Lightbox
Lightbox is a Mumbai-based venture capital firm that has invested over $400 million across 27 Indian consumer technology companies since 2005, currently deploying a $200 million third fund across fashion, healthcare, beauty, and foodtech.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2014
- HeadquartersMumbai, India
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Lightbox does
Lightbox is a Mumbai-based venture capital firm founded in 2014 by Sandeep Murthy, focused exclusively on India's consumer technology market. The firm has invested over $400 million across 27 portfolio companies since commencing operations in 2005, spanning sectors including fashion, healthcare, beauty, media, foodtech, mobility, and consumer internet. Lightbox is currently deploying its $200 million third fund, following two predecessor funds of comparable scale. Notable portfolio holdings include cloud kitchen operator Rebel Foods, women's wellness brand Nua, healthtech Zeno Health, mental health platform Amaha, and historic investments in category-defining companies such as InMobi, Cleartrip, Truecaller, Info Edge, and MapmyIndia. The firm operates from a single office in Lower Parel, Mumbai, with a team of 11-50 professionals.
Lightbox runs a platform model that extends beyond capital deployment. Four ancillary offerings sit alongside its funds: New Thinking (a content and insights platform covering India's consumer markets), Pitch Us (a structured founder submission portal), Fellowship (an internship program for aspiring VC professionals), and Talent Sourcing (a recruiting platform connecting portfolio companies with candidates). These tools are designed to enhance deal sourcing, founder engagement, and portfolio support, and to reinforce the firm's positioning as an operating partner rather than a passive capital provider.
The firm's revenue follows standard venture capital economics: recurring management fees on committed and invested capital across three fund vehicles, supplemented by carried interest on profitable realizations. A December 2024 secondary sale in Rebel Foods' $210 million Series G, in which 75% of the round was secondary share sales by early investors including Lightbox, signaled active return generation to LPs. The firm is led by Founder Sandeep Murthy with Principal Siddharth Dhankhar and CFO/General Counsel Rashmi Guptey overseeing finance, legal, and ESG functions.
Lightbox firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Lightbox
- Legal name
- Lightbox
- Website
- https://lightbox.vc
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2014
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- Lightbox is a Mumbai-based venture capital firm that has invested over $400 million across 27 Indian consumer technology companies since 2005, currently deploying a $200 million third fund across fashion, healthcare, beauty, and foodtech.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Lightbox industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Venture Capital
- NAICS
- Portfolio Management and Investment Advice (52394), Portfolio Management and Investment Advice (523940)
- SIC
- Investment Advice (6282)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Technology & Software Growth Equity (FSANACAA)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Multi-Sector / Generalist Growth Equity (FSANACAO)
Keywords
Where Lightbox is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Mumbai
- HQ country
- India
- HQ region
- Asia
Offices1 record
Markets served
Lightbox business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others
Distribution channels1 record
Marketing channels4 records
Lightbox product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Lightbox is a Mumbai-based venture capital firm that invests growth capital into consumer technology companies in India. The firm manages three funds (Fund I, Fund II, and a $200 million Fund III), having deployed over $400 million across 27 portfolio companies since 2005 in sectors such as fashion, healthcare, beauty, media, and foodtech. Beyond capital, Lightbox provides operational guidance, strategic support, talent sourcing, and founder development programs to portfolio companies.
Product overview
Lightbox is a Mumbai-based venture capital firm that operates as a platform providing investment services, content/thought leadership, and talent ecosystem support. Its core offerings include: New Thinking (content and insights platform), Pitch Us (founder submission portal), Fellowship (internship program), and Talent Sourcing (recruiting service for portfolio companies). The firm has invested over $400 million across 27 companies since 2005, deploying capital from its $200-million third fund.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Lightbox Venture Capital Funds (Fund I, Fund II, Fund III) Venture capital fund vehicles that deploy growth-stage capital into Indian consumer technology companies across fashion, healthcare, beauty, media, and foodtech sectors. Offered to institutional limited partners (family offices, endowments, fund-of-funds) seeking exposure to India's consumer market.
