India’s rooftop solar sector has picked up a marquee backer. Solar energy company SolarSquare has added former India cricket captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni to its investor base, with the cricketer coming on board through his family office, Midas Deals.
Alongside the investment, Dhoni will take on the role of brand ambassador for SolarSquare, the company confirmed. The size of his stake has not been made public.
The move is tied to a larger financing push where SolarSquare recently closed a $53 million (roughly ₹510 crore) Series C round, with existing backer Lightspeed leading the round. Lowercarbon Capital, Rainmatter and Good Capital also participated.
SolarSquare framed the tie-up as more than a routine funding transaction. In a statement, the company said Dhoni’s decision to invest signalled his belief in the long-term growth trajectory of India’s residential rooftop solar market.
A sector on the rise
That market is currently in an expansion phase. Higher electricity tariffs, supportive government subsidies and rising household interest in cleaner power sources have all contributed to faster adoption of rooftop solar across Indian cities and towns.
By SolarSquare’s own estimate, close to 70 million homes in India are technically suited for rooftop installations. This number hints at how early-stage the sector still is relative to its ceiling. Zoom out further and the numbers get bigger still. India’s cleantech economy as a whole is expected to be worth $152 billion by 2030.
Dhoni’s investment trail
For Dhoni personally, the SolarSquare deal is not an isolated bet. It is his third startup investment of the year, following earlier stakes in audio entertainment platform Kuku and gaming company LightFury Games. Over the past several years, he has quietly assembled one of the more extensive celebrity investment portfolios in Indian startups, spanning sectors well beyond sport and entertainment.
Company disclosures and business media reports point to at least a dozen such bets. In drone technology, he holds a stake in Chennai-based Garuda Aerospace, reportedly around 1.1% ahead of the firm’s planned IPO. In fintech, he backed MSME ledger app Khatabook as both investor and brand ambassador. His mobility-linked investments include e-cycle maker EMotorad and EV ride-hailing platform BluSmart, the latter funded through a ₹200-crore round via his family office.
Other companies in his portfolio include used-car marketplace CARS24, home interiors platform HomeLane, wealth-tech firm Centricity, insurtech player Acko and facility management company SILA Solutions. On the consumer side, he has put money into plant-based protein brand Shaka Harry, creator-economy startup Rigi, fitness brand Tagda Raho, beverage company 7InkBrews and cloud-kitchen chain House of Biryani.