MANGALURU: Two budding techpreneurs have come up with a technology solution for one of the most-common problems faced by people in coastal cities: The need for an umbrella since the sky opens up without notice, more specifically in monsoon months.
Sohan M Rai, who quit engineering to pursue startup dreams, and Melroy Saldanha, a BCA student at St Aloysius, have designed umbrella-sharing ‘Drizzle’ app where one can rent an umbrella for as little as Rs 5. The students, both 20, have plans to start at least a dozen kiosks across Mangaluru from where one can pick up and drop off the umbrella. Each can hold 12 umbrellas.
The app is waiting for funds for a formal rollout. Rai conceptualised the idea three years ago when he was in class 12. Rai joined an engineering programme in information science and engineering at a private college here, but quit after two years to focus on his startup.
His partner Saldanha looks into management of umbrella kiosks. Besides, Rai runs a virtual reality gaming arena at a mall here. Rai said he feels uncomfortable carrying an umbrella, which is at the core of his rent-an-umbrella idea.
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