“Mountbatten was my first real leap into the unknown. I didn’t realise it then, but that’s where I learned how to start over, ask for help, and keep moving forward, all things that ended up defining how I build today.”

Current Role:  Co-founder and COO, Tartan – a data infrastructure and unified API company working with banks, insurers, and fintechs to simplify how financial information is accessed and verified for lending and system integrations.

https://www.tartanhq.com/

What and where did you study before your Mountbatten internship?

I studied Economics in Mumbai, India. It taught me to think in terms of systems, trade-offs, and incentives, ideas that ended up being surprisingly useful in every job since.

What made you apply for the Mountbatten Program?

I wanted to see how the world worked beyond what I knew. Mountbatten felt like the right mix of challenge and adventure, working in a global company, living in a new city, figuring things out on my own. I didn’t know it then, but that year would change the way I think about work and the world.

Describe your host organisation and your role within it.

I was placed at J.P. Morgan Chase, in the risk and controls teams supporting Asset Management businesses. It was my first experience inside a system that size, thousands of people, billions of dollars moving every day, everything built on trust and precision. I learned how decisions ripple, how structure enables speed, and how much detail really matters.

What was the highlight or most memorable moment of your working experience during this year?

Presenting a few process improvements that were actually implemented. It was a small win, but it taught me that even as an intern, ideas matter if you do the work to back them up. That stuck with me.

What was the social highlight or most memorable moment during this year?

The people I met through Mountbatten. We were all figuring ourselves out in a city that doesn’t slow down for anyone. Long walks, PATH trains, 1 dollar pizzas, never ending conversations about what we wanted from life, that year gave me relationships and stories I still carry.

Please share a little wisdom or philosophy that you acquired during your internship.

Curiosity takes you further than confidence. When you stop trying to prove you belong and start asking better questions, everything opens up.

Upon reflection, what do you consider the biggest impact of your Mountbatten year?

It made me comfortable with change. I came back to India knowing I could adapt to any environment, learn new things fast, and make something meaningful out of it. That mindset has shaped every decision since, especially when I decided to start my own company, Tartan.

What happened after completing the year — what did you do next?

After returning to India, I continued working with JP Morgan in their Indian offices, transitioned to working with product and business roles in tech startups before starting Tartan. We began by solving a small verification problem, and over time built it into a full-stack data infrastructure platform used by some of India’s largest financial institutions.

Where are you now in your working life and what do you do?

I run Tartan, where we’re building the data pipes that connect banks, insurers, and fintechs to verified data in real time. My role sits at the intersection of product, people, and strategy, trying to make complex systems feel simple and human again. Tartan is now a 70+ people team serving clients in the Indian sub-continent

Do you have any future plans that you would like to realise?

I want to keep building and take Tartan global by opening up offices in the US and UK and serving clients there.

What would people be surprised to learn about you?

That my first job involved reconciling spreadsheets by doing vlookup and taking meeting minutes with managing directors and C-suite at a bank. Not exactly glamorous, but it taught me the kind of discipline I still rely on every day.

Is there any other information you’d like to include?

Mountbatten was my first real leap into the unknown. I didn’t realise it then, but that’s where I learned how to start over, ask for help, and keep moving forward, all things that ended up defining how I build today.