Avaana Capital Leads Rs 43 Crore Pre-Series A Round in Deeptech Company DheyaTech to Build India's Own Gas Turbine Engines
Bengaluru-based deeptech company DheyaTech has raised Rs 43 crore in a pre-Series A funding round led by Avaana Capital, with participation from existing strategic investor Unimech Aerospace and Manufacturing.
Here's what DheyaTech is actually building. The company develops small gas turbine engines and energy systems for aerospace and power generation, an area where fewer than a dozen countries worldwide have indigenous manufacturing capabilities, and where India has historically relied heavily on imported propulsion technology. Its engine portfolio spans 20 kgf to 400 kgf of thrust, covering applications across advanced aerial mobility, defence platforms, and distributed power systems, alongside an adaptive Engine Control Unit and fuel-flexible, hydrogen-based propulsion technology, including a hydrogen blower and a hydrogen-based flexi-fuel combustor built for its 60 kW turbogenerator.
The fresh capital has a clear, near-term purpose. DheyaTech plans to scale up manufacturing capacity, set up a fully integrated testing facility for its gas turbine engines, and deepen engagement with both domestic and international customers to accelerate real-world deployment timelines. The company is also pursuing independent airworthiness certification under the guidance of CEMILAC-DRDO, reportedly becoming the first private Indian company to pursue this specific certification pathway for mission-critical aerospace applications.
The founder story runs deep here. DheyaTech was founded in 2018 by aerospace engineers Gurushankara K C, Abhinav Alva, and Chetan Kumar, who together bring over 15 years of experience from GE Aviation and Rolls-Royce. After roughly a decade of technology development, the company is now moving from prototype into repeatable production, with flight trials targeted for Q4 2026, a genuine inflection point for a hardware deeptech company.
The bigger picture makes this funding round part of a wider national story. DheyaTech's raise comes amid growing momentum in India's indigenous propulsion space, Bengaluru-based Nabhdrishti Aerospace raised $3 million from Accel for fuel-flexible micro gas turbines, Deepinder Goyal has invested $20 million in LAT Aerospace's lightweight gas turbine programme, and Hyderabad-based Paninian recently unveiled its own turbofan engine programme, all signalling that India's aerospace and defence self-reliance push now extends deep into core propulsion technology.
From imported engines to indigenous turbines, DheyaTech's Rs 43 crore round is a bet that India's next generation of deeptech won't just adapt foreign technology, it will build it from scratch.
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— Sandeep Raiza