Empowering entrepreneurs with YourStory’s The Bharat Project; Storytelling and India's natural wildlife

Hello,

Meet 82-year-old sword-wielding Meenakshi Raghavan, widely thought to be the oldest woman in the world to practise Kalaripayattu–a martial art form. 

Fondly known as Meenakshi Amma, the martial arts instructor began practising Kalari when she was only seven years old. "I'll probably practise Kalari until the day I die," she says, reports BBC.

A hero of strength and resilience.

Speaking of resilience in the world of technology, will Google prevent its empire from breaking apart?

On Monday, the company will fight to keep its Chrome browser in an antitrust trial. The three-week trial in Washington, DC is expected to determine the future of online search.

Meanwhile, documents shared by the US Federal Trade Commission offer insight into Meta’s internal struggles to keep Facebook relevant.

The times, they are a changin'.

Elsewhere, humanoid robots joined a half-marathon along with humans in Beijing on Saturday. However, the robots are far from competing with humans. According to Reuters, the winning robot, Tiangong Ultra, completed the race in two hours and forty minutes. The men's winner had a time of one hour and two minutes.

Lastly, Thailand reportedly deployed a humanoid police robot during a festival that can survey streets with 360-degree cameras.

Have Robocops finally arrived?

In today’s newsletter, we will talk about 

• YourStory’s The Bharat Project
• Storytelling and India's natural wildlife

Here’s your trivia for today: Which two countries are named after the line of zero degrees latitude?

Entrepreneurship 

Empowering entrepreneurs with YourStory’s The Bharat Project

India lives in small towns and rural areas. However, founders from these regions struggle to access funding and mentorship. The Bharat Project—a YourStory initiative, which was launched last week by Union Minister of Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal, hopes to bridge these gaps. 

The project will bring together the government, ecosystem enablers, creators, and communities to democratise access to entrepreneurial tools.

Power ahead:

• Under the project, entrepreneurs will get access to an AI-powered mobile-first platform that will give startup founders access to mentorship in both Hindi and English.
• It will also provide state-led, district-level activations and WhatsApp-based learning programmes to train and empower the youth to start and scale their businesses.
• The project will also host Bharat Ideathon—a nationwide idea challenge that will scout for promising business ideas from over 1,000 districts and enable aspiring entrepreneurs to get access to mentorship and visibility.

Inspiration

Telling the story of India's natural wildlife

RoundGlass Sustain was founded in 2019 by Seattle-based entrepreneur and philanthropist Gurpreet "Sunny" Singh. It is a partner organisation of RoundGlass Living, a global promoter of individual wellbeing.  

RoundGlass Sustain enables storytelling on India's natural wildlife. Additionally, it also provides a platform to female storytellers. Over the last six years, it has produced over 600 pieces of video content, out of which more than 200 have been spearheaded by women.

Key takeaways:

• RoundGlass Sustain Films collaborates with various filmmakers from around the country. This includes film production and funding, as well as providing them with a platform and mentoring directors. 
• The production house releases the films on its website. The team also does extensive marketing to promote the films. They conduct offline screenings across the country in multiple languages.
• The organisation tries to champion stories and communities that are often overlooked. Instead of focusing on megafauna, it emphasises little-known habitats, ecosystems and species. Additionally, the focus is on local filmmakers.

News & updates

• Shipments: DHL Express, a division of Germany's Deutsche Post, said it would suspend global business-to-consumer shipments worth over $800 to individuals in the United States from April 21, as US customs regulatory changes have lengthened clearance.
• Star man: America's oldest serving astronaut, Don Pettit, has returned to Earth on his 70th birthday. The Soyuz MS-26 space capsule carrying Pettit and his Russian crewmates Alexey Ovchinin and Ivan Vagner made a parachute-assisted landing in Kazakhstan's steppe at 06:20 local time (01:20 GMT) on Sunday.

What you should watch out for

• Trade talks: Indian negotiators are preparing for a three-day visit beginning April 23 to the US to draw up a “realistic 90-day roadmap” to clinch an interim agreement covering a range of issues, including tariffs, non-tariff barriers, and services, reports The Indian Express. 
• Earnings watch: HCL Technologies and Tech Mahindra are expected to release their March quarter earnings this week. 

Which two countries are named after the line of zero degrees latitude?

Answer: Ecuador and Equatorial Guinea.

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