ET Startup Awards 2026 | Woman Ahead: Palmonas, Progcap share crown for building across sectors

In one of the most fiercely contested categories of the ET Startup Awards, the jury named two winners this year. Pallavi Mohadikar, cofounder and chief executive of demi-fine jewellery brand Palmonas, and Pallavi Shrivastava, cofounder and CEO of supply-chain lending platform Progcap, both took home the Woman Ahead award.

After extensive deliberations, the jury highlighted how the two entrepreneurs built high-impact companies in very different domains, and split the top honour between them.


“What really stood out about the nominees in the Woman Ahead category was the diversity of spaces they are building in, whether fintech, consumer, or ecommerce. They are boldly and willingly tackling tough, unaddressed problems across these sectors,” said juror Nandita Sinha, CEO, Instamart.

The other nominees — PayGlocal's Prachi Dharani, Deconstruct's Malini Adapureddy, Rozana's Ankur Dahiya, and Blissclub's Minu Margeret — are founders of startups across fintech, consumer, beauty and personal care and ecommerce.

Juror Mithun Sacheti, cofounder of CaratLane, recused himself from voting as he is an investor in Palmonas.

Also Read: ET Startup Awards 2026: Groww adjudged No. 1; Sauce VC’s Manu Chandra named Midas Touch winner

Pallavi Mohadikar

After selling her bootstrapped apparel brand Karagiri to Mensa Brands, Mohadikar turned to another white space: demi-fine jewellery, a category taking off globally but largely untapped in India.

She cofounded Palmonas with Amol Patwari in 2021. Since then, the brand has built an omnichannel presence and launched a wide range of stock-keeping units across bracelets, necklaces, earrings and other categories.

“We are truly honoured to receive this recognition from The Economic Times. For us, this is not just an award; it is a wonderful validation of the work we have put into building Palmonas,” Mohadikar said after the win.

Palmonas sells via its 75 offline stores, direct-to-consumer (D2C) website and online marketplaces including ecommerce and quick commerce. More recently, it expanded into 9-carat gold jewellery, which Mohadikar sees as the company’s next growth driver.

The Pune-based company has raised $47 million from Xponentia Capital, Vertex Growth Fund and others. Its last round, in February, valued the startup more than $200 million.

“For Palmonas, this is only the beginning. We have thousands of stores to build, many more countries to explore, and a much larger vision ahead — to build a jewellery powerhouse from India for the world. This recognition is an important first step, and an even bigger motivation to work harder and dream bigger,” she said.

Pallavi Shrivastava

Shrivastava’s experience across the World Bank, International Finance Corp and supply-chain financing shaped her view that India’s biggest credit gap lies with the millions of retailers and distributors underserved by formal lenders. That led her to cofound Progcap with Himanshu Chandra in 2017.

Since launch, Progcap has facilitated more than Rs 55,000 crore in financing through 130 brand partnerships in over 500 cities, using transaction and supply-chain data to provide collateral-free working capital to MSMEs.

"We are very happy to have won this award. It has been a fantastic and rigorous process. Recognition from leaders who understand what it takes to build and scale a business makes it particularly special,” Shrivastava told ET.

Unlike traditional lenders, Progcap embeds financing into existing supply chains, letting brands extend credit to channel partners while using data-driven underwriting to manage risk.

The company has raised $110 million from Peak XV Partners, Google, Tiger Global and others across multiple rounds. Its last round valued the company at $600 million.

“For nearly a decade, our mission has been to solve access to finance and technology for underserved MSMEs. The next chapter is about going beyond credit and building the financial and technology infrastructure that helps small businesses operate better and grow,” said Shrivastava.

As the digital lending ecosystem grows more competitive and regulatory oversight tightens, the company is using AI for underwriting, collections and technology infrastructure to improve operational efficiency.

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Other contenders


Ankur Dahiya

Rozana allows rural consumers to order products via an app or call centre. It buys the products and stores them in leased warehouses. At Rozana, Dahiya aims to bridge the gap between urban and rural product accessibility.

Minu Margeret

Margeret launched BlissClub with a product-first philosophy, focussing on fabrics and fits designed specifically for Indian body types. The D2C brand offers comfortable clothing for women and men, designed for everyday activities ranging from travel and workouts to all-day wear.

Malini Adapureddy

Through Deconstruct, Adapureddy has built a D2C skincare brand based on consumer-insight-led product development and close collaboration with Korean skincare experts. Its sells across online marketplaces, quick commerce, and D2C channels, with a portfolio spanning sunscreens, face serums, lip care, and moisturisers.

Prachi Dharani

Dharani founded PayGlocal with a focus on simplifying cross-border payments for Indian consumers and businesses. It enables seamless international transactions, helping merchants accept payments from customers across markets while making global commerce more accessible.