Beyond the Brand Deal: How India’s Biggest Stars Became Serious Startup Investors

For years, the arrangement between Indian celebrities and consumer brands was simple. A star got paid, and a brand got a face for its billboard. That arrangement is changing. A growing number of actors and cricketers now take equity in the startups they believe in, and some go back again and again as those companies raise more capital.

A new Tracxn listicle, Notable Celebrity Investors Shaping India’s Startup Ecosystem (2021–2026 YTD), shows how large this trend has become. It ranks the 10 celebrities with the most disclosed startup funding rounds in India between January 2021 and September 2026. Together, they took part in 49 disclosed funding rounds across 34 startups, with a combined round value of roughly $460 million.

Here is who is investing, where the money is going, and what it says about celebrity capital in India’s startup ecosystem.

The Leaderboard: Who Is Placing the Most Bets

The ranking is based on the number of disclosed rounds each celebrity joined, not the amount they invested.

One important note: the amounts in the report reflect each round’s total size, not the celebrity’s personal cheque. Stars usually invest alongside venture funds and other angel investors.

Shilpa Shetty Kundra: The Most Active Celebrity Investor in India

Shilpa Shetty Kundra leads by a clear margin with 10 disclosed rounds, nearly double anyone else on the list. Her portfolio has a strong consumer and food focus. It includes the snack brand WickedGud, which she backed in three rounds between 2023 and 2025, the dairy and snacks brand Alpino (two rounds), and the online grocery platform Kisan Konnect (two rounds).

She has also invested outside her comfort zone. Her portfolio includes Sustainiam, an air pollution management tech company, and Limelight, a lab-grown diamond brand. Her 2022 angel investment in Mamaearth may be her best-known deal, as the company’s parent, Honasa Consumer, listed on the NSE and BSE in November 2023.

MS Dhoni: Backing Solar, Drones and Deep Tech

MS Dhoni has one of the most varied portfolios on the list. His six rounds cover solar energy, drones, electric vehicles, fitness, plant-based food, and OTT video.

His most recent deal is also the largest in his portfolio. In June 2026, he took part in SolarSquare’s $53 million Series C. He also backed drone maker Garuda Aerospace in its 2024 Series B, e-cycle brand EMotorad, plant-based meat startup Shaka Harry, fitness chain Tagda Raho, and regional OTT platform Rigi TV.

Dhoni’s choices point toward energy, mobility, and technology rather than the lifestyle brands that dominate most celebrity portfolios.

Sachin Tendulkar: A Long-Term Bet on Spinny

Sachin Tendulkar’s investing shows unusual conviction. Five of his six rounds are in one company: Spinny, the used-car platform and the only unicorn in the cohort.

He first appeared in Spinny’s $250 million Series E in November 2021 and continued investing in 2022, 2023, 2024, and 2025. That Series E is the largest single round in the report and accounts for a large share of the cohort’s total disclosed value. His sixth round was in innerwear brand XYXX, now a soonicorn, during its 2021 Series A.

Shraddha Kapoor and Virat Kohli: Five Rounds Each

Shraddha Kapoor has built one of the most future-focused portfolios on the list. She backed EV battery-swapping startup ChargeUp twice, invested in nutraceutical brand Shunya (later acquired by Reliance Industries), edtech company Stones2Milestones, and Purple Style Labs, which launched its IPO in August 2026.

Virat Kohli has focused on consumer brands. He invested twice in Rage Coffee and twice in footwear company Agilitas during its 2025 Series C rounds, and also backed Blue Tribe, a plant-based meat brand.

Alia Bhatt and Anushka Sharma: Parenting, Food and Footwear

Alia Bhatt’s portfolio reflects a clear theme: mothers, children, and sustainable homes. She invested in cloth diaper brand SuperBottoms, kids’ apparel brand Ed-a-Mamma (her own label, acquired by Reliance Retail in September 2023), and Phool, which turns temple flowers into home care products, across two rounds.

Anushka Sharma backed children’s health food brand Slurrp Farm twice and invested in Blue Tribe. Her most recent deal is Agilitas’s $24 million Series C in May 2026, one of the largest rounds of this year in the report.

There is an interesting overlap here. Virat Kohli and Anushka Sharma both appear in Agilitas and Blue Tribe, which suggests the couple has made some coordinated investment choices.

Ranveer Singh, Rohit Sharma and Suniel Shetty

Ranveer Singh is the most focused investor on the list. All three of his rounds are in beauty and personal care: sexual wellness brand Bold Care, cosmetics company SUGAR (a soonicorn), and skincare label 82°E.

Rohit Sharma chose operational businesses, including logistics platform Prozo, eco-friendly home care brand Beco, and drone company TechEagle.

Suniel Shetty backed industrial safety startup Proxgy, edtech company Klassroom (now publicly listed), and men’s grooming brand Metaman.

Five Patterns Behind the Numbers

1. Celebrities invest early. Of the 49 rounds, 27 (55%) were Angel or Seed rounds, and 13 were Series A. Most celebrity capital enters before a company becomes a household name, when a star’s visibility can help the most.

2. Repeat backing is common. Nine celebrity-company pairs account for 22 of the 49 rounds. Tendulkar and Spinny, Shetty Kundra and WickedGud, and Kohli with Rage Coffee and Agilitas show that many stars stay committed and invest in follow-on rounds.

3. Consumer brands dominate. Food and beverage, beauty and personal care, fashion, and home care make up most of the portfolios. This is where a celebrity’s audience and influence can most directly help a young brand grow.

4. Mumbai is the hub. Maharashtra is home to 15 of the 34 companies, including 12 in Mumbai. Haryana has 6, Karnataka 5, and Delhi 3. It is no surprise that India’s entertainment capital is also the centre of celebrity-backed startups.

5. Exits are already happening. Five portfolio companies have reached an acquisition or public listing: Mamaearth and Klassroom are listed, Purple Style Labs launched its IPO in August 2026, and Ed-a-Mamma and Shunya were acquired by Reliance. The cohort also includes one unicorn (Spinny), two soonicorns (Sugar Cosmetics and XYXX), and 17 minicorns.

What This Means for Founders and the Ecosystem

For founders, a celebrity investor brings more than money. It brings instant credibility, media attention, and access to a large fan base. That can reduce customer acquisition costs for a consumer brand. The trade-off is that celebrity involvement raises public expectations, and a star’s reputation becomes linked to the brand.

For the wider ecosystem, this data shows that celebrity investing in India has grown beyond one-off deals. When stars return for Series C rounds and back a company over five funding cycles, they are acting like committed investors rather than paid ambassadors.

The line between endorsement and ownership is fading. In India’s startup economy, the most valuable thing a celebrity can offer may no longer be their face on a billboard, but their name on the cap table.

Source: Tracxn, “Notable Celebrity Investors Shaping India’s Startup Ecosystem (2021–2026 YTD)”, data as of September 4, 2026.

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