During business presentations, the crucial aspect is how startup founders effectively convey their message, regardless of the language they use, Kunal Bahl, the co-founder of Snapdeal, said. Bahl also recalled an incident in an X (formerly Twitter) post on Monday when a founder enquired whether they could present in Hindi.
In the post, Bahl wrote, “Can I present in Hindi?” Snapdeal co-founder added, “Obviously, I replied with a resounding "Yes, of course!'. It seemed strange that two people, who understand and speak the same native language fluently, are having to discuss whether they can have a business presentation in their own language, which they know best ."
He also talked about how it is more important to be able to deliver your idea instead of focusing on the medium. “But I presume many founders may be thinking that investors expect them to be very suave and fluent in English. At least from my standpoint, it absolutely doesn't matter. Zero. Getting your point across, the complete and authentic essence of it, is much more important than having a colonial mindset that if it's an important business presentation, it must be done in English,” he wrote.
He added, “Irrespective of whether we are fluent in English or not, we should feel absolute confidence in speaking our mother tongue in business settings just like we do in social settings. Our Startup, Our Country, Our Language.”
Bahl's post received several reactions from internet users. “I used to present in Hindi way back in 2009, was not very comfortable in expressing my thoughts in English. Most of the time VCs were very welcoming but never feel comfortable even in asking followup questions. Maybe first impression was "yeh kya funding lega jab english bhi nahi bol pata". This was in Mumbai,” wrote one of the X users.
“Sure why not. I take presentations in Hindi even though it's NOT my native language. But one major caveat: The startup's TAM must be Hindi-speaking. Otherwise, my investment will go down the drain if its founder expects his prospects to learn Hindi to understand his pitch,” added another user.
A third user said, “English was a moat built by bureaucracy during British raj. How and when it became a moat for business people, is strange. Congrats @1kunalbahl for raising the point. This is not a moat that India's smart upcoming entrepreneurs should need, to win.”