Mumbai Uni debuts 3 innovative masterclasses to nurture start-up talent

The University of Mumbai last week announced the launch of three masterclasses under its innovation and incubation arm, MU IDEAS Foundation Incubation Centre, aimed at nurturing entrepreneurial talent among students.

The flagship programmes — SHABARI 1.0, VASUNDHARA 1.0, and SPARK 1.0 — to be held between June and September, will institutionalise start-up education in the university with support through dedicated cohorts and capacity-building series. These masterclasses will entail hands-on exposure, expert mentorship, and structured entrepreneurial training to students.

According to the university, these programmes reflect MU IDEAS’ mission to “turn student potential into structured innovation.

Highlighting that this is a first-of-its-kind approach, Sachin Laddha, former director of Innovation, Incubation and Linkages at the Mumbai University, said on Tuesday, “The idea behind launching these programmes stemmed from our deep interaction with students across the University of Mumbai. We realised that while there was a growing interest in entrepreneurship, there was an urgent need for structured handholding, inclusive outreach, and foundational capacity-building. Each of these programmes is conceptualized to address a specific gap — from early-stage startup grooming (SHABARI), to nurturing socially inclusive ventures (VASUNDHARA), to enabling basic startup literacy (SPARK). This will democratize innovation.