Maanya, a Bengaluru-based 11th grader, grew up in Texas watching her mother take up pottery after quitting her corporate job in 2006.

While she started pottery in their garage as a way of de-stressing, she soon became skilled in it, and a full-blown venture was born.

She recounts, “I watched her journey and how she evolved from being a woman who quit her job to become confident enough to start afresh.”

Maanya recounts that her mother’s zeal to be independent inspired her. “Since then, I have been drawn towards women’s empowerment,” she says.

The family moved back to India when Maanya was 10, and she began seeing many more instances of how women who were not financially rooted were often oppressed.

This was the start of the idea of Incuba-Naari —a platform that formally took shape in 2020.

She began approaching Indian women who owned small businesses on the internet, with the intent to help them.

Following winning a grant of $8000 from the MYP (Middle Years Programme) Innovators’ in July 2022, Maanya organised her first mentorship programme that September.

This witnessed experts, entrepreneurs, and founders from all walks of life guiding the participants with regard to their individual ventures.

A few of the mentors included Kavitha Mohammad, founder of WonderLearn, Sabari Ayyappan, CRO of Dynamite XDT, Anantha Narayan, founder of AlbertDali.

“For three months, we conducted one-hour Zoom sessions twice a week, wherein the speakers would guide the women on how to run a successful venture,” Maanya notes.

She adds that while they do not fund these businesses, they provide them with mentorship, a team of social media students, and the opportunity to sell their creations at exhibitions at zero stall price costs.

Incuba-Naari currently has 800 women associated with it and 40 volunteer students from around the world.