Mithila Foods, a new FMCG startup that specializes in authentic Bihar-based food items, has raised ₹1.5 crore in seed funding from Aviral Bhatnagar’s A Junior VC (AJVC), the fresh early-stage venture capital firm. The new startup intends to use this new capital to expand its distribution network, build its supply chain, and introduce new product categories based on Bihar’s rich gastronomic heritage.
Established in January 2025 by Anshu Kumar, Shubham Sunderka, and Ankit Kumar, Mithila Foods has already achieved tremendous growth in a span of less than five months. The company provides essentials like sattu, roasted chana, makhana, and katarni chuda to local consumers as well as urban markets. The brand boasts an impressive customer base of over 25,000 across 4,000 pin codes and has reached ₹3 crore in annualized revenue. Its offerings are placed on e-commerce giants Amazon and Flipkart, besides offline retail stores in tier I and II cities, coming from a humble warehouse in Dumka.
About A Junior VC (AJVC): Bridging India’s Pre-Seed Funding Gap
Aviral Bhatnagar, a veteran investor and ex-lead at Venture Highway, established A Junior VC (AJVC) to specifically target the plight of India’s early-stage startups. Pointing out that most founders have a difficult time raising their first round due to fragmentation and complexity—receiving meetings with more than 20 investors to raise only ₹1 crore—Bhatnagar embarked on creating a quick, accessible, and founder-centric pre-seed investment organization.
AJVC secured SEBI approval for its first ₹100 crore fund in march and plans to back 12-15 startups a year in early-stage areas like artificial intelligence (AI), software-as-a-service (SaaS), and consumer tech. The fund is predominantly drawing domestic investors like family offices and tech founders, indicating faith in India’s early-stage ecosystem.
Are you a pre-seed or seed stage startup seeking funds? Apply at AJVC.
AJVC’s Investment Strategy and Regional Focus
AJVC provides not only funds but also strategic guidance, industry networking, and mentorship to assist startups in scaling up in a sustainable manner. The fund promotes entrepreneurship outside city limits, having already invested in startups from hinterland areas such as Assam and Jharkhand.
