What makes VCs say Yes | with Anurag Ramdasan (Partner) | Taghash & Friends: E03

In this episode, Anurag Ramdasan, Partner at 3one4 Capital, talks about his journey from software engineer to VC, what investors look for in founders, and why conviction matters in early-stage investing. The conversation covers AI, deep tech, D2C, small-town India, software services, FOMO in private markets, and why Indian founders need to build for India instead of copying global playbooks. Chapters: 00:00 From Software Engineer to VC 01:33 Do You Need Money to Become a VC? 04:56 AI, Deep Tech and What VCs Are Watching 06:48 Why India Needs Its Own Startup Playbook 10:07 How India’s VC Market Has Changed 13:48 Building for Small-Town India 17:52 The Reality of FOMO in Venture Capital 22:50 Do VCs Have Biases? 28:41 The Side Project That Got a Million Views 31:03 Coding, Claude and the Future of Software 38:25 Can VC Help Build India’s Tech Self-Reliance? 44:42 Why Everyone Talks About Deep Tech, But Backs D2C 47:17 Make in India, Sell to the World 49:29 Bangalore Hiring, Tech Leadership and Founder Trade-Offs 54:00 What VCs Really Look for in Founders 58:19 Passing on Groww, Backing Dhan and Investor Conviction About the Speaker: Anurag Ramdasan is a Partner at 3one4 Capital, where he leads investments and works closely with early-stage technology companies. He has been part of the firm since its early years, with experience across venture investing, software engineering, portfolio strategy, and founder support. Before VC, he worked as an engineer and built technology products. He still writes code, which shapes how he evaluates companies, markets, and founders. In this conversation, he shares a clear, honest view of India’s venture market, AI, deep tech, missed investments, founder-investor alignment, and what conviction means when you are backing companies early. LinkedIn:   / anuragramdasan   About Podcast: Taghash & Friends is a conversation series with investors, founders, operators and long-time friends of Taghash who have shaped our journey.Each episode explores the people, ideas and hard decisions behind private capital, technology, entrepreneurship and fund building in India. Production Support: Klavoza #VentureCapital #Startups #IndianStartups #StartupIndia #FounderJourney #VC #EarlyStageStartups #AIStartups #DeepTech #D2C #IndianFounders #StartupFunding #AngelInvesting #PrivateMarkets #Investing #TechStartups