Winning Bizness Desk

Mumbai. Ratan Tata announced investment in a startup named Goodfellows that will take care of the elderly. Goodfellows is Shantanu's own startup. Shantanu Naidu is a graduate of Cornell University. Naidu returned to India in 2018 after completing his MBA degree. He joined the Tata Trusts Chairman's Office as Deputy General Manager. However, the investment amount has not been disclosed. This is the country's first Companionship Startup for Senior Citizens. Its objective is to help the elderly by connecting youth and educated graduates to support. Goodfellows has completed a successful beta in the last six months. Now it will be available in Mumbai and soon in Pune, Chennai and Bengaluru.

India home to 5 crore elderly

Notably, over 5 crore elderly people live alone in India. The reason for this is either the loss of one's life partner or the family members are settled outside. Goodfellows' business model is a 'freemium' subscription model. The first month is free, with the goal of letting Grandpa experience this service. There is a small membership fee after the second month which is decided based on the limited affordability of the pensioners. Goodfellows also provides employment with short-term internships to graduates looking for jobs.

Nobody feels like getting old: Tata

Tata said on this occasion that unless you are really old, nobody feels like getting old. He also said that getting a good natured partner is also a challenge. At the same time, Naidu addressed Tata as a boss, a mentor and a friend. Ratan Tata celebrated his 84th birthday on 28 December last year. During this, the video of Shantanu with the Chairman Emeritus of Tata Sons went viral. In this video, he was seen feeding Ratan Tata a cake and placing his hand on his shoulder. Shantanu, who works in Tata, is the 5th generation of his family. He is working with Tata Trust since September 2014.