Meet Harsh: the founder of India-Politics.com and 73Buzz
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Meet Harsh, he is the founder of 2 news website – India-Politics.com and 73Buzz. Harsh did his journalism from Indian Institute of Journalism and New Media Bangalore.
Views, Hits, Likes…! I always awake in the night with a dream that when I will go to any random shop people will be reading or watching my site’s news and discussing it giving our reference, says Harsh.
We at Bangalore Insider had the opportunity to catch up with Harsh, the founder of 2 news websites and to know more about the startup, read his inspiring story.
Harsh: Founder of India-Politics.com and 73Buzz
Give a brief info about your startup? My startup is about the news website. I have 2 websites one is for tech news that is in English and other is dedicated to Indian political news which is in Hindi. We are included in Google News and have readership all over the world. Generally, news websites need 6 months or in special case minimum of 2 months for inclusion in Google News. However, we got included just in 14 days after we made our website live.
What made you start your startup and what problem does it solve?
I was working with one website named HNGN which got closed due to their reasons. As a freelancer, I worked for them and though it’s a virtual world, they did not pay $1400 to me (that was my due salary) so then I thought I will start my own site and focus on clear and on time payment to all the freelancers. Also, there are several portals for the “breaking” technology news but 73Buzz mostly covers news and gadgets which are upcoming. We focus on rumors and compare them with facts to give our readers a taste of viral thing that they can trust.
Tell us about yourself, your previous jobs/ventures? What were you doing before this startup?
I am a trained journalist from Indian Institute of Journalism and New Media Bangalore. I have received an award for excellence in reporting from the college. I worked as a trainee in Boom Live (fact-checking website) based in Mumbai. After that, I enjoyed content writer as a freelancer and served around 6 sites for a span of one and a half year before starting my first technology news site 73Buzz. After starting 73Buzz I formed the group named Marm Media as a sole proprietorship business in Indore and then started the second website in Hindi i.e. India Politics.
Where is your startup based out of? Why do you think that is the best place for you?
It is based in Indore, Madhya Pradesh. This best place for the news website is because you get reporters and writers very conveniently as compared to other cities. Indore is a hub for startups. and lastly, because here you will get people with the good knowledge of both Hindi and English.
As a startup founder, what are you paranoid about? What keeps you awake at night?
Views, Hits, Likes…! I always awake in the night with a dream that when I will go to any random shop people will be reading or watching my site’s news and discussing it giving our reference.
Who are your competitions and how are you better than them?
Competitions for 73Buzz are Gizmochina, Gadgets360, WccFtech, ValueWalk, Slashgear. For India Politics is Aaj Tak, Khabar NDTV, Jansatta, The Wire. I frankly don’t consider them as competitors instead I learn good things from them and disregard the bad ones.
How hard is it to have a work-life balance as a startup founder and how do you manage it?
Supportive family and friends are the key part for this. My close ones understand what I am doing and not just for 2 months or 4 months. They are continuously tolerating my frustration and understand the situation. On daily basis, games, playing guitar makes me feel refreshed in just 30 mins. 🙂
Have you raised funding? If yes, then we would like to know the details. If no then please tell us if you are looking to raise.
Yes, of course! I am looking to raise. No Money No Gain. Every startup has the same rule.
What’s the biggest misconception people have about you? Why do they have that? What’s the reality?
The biggest is that my life is sorted and I don’t have to work, My website is automatically making money hour after hour! But this is a big NO… Instead I work minimum 16 hours in a day. I never party on weekends, I never have my mind relaxed… Every time the buzz for my site new ways to make it touch what I want keeps hitting in my head.
What gets you excited about this company?
The deadlines, adventures, traveling, meeting new people, catching up breaking news, making things for the public, serving people a topic to discuss.
Tell us how a day in your life looks like? Your schedule for a day right from the time you get up till you hit the bed at night.
I usually wake up at 8 and get ready by 9 after that breakfast and watch the news on TV then start the work 10 AM. I start with hunting good news topic then discuss with my team and then the team starts working on topics at around 11. Till they submit the article I head to the technical and marketing things on site. Once articles start coming I publish them after critical checks. This goes on till 7 PM and in the middle, I keep my eye on what is happening around the world and yes have food in every 2-3 hours. I really drink a lot of water to keep myself hydrated. After 7 PM I take my bike to get some ride, play some music and sit with the laptop again at 9 PM. This is the most productive time I spend. Here I research and brainstorm about the development of business and analyze where I am lacking and what I am missing. I note things down and make the corrections on the same night. This goes on till my eyes say me to sleep i.e probably around 1-2 AM.
Tell us about your team and how did you meet each other?
I met with my all reporters on the media jobs type of groups on Facebook. My team consists of mostly freelancers who work from home. Some are from the Philippines and some are from India. I also have some people working as full time who comes to the office daily and do the work as input desk. I have some reporters for India Politics in villages as well who send the stories without payment just to get their village’s story published. I have a small but very productive team.
Know a great startup story or want to share your own? Write to us at contact.bangaloreinsider@gmail.com and we will get back to you. For more updates follow Bangalore Insider on Facebook.
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Hi, I am Bhumikka Yaadav. I did my post-graduation in marketing. I hold a total of 7.5 years of experience. I currently work with BangaloreInsider. I used to work in an e-commerce company before working on my current profession. I love being associated with BangaloreInsider because I enjoy connecting and interacting with a whole bunch of talented people. And these startups keep me motivated as well.
