Actor Sonu Sood’s Startup Pravasirojgar Secures INR 250 Cr Funding To Help Migrant Workers Find Jobs

Bollywood actor Sonu Sood’s job searching platform for migrant workers Pravasirojgar has raised INR 250 Cr funding from Temasek Holding-backed Goodworker.

With the fresh capital, Pravasirojgar.com aims to provide jobs and career progression to applicants through upskilling services, financial, healthcare and social security services.

Jobs portal GoodWorker will form a joint venture with Sood and Schoolnet to “reach 10 Cr Indians by providing access to good jobs and career progression through upskilling services, followed by financial, healthcare and social security services,” GoodWorker said in a statement.

Sood catapulted the limelight after he helped migrants in reaching their hometown during the Covid-induced lockdown.

Launched in a partnership with edtech startup Schoolnet India in July this year, Pravasirojgar helps migrants to find skill-based jobs across sectors and has 10 lakh job seekers and employers including Amazon, Max Healthcare, Portea, Sodexo, Urban Company, etc.

“I came in touch with a lot of migrant workers during the lockdown and they all had one concern, how to get a job after the lockdown and support their families. With the blessing of these workers and their families and other well-wishers, I tried to get the right-minded people and partner with Schoolnet for Pravasirojgar.com,” Sonu Sood told ET.

Goodworker provides blue-collar workers with a digital, verifiable profile to make their job search easier than before while making the credentials more authentic for employers to confidently hire them.

“The cutting-edge technology that GoodWorker brings will allow businesses in India to effectively expand their operations by finding the right talent and also allow workers to have control over their data while widening access to digital products and services. With digital transformation accelerating against the backdrop of the Covid-19 pandemic, this investment reflects our optimism towards trends in India that are underpinned by technology and digitalisation,” said Pradyumna Agrawal, founding team member and GM, GoodWorker and director at Temasek.

With the investments, Pravasirojgar.com’s scope will be expanded beyond job matching, by building on the combined strengths in migrant outreach, education, skilling and technology, said RCM Reddy, MD and CEO, Schoolnet India.

Mumbai-based investment firm Ekam Advisors is said to have played a key role in bringing all the partners together for the deal.