One of the strongest messages from her address was, “Rejection is not failure. Rejection is feedback. Every 'no' teaches something.
“Failure is the entry fee you pay for success. You cannot skip it, you cannot outsource it. You have to go through failure again and again, until you learn how to move smarter,” stated Ms. Vineeta Singh, Entrepreneur & Judge of Shark Tank India, in her speech to the Batch of 2025 graduating students at the 9th Convocation Ceremony held by Parul University. This historic occasion recognised the completion of the degree of 16,132 graduates, with 12,000 students in attendance and over 11,000 parents and other attendees, creating a staggering total of more than 23,000 people in attendance.
Vineeta Singh encouraged the graduates and reminded them that the ceremony was not just to celebrate their degrees but also their strength and ability to face challenges. Reflecting on her experience as an entrepreneur, Ms. Singh shared, “Today, entrepreneurship is admired. But earlier, it was often seen as unemployment. Taking risks was questioned. Safe careers were encouraged.” She shared that creating a 'made in India' brand specifically targeted to women was not easy. She had very limited support, constant closed doors, unanswered calls, and heard over 100 'no's before she was able to see any progress on her journey. Just like her, every graduate present at the ceremony has experienced failure, uncertainty, and the temptation to give up, yet all of them have moved beyond those obstacles. This in itself makes a statement about their success as individuals. “That itself is a win”, she said, asking graduates to take a moment and think about how far they had come, from initial disappointment through perseverance to the present day.
One of the strongest messages from her address was, “Rejection is not failure. Rejection is feedback. Every 'no' teaches something. Every setback sharpens direction. Growth happens by learning from rejection and not by avoiding it.” She showed light on how glamorous an "entrepreneurial" lifestyle may seem at first glance, versus the true picture that most people see but do not realise, all of the hard work, daily commitments, difficult choices and the fight for persistence after having run out of a sense of self-motivation needed to achieve success would look like. She shared that the real impact of her work took years to materialise, and today supports the livelihoods of over 3,000 women, a scale achieved only through consistency and patience.
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Towards the end, Vineeta encouraged the students by saying, “Careers are not sprints. They are marathons. Some people start early, some find clarity later, some take detours, all of it counts. What matters most is knowing your dream and being honest about the effort it demands.” "Convocation does not mean you’re finished, but actually starting,” she added. Her speech provided the students with a sense of clarity. The event also featured other dignitaries, including Mary Kom, Sania Mirza, Rajat Sharma and Deputy CM of Gujarat, Harsh Sanghavi. With interactions like these, Parul University helps its students have a realistic view of the competitive nature of today's society and the uncertainty and possibilities that exist in the world after graduation.
Website: https://paruluniversity.ac.in/
