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“He loves me. He loves me not.” — Twitter, probably.

In yet another episode in the Elon Musk-Twitter saga, the Tesla chief has announced that he is terminating the $44 billion acquisition of the social media giant. 

The reason? Musk claimed that Twitter has breached multiple provisions of the agreement and failed to provide sufficient data on spam accounts. 

While the social media company could have pushed for a $1 billion breakup fee, the chair of Twitter’s board Bret Taylor tweeted that the company “plans to pursue legal action” to enforce the agreement. So, hey, at least this story will continue.

Meanwhile, inflation in India is expected to cool from October, said Shaktikanta Das, Governor of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI). 

Last but not least, Union Bank of India has launched a Metaverse-based virtual lounge to showcase its products to customers virtually.

State of funding in women-led startups

Between January and June 2022, women founded and co-founded startups crossed $1 billion in fundraising for a second consecutive half-year period. 

However, companies with only women in the founding team raised only $118.45 million, compared with the $1.45 billion raised by startups with both women and men founders.

When it comes to unicorns, of the 18 startups to enter the coveted club in the first six months of this year, five have women founders. Women founders who joined the unicorn club this year are Ruchi Kalra of Oxyzo, Rajoshi Ghosh of Hasura, Srividhya Srinivasan of AmagiMedia Labs, Mabel Chacko and Deena Jacob of Open, and Smitha Deorah of LEAD.

Breaking down the numbers:

• Startups having women founders accounted for only about 9 percent of the total $17.1 billion raised across 891 deals in the first half of this year.
• Fintech startups having women founders have dominated fundraising, securing $722.35 million, followed by direct-to-consumer, or D2C, startups with $152.46 million.

Hassle-free used car rentals

With petrol and diesel prices on the rise, and electric vehicles seen as the future of mobility, many millennials and Gen Z want to avoid the burden of owning a car.

This is where car subscription models are changing the game. Rather than owning a vehicle, subscriptions allow people to drive a car without the hassles of ownership and maintenance—just by paying an all-inclusive monthly fee.

“Used-car subscriptions are witnessing a tremendous demand from millennials because they want to change cars frequently,” says Tarun Lawadia, Founder and CEO, PumPumPum.

PumPumPum offers over 100 used cars of different brands—from budget-friendly models to ultra-luxury ones. The company also targets corporates with the leasing model.

All geared up:

• PumPumPum’s retail subscription fee ranges from Rs 15,000 to Rs 3,00,000 per month.
• Millennials and Gen Z account for 40 percent of the startup’s retail subscribers.
• The company has over 750 subscribers, of which 25 percent are retail subscribers.

First woman makeup artist in Malayalam cinema

Does it have to take 12 years of work experience across 37 projects for the makeup industry to recognise you? Not if you’re a man.

Makeup artist Mitta Antony has become the first woman makeup artist in Kerala to be officially recognised as a member of the Film Employees Federation of Kerala Makeup Union (FEFKA).

Following a 2014 Supreme Court ruling quashing Maharashtra by-laws requiring women makeup artists to take a five-year residency, and after taking a one-year diploma course on makeup artistry, Mitta could finally break that glass ceiling.

“While I hope to get more opportunities in Malayalam cinema, I also hope it will change the path for other qualified and skilled women in the field. I am looking forward to more support from the Union and those who work with me,” she says.

Mitta’s portfolio:

• Mitta’s first big break came with Anjali Menon’s Koode in 2018 when she started getting noticed.
• She has worked on Udalazham, a film directed by Unnikrishnan Avala, based on transgender persons.
• She has completed several courses in makeup artistry and special effects before applying for membership.

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