Meet the man behind Arattai - India's answer to WhatsApp

Firstly, there are many stories from Silicon Valley where success has been largely talked about but there is one man from rural Tamil Nadu who has changed the tech global industry's rules.

Sridhar Vembu, founder of Zoho Corporation, has created a $12 billion company in the center of India not only, but is also coming up as a flagbearer of digital independence with his new startup, Arattai.

From Village Fields to Global Success

Sridhara Vembu was born in 1968 in a small agricultural village in Thanjavur district of Tamil Nadu, his journey started way out of the shiny tech corridors of Bangalore or Mumbai.

As the first person in his family to experience higher education, Vembu went to the prestigious IIT Madras and studied electrical engineering and then he did his PhD at Princeton University.

Even though Vembu got a well-paid job in the USA and had the possibility to become a Silicon Valley star, he took the decision that would characterize his legacy.

Out of everything, he quit, energized by a more profound intention that would not only change his life but also the lives of the rural people in India incubate.

The Birth of a Digital Empire

Upon his return to India taking with him the determination of steel, Vembu started AdventNet to cater to the needs of network management and software solutions for telecom providers.

It almost became a platform of India most fantastic success stories. Eventually, in 2009, AdventNet was converted into Zoho. The scope of work involved was all-inclusive cloud-based business tools which gave the big players a run for their money.

Zoho today has more than 100 million users from over 150 countries and offers a wide range of services such as email and CRM.

The impressiveness of the feat may be better understood when one considers Vembu's commitment to independence, the company has been bootstrapped to the hilt and declined any kind of capital venture or outside investments during its growth phase.

Challenging the Urban Tech Hub Model

While most Indian tech companies gravitate toward metropolitan cities like Bangalore, Hyderabad, and Pune, Vembu chose a radically different path. He relocated Zoho's development centers to rural Tamil Nadu, creating a revolutionary model that brings world-class technology jobs directly to small towns and villages.

The move was not just about cutting costs or streamlining operations; rather it was a matter of giving life back to the rural economy and illustrating that innovation is not concentrated in urban areas.

The small-town offices of Zoho India are now home to thousands of highly-qualified workers and this proves that the geographical location does not necessarily determine technological excellence.

Building Human Capital Through Education

Vembu is not just focused on the corporate world. Realizing that stable development needs equipped manpower, he set up Zoho Schools, a ground-breaking project that educates the rural youth in computer technologies, designs, and product development.

What is special about this program is that it is only based on education, and many participants do not have college degrees, but they receive world-class training that prepares them for global technology careers.

This program stands as a perfect illustration of Vembu's belief that villages, and not metropolitan areas, should be the incubators of world-class innovation. By investing in local talent, he is creating a sustainable ecosystem that benefits both the company and the community.

Arattai: The Latest Digital Swadeshi Initiative

The new project of Vembu, Arattai, is known as the "Digital Swadeshi" message service and has been in the news lately. The app has had a runoff of 3.5 lakh daily downloads, which means it is doing excellently as a domestic alternative to international messaging platforms like WhatsApp.

Arattai is unique because it is designed specifically for the Indian market - it functions optimally even on the slowest smartphones and the weakest networks and so is it addressing the real technological problems faced by millions of Indians in rural and semi-urban areas.

A Legacy of Purpose-Driven Innovation

Now, Zoho is one of the most valuable and globally impactful Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) brands in India. The saga of Vembu from a farming village in Tamil Nadu to running a $12 billion company is the most powerful testimony of innovation not being limited by geography but rather being fueled by purpose.

His narrative undermines the belief that technology companies should be located in a certain place, funded in a specific way, and that digital revolution leaders should be of a certain type.

Sridhar Vembu has proven that it is possible to create global success with your vision, stamina, and loyalty to your roots and people.