VMPL
New Delhi [India], September 25: India’s professional world is filled with people taking very different paths to build something of their own. Some are growing businesses, some are working in specialised fields, while others are creating new platforms around ideas they believe in. This list brings together 10 such personalities from across industries, each with a distinct journey, area of expertise and body of work. From e-commerce and hospitality to healthcare, fashion, investment and traditional practices, their stories offer a closer look at the people behind the work they are doing today.
Pt. Umesh Chandra Pant – Over Three Decades of Experience in Vedic Astrology
With a professional journey spanning more than three decades, Pt. Umesh Chandra Pant has built a notable reputation in the field of Vedic astrology and is recognized as one of the Top Astrologers in India. Since beginning his practice in 1988, his expertise has expanded across horoscope interpretation, career and financial astrology, marriage and relationship guidance, Vastu Shastra, personalized remedies, and spiritual consultation. Today, as the Founder-Astrologer of PavitraJyotish, he provides personalized astrological guidance to clients across India and around the world.
Beyond consultations, his contribution to astrology is strongly reflected in his writing. He has authored more than 2,500 articles across his astrology platforms, covering predictions, planetary movements, career, marriage, remedies, Kundli-related subjects, and spiritual practices. His work has also appeared on established digital platforms, including his contributions as an astrology author for India Today.
Recognition has accompanied this extensive professional journey. ThreeBestRated® has recognized him as a Top Astrologer in New Delhi, India for nine consecutive years from 2017 onwards. In 2024 and 2026, he also received the Utkrisht Prerna Puraskar. His other distinctions include Jyotish Ratna, Jyotish Bhushan, Jyotish Prabhakar, Jyotish Shastracharya, and Jyotish Rishi.
Through professional practice, extensive writing, and sustained knowledge sharing, Pt Umesh Chandra Pant continues to contribute to the contemporary reach of traditional Vedic astrology.
For More Information: Visit PavitraJyotish to explore his professional profile, astrology articles, consultations, predictions, and Vedic astrology services.
Rajendra Singh Tanwar (Rayali) — Entrepreneur, Hospitality Leader & Restaurant Technology Innovator
Rajendra Singh Tanwar (Rayali) is an entrepreneur and business leader based in Jaipur, Rajasthan, associated with ventures spanning hospitality, traditional food, travel, media, and restaurant technology. His business interests include Govindam Retreat, a pure-vegetarian restaurant in Jaipur; Govindam Sweets, a traditional Indian sweets brand; and travel-focused businesses including Travel Taxi and India Tours Cabs. He is also associated with media as Editor-in-Chief of News Headline Alert.
In restaurant technology, Tanwar is associated with Vrajera — AI-Powered Restaurant Commerce Operating System, a platform designed to integrate restaurant POS, GST billing, inventory, recipe costing, CRM, HRMS, accounting, analytics, and multi-outlet management.
Known for combining Rajasthan-rooted hospitality with modern entrepreneurship and technology, Tanwar's work spans consumer brands, tourism services, media, and software. His broader business approach focuses on building integrated platforms and brands serving India's evolving hospitality and travel ecosystem.
Muthukumar Rajaram: Bringing Evidence-Based Career Guidance to India
Muthukumar Rajaram, Founder & CEO of CareerIPA Innovation Private Limited, is working to make career guidance more structured, explainable, and accessible across India. With nearly three decades of experience in enterprise technology, engineering, product, architecture, AI, and cloud applications at organisations including IBM, TCS, Wipro, and CAST Software, he brings deep technology expertise to one of education’s most consequential challenges: helping people choose pathways aligned with their interests, personality, abilities and aspirations.
