What's in a name? Sanjeev Bikhchandani was apprehensive of 'Ashoka' University

He is an astute entrepreneur and investor, but when it comes to names, Sanjeev Bikhchandani says he has terrible judgement. The co-founder of InfoEdge and Ashoka University, Bikhchandani said that he was apprehensive of naming the University “Ashoka” because he felt it was clichéd.

“But I was overruled,” he said during an interaction at the university’s Haryana campus.

There’s more to the story. Turns out, Bikhchandani was also opposed to naming a fellowship that gave birth to university as the Young India Fellowship.


“When the name was first suggested, everybody loved it, except me. There was a brand of men’s undergarments called Young India and I said, ‘You can’t call it Young India Fellowship.’ But anyway, I was overruled again,” he said with a laugh.