The Better India
The Better India is a Bangalore-based digital media company that publishes positive, solution-oriented journalism across more than a dozen topical verticals and monetizes its audience through display advertising and branded content campaigns aimed at Indian readers and brand advertisers.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2008
- HeadquartersBangalore, India
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingDigital Commerce or Content
What The Better India does
The Better India is a private, India-based digital media company founded in 2008 and headquartered in Bangalore, operating a horizontal, web-first publishing platform under the domain thebetterindia.com. Its editorial proposition is constructive and solution-oriented journalism, surfacing stories about changemakers, sustainability, startups, culture, travel, parenting, farming, gardening, wildlife, food, innovation, history, education, healthcare, civil service and young achievers, in deliberate contrast to mainstream negativity. The product surface comprises long-form written stories, visual web stories (thebetterindia.com/web-stories) and a video library (thebetterindia.com/videos) linked to a YouTube channel, with lightweight user features such as bookmarks, reader profiles, email newsletter sign-ups and social sign-in (Google, Facebook).
Underlying technology is a standard web publishing platform with video embedding; no proprietary APIs, SDKs, integrations or AI features are disclosed, and the company has no mobile app presence. Revenue is generated entirely through two advertising-related streams: a self-serve 'Advertise With Us' inventory and bespoke 'Brand Campaigns' (thebetterindia.com/brand-campaigns) that package sponsored storytelling to advertisers seeking association with positive narratives. There is no reader paywall or direct subscription pricing; content is free at point of consumption. On the demand side, the customer base splits between a broad Indian consumer readership (the audience product) and advertisers/brands (the monetizing customer), with the latter reaching the platform through its digital sales surface.
The company has raised modest disclosed funding across three rounds totalling roughly $3.67M (a 2015 seed from the Intellecap Impact Investment Network of approximately $159,000, a 2016 grant from the Independent and Public-Spirited Media Foundation, and a 2019 Series-equivalent of approximately $3.5M led by Elevar Equity with TPG Growth). Leadership consists of founder and CEO Dhimant Parekh and co-founder Anuradha Kedia. Reported firmographic headcount of 1–10 is anomalous for an active publishing operation and likely reflects only core staff; the platform continues to publish daily content and remains in active operation.
The Better India firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- The Better India
- Legal name
- The Better India
- Website
- https://thebetterindia.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2008
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- The Better India is a Bangalore-based digital media company that publishes positive, solution-oriented journalism across more than a dozen topical verticals and monetizes its audience through display advertising and branded content campaigns aimed at Indian readers and brand advertisers.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
The Better India industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Digital Media and Publishing
- NAICS
- Media Streaming Distribution Services, Social Networks, and Other Media Networks and Content Providers (5162), Media Streaming Distribution Services, Social Networks, and Other Media Networks and Content Providers (51621)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Online Article & Blog Publishing Platforms (MPAJAMAF)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Online News & Magazine Publishing Platforms (CMS & Hosting) (MPAJAMAC)
Keywords
Where The Better India is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Bangalore
- HQ country
- India
- HQ region
- Asia
Markets served
The Better India business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Digital Commerce or Content
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Others
Revenue model
- Advertising: The platform generates revenue through advertising, as indicated by the 'Advertise With Us' section on the website. Brands can partner with The Better India to reach their engaged audience of readers interested in positive stories.
- Brand Campaigns: The Better India offers brand campaigns as a revenue stream, allowing companies to create sponsored content that aligns with the platform's positive storytelling format.
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels2 records
Marketing channels4 records
The Better India product offering
Product offeringCore offering
The Better India is a digital media platform that publishes positive, solution-oriented news stories and inspirational content across diverse categories including sustainability, changemakers, startups, culture, travel, education, healthcare, and innovation. It monetizes its audience through advertising, sponsored brand campaigns, and video content distributed via website, YouTube, and social media channels. The platform offers free content to readers while providing brands with paid storytelling and advertising opportunities.
Product overview
The Better India is a digital media platform that publishes positive, inspirational stories and news content across diverse categories including sustainability, changemakers, startups, culture, travel, farming, gardening, wildlife, food, innovation, history, education, healthcare, civil service, and young achievers. The platform operates through multiple content formats: long-form article stories, visual web stories, videos, and brand campaigns. Content is organized by topic areas with dedicated sections for each category, and the platform offers user features including bookmarks, user profiles, and newsletter subscriptions.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- The Better India Content Platform A digital media platform publishing positive news stories and inspirational content across multiple categories including sustainability, changemakers, startups, culture, travel, farming, wildlife, food, innovation, history, education, healthcare, civil service, and young achievers. Targeted at Indian readers and the Indian diaspora seeking uplifting content.
