Virtual spirituality startup VAMA has raised $1.5 Mn (INR 12.5 Cr) as a top-up to its seed funding round led by Wavemaker Partners, with participation from Summit Media’s Lisa Gokongwei-Cheng and Tata Play’s Harit Nagpal.
A host of micro venture capitalist investors, including Blume Founders Fund, Alluvium and Untitled VC, along with angel backers such as Burak Buyukdemir and Dhruv Bahl also took part in the round.
VAMA, founded in late 2020 by Aacharya Dev, Himanshu Semwal and Manu Jain, has so far raised $2.8 Mn in funding. The virtual platform acts as a comprehensive hub, offering access to e-pujas, e-darshans, and astrology services for devotees across India. Through its tie-ups with over 250 temples, VAMA claims to have established a network of over 300 astrologers on its platform.
VAMA plans to use the fresh capital to onboard more talents, boost product development and to strengthen its tech capabilities. It further looks to roll out new products and services to ramp up user experiences.
“This investment stands as a testament to our unwavering commitment to meeting the spiritual needs of our ever-growing user base. We aim to transform the traditional offline mandir ecosystem into a digital realm through content-driven products designed to captivate, empower, and promote enduring engagement,” said VAMA cofounder Manu Jain.
Phuong Tran, Investment Principal at Wavemaker Partners, said, “…VAMA’s ingenious approach has paved the way for an extraordinary venture that helps users address their spiritual needs.”
The religious and spiritual market in India reached $54.1 Bn in 2022. IMARC Group anticipates the market to achieve $97.2 Bn by 2028, with a growth rate (CAGR) of 10.32% during 2023-2028.
VAMA competes with the likes of AppsForBharat, Sri Mandir, Guruji, AstroBuddy, and AstroTalk.
As per a recent study, in 2023, the Indian faith market is valued at $58.56 Bn, with religious/pilgrim tourism constituting a significant portion of this sector. Industry insiders told Inc42 that startups in this space could potentially secure 10% of India’s expanding religious economy.
Meanwhile, several industry leaders interviewed by Inc42 have said that spiritual tech startups are generating over 70% of their revenue from users aged 25-35 years.
The sudden growth of India’s spiritual tech sector can be attributed to factors such as the UPI revolution, affordable internet, prevalence of app culture and the enduring faith in India.
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