The online talent marketplace is currently very fragmented. Though there are many platforms to connect professional artists with fans & customers; none provide a platform for individual talents to get discovered. Here is a startup that is aiming to consolidate and become the single platform for showcasing individual talent to the world – Halla.in
Halla believes that there is a lot of individual talents out there that aren’t recognised, and they’re here to change that based on the premise that anyone, be it a student, housewife or even a working professional could use Halla to bring their creativity to the world.
You need not be a professional painter or videographer to get discovered on Halla. It also might not guarantee you stardom, but it does guarantee you a platform to show your hidden talent to the masses. While that in itself can be an uplifting experience; you can participate In the photo and video contests to win lots of amazing prizes.
Halla contest themes are related to daily life, festivals, seasons, issues etc. These contests help individuals to overcome their inhibitions, complex or fear of failure and try their skills freely. Numerous users not only participate in the contests, but showcase photo entries on their personal social network to share with family and friends.
If you would like to showcase your talent, all you have to do is create your profile on the website or through the Android app and participate in a contest by uploading videos and photos and you are all set to be discovered.
One of the best features is that users can also write their inspiring stories on Halla and reach to the people who really care and respect creativity.
Halla was launched in 2013 by Pavan Kumar. Pavan has over 20+ years of experience in IT and Telecom industry and also an active angel investor. His investment portfolio includes successful startups like NewsbytesApp, iLenze.com, PindropMusic.co, Greenz.co, vLokal.com, Mishipay.com, Fitso etc.
During the initial days of launch when professionals used to grab the prizes, Pavan growth hacked the platform by gifting winner’s own work on t-shirts and mugs. This discouraged professionals from the contests and amateurs started participating in larger number and winning the contests. This helped the startup to stick to its core value of discovering individual creative talents rather than being a talent marketplace for professionals.
Till date has conducted over 184 contests, with over 12,000 registered users and 16,000 photos. While most of the users are from India, many are from Malaysia, Turkey and Europe.
“In 2017, we will reach out to Indian youth in campuses and at popular events to capture special moments and win rewards. With the growing smartphone usage and availability of better internet bandwidth, we will increase video contests and will be launching location-based contests,” says Pavan.
Halla has managed to achieve a lot already with investment from its founder’s savings and is currently accelerating. It has big plans for the future and aims to be the numero uno destination for all kind of talent discovery.
