi follow with 83 and 52 entrepreneurs, respectively. The report highlights a dynamic shift in entrepreneurial activity across major cities in India. The biggest rank movers this year are Vinay Sanghi of CarTrade Tech, Ashish Jhina and Karthik Venkateswaran from Jumbotail, and Vineet Sukumar from Vivriti Capital.
Female representation
Nykaa's Nayar sisters lead women entrepreneurs
Falguni and Adwaita Nayar of Nykaa lead the list of women entrepreneurs, with the total value of companies led by women entrepreneurs on the list being ₹3.3 lakh crore. The youngest woman entrepreneur on the list is Adwaita, co-founder of Nykaa, aged 34. The youngest founders are Kaivalya Vohra (22) and Aadit Palicha (23) from Zepto with a valuation of ₹52,400 crore.