The BRIJ has started two long-term projects to improve India’s cultural ecosystem with assistance from the French Embassy in India and in partnership with Serendipity Arts. These are the BRIJ Incubator Foundry for Cultural Startups and the BRIJ Cultural Leaders Fellowship. The initiatives aim to support entrepreneurship and cultural leadership in India’s expanding creative sector.
A New Platform for Cultural Startups
India’s creative economy is growing as entrepreneurs create companies focused on publishing, technology, design, craft, and cultural expertise. Nonetheless, many cultural entrepreneurs still have trouble accessing the finance, business assistance, and mentorship that mainstream firms do.
With assistance from the French Embassy in India through the Fonds Équipe France (FEF) grant, THE BRIJ Incubator and Serendipity Arts established THE BRIJ Incubator Foundry for Cultural Startups to close this gap. With a focus on India’s rich artistic and cultural traditions, the project aims to support early-stage cultural enterprises in building sustainable businesses.
The first Foundry cohort comprises 10 businesses from across India, including craft, publishing, design, technology, and cultural tourism. Remarkably, 80% of the chosen businesses are run by women, illustrating the variety of India’s developing creative entrepreneurship scene.
The founders took part in a five-day residential program in Goa that emphasised peer learning, strategic company development, and mentoring. The Foundry prioritises collaborative learning rather than acting as a traditional accelerator, assisting founders in improving company models, fortifying market positioning, and creating long-term growth strategies based on cultural values. Through collaborations, financing opportunities, coaching, and incubation, the program aims to support 100 early-stage cultural endeavours over the next three years.
In response to the project, Sunil Kant Munjal stated that although India’s cultural and creative sectors have exceptional entrepreneurial talent, they frequently lack the support networks that traditional entrepreneurs have. The Foundry, he continued, aims to close this gap while highlighting the significance of cultural entrepreneurship in forming India’s future creative economy.
The programs also show how France and India are becoming more culturally cooperative. According to Grégor Trumel, Director of the French Institute in India and Counsellor for Cooperation and Culture at the French Embassy in India, the initiatives will support the development of sustainable cultural enterprises, promote international cooperation, and expand India’s creative economy.
India-France Collaboration Strengthens Creative Innovation
Selected from over 100 applications nationally, the BRIJ Cultural Leaders Fellowship welcomed its first batch of 17 fellows. The inaugural residential for the nine-month leadership program took place in Goa from June 20 to June 26, 2026. The fellowship, sponsored by the French Embassy in India, unites professionals from publishing, education, design, archives, charity, public policy, cultural entrepreneurship, heritage, museums, and the creative industries. The project also emphasises the increasing cooperation between France and India in the creative and cultural sectors.
According to Grégor Trumel, Director of the French Institute in India and Counsellor for Cooperation and Culture, France is pleased to assist business owners in the creative and cultural sectors. According to him, the program fosters greater collaboration between the two nations while offering entrepreneurs useful professional networks, business tools, and mentorship.
Ayush Kasliwal, Manish Saksena, Rajeev Lunkad, Payal Nath, Roma Narsinghani, Surucchi Khubchandani, Rachna Chandrashekhar, Prakash Sharma, Reshma Tonse, and D.S. Prashant were among the seasoned businesspeople, designers, and industry specialists who taught participants throughout the program.
According to Shefali Munjal, co-founder and patron of Serendipity Arts, the proper ecology fosters the growth of creative genius. She clarified that the Foundry gave entrepreneurs the chance to confront presumptions, share ideas, and form deep connections that will last long after the program is over.
Selected businesses will continue to receive incubation, strategic mentoring, investment possibilities, and ecosystem relationships through THE BRIJ Incubator after the residential program. When taken as a whole, they signify the start of a sustained endeavour to improve India’s cultural entrepreneurship environment.
Feature image: THE BRIJ Cultural Leaders Fellowship delivered by Serendipity Arts, Goa Residential in June 2026
This article has been created from the press kit shared with Abir Pothi. For press releases and related queries, write to editor@abirpothi.com.
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