After leaving IBM, Rajaram self-funded CareerIPA, a Bengaluru-based, ISO 9001:2015-certified EdTech company launched in August 2026. Its IPA framework brings Interest, Personality, and Ability together through structured assessments developed with psychologists and industry experts. AI-supported career mapping helps users explore and compare pathways, while counsellors provide context and actionable guidance. CareerIPA serves students, parents, professionals, schools, colleges, and counsellors across 15 languages. Through CareerIPA Spark, government-school students can access guidance at half the usual fee, while CareerIPA AI Classroom is offered free to expand access to AI-enabled career exploration.
Contribution: Helping replace career guesswork with informed, explainable, and accessible career decisions for every student, regardless of language or background.
Akhil Teja — Founder Trustee, River Capital Trust
As India emerges as a major destination for long-term international investment, Akhil Teja, Founder Trustee of River Capital Trust, is focused on solving a critical challenge in India’s next phase of growth: connecting global capital with the right opportunities on the ground.
River Capital Trust is being built to develop the institutional capabilities required on both sides of this equation — helping global investors discover, assess and access meaningful opportunities, while helping Indian businesses and projects become better prepared for global capital.
Through strategic partnerships, local intelligence, policy expertise and the identification of scalable opportunities across sectors and geographies, River aims to create a bridge between the world’s capital and India’s economic potential.
The vision goes beyond raising capital. It is about creating the ecosystem through which capital can find the right projects, and the right projects can find the capital they need to scale.
As global investors increasingly seek meaningful, impactful and value positive opportunities, River Capital Trust becomes the institutional bridge through which that capital can participate in India’s economic transformation.
Nupur Chaurasia, Founder & Astrologer, AstroNupur
Nupur Chaurasia, Founder of AstroNupur, has built her professional journey around Vedic astrology, horoscope and Kundali consultation, numerology and gemstone guidance. With 18 years of experience, she has worked with clients in India and across international markets, developing AstroNupur into an online platform for personalised astrology consultations, visit us at https://www.astronupur.com/.
An important part of this journey has been the support and strategic contribution of Rajneesh Pandey, who has worked closely with Nupur in establishing and developing the AstroNupur brand and in bringing her astrological knowledge to a wider audience. His involvement also extended to the development and promotion of Nupur’s book, Decode Astrology – Your Gateway to Cosmic Learning, which introduces readers to the fundamentals of astrology and birth-chart interpretation.
Nupur has also received professional recognition for her work and has extensive experience in gemstone consultation. Through AstroNupur and her educational initiatives, she continues to make traditional astrological knowledge accessible to a modern, global audience.
Dr. Divyanshu Patel: Bringing Prevention Into Everyday Healthcare
Dr. Divyanshu Patel is an Integrative Medicine Consultant working across preventive healthcare, clinical nutrition, Ayurveda, cosmetology, trichology and pharmaceutical sciences. His work focuses on helping people understand the connection between daily habits, nutrition and long-term health.
Alongside clinical practice, Dr. Divyanshu Patel has been involved in healthcare education, research and writing. He has also worked on initiatives that promote awareness about preventive healthcare and encourage people to take greater interest in their health before problems become serious.
His Disease-Free India 2035 initiative is centred on public health awareness and prevention. The initiative aims to encourage people to make informed choices about nutrition, lifestyle and regular health management.
Dr. Divyanshu Patel also shares healthcare information through educational content and professional discussions. His work brings together his experience in medicine, nutrition and related health sciences, with a focus on making preventive healthcare easier for people to understand and apply in everyday life.
Sandeep Bajoria: Bridging Education and Employment Since 2001
Sandeep Bajoria, Co-Founder and Academic Director of Shashank Skills Academy (a Technosoft Group institute), brings about 30 years of experience in IT training and skill development. Alongside Co-Founder and Centre Director Nabanita Roy, he has trained 25,000+ students group-wide since 2001.
ISO 9001:2015 certified and a Skill India BFSI training partner (NSDC), SSA is a Tally Education Authorised Training and Assessment Partner, known as Tally Institute of Learning, Baguiati. It offers Tally & GST, Advanced Excel & Data Analytics, DCA/CCA and Spoken English, and has repeatedly won Tally Education's TallyVidyaJyothi Placement Champ and Rising Star awards (East Zone).
