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January - 2017 - Special issue > Entrepreneur of the Year - 2016

Vishwamani Tiwari: An Accidental Entrepreneur

si Team
Friday, February 3, 2017
si Team
To evade from the hard-pressed business schedules, most of the entrepreneurs plan leisure trips to the shores of the Atlantic and beautiful squares of Paris. Buried in business-to-holiday regimes, they forget to live a social life. An ideal role model for them to get inspired, Vishwamani Tiwari, the Chairman & Managing Director of Xccess (Prabhat Telecoms (India) Ltd.) - India's fastest growing mobile phones & accessories brand, finds an equilibrium between entrepreneurship and social engagement through his trust (as Chairman) - SAAHAS, which aim to educate tribal children. He also runs a successful Rs.400 crore company with the same enthusiasm. "Sometimes fate is made up by the circumstances. Basically, I am a mechanical engineer and it was the time when I couldn't crack any of those job calls. But I got an opportunity to do business in telecom sector with one of my friends," elucidates Vishwamani. However, the 'accidental entrepreneur' was well determined to thrive forward.

Owing to a vision driven living, started with catering technical support services to telecom operators in 1997, he ventured Prabhat Group into sales and distribution in the year 2004 and further extended its arms into manufacture and assembly of telecom products. His efforts didn't go in vain, as the company soon became one of the leading telecom manufacturing companies in India. "I have done everything in reverse. Commenced the operations with designing the handset, then started distributing them and finally manufacturing," asserts Vishwamani with a bright smile on his face.

Igniting the Engine

Vishwamani's story which spans over two decades is intrinsically the story of Indian telecom evolution that waxed and waned over the years. While commencing operations, besides the most known startup challenges such as earning trust and bagging the finance, he had to battle even with the communal politics and era's business convictions. Banks were also least interested in startups as they never tried to figure out the value of innovation that the startups bring in. The list of challenges extended with the struggle to calibrate the business and lack of skilled manpower. But Vishwamani had no intention to give up; instead he waited for his turn to come, without trying for too much. He could raise a skilled & well trained workforce inchmeal, which later helped him to trust the collective caliber and take vise and timely decision to partner with many know Telecoms entity Not only in India but also in Overseas like TATA, Reliance, MTS, LOOP, DIGICELL, Be Mobile, PNG Telecom, NEPAL Telecom etc., which made the pavement for rest of the journey.

Fulfilling Dreams


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