We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Anisha Jain a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Anisha, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. So, naming is such a challenge. How did you come up with the name of your brand?
Growing up in India, I witnessed how often women put their dreams on hold for their families. My mother was one of them. A talented entrepreneur, she launched her own fashion line at 18, displaying her creativity and ambition. However, she gave it all up after marriage to support our family, burying her aspirations in the name of duty. Watching her sacrifice everything for us filled me with admiration and heartbreak. Her strength was undeniable, but it also left me questioning why women were expected to give so much of themselves. I wanted something different—not just for her, but for every woman with untapped potential and dreams waiting to be realized.
From a young age, I was nicknamed “sher-ni”—the lioness—because I wasn’t afraid to speak my mind. Whether it was calling out unfair treatment of women or challenging norms I didn’t fully understand, I felt a strong instinct to stand up for what was right. That instinct remained with me as I grew older, moved to the U.S. at 11, and eventually navigated male-dominated spaces in tech.
As a senior engineer at companies like Lyft and Tesla, I experienced firsthand how women were often sidelined or underestimated. l dreamed of creating a space where women didn’t just have a voice; they thrived—a place where their ideas were celebrated, their talents uplifted, and their dreams realized. That dream became Sheroar LLC.
The name Sheroar is a blend of “she” and the lion’s “roar”—a nod to my nickname and a symbol of female power and resilience. It represents the courage to stand up, speak out, and create something meaningful.
Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.
I’ve always been a multi-faceted person. Growing up, I was just as passionate about painting, photography, and modeling as I was about math, chess, and coding. I’ve always loved blending my creative and analytical sides, and I found websites to be the perfect medium where both worlds intersect. That fascination led me to self-teach web design and development in high school, which became the foundation for my career.
After earning my Bachelor’s in Computer Science, I worked as a senior software engineer at Lyft and Tesla. I led impactful projects like designing user-facing safety features for over a million daily users at Lyft and developing internal tools for 100,000+ employees at Tesla. While I was proud of my contributions, I longed to do something that combined my technical expertise, creative passions, and love for helping people.
That opportunity came when I noticed a problem in the market: small business owners, especially women, were overpaying for websites that didn’t truly represent their brands. Many of these websites were poorly designed, didn’t function properly, or failed to connect with their target audience. Seeing their frustration, I felt compelled to step in. After someone saw my personal website and asked for help, I started assisting small female business owners with their sites. From there, sheroar LLC was born.
At sheroar LLC, my co-founder Carmen White and I provide website design, game development, and digital artwork services. Carmen joined me in October and brings immense value to the business. As a pediatric medical speech-language pathologist, adjunct professor with her PhD, she combines diligent organization with a deep understanding of business management, operational skills, and client care. Beyond her expertise in keeping projects on track and ensuring contracts and payments are in order, Carmen is also a self-taught web designer with beautiful design skills. She’s currently learning to code and leverages her extensive research experience to tackle complex projects. Together, we ensure that our clients feel empowered, informed, and supported throughout their journey with us.
What sets Sheroar apart is how deeply we care about our clients and their visions. We know the passion and dedication they pour into their businesses, and we translate that into a stunning digital presence that truly reflects who they are. We take the time to explain everything, provide guidance, and ensure they can take over their projects independently if needed. Our goal is to help and empower, not just deliver.
Our work extends beyond websites. One of our most exciting projects is Magik Masala, a video game that I co-founded with two incredible women, Sarah Ann Gonzales and Nivedha Karthikeyan. It’s a celebration of Indian culture, cuisine, and artistry – a love letter to the traditions we grew up with and the stories that shaped us. Magik Masala is our bold step forward in an industry where women-owned game development companies are almost nonexistent.
Together, we’re not just breaking barriers; we’re creating something that honors our heritage while redefining who gets to lead in gaming.
Through sheroar LLC and Magik Masala, every project I undertake is infused with the belief that women can achieve anything they set their minds to. Whether it’s helping small businesses shine online or building a game that educates and inspires, my goal is to create beautiful, functional work while fostering an inclusive space for women in tech and gaming.
I hope our story inspires others to roar louder than the world’s doubts and believe in their ability to achieve greatness.
Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?
My reputation has been built on a foundation of curiosity, creativity, and a relentless drive to make a meaningful impact. Each project I’ve undertaken has been deeply personal, born from a desire to solve real problems and create something truly valuable.
It all began in high school when I discovered the world of web design and development. I was fascinated by the idea of blending creativity and logic, and I poured hours into teaching myself how to create websites. My first few projects were simple but sparked a passion that still drives me today. That curiosity led me to hackathons, where I found a space to test my skills and tackle the challenges that mattered. At We Hack Too!, I developed DoughNut, an app that gamifies financial literacy for kids. Winning Microsoft’s first prize was validating, but the real reward was knowing we created something that could empower children to understand money in a fun, engaging way.
In college, that same passion drove me to create Calcumon, a game-based collaborative learning platform that turned homework into something students looked forward to. What started as a solo project grew into a team of five, and we worked tirelessly to refine the product based on real user feedback. I still remember the excitement at our first user testing event when kids lit up as they tried out the platform. Those moments made all the late nights worth it and cemented my belief in the importance of creating with empathy and purpose.
