Up to₹5L
Base grant₹₹₹₹₹
The capital to go full-time.
An equity-free grant of up to ₹5 lakh. Stop side-projecting, start building like it's the only thing that matters.
Become a Shifu Fellow.
From MVP to revenue, we go with you. For builders already building — with up to ₹5 lakh in grants, 25× funding multiplier, mentorship, bootcamps, and a network of founders across India. Equity-free, always.
Explore the ecosystemApply for Shifu Fellowship
We review applications every month.
How we empower.
Four pillars that take you from building to revenue.
02Multiplier
Stretch the grant by 25×.
Cloud, tools, and service credits worth ₹1.25 crore — turning up to ₹5L into months of real runway.
03Bootcamps
Workshop and mentorship
Recurring bootcamps and one-on-one mentorship from professionals who have actually built and shipped products.
04Connect
Warm intros, real rooms.
Ecosystem access, founder intros, investor visibility — for your next customer and your next round.
The network
A Fellowship across districts.
When you join Shifu, you plug into a living network of founders, mentors, professionals, and incubators across India — the people who'll back your build.
From Bharat
Founders from places like yours.
Real builders from districts across India who started exactly where you are.
Amit Koshal
Photon Legal
Lost his father at 5. Now runs India's top patent firm.
Delhi1 / 9
Ready to apply for the Shifu Fellowship?
We're looking for builders, not browsers.
Criterion 01
You're working on it full-time. Or ready to.
Empower is for founders who can give this their hours, not their evenings.
Criterion 02
You have something — an idea, an MVP, or a live product.
You don't need traction yet. You do need a clear thing you're trying to make real.
Criterion 03
You're in it for the long road.
Building takes years. We back people who are willing to put them in.
Your Journey
From Building to Revenue.
Shifu FellowIdea, prototype, or MVP
Revenue FounderReal revenue, real customers
FAQ
Things you might be wondering.
Founders in India working on a startup full-time — with an idea, an MVP, or a live product. We look for clarity on what you're building, not on how big it's gotten yet.
Yes. Always. We don't take a stake, we don't take a board seat, we don't take any portion of your company. The grant is a grant.
The grant is up to ₹5L of direct capital to your account. The 25× refers to follow-on funding and credits we help you unlock — cloud, tools, services, and warm intros to investors. Together, the floor is real and the ceiling is high.
The structured cohort runs alongside your build. Mentorship and bootcamps continue for as long as you need them — there are no fixed graduation dates.
Mostly remote, with periodic in-person bootcamps and meetups in different cities. Wherever you are in India, you can apply.
Empower is for full-time founders. If you're earlier in your journey — curious, learning, exploring — start with the Shifu Builder program instead.
Join as a Shifu BuilderApplications are reviewed every month. Apply anytime — we'll get back within 14 days.
Your district is waiting.
Become part of the next decade of district entrepreneurship — join the network or apply for the fellowship.
Tech Founders from every district of India
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Shifu Foundation · Section 8 nonprofit · Building India's first district-level tech startup movement.