How ex-banker Madhura Dasgupta Sinha is empowering Indian women entrepreneurs to go global
It is challenging enough for women to start a business, but breaking into the global market is even harder. Madhura Dasgupta Sinha is determined to change this.
Two instances propelled Madhura Dasgupta Sinha, a banker for 25 years, on a plan to add 10 million women to the workforce by 2030. The first was when a highly educated friend, who took a career break after childbirth, couldn’t return to the workforce to support her ailing father financially. Second, a friend of her daughter resigned from her job because she was entering an arranged marriage where the groom’s family did not allow women to work.
“I was telling my mother—who was an IAS officer—that the government and corporates should do something about this. And she just looked at me and said, ‘What are YOU doing about it?’ That was my turning point. I realised I couldn’t just wait for someone else to fix this problem—I had to do something about it myself,” Sinha tells HerStory.
On International Women’s Day 2020, Sinha founded Aspire for Her as a response to the declining participation of women in India’s workforce and in an attempt to address their financial dependence. Among many things, it was conceptualised as a community-driven platform aimed at motivating women to enter and stay in the workforce through mentorship, skilling, role models, and networking.
The platform started mentoring college students and quickly expanded to catering to mid-career women, returnees to work, and entrepreneurs.
The push behind SheExports
“As we grew, we recognised that entrepreneurs could create more jobs for women,” says Sinha, and this led to EntrepreNaari—a women’s entrepreneurship community.
SheExports was a programme later developed within this community in partnership with Payoneer to help women entrepreneurs scale their businesses internationally. “We realised that many women entrepreneurs had built strong businesses in India but hesitated when it came to exports. The regulatory complexities, market dynamics, and financial barriers seemed insurmountable. That’s what we aimed to change with SheExports,” says Sinha.
SheExports was designed to combat these challenges head-on, offering a structured accelerator program that provides mentorship, market access, and hands-on learning.
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Identifying challenges in women-led exports
India had approximately 13.5 to 15.7 million women-owned enterprises, representing merely 20% of all enterprises, according to a report by Bain & Company and Google.
Only a few successfully expand internationally due to a lack of resources and support.
The first season of SheExports worked with 42 women-led businesses, primarily solopreneurs in handicrafts, fashion, and niche consumer goods. The second cohort expanded to 84 participants and included consulting, coaching, and SaaS ventures.
Anuj Kanwar, a former HSBC executive and a key driver of the programme, says, “The major challenge we found was education. Many entrepreneurs didn’t know where to start. They needed guidance on navigating regulations, securing trade finance, and structuring cross-border payments”.
The programme structure evolved to include workshops, impact sessions, one-on-one mentorships, and expert-led training in areas like regulatory compliance and export documentation; cross-border payments and risk management, trademark protection and digital branding; leveraging platforms like Amazon Global Selling and Flipkart Export Hub and ecommerce logistics and pricing strategies.
“Our biggest achievement wasn’t just increased sales—it was that women now had the knowledge to handle exports confidently,” adds Kanwar.
The impact on women entrepreneurs
For Radhika Batra Shah, Founder of Radhika’s Fine Teas, the journey of exporting was a mix of confidence and reality checks.
“I knew my teas were premium, and I had already won bids against global brands like Twinings and Dilmah. But SheExports gave me a much-needed reality check—how do I strategically position my brand in different markets? How do I adapt to the UAE versus the US?” says Shah.
Through SheExports, she gained access to mentors, market insights, and networking opportunities that helped her navigate international expectations. A key outcome was an invitation to represent India at the Coffee Fest in New York to be held later this month, where she will showcase Indian teas on a global platform.
For Deepa Bhowmick, Founder of DaisyLife, the biggest challenge was logistics.
“My business revolves around handcrafted, natural materials, and shipping costs made exports a nightmare. The programme introduced me to better logistics partners and alternative shipping models that reduced my costs significantly,” she explains.
Bhowmick recently expanded into the Dubai market—a move she credits to the strategic push she received through SheExports.
Despite government export schemes, challenges persist. Cumbersome paperwork, lack of single-window solutions, and bureaucratic delays still hinder women entrepreneurs.
As Bhowmick points out, “I knew about government schemes, but accessing them meant leaving my business for months just to deal with the paperwork. That’s where private programmes like SheExports make a real difference”.
Creating long-term support
Going beyond traditional accelerator programmes, SheExports ensures that after training too, its alumni remain connected through Aspire For Her’s EntrepreNaari community, where they continue receiving support, visibility, and guidance on funding and other things.
“One of the biggest gaps for women entrepreneurs is long-term ecosystem support. That’s why even after the cohort ends, we work to get our entrepreneurs media visibility, introductions to trade councils, and global speaking opportunities,” says Sinha. “There is no cost to join our programme,” she adds.
Radhika, for instance, was given a tea ceremony at the US Consulate in Mumbai, leading to further invitations to international trade events. She Exports also facilitated features on national TV for entrepreneurs like Bhowmick to showcase their brand stories.
SheExports Season 2 will be a five-month hybrid-learning initiative, starting March 28. It will include both online and offline workshops across major cities such as Surat, Chennai, Indore, Delhi, Coimbatore, Chandigarh, Kolkata, and Ahmedabad. Participants will receive mentorship in areas like UI/UX optimisation, LinkedIn marketing, AI-driven business scaling, and investor pitching.
“Earlier, 20% of our cohort expanded internationally. Now, we want at least 50% of participants to scale globally,” says Kanwar.
Edited by Kanishk Singh