New Delhi, 27 August 2026 – Entrepreneur and investor Arjun Vaidya, co-founder of V3 Ventures, will bring his sports-meets-startups initiative ‘Pickle and Pitch’ to the Ideabaaz Startup Fest 2026, to be held at Bharat Mandapam, New Delhi, from August 26 to 30, 2026. The ‘Pickle and Pitch’ session is scheduled for 28 August from 10 AM onwards.
The initiative reimagines the traditional founder-investor interaction by moving it from the boardroom to the pickleball court. Instead of formal pitch meetings, founders and investors will play matches together, creating a space for conversations, competition, and connections. Vaidya has previously run ‘Pickle and Pitch’ successfully in Mumbai and Surat, and is now bringing the same format to New Delhi for the first time, at this scale.
The five-day, invite-only festival is expected to bring together 300+ startups, 150+ investors, and 150,000+ ecosystem attendees from across the startup ecosystem.
“Some of the best conversations I have had with founders happened on a court. ‘Pickle and Pitch’ strips away the formality of a boardroom when you are both running for a ball, the power dynamic disappears, and you have a more open conversation. I have already seen the IP being successful in other cities and have had some of the best conversations and heard brilliant business ideas on the court. I am super stoked to bring that same energy to Bharat Mandapam,” said Arjun Vaidya, Co-founder, V3 Ventures.
“Ideabaaz Startup Fest is our vision to bring India’s entrepreneurial ecosystem together on one platform—where founders can find the right connections, investors can discover the next big ideas, and innovation can turn into meaningful opportunities. We want to create an environment where every ambitious entrepreneur feels that their time to build, connect, and grow has truly arrived,” said Jeet Wagh, Founder & CEO, Ideabaaz.
About Pickle and Pitch
Pickle and Pitch is an IP created by entrepreneur and investor Arjun Vaidya, bringing together startups and sport. The format takes founders and investors from the boardroom to the pickleball court, where they play, connect, and pitch in a more relaxed setting.
After successful editions in Mumbai and Surat, Pickle and Pitch is now coming to Bharat Mandapam as part of Ideabaaz Startup Fest 2026, creating a fresh and energetic approach to founder-investor interactions.
About Ideabaaz Startup Fest
Ideabaaz Startup Fest 2026 is a five-day celebration of India’s entrepreneurial ecosystem, taking place from 26th–30th August 2026 at Bharat Mandapam, New Delhi. The fest brings together 300+ startups, 150+ investors, founders, innovators and industry leaders on one platform.
With initiatives including the Ideabaaz Cohort, Live Demo Day, Startup Awards, investor interactions and engaging founder experiences, the fest aims to create meaningful opportunities for startups to connect, learn, gain visibility and unlock growth.
About V3 Ventures
V3 Ventures is an early-stage, consumer-focused investment firm, an extension of Verlinvest, a major global investment holding company. The firm invests in fast-growing consumer businesses across wellness and beauty, food and drinks, and lifestyle, partnering with founders from the early stages through growth. V3 Ventures combines its experience as founders and operators with a global network of consumer brand expertise. Its India portfolio includes Ugaoo, Deconstruct, Salad Days, Go Zero, The Hosteller, Scrubsy, Xtovia and others.