Teaching also became a huge part of my journey. As a teaching assistant for two years, I didn’t just help students understand concepts in data structures and algorithms – I helped them see their potential. Hearing from students after they landed jobs and knowing I played even a small role in their success was incredibly fulfilling and reinforced my commitment to mentoring and uplifting others.
My professional experiences at Tesla and Lyft allowed me to amplify that impact on a larger scale. At Tesla, I led the development of Tesla Track, an internal tool used by over 100,000 employees to improve efficiency. At Lyft, I worked on user-facing safety features for over 1 million daily users, ensuring that every ride felt safer and more reliable. These weren’t just technical projects – they were opportunities to make life better for real people, and that’s what drove me to deliver my best every day.
Beyond the corporate world, I’ve always sought ways to share my knowledge and learn from others. Co-authoring a paper on multimodal apps with OpenAI and GPT-4 at Stanford University’s HCI lab was one way to contribute to the field while publishing technical articles on Medium – which have garnered over 40,000 views – helped me connect with a broader community of entrepreneurs, designers, and developers.
Starting sheroar LLC and co-leading Magik Masala has been the culmination of everything I’ve learned and loved. At Sheroar, my co-founder Carmen and I pour our hearts into helping businesses translate their vision into stunning digital experiences. Whether it’s designing websites or creating digital artwork, we care deeply about our clients’ success and empower them to take ownership of their projects.
Magik Masala, co-founded with Sarah and Nivedha, is especially close to my heart. It’s more than a game – it’s a celebration of Indian culture and a step toward redefining representation in gaming. Seeing a vision inspired by my roots come to life with a team of passionate, talented women is a reminder of why I started this journey in the first place: to create spaces where women feel empowered and to tell stories that matter.
My reputation has been shaped not just by what I’ve built but by why I’ve built it. Every project has been fueled by a deep belief in its impact, a respect for the people it serves, and a passion for creating something meaningful.
Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?
When I was 18, I made the hardest decision of my life: I left home. My parents, like so many first-generation immigrants, were filled with fear and love in equal measure. They thought marriage was the safest path for me , even if it meant to a stranger. I’ll never forget the day they told me they should never have allowed me to go to school – that “so many girls in India don’t.” It broke my heart because I knew they weren’t being cruel. They were scared. Scared I’d waste my life, bring shame to the family, or end up unsafe in a world they didn’t fully trust.
But I had dreams. I wanted an education. I wanted a career. I wanted to make them proud one day – not by marrying someone they chose, but by showing them I could build a life I loved.
Leaving wasn’t something I took lightly. I loved my parents, and they loved me, but their fear had turned into control. I wasn’t allowed to leave on weekends or see friends. Every hour of my day had to be accounted for. As a college freshman, I was being called constantly, tracked on campus, and emotionally drained. It was starting to affect my studies, and I realized I had no choice. I had to leave.
I left at 4 a.m. with a garbage bag of my things. My knees were shaking so badly I could barely walk. I didn’t have money, a plan, or a clue where to go. A friend let me crash on their couch for a few nights, but I knew I had to figure something out fast. I spent a week walking through the city, asking every cafe and store I could find if they had a job opening.
It took two weeks, but I finally found a bakery willing to pay in cash (since I didn’t even have a bank account). That first job saved me. I worked long hours, but it kept me fed and helped me save for rent.
Eventually, I started finding opportunities to use the skills I had taught myself in high school. I’d spent years learning web and app design as a hobby, and that passion landed me a role as VP of design for a small startup. It sounds like a big title for an 18-year-old – and it was – but I was determined to prove myself. Between the bakery, the startup, and campus research gigs (where I’d answer surveys for $20 just to afford Chipotle), I slowly started to find my footing.
Through it all, what kept me going was the fire in my heart to prove I could do it. I didn’t just want to succeed for myself; I wanted to show my family that women are so much more than their marital prospects. We can dream, and we can achieve those dreams.
Rebuilding my relationship with my family wasn’t easy. I didn’t feel safe being alone with them for a long period of time, so I’d only meet them in public places. There were fights and long periods of silence along the way. Some periods lasting as long as three months. But I stayed firm on my boundaries. Over time, as I started to build my life, they began to see that I wasn’t ruining it. When I landed a software internship at Lyft, their fears started to calm. Slowly, we rebuilt our relationship, balancing love and respect with the independence I’d fought so hard for.
Looking back, if I’ve learned anything, it’s this: keep going. There were so many moments when I felt at rock bottom – no money, no food, no idea what was next. But I just kept putting one foot in front of the other, and eventually, things got better.
Now, I feel like I can face anything. I have a deep gratitude for everything in my life – the laughter of friends, moments with my family, the beauty of nature, the joy of a good meal. Every moment feels like a gift, and that’s the lesson I carry with me every day.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.sheroar.co/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sheroar/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/annysha
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/magikmasalagame
- Other: https://ajain.dev/
https://www.instagram.com/magikmasalagame
https://www.instagram.com/sheroarllcSanta Cruz Teen Entrepreneur Challenge taking signups for Saturday
https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/3613904.3642517
https://eng.lyft.com/bringing-lyft-safety-features-to-the-web-8678c0258bd7
https://medium.com/@anishaj037
Image Credits
Julian Gigola
Gopi B Vadsak