Freshers Who Meant Business: Meet The Winning Team Of TVS Credit E.P.I.C 6.0 — IT Challenge

TVS Credit presents E.P.I.C (Enrich, Perform, Innovate, Challenge), a campus challenge programme designed for college students. This contest offers a platform to apply your technical knowledge and skills to real-life business problems. TVS Credit E.P.I.C 6.0 was held across four verticals—the Analytics Challenge, Finance Challenge, IT Challenge, and Strategy Challenge—each focused on solving domain-specific business problems with innovation and practicality.

The 6th edition of the competition saw a surge of young talent from across the country, and standing out among them was Team Init_to_Winit from Dayananda Sagar University, Bengaluru, Karnataka. Comprising Sayli Bande and Ratan Ravichandran, this duo brought fresh perspectives, strong fundamentals, and user-centric thinking to the table, and emerged as winners of this prestigious competition.

Their win is a reminder that you don’t need years of experience to build something impactful. It just requires clarity of thought, teamwork, and the courage to show up with your ideas.

Here’s what they had to say about their journey.

1. Team Introduction

We are Sayli and Ratan - freshers with a background in Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning. We recently graduated and are just beginning our journey into the professional world.

2. How Was Your Experience of Participating in TVS Credit EPIC 6?

It was a really thrilling and educational experience. From the treasure hunt to the ideation phase and finally building a working prototype—we both enjoyed and learnt a great deal at every stage, thanks to the feedback being given to us all throughout.

3. What Was the Most Challenging Part of the Competition?

The biggest challenge was designing a solution that was not only technically robust and truly user-friendly but also commercially viable. We aimed to ensure accessibility across diverse user segments—including those from rural areas—by focusing on personalization, intuitive design, multilingual support, and a business model that could sustain long-term impact and scalability.

4. Explain the Strategy for Each Round/Focus Areas

• Treasure Hunt: It was fun and fast-paced! While there wasn’t a formal strategy, we were quick to spot clues across TVS Credit’s socials and worked together to find answers.
• Quiz & Programming Rounds: These tested our fundamentals in logic and DSA. Thanks to prior practice and interview prep, we were confident and quick here as well.
• Case Study Round: This was our favorite. We focused on building an end-to-end product that was not only innovative but also commercially viable. We approached it with a user-first mindset, ensuring localization, personalization, and real-world relevance for the Indian market.

5. What Advice Would You Give to Students Who Want to Participate and Win in Competitions Like These?

Start with genuine curiosity; pick a problem you truly care about. Focus on solving something real, not just impressive on paper. Keep your solution simple, scalable, and aligned with the actual needs of your users. And remember, every round is a learning opportunity. Use it to refine your thought process and stay open to feedback.

From AI graduates to competition champions, Sayli and Ratan are proof that clarity of thought, empathy for users, and sharp fundamentals can take you a long way, even as freshers. Team Init_to_Winit certainly did just that.

Think you're up for more than classroom theories? Explore challenges that put your skills to the ultimate test, and make your mark - Click here & start competing!