Headline

Head of People @AppsForBharat | Ex Zynga & BukuWarung

About

I got into HR because I believe a company's most durable competitive advantage is its people. A decade later, I still do. I'm just a lot more precise about how to build it. Most People functions are built to support the business. I build them to accelerate it. Head of People at AppsForBharat, a Series C startup on a mission to reach a billion Indians on their devotional journeys. My work sits at the intersection of talent density, culture design, and business strategy: building people systems that let exceptional teams do the best work of their lives. 10 years across Fintech, Gaming, and early-stage startups. Always thinking about where the People function is headed next.

Location

Bengaluru

Work experience

Head of People at AppsForBharat, Oct 2024 - Present · 1 yr 11 mos, Bengaluru, Karnataka, India, AppsForBharat is building India's spiritual infrastructure for the digital age. 20 crore devotees, Series C, and growing fast. As Head of People, my work spans the full arc of the people function: talent, performance, leadership, and the culture we're building to scale. The work that matters most to me here is building a team with genuine talent density, where high ownership is the norm, not the exception, and where the culture we're building today can sustain the company we're becoming tomorrow.

Community Member at The Talent Deck, Mar 2023 - Present · 3 yrs 6 mos, India, The Talent Deck is a closed volunteer-led community of people and talent professionals across the globe. From pro-bono consulting, mentorship programs, social cause tie-ups to LnD for peers we are trying to help the people function of this ecosystem a little closer!

Head of People at BukuWarung, Jan 2022 - Oct 2024 · 2 yrs 10 mos, Bengaluru, Karnataka, India, BukuWarung is an Indonesian Fintech startup building a one-stop financial platform for MSMEs across Southeast Asia, covering bookkeeping, payments, financial services, and commerce. As Head of People, I led the people function across India and Southeast Asia for a team of 200+, spanning HR strategy, talent acquisition, and operations. My focus was on building the people infrastructure that a fast-scaling, cross-border startup needs: the right talent, the right systems, and a culture that travels across geographies.

Senior HR Specialist at Zynga, Jun 2019 - Jan 2022 · 2 yrs 8 mos, Bengaluru Area, India, Zynga is one of the world's leading social gaming companies, home to iconic titles like FarmVille and Zynga Poker, with 80M+ users globally. As Senior HR Specialist, I worked across the full spectrum of HR, from automating onboarding and employee communication through Workday, to launching new employee benefits and building leadership connect programs. I helped redesign HR processes for a workforce of 500+ during COVID, and contributed to DEI initiatives and employer branding. The through line across all of it was using systems and technology to make the employee experience faster, simpler, and more human.

HR Manager at Villgro, Sep 2016 - Jun 2019 · 2 yrs 10 mos, Bengaluru Area, India, Villgro is India's oldest startup incubator, investing in early-stage ventures across Education, Agriculture, Health, and Energy. As HR Manager, I worked closely with the President and CEO to build the people function from the ground up. This included designing a performance-linked incentive plan, building recruitment and onboarding processes, running org-wide learning programs, and overhauling HR policies. I also consulted for Bempu, a Villgro-incubated health startup, supporting their CEO on recruitment, performance management, and HR strategy.

Education

MBA, HR, Institute of Management Technology, Hyderabad

Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA), HR, Birla Institute of Technology, Mesra