They started out as acquaintances, progressed to solid friends, then to close colleagues and finally into business partners, Vignesh Kaneria and Alpesh Donga have surely come a long way. Let’s take a walk down memory lane and trace their friendship journey spanning well over a decade, culminating into the launch of their product Prkruti.
The story behind Prkruti and not giving up
Vignesh and Alpesh worked as colleagues initially and that laid the foundation for their friendship and their work ethic as a team. Years of working side by side attuned them to instinctively respond to each other’s patterns of thinking and functioning. As nature lovers, when they both noticed the harmful implications of air pollution and the alarming increase in pollution levels, they were determined to solve the issue.
It was only natural after those many years of friendship and a shared love for the environment, that these gentlemen would come together to create a product that gives back to nature and improves quality of day to day life.
Years of research, development and friendly squabbles later, they were able to come up with Prkruti. An advanced IoT device, Prkruti can expertly monitor the level of pollution in the air. The data is collected in real time, validated by AI algorithms, and is sent to a central server through WiFi or GPRS for display on their website. Not only can industries track their emissions through this device, but one can monitor air pollution levels even at home through Prkruti Lite, by simply connecting it to an Android phone.
What is wonderful is that they have stayed true to their commitment to sustainability, even in the face of challenges, and hence created a completely sustainable waterproof product, which solely runs on solar energy.
What kept them going for so many years?
When two very close friends decide to do something and do it successfully, there is no force on Earth that can deter them. It took years to develop this product, because of the advanced technology behind it. Their friendship, commitment to their work and to each other, coupled with their drive to give back to nature, made them push back at any challenge that came their way.
Like all friends, they have had their disagreements, moments of doubt and weakness, but their faith in each other never faltered. As old friends, the million memories that they have collected along the way, are as precious as their startup today.
Prkruti Lite was finally launched on Amazon this year, and that marked a major milestone in their journey together. It was a testament of their unwavering friendship in the face of insurmountable odds.
“Tere Jaisa Yaar Kaha, Kaha Aisa Yarana”
As Vignesh fondly dedicates this famous Bollywood song - Tere jaisa yaar kahan to their friendship, memories flood back of a cool Winter evening long past. Sitting with a close friend at the chai shop outside college, making grand plans with not a care in the world.
This friendship day, when you fondly remember friends with whom you whiled away your time at college canteens or secret hangout spots, think of that one friend who stayed with you through it all; the good days and especially the bad ones.
