Aint you surprised at the number of new social networking sites that have crop up in recent times? I can count atleast 10 at the top of my head. Each one claims to have something unique and different that will make them the top networking site in India.
I just came across this new Indian startup that claims to be a people search plus a social networking site plus a “band of rikshawvalas” aka Hareepa.com . Their claim to fame is that they connect their users with like minded people. Are they a matchmaking site?
How do they connect like minded people?
Based on the inputs user provides during registration. You can search using a window similar to the one shown below. Couple of my searches did not yield anything. They do not seems to have any users as of writing this.
This probably is the highlight of their service, at least thats what they claim to be. Here is what they claim in their own words
An online portal that allows Indian users to connect with like-minded people through matching up similarities of their profile and interests with other users’ profiles. “It’s really simple – you fill out your profile and one click later, Hareepa!com’s similarity engine matches you up with the most similar people in your area” says Sobti. “The whole process takes 1-2 minutes and the results are extremely relevant; best of all, it’s free of cost” adds Sobti, a recently arrived NRI from the U.S.
How do they spread the word ?
Using a not-so-professionally shot ‘viral’ video of Rikshawvalas doing all kind of stunts and Wheelie :
Conclusion:
Although, I have not seen much of Hareepa.com, it looks like one more addition to the saturated space of Indian social networking. It is dressed up a bit differently than what we are used to seeing but it is the same wine in a different bottle. Will Rikshawvala’s video go viral, you be the judge. I have my reservations about that.