AppsForBharat, Vama.app, Astrotalk, DevDham, etc. have seen significant growth during this Navratri period, which ended on October 12th, and are gearing up for Diwali on November 1st.
“Because of Navratri, we launched new products and services,” Manu Jain, founder of Blume Ventures-backed Vama.app, told ET. “As a result, we are seeing an increase of 20-25% (month-over-month) in new users overall. So far, our revenue has grown over 20% week-over-week in the last week of September.”
The New Delhi-based startup not only offers astrology services but also allows users to book virtual pujas, temple darshans and rituals.
“We are seeing an increase in organic searches on the platform. However, we expect a significant increase closer to Diwali as this is the real festive period. Therefore, plan everything for the last week of October. “I’m doing it,” Jain said.
Prashant Sachan, founder of AppsForBharat, the parent company of Sri Mandir, said that during the recent Shravan holy period, around 850,000 darshans and 12,000 devotees participated in online pujas on the platform. said.
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“For Diwali, we have expanded to Meenakshi Chokkanathar temple in Madurai and Etherthu Perumal temple in Tirunelveli, which is expected to contribute 20% to our user acquisition plan,” said AppsForBharat’s Sachan.
The company, which recently raised $18 million from Fundamentum and existing backers including Peak XV and Elevation Capital, has expanded its services for Navratri, offering virtual offerings and personalized prasad deliveries to various temples.
During this period, around 15,000 users dedicated more than 50,000 items to God, and 35% of the revenue came from international users.
“We are witnessing a surge in user participation this season. Engagement continues as our app is now available in five regional languages and three more languages are being added to further deepen our pan-India reach. This is expected to increase significantly,” said Mr.
India’s fast-growing religious and spiritual apps sector is attracting significant investment from venture capital firms. On July 7, ET reported that a post-pandemic surge in online engagement and increased interest in spiritual practices has revived the fortunes of apps offering spiritual and devotional services.
Online astrology services and digital pujas are gaining acceptance among younger consumers, challenging the idea that they are primarily aimed at millennials, the report said.
Noida-based Astrotalk, which recently raised $9.4 million in equity capital, plans to move beyond its mainstay astrology services and enter the faith space, people said.
Titan Capital-backed faith platform DevDham (formerly DevDarshan) also saw growth during the Shravan season, with further increases in engagement during Pitru Paksha in September, when Hindus pay homage to their ancestors.
“During Shravan and Pitru Paksha, new transactions increased by 30-35%, of which 60% were from existing users and 40% from new users,” co-founder Pranav Kapur told ET. spoke.
Noida-based Devdum has also launched small-value products for Navratri, including offerings of chunni, sarees, shringar, thali and kumkum to the goddess. The Dhanteras puja (October 29) and Diwali festival are expected to increase the number of online users.
“We are also launching various other ritual-related products. We have observed tremendous interest from customers, including many repeat buyers, and we expect this to grow,” said Kapur. said.
