About

I’m Manohar Negi — based in Bengaluru, where I look after engineering at an energy-tech startup Racanaa as VP, Data & Engineering.

The title says “VP, Data & Engineering,” and in practice it’s the whole of it — the full software lifecycle: development, quality, DevOps, security, product support — plus, because it’s a startup, the IT and infrastructure too: networks, firewalls, the unglamorous plumbing that keeps everything standing. I like that it’s all of it; the breadth is the fun part. And these days I’m playing with AI almost every day to build and test new products.

There’s a second thread that’s run through all of it: teaching. I’ve taught for about as long as I’ve engineered — a computer centre through college, being the one who trained the new joiners at my first jobs, a stretch running an EdTech where a few hundred people came through. I still mentor, informally and always. And honestly, the part I’m proudest of isn’t a system I shipped — it’s the people who grew up alongside me, a few of whom still call before their next big decision.

Away from the screen, I’ve been making photographs since 1996, and I’ll take any excuse for a road trip. On the side, my wife Roma and I are reviving our ancestral home in the hills of Almora as Kunja Village Homestay — keeping the old place alive and running. (My travel and photo journal lives separately at mnegi.com.)

What you’ll find here, roughly:

• Engineering — development, quality, DevOps, security, product support, and the IT ops too.
• AI — building and testing new products, almost every day.
• Startups — companies I’ve founded, and the ones I’ve helped run.
• Learnings — courses, certifications and degrees, picked up along the way.
• Travel — road trips, and the places they lead to.
• Photography — light, composition, and learning to see since 1996.

If something here resonates, the best thing you can do is write to me. I read every message.