Kanupriya Poddar, CEO of MagickWorld on building India’s first travel platform for kids.

Reinventing Kids Hospitality in India. Today my guest is Kanupriya Poddar, CEO of MagickWorld. She is building a platform to help parents discover kid-friendly stays, experiences, shops, and enrichment services across cities. In this episode, she shares how she launched MagickWorld alongside her 8-year-old daughter (a mini-entrepreneur, Shark Tank fan, business mindset!), onboarded 100+ local businesses within two months of soft launch, and cracking the distribution model. She reflects on lessons from her McKinsey background, explains why she prefers top-down strategy over bottom-up execution, and talks about bootstrapping, investor interest, the pressure of startup life , and staying grounded with advice from her father. And finally she shares must visit Jaipur recommendations, including places to see, do, and eat, along with advice for anyone considering leaving a corporate career to build a startup and much more!In this episode we talk about:🚀 Building MagickWorldCreating the world’s first kids-focused lifestyle & travel ecosystemThe problem MagickWorld is solving for parents & familiesLaunching with a free directory modelOnboarding 100+ local businesses in 2 monthsCracking distribution and early customer acquisitionManaging supply & demand in a two-sided marketplace👩‍💼 Founder JourneyGoing from McKinsey to startup lifeLessons learned from McKinsey: simplifying complexityTackling “elephants in the room” in businessBootstrapping vs investor interestManaging early-stage pressureGetting advice from her fatherBuilding a startup while raising an 8-year-old daughterHer daughter as a mini-entrepreneur (Shark Tank fan, business mindset)🧠 Strategy & Product ThinkingTop-down vs bottom-up strategy — and why she prefers top-downDeveloping the product roadmapPricing & discovery challenges for small businessesPay-to-play discovery vs affordable visibilitySolving real customer problem statements🤖 AI, Tech & Future VisionBeing optimistic about AIBuilding an AI recommendation botThe future of kids hospitality & family travelWhat hospitality in India looks like in 2026🌏 Geography, Culture & HospitalityRunning hospitality businesses in Singapore & IndiaWhy Indians are great at hospitality globallyWhy Jaipur is the hospitality capital of IndiaStaying in Jaipur instead of moving to BangaloreJaipur’s rise in tech talent & innovationPredictions for Jaipur in the next 5–10 years🍽️ Jaipur RecommendationsBest things to see, do, and experienceWeekend itinerary ideasFood & restaurant recommendationsWhy she’s obsessed with Jaipur’s culture and energy💡 Advice & TakeawaysAdvice for people thinking of quitting corporate jobs to start a companyHiring strategy: young talent & unconventional thinkersStaying resilient as a founderLinkshttps://magickworld.in/YouTube: https://youtube.com/@magickworldindia Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/magickworldindia Facebook: https://www.Facebook.com/magickworld LinkedIn: @magickworld Hosted And Produced by Neil Patel https://www.linkedin.com/today/author/neilpatel2 Enjoyed this episode? Don’t forget to subscribe and leave us a review! Share this episode with your friends. Listen and Subscribe to More Episodeshttps://www.indianstartupshow.com/ Music by Punch Deck.https://open.spotify.com/artist/7kdduxAVaFnbHJyNxl7FWV