- Pitch Us
Companies that use Lightbox
Customer profileSegments1 record
Ideal customer profiles2 records
Lightbox technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Lightbox partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
One partnership is on record.
- Ladywell FilmsminorLadywell Films co-produced 'Twisted Yoga,' a three-part investigative docuseries launching globally on Apple TV, in association with Lightbox Productions.
Scale indicators4 records
Recent moves4 records
Expansion highlights4 records
Lightbox competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Chiratae Ventures: India-focused technology and consumer VC. Comparable stage and sector overlap with Lightbox, frequently participating in the same rounds.
- Blume Ventures: Mumbai-headquartered seed and early-stage India VC with consumer-tech exposure. Direct peer sharing geography, stage, and consumer-internet orientation with Lightbox.
- Peak XV Partners (formerly Sequoia Capital India): India's largest venture and growth-stage investor with broad consumer-tech exposure. Highly comparable to Lightbox as both back early-to-growth stage Indian consumer and tech-enabled companies, and compete head-to-head for the same founder relationships and rounds.
- Accel India: Long-established India-focused VC investing across consumer and enterprise. Direct peer given overlapping consumer-tech thesis, similar early-stage orientation, and shared target founder pool in Bengaluru/Mumbai.
- Kalaari Capital: Bengaluru-based early-stage VC with a strong India consumer-tech thesis. Comparable to Lightbox in stage, sector focus, and active-engagement value-add model targeting Indian founders.
- Elevation Capital: India-focused growth-stage investor with deep consumer-internet track record. Comparable to Lightbox as both invest across consumer brands and tech-enabled services in India, often at growth stages.
- Matrix Partners India: Active India consumer and enterprise investor. Comparable given overlapping portfolio themes and similar fund sizes investing into Indian growth-stage companies.
- Nexus Venture Partners: India-US early-to-growth VC with consumer-tech exposure. Direct peer based on overlapping Indian consumer-investment mandate and similar stage focus.
- Fireside Ventures: India-focused consumer brand investor that co-invests with Lightbox (e.g., Amaha Series A). Comparable given shared consumer-brand thesis and India-only mandate.
Broad incumbents
- Bessemer Venture Partners (India): Global venture firm with a meaningful India practice spanning consumer, enterprise, and healthcare. Comparable as an India-active generalist VC, though with broader sector and stage coverage than Lightbox.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights5 records
Customer concentration
Lightbox social profiles
Digital presenceLightbox financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Lightbox leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles4 records
Lightbox funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Lightbox M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments54 records
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Lightbox
What does Lightbox do?
Lightbox is a Mumbai-based venture capital firm that invests growth capital into consumer technology companies in India. The firm manages three funds (Fund I, Fund II, and a $200 million Fund III), having deployed over $400 million across 27 portfolio companies since 2005 in sectors such as fashion, healthcare, beauty, media, and foodtech. Beyond capital, Lightbox provides operational guidance, strategic support, talent sourcing, and founder development programs to portfolio companies.
Is Lightbox a public or private company?
Lightbox is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Lightbox founded?
Lightbox was founded in 2014. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is Lightbox based?
Lightbox is headquartered in Mumbai, India, in the Asia region.
Who are Lightbox's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Chiratae Ventures, Blume Ventures, Peak XV Partners (formerly Sequoia Capital India), Accel India, Kalaari Capital, Elevation Capital, Matrix Partners India, Nexus Venture Partners and Fireside Ventures. Bessemer Venture Partners (India) is listed as a broad incumbent.
Does Lightbox have an API?
No public API is recorded for Lightbox.
What industry is Lightbox in?
Lightbox's product category is Venture Capital. Its primary akta.pro industry code is FSANACAA, Technology & Software Growth Equity, with a secondary code of FSANACAO, Multi-Sector / Generalist Growth Equity. Its NAICS code is 52394 and its SIC code is 6282.