- Visual Stories Web-based visual story content published under the web-stories section, covering topics like innovation, food, wildlife, travel, and culture through a visual-first storytelling format. Targeted at mobile readers of The Better India.
- Videos Video content featuring inspiring stories, changemakers, hobbies, films, and society topics, including cricket-related videos showcasing Indian sports achievements. Distributed via the platform's website and YouTube channel.
- Brand Campaigns Branded content and advertising services for brands to reach The Better India's engaged audience through authentic, value-aligned storytelling. Targeted at advertisers and brand marketers in India.
Companies that use The Better India
Customer profileSegments2 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
The Better India technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
The Better India partnerships and signals
Strategic signalRecent moves5 records
Expansion highlights5 records
The Better India competitors and assessment
Company assessmentEmerging players
- Homegrown: Homegrown is an Indian digital media platform covering culture, creativity, and positive stories from India. It shares thematic overlap with The Better India's culture and changemaker verticals and targets a similar urban, English-speaking audience with brand-campaign monetization.
- SheThePeople: SheThePeople is an Indian digital media platform focused on women's stories, changemakers, and positive narratives. It overlaps with The Better India on impact-driven content and targets a similar advertiser base seeking purpose-aligned environments.
Broad incumbents
- NDTV: NDTV is one of India's largest legacy news broadcasters with a significant digital presence. As a broad incumbent, it competes for general advertising and audience share, though its news-centric format contrasts with The Better India's positive-only positioning.
- The Quint: The Quint is a large Indian digital news platform with broad coverage including positive and impact-oriented stories. As a broad incumbent, it competes for overall digital ad budgets and audience attention, though it does not specialize in the changemaker niche The Better India occupies.
- India Today Group (digital): India Today operates one of India's largest multi-platform news brands with extensive digital verticals. As a broad incumbent, it competes for advertising dollars and audience attention across topics where The Better India also publishes, particularly lifestyle, health, and culture.
Direct peers
- Storypick: Storypick is an Indian lifestyle and inspirational digital content platform running on advertising and branded content. It competes directly with The Better India for female-skewed online audiences and brand-campaign revenue.
- The Logical Indian: The Logical Indian is a direct peer — an Indian digital media platform focused on positive news, changemakers, and constructive journalism. Its audience and content mix closely mirror The Better India's positioning, and both compete for the same purpose-driven advertising and brand-campaign budgets in India.
- Humans of Bombay: Humans of Bombay is a direct competitor producing human-interest and inspirational stories from India, monetizing through brand partnerships and content licensing. Its audience and storytelling format overlap significantly with The Better India's changemaker content.
- YourStory: YourStory is an Indian digital media platform covering startups, changemakers, and positive impact stories, sharing the same horizontal content-marketing and brand-campaign monetization model as The Better India. Both platforms compete for engaged urban Indian audiences and brand-campaign sponsorships.
- ScoopWhoop: ScoopWhoop is an Indian digital media and content platform producing shareable articles, videos, and brand campaigns. It competes with The Better India for digital advertising budgets and a similar young, English-speaking Indian online audience.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat3 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
The Better India social profiles
Digital presenceThe Better India financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
The Better India leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles2 records
The Better India funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds3 records
Investors4 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
The Better India M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about The Better India
What does The Better India do?
The Better India is a digital media platform that publishes positive, solution-oriented news stories and inspirational content across diverse categories including sustainability, changemakers, startups, culture, travel, education, healthcare, and innovation. It monetizes its audience through advertising, sponsored brand campaigns, and video content distributed via website, YouTube, and social media channels. The platform offers free content to readers while providing brands with paid storytelling and advertising opportunities.
Is The Better India a public or private company?
The Better India is a private company. It is classified as venture growth investor backed and is currently operating.
When was The Better India founded?
The Better India was founded in 2008. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is The Better India based?
The Better India is headquartered in Bangalore, India, in the Asia region.
How does The Better India make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. Advertising is the primary driver. The others are brand Campaigns.
Who are The Better India's main competitors?
Emerging players on record are Homegrown and SheThePeople. Broad incumbents are NDTV, The Quint and India Today Group (digital). Direct peers are Storypick, The Logical Indian, Humans of Bombay, YourStory and ScoopWhoop.
Does The Better India have an API?
No public API is recorded for The Better India.
What industry is The Better India in?
The Better India's product category is Digital Media and Publishing. Its primary akta.pro industry code is MPAJAMAF, Online Article & Blog Publishing Platforms, with a secondary code of MPAJAMAC, Online News & Magazine Publishing Platforms (CMS & Hosting). Its NAICS code is 5162.