Inc42’s annual Newsmakers list is back, putting the spotlight on the founders and operators who grabbed the headlines in 2025. Usually, we focus on stakeholders across the ecosystem from policymakers to investors, but this time around our choices are startups founders — with just the one exception as you will see.

The usual names — Deepinder Goyal, Aadit Palicha, Vijay Shekhar Sharma among them — obviously made the cut, not just because of their profile, but also because this was a year where they had a significant role in setting the narrative or disrupting it.

And of course with Indian startups making a beeline for the stock exchanges, we also have a fair share of founders who took their companies public. The likes of Groww, PhysicsWallah, Pine Labs and others all feature.

And 2025 was also a year of calculated risk. From AI to a new push towards healthtech 2.0 and longevity to the ban on real money gaming. This also tested founders and created new opportunities for giants. This was a major factor in some of our choices as you will see.

Without any further delay, these are Inc42’s Newsmakers of 2025.

Note: The below list is not meant to be a ranking. The personalities have been selected on Inc42’s editorial discretion and listed in alphabetical order

Aadit Palicha: Growth, Controversy, And Momentum

For Aadit Palicha, 2025 was a year of speed meeting scrutiny.

Zepto raised $450 Mn at a $7 Bn valuation in October, taking net cash close to $900 Mn. Soon after, the company removed platform and delivery fees, escalating price competition across quick commerce even as rivals warned of rising industry burn.

Operationally, Palicha faced pushback on multiple fronts. Zepto was fined by the consumer protection authority for dark patterns such as drip pricing and hidden checkout fees.

Palicha publicly admitted the experiments were a mistake, rolled them back within weeks, and reset the app flow, framing the decision as customer-feedback driven rather than regulator-led.

He also responded directly to Union Minister Piyush Goyal’s remark on startups producing “delivery boys,” countering with data on Zepto’s scale, over 1.5 Lakh livelihoods created, tax contributions, and supply-chain innovation.

At the same time, Palicha sparred with rivals over everything from market share to cash burn. But as Zepto looks to list in 2026, the next year will present yet more challenges for Palicha and cofounder Kaivalya Vohra who are likely to become the youngest startup founders to take their company public.

Abhiraj Singh Bhal, Raghav Chandra, And Varun Khaitan: Rewiring India’s Services Layer

Abhiraj Singh Bhal, Raghav Chandra, and Varun Khaitan took Urban Company public in September 2025 with a INR 1,900 Cr IPO that was subscribed over 100x and listed at a 57% premium, valuing the company at roughly INR 25,000 Cr.

The offering combined a INR 472 Cr fresh issue with a INR 1,428 Cr OFS, marking one of the cleanest consumer-services listings India has seen, backed by profitable growth rather than narrative alone.

In the past year, Urban Company leaned hard into repeatability. Appliance-led services like water purifiers, AC servicing, annual maintenance contracts and hardware bundled with maintenance became a core revenue engine.

The strategy translated cleanly into numbers. FY25 revenue rose 36% to INR 1,261 Cr, with PAT jumping to about INR 240 Cr. In Q2 FY26, Urban Company reported revenue of INR 376 Cr, up 41% YoY, driven by 28% growth in order volumes to 11.2 Mn and higher hardware sales.

The company also launched instant services like “Insta Help” and within an hour repairs. These were pushed as frequency drivers despite near-term margin pressure.

Amrish Rau: From PoS To Full Merchant Stack

Amrish Rau finally brought Pine Labs home.

After filing the........

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