Hello, my name is Pratiksha Dake, and I'm setting up an India-focused early stage VC fund, backing founders building at the intersection of technology and large Indian markets. People keep asking why the switch from operator to investor, so I finally wrote it down. I also write regularly on what I look for as an investor, collected as theses.

Path

I spent 4 years of my formative life at BITS Pilani, and then later went to ISB Hyderabad for an MBA. Over 15 years, I worked as an early operator across product, growth, and strategy at Goibibo, MoEngage, 100ms, and Unacademy, and cofounded INDmoney. I also built Graphia AI, an AI-based marketing solution I scaled to six figures in ARR in 2.5 years.

I now put the product instincts, operator scars, and pattern recognition from all of it into finding and backing the right founders at the earliest stages.

Projects

AliveUI: open-source, motion-first CSS framework with video blocks.

Periplus AI: AI trip planner and credit card reward point optimizer.

Graphia AI: an AI-based marketing solution.

Claude PM Skills: open-source workflows for product managers working with Claude.

Outside Work

Travel has taken me to Italy, Japan, Egypt, Indonesia, Malaysia, Sri Lanka, Spain, the Netherlands, Iceland, and Turkey. I enjoy capturing moments through iPhone photography, a Fujifilm X100VI, and an Insta360 for immersive 360 degree videography. I post travel photos and videos at @frame.passport.

I'm an avid chess learner, a language enthusiast currently learning Italian, fluent in English, Hindi, and Marathi, with basic French and Spanish. Origami is a quiet creative outlet. Health and wellness are central to my routine: yoga, strength training, and nutrition. Cooking lets me experiment with Italian, South Indian, and Maharashtrian cuisines, and I keep a running coffee list of what I've tried and would recommend. I'm also slowly building a dedicated home café, and writing up the story evolving around it here. Books and music are how I reset.

Contact

I'm always looking to buy good art. If you have something interesting, email me.