Shubhodeep Ghosh - Student & Entrepreneure

Student entrepreneurs float IT firm

TIMES NEWS NETWORK[ TUESDAY, MARCH 28, 2006 09:49:18 AM ]

BANGALORE: What did you do in college ? Bunked classes, crammed at the last minute for exams and spent hours in canteen sipping coffee? Shubhodeep Ghosh and Deboprio Ghosh, both 20, are a little different — they floated a software company Spicea. And they’re second year Bachelor of Computer Applications (BCA) students in Bhagwan Mahaveer Jain College.

“We use open source technology like Linux to deliver software goods and web-based technological solutions ,’’ they explain. They met during a class project on beam robotics. “After three months, we realised we were wasting our time and there was something much better we could do,’’ recalls Deboprio, founder-CEO .

They hit upon starting a company with another classmate Ravi Agarwal but initially encountered opposition from parents and teachers. “Everyone wondered why we couldn’t be ‘normal’ and concentrate on maxing our scores. But the placements of our seniors — who get second-grade jobs compared with engineering students — wasn’t very heartening,’’ says Shubhodeep, head-operations .

Chenraj Jain, chairman, Jain Group of Institutions, encouraged them with the initial investment when Spicea started in October last year. In the past six months, Spicea has already done projects with Yamaha, US-based software company Valley Speak, Chrysallis and city-based web designing company Rarethemes.

“What I like about them is that they’re so driven. Their professionalism is remarkable,’’ says Vikas Nagori of Rarethemes, which plans to enter into a joint venture with the five-member team at Spicea.

Deboprio and Shubhodeep insist that they’re no less technologically empowered than a qualified professional . “None of what we study is taught in college. We are completely self-taught , but at no point do we want any of our clients to look at our work and say, ‘Not bad for a student project’ . We want it to excel professional standards,’’ says Deboprio.

Their first cheque of Rs 1.6 lakh earned them their parents’ approval . But the money didn’t go into a champagne party — it funded the purchase of the the latest desktops and a laptop.

The duo can’t remember the last movie they saw or party they attended; even ensuring the minimum college attendance is a huge effort. Shubhodeep’s girlfriend broke up with him when he couldn’t make time for her. But the entrepreneurs have no regrets: “We know this will reap benefits in the long run.’’