It is not an easy feat to come on Shark Tank India Season 4, deliver a strong pitch, and impress the sharks. However, the 19-year-old Dyumna Madan confidently presented her international college counselling startup, Project Clay, followed by a clear vision of where she would take the company’s long-term plans. However, while Dyumna Madan is only 19 years old now, her development started back to when she was in high school – 15 years old.
Summer School Frustration Leads to Startup Inspiration
In 2020, Dyumna Madan, like many high schoolers, signed up for a summer school program. Dyumna learnt a valuable lesson while taking the course – she was shocked by how expensive the summer school was going to be. While other students accepted the expense, Dyumna saw an opportunity for improvement.
So instead of complaining and going through with paying for the summer course, Dyumna Madan created her own solution. At just 15, she set out to create a summer school program to provide a low-cost service for students in India.
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A Critical Pivot Point: Woodstock and Warikoo
Dyumna was attending Woodstock Boarding School in Mussoorie, Uttarakhand, and met her future co-founder, Shivom Sood, at the school. They had complementary paths that were perfectly aligned, so it was destined for them to collaborate to start something amazing.
The pair were funded with a ₹2.25 lakh grant from entrepreneur and mentor Ankur Warikoo, who committed both money and mentorship. They went from creating a summer school only, to envisioning simplifying the entire international university admissions process for Indian students, and that’s when Project Clay was born.
Learning the Underground Before Leading the Charge
Once Dyumna completed school, she decided to make a major life decision to move to Bangalore by herself to work for two separate edtech start-ups. As she put it, she simply wanted experience to help run her own business. While most teens were focused on college, she was thinking ahead and investing in her future as a founder.
Fast forward to 2025: Dyumna Madan and Shivom were pitching to the sharks on national television with a business that had over ₹10 lakh worth of revenue already in its first year. The idea, the effort and the implementation had paid off, and they had now taken ownership of a new start-up worth ₹1.2 crore. This was a true coming of age story fit for Bollywood!
Dyumna Madan Entrepreneurial Spirit
Dyumna hails from Goa and comes from an entrepreneurial family background. Her mom is a fashion designer and her dad runs a manufacturing business. Dyumna pitched on Shark Tank and boldly said that, “Entrepreneurship is in my genes,” and it shows.
In fact, Dyumna Madan and her brother opened a home bakery before Project Clay and made ₹8 lakh in revenue, so it’s no surprise her parents supported her from the very first day. In my conversations with Dyumna, her dad seems to have always been congenial, even back in 2020, when she was cold-emailing students to get the first program going.
Inception of Project Clay
Project Clay wasn’t created in a day. Dyumna Madan was inspired to create a platform for global education based on her own negative experiences with overpriced summer schools. Her goal was to advance access for Indian high school students to study abroad, pure and simple.
Students teaching students – a slightly bold approach
In an unconventional way, Dyumna Madan actually reached out to over 1,000 students in universities around the world and told them to teach Indian high school students to learn for free.
Sounds ambitious, right? And yet, she did it! Out of that 1,000+ emails, she secured 20 students. While this may not seem like a large number, it was enough to start Project Clay. It meant she was not starting from zero, and that’s a win.
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Future of Project Clay
Today, Project Clay continues to evolve and shifting how Indian students see international education.* It utilizes a peer-to-peer model that offers mentoring and low-cost counselling, and it has already made a large impact – and Dyumna Madan is only getting started.
Climbing? No – Soaring Up the Ladder to Success!
Yes, you read that correct
Dyumna Madan did not just climb the ladder to success, she absolutely took off the ladder purposefully, with grit, and vision(s). And the track record demonstrates this!
When she launched Project Clay in 2020, she began with a really simple yet powerful idea, a free summer school for high school students. In that first year she welcomed 800 students – that’s a pretty strong start for a teenager with a vision.
But the magic really happened in 2021. The number exploded to 4,000 students, with participants from not only India, but from 30 different countries. It was only at this point it was clear, this wasn’t just a small project anymore, it was becoming movement.
And now you can understand why we used the term soaring and not climbing.
The Co-Founder Story: The journey to startup cofounder starts with a study buddy
Project Clay is not a one-person mission, but is a power by a duo.
In 11th grade at Woodstock Boarding School in Mussoorie, Dyumna Madan’s study buddy was Shivom Sood. He was not just any student in her class, but was her go-to reference for all LAST MINUTE math problem explanations (yes, exam savers!).