With 100% placement assistance and 5,000+ placements, alumni work at PwC, TCS, Deloitte, Axis Bank and Wipro. Partner colleges include Derozio Memorial College, Sarojini Naidu College for Women and East Calcutta Girls' College.
"For 25 years, we've measured success by one thing: how many students confidently walk into their first job."
Shashankskills.academy
Priyanka Raajiv: Bringing India’s Textile Heritage Into the Language of Luxury
What happens when heritage is not preserved in a museum, but allowed to evolve? For Priyanka Raajiv, the answer lies in bringing India’s extraordinary textile traditions into the language of contemporary luxury.
With an academic background in Textiles and Clothing from Delhi University’s Lady Irwin College, she founded her eponymous Pune-based slow-luxury label with a singular vision: Celebrating the Artistry of Indian Heritage for You.
Rooted in authentic Indian textiles, handlooms, traditional embroideries and handcrafted techniques, Priyanka Raajiv brings together heritage and contemporary design through a philosophy of Curate, Create and Conserve. From Banarasi and Chanderi to textile conservation and the zero-waste Jod initiative, the brand gives new life and meaning to India’s textile legacy.
Her work has reached international platforms including New York Fashion Week and Cannes, while her commitment to artisans, craftsmanship and conscious creation continues to create greater visibility for India’s textile heritage.
Because for Priyanka Raajiv, heritage is not something to be inherited and preserved—it is something to be lived, reimagined and carried forward.
Neetesh Gupta: Shaping the Next Chapter of India’s E-Commerce Growth
Neetesh Gupta is an e-commerce strategist, business-growth professional and author with more than 12 years of experience across marketplace strategy, category management, D2C, P&L, commercial growth and cross-border e-commerce.
His professional work covers digital commerce, marketplace operations, customer acquisition, partnerships and business growth. Neetesh Gupta also writes about AI-led commerce, quick commerce, digital transformation, agentic commerce and global marketplaces.
He is the author of From Startups to Giants: The Journey of Quick Commerce in India, which examines the development of India’s quick-commerce sector and its business models. His second book, Borderless Commerce, explores cross-border e-commerce, international marketplaces, logistics, payments and digital trade.
Through his professional work and publishing, Neetesh Gupta focuses on the changing requirements of online businesses, including technology adoption, profitable growth and international expansion. His areas of expertise include Indian e-commerce, D2C growth, quick commerce, AI in e-commerce and global digital commerce.
Valentina Mishra: Empowering Talent, Building Confidence and Creating Global Opportunities
Valentina Mishra is an entrepreneur, mentor and fashion-industry professional with more than two decades of experience. She is the founder of D’La Valentina, a platform focused on grooming, personality development, fashion and talent discovery.
Through D’La Valentina, Valentina works with children, teenagers and adults, helping them develop communication skills, stage presence, personal presentation and confidence. She has organised talent and personality-development events and mentors aspiring models and contestants preparing for competitions and international platforms.
Valentina is also the organiser of World Icon International, an international platform centred on fashion, talent, culture and leadership. In addition, she serves as Vice President of Top Model of Universe, an international beauty and modelling contest that was held in Istanbul this month.
With more than two decades in the fashion industry, Valentina brings practical experience to her mentoring and event work. Her focus remains on preparation, discipline, communication and helping aspiring talent gain the confidence and experience needed to pursue opportunities on national and international platforms.
These 10 personalities come from different industries, backgrounds and professional journeys, yet each has taken a clear path in their respective field. Their work ranges from building businesses and developing new platforms to mentoring people, sharing knowledge and working on industry-specific ideas. Together, their profiles offer a diverse look at the people contributing to India’s growing professional and entrepreneurial community, each in their own way and on their own terms.
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