Artha Venture Fund I (AVF I), an early-stage micro VC backed by the Artha India Ventures family office, has reported an internal rate of return (IRR) of 61%
The Rs 225 crore fund, launched in FY19 and closed in July 2021, has deployed over Rs 175 crore across 32 seed-stage startups.
According to the firm, its portfolio valuation has surpassed Rs 750 crore, with two companies valued above $400 million. In FY25, portfolio companies collectively generated more than Rs 2,100 crore in revenue.
“What started as a small experiment to manage our family capital through a fund has grown into a powerhouse portfolio that employs over 20,000+ people directly and 100,000+ people indirectly,” said Anirudh A. Damani, Managing Partner, Artha Venture Fund. “Our numbers excite me but here’s still a lot of energy and value to be unlocked. We are laser-focused on building India’s first VC fund to return 10x DPI.”
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The fund’s Distributed to Paid-In Capital (DPI) is approaching 20%, supported by a partial exit from Everest Fleet last year and a new exit currently under diligence. DPI tells you how much actual money (cash or stock) a fund has returned to its investors, relative to the amount they originally invested.
AVF I has backed companies such as Agnikul, LenDenClub, GetWork, Lemnisk, InstaAstro, Daalchini, and Nirmalaya. Six of its top 10 portfolio companies are profitable, and several have raised follow-on rounds from global institutional investors and corporate venture capital funds.
The fund was ranked the top VC in India by Preqin in its March 2025 Performance Benchmark Report. The report showed AVF I had delivered a TVPI (Total Value to Paid-In Capital) of 3.75x in INR terms and 3.40x in USD terms. TVPI measures the total value of a fund’s investments (realized + unrealized), relative to the capital paid in by investors.
“As a long-time LP and board member at Artha, I’ve witnessed the discipline, consistency, and clarity with which Anirudh and his team have built their investment framework,” said Chris Kolenaty, Founder of Snow Leopard Ventures and LP at Artha Select Fund. “This performance is just the beginning of what Artha is set to accomplish.”
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With its final seed investment complete, the fund will focus on follow-on rounds within its high-performing companies. It is also allocating capital via the Artha Select Fund, a “winners-only” microVC designed to back breakout companies from its existing portfolio.
AVF I holds an average of 15% ownership in its top 10 companies.
