Two biotech graduates come up with a cure for hangover with Anti-Dizz
One of the most common spoilers of any party is getting a hangover the next morning. Hangovers may have different symptoms for different people but the results are the same – you are pretty much under the cloud the whole day. Yes, it may last up to 24 hours.
The best way to avoid hangovers is of course avoid alcohol consumption in the first place. Drinking less than one can comfortably take comes a close second but one hardly knows when one has reached their limit. There are many common home remedies but none has proved to work hundred per cent.
Two biotechnology graduates, Dhruv Trivedi and Vandana Pillai, have come up with a solution for hangovers, called Anti-Dizz. It works on toxins produced due to alcohol consumption and soothes hangover symptoms. One can consume Anti-Dizz depending on the severity of the hangover because it is a natural drink and hence does not produce any side effects. Currently, it is available only in Mumbai and is sold in sachets and pet bottles. Severity of hangovers depends on gender, age, genetics and type of alcohol consumed. Anti-Dizz benefits anyone who consumes alcohol irrespective of these factors.Dhruv and Vandana, both graduated from Padmashree Dr. D. Y. Patil University, Mumbai, and started Reinvent Life Sciences (RLS) in 2011. Anti-Dizz is their first product and three more are in the R&D phase. Anti-Dizz was one of the winners in the commercial enterprise space at TiE Bangalore’s Anthah Prerana initiative. Dhruv says, “I come from a very small village, Savarkundla in Gujarat. I was brought up in the small town of Bharuch. When I moved to Mumbai to pursue engineering in biotechnology, I explored and learnt a lot of things. I was surprised to see the lack of opportunities and knowledge in small towns as compared to big cities. In my college days, I wanted to be an entrepreneur. After graduation, I worked in a pharmaceutical startup to understand how it works. My family was not very happy with my decision of starting up but they reluctantly supported me to follow my dreams.”
The idea for Anti-Dizz stemmed from his own hangover experience. He says, “I was at my reunion party and it was happy hours. We drank our hearts out. The next day I got up at 12 pm with a heavy head, dizziness and strong feeling of nausea. I was terribly hung over. It was the same for my friends. I was curious to know how hangovers occur and if there was any way to prevent or cure them.”
Starting the research in their college labs, the idea evolved and developed into a product after a lot of R&D, market analysis and consumer surveys. Dhruv shares that the market potential for anti-hangover products is huge and use of these products can save a lot of loss in productivity due to employees’ hangovers. He says, “Alcohol consumption in India is rising at 30% every year. As the consumption increases, so does the occurrences of hangovers. Hangovers not only have horrible symptoms but also lead to lack of focus, loss of sleep and loss of productivity. Research shows that hangovers may lead to depression, anxiety and criminal offences. There is an estimated loss of productivity worth more than $300 billion every year because of hangovers.”
At preset Anti-Dizz is available in 87 outlets in Mumbai. Dhruv shares that it was difficult to convince liquor retail shop owners to sell the product because of lack of awareness but they received a good response from chemists and pubs. Dhruv says, “As of now, we don’t have any competition in India. As far as competitors from other countries are concerned, our formulation and product have an edge over them.” He is planning to enter Bangalore and Delhi after Mumbai and sell through pubs, bars, hotels, chemists and retail liquor stores. Selling it through e-commerce portals is also on the list.
Launching an enterprise at 24 with limited experience and resources can be quite a task. Taking slow decisions led to slow execution and operations. Dhruv says, “We faced the problem of credibility. We were not from elite institutions. We didn’t hold MBAs and neither did we have extensive experience in the pharma and healthcare sector.” He believes that grit, perseverance and an attitude to constantly learn and adapt are fundamentals to any startup. He adds his learnings came with time and the mistakes he made. They are a seven- member strong team and are looking for investments to further their growth.
