Ragini Das takes on the role of Google Head of Startups India, representing an important height in her career. It is an important moment as it allows me to return to the organisation that rejected her application twelve years earlier. For Ragini Das, this is a full circle moment exemplifying the rollercoaster of a professional Ragini Das journey. She always highlights how that initial rejection was a springboard for her own life, allowing her to have experiences that would ready her for this opportunity. This moment is a key chapter in her Google leadership story.
The Zomato Chapter
In 2013, Ragini Das interviewed with both Google and Zomato. Although Google did not offer her a position, Zomato offered her a position, which sparked a critical moment in her career growth in startups. She eventually chose Zomato and worked there for six years across multiple functions, including sales, growth, and international expansion.
This period served as a critical foundation for Ragini Das, as she gained awareness about her own strengths, formed valuable professional relationships, and received practical experience in driving business growth. This became a major part of her startup leadership India story. Das believes her experience at Zomato transformed her abilities and laid the foundation for her future pursuits.
Founding Leap.club
In 2020, Ragini Das co-founded Leap.club, a networking platform for women, which she calls the most meaningful aspect of her career, providing her mission and meaningful professional identity. Leap.club allowed Das to meet founders addressing some of India’s largest problems.
The platform focused on women supporting each other in their community, learning, growth, and mentorship. It was truly a platform for women to expand their professional network, grow in their careers, and be a part of a much larger change and startup leadership India. While that was all of those words to Das, it was also a mission. A mission that aligned with Das’s larger agenda of supporting women entrepreneurs and her Ragini Das journey.
Transitioning to Google
In early 2025, Leap.club faced financial issues that needed pausing the venture. It was during this uncertain time, that Das had the opportunity to reflect meaningfully and deeply on her career. In August, she heard about the position opens for Google Head of Startups India. This role struck a chord with her lived experiences, ambitions, and vision for supporting entrepreneurship.
According to Das, the moment of applying to the role just felt like fate. Das’ decision to consider the opportunity grew from her journey, the learning she had gathered, and an aspiration to contribute even more to the entrepreneurial ecosystem in India. This step is a significant part of her Google leadership story and her Ragini Das journey.
Looking Ahead
In her new position, Das hopes to improve the support system for early stage entrepreneurs by making the right connections to resources, networks, and mentors. She hopes to bring the global impact of Google for Startups to India so that startups can have resources specifically to address the challenges they encounter while building and scaling their businesses. She will work on creating an ecosystem where innovation can flourish and founders – whatever that may look like – can design and build to their vision. This is the next stage in her startup leadership India journey, strengthening her path of career growth in startups.
Ragini Das‘s story of overcoming ‘no’ to leadership is a stunning story of persistence, vision, and will. It is her experience that reminds us that career paths are not totally linear, they twist into unanticipated paths, yet Das’s story will serve as reassurance for other aspiring entrepreneurs and professionals, that persistence and openness to possibilities will get them over hurdle after hurdle into their own story as well; a part of the greater Google leadership story and her Ragini Das journey.
