Ratan Tata with Shantanu Naidu (right) during the launch of Good Fellows, India’s first companionship start-up for senior citizens, in Mumbai on Tuesday, August 16th, 2022. Kamlesh PEDNEKAR Photo:
Industry leader Ratan Tata on Tuesday announced an undisclosed investment into Goodfellows, a startup that offers companionship to senior citizens as a service.
The octogenarian industrialist has been an active backer of startups ever since retiring from the helm of the salt-to-software Tata Group and has invested in over 50 companies till now.
The latest investee company was founded by Shantanu Naidu. Thirty-year-old Naidu, a Cornell University alumnus, is a general manager in Tata's office and has been assisting him since 2018.
He shares Tata's love for dogs and strays, and this is his fourth outing as an entrepreneur, which includes a venture around pets.
Tata, an 84-year-old bachelor, expressed appreciation for Naidu's ideation while also forgiving his mentee for the time he spends away from the office.
Tata said no one minds getting old till you actually get old, and also added that getting good-natured companionship, which we take for granted, is a challenge.
Addressing the Tata Sons' Chairman Emeritus as a boss, a mentor and also a friend, Naidu said there are 15 million elderly people who are by themselves right now, which represents the opportunity for his newest venture.
The startup hires young graduates with the right skills of empathy and emotional intelligence to "work" as the senior citizen clients' companions and ease the day for them with any tasks or just talk with them.
Typically, a companion would visit a client three times a week, spending up to four hours per visit. The company charges Rs 5,000 as the base.Tata, an 84-year-old bachelor, expressed appreciation for Naidu's ideation while also forgiving his mentee for the time he spends away from the office.
Tata said no one minds getting old till you actually get old, and also added that getting good-natured companionship, which we take for granted, is a challenge.
Addressing the Tata Sons' Chairman Emeritus as a boss, a mentor and also a friend, Naidu said there are 15 million elderly people who are by themselves right now, which represents the opportunity for his newest venture.
The startup hires young graduates with the right skills of empathy and emotional intelligence to "work" as the senior citizen clients' companions and ease the day for them with any tasks or just talk with them.
Typically, a companion would visit a client three times a week, spending up to four hours per visit. The company charges Rs 5,000 as the base.Tata, an 84-year-old bachelor, expressed appreciation for Naidu's ideation while also forgiving his mentee for the time he spends away from the office.
Tata said no one minds getting old till you actually get old, and also added that getting good-natured companionship, which we take for granted, is a challenge.
Addressing the Tata Sons' Chairman Emeritus as a boss, a mentor and also a friend, Naidu said there are 15 million elderly people who are by themselves right now, which represents the opportunity for his newest venture.
The startup hires young graduates with the right skills of empathy and emotional intelligence to "work" as the senior citizen clients' companions and ease the day for them with any tasks or just talk with them.
Typically, a companion would visit a client three times a week, spending up to four hours per visit. The company charges Rs 5,000 as the base.
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