As their friendship progressed, and their shared interest in meaningful education grew, Shivom asked to join the initiative—not as a participant—but as co-founder fifth member of the classroom? Then, each of them have performed a specific function of the PARTS OF A COMPANY paper as we evolved together. SO, YOU KNOW WHAT IS COMING! Since, he has played a critical role in the operational, strategic, and educational development of the Project Clay project and has put an immense amount of time, effort and commitment to it. Together, they have built a startup, carefully mindfully without manner of conflicts or challenges -only as peers as co-founders co-operating with basic principles of focus, mutual respect and unity.
At a session at Masters’ Union, Dyumna Madan and Shivom met Ankur Warikoo, a well-known entrepreneur and financial influencer, who quickly fell in love with their unique idea and the impact they were already creating, so he gave them ₹2.25 lakh in December 2013.
But Ankur did not just give them money. He stepped in as a mentor and they quickly redefined their vision. He reminded the young co-founders to change their model from group models that rarely deliver true transformation to a personalized, one-on-one mentorship, which was a game changer.
In step with Ankur’s direction, Project Clay became a study-abroad counselling startup that will empower the revolution of career guidance in India.
What Makes Project Clay Different (and Better) Than Traditional Counselling
Career counselling is most often tied in with studies abroad provided by large agencies or consultants. These agencies will support its clients in aspects such as applications, eligibility, and eligibility for scholarships, but some key elements are often missing, such as advice.
A large percentage of agencies are paid by commissions. The result is often a transactional and not a transformational approach—many times leaving students’ dreams repressed in paperwork, reports, and submissions.
Project Clay’s Elder Sibling Model
Project Clay started in a bold new direction. Rather than linking students to agencies, they link high school students from India to peers who are currently students in top universities around the world.
These student mentors are not only there to help students improve their SOPs, resumes, and college essays—they are like older brothers and sisters. The approach is informal and relatable and is propagated in authentic tone. The aim is not just to get students into college, but to ensure they find the right institution for them and that they are properly prepared.
That’s exactly why Dyumna Madan and Shivom called it the Elder Sibling Approach. Who better to guide you than someone who has just gone through the same experience?
The Impact: A Global Network of Mentors
Today, Project Clay supports a network of over 500 vetted mentors from 10 study-abroad destinations including the US, UK, Canada, Australia, and more.
Each mentor shares real-world experience, relatable advice, and authentic perspectives. Project Clay is not just offering counselling; they are building a global student community!
And to think it all started with a 15-year-old girl who didn’t want to pay exorbitantly high summer school fees.
“This must have cost a fortune!”- Not at all.
Trust us, as soon as we’re told that there are one-on-one mentorship availabilities by top university students we end up thinking:
“Bhai, it must be very expensive to provide such a service!”
But not this time.
The original mission of Dyumna Madan from is to ensure high quality mentorship can be both affordable and accessible; and she has absolutely nailed that mission!
All for just ₹2,500, here’s what Project Clay has to offer:
Experts from top universities from all over the world who support students with thoughtful insights
Individual personalized support for every teen’s hopes and aspirations
Ever reluctant and ever socioeconomically enabled mentors who can relate to their mentees because they’ve been there!
It’s not just cheap, but it is phenomenal value.
And to think that steady, honest pricing does not deter Project Clay’s growth…in fact, it’s motivating it.
Climbing the Revenue Ladder
Here’s a glimpse of their earned revenue in just a few months:
- June 2024 – ₹22,900
- July 2024 – ₹41,800
- August 2024 – ₹90,600
- September 2024 – ₹1,05,000
Cheap + Effective = Sustainable Growth. Simple as that.
Swimming with the Sharks
Yes, they actually made it to Shark Tank India – Season 4!
The young co-founders did not only impress the Sharks with their business skills—they secured a ₹15 lakh deal from Namita Thapar for 10% equity, providing a valuation for Project Clay at ₹1.2 crore.
Once the episode aired in October 2024, it was game on.
The startup received a spike in leads and interested participants, and some of the students that were mentored through Project Clay even got places at a list of reputable university options in the US (notably Warwick and London School of Economics). Now that is impact.
What’s Next for Project Clay?
- Dyumna is studying Economics at Northeastern University, Boston
- Shivom is studying Finance at Emory University, Atlanta
- And the business? It’s thriving all around.
- From the base in Goa, but with students and advisers around the world, Project Clay is forecasting ₹37 lakh revenue for FY25, and also targeting 10x for FY26 (that’s ₹3.7 crore).
- If you have aspirations of studying abroad and want authentic guidance from actual students, then reach out (@Project Clay).
- Because your aspirational college deserves the right plan.
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