In the high-octane world of Indian startups, where “growth hacking” is the secret to raising funds before showing value, Dr. Deepali Jadia and Dr. Harsh Jadia are an anomaly. They don’t talk about customer acquisition costs or viral loops. They talk about “molecular keys” and “biochemical delamination”. They are not serial entrepreneurs chasing the next unicorn trend; they are environmental scientists with three decades of combined R&D experience who decided that the only way to solve the world’s waste problem was through applying chemistry principles sustainably.
Their startup, Inventive Scientific Minds (ISM) LLP, operates out of a quiet facility in Mumbai, far from the glitzy co-working spaces or labs. Yet, their work is currently addressing two of India’s most visceral urban pain points: the mountains of “unrecyclable” plastic waste clogging our landfills, and the crater-sized potholes plaguing our roads.
For the last few years, the Jadias have been quietly perfecting a proprietary biochemical process that does what the global waste management industry said was impossible: separating the fused layers of Multi-Layered Plastic (MLP) to recover 95% high-quality plastic and aluminum. If that wasn’t enough, they recently debuted an “Instant Pothole Filler” in Bengaluru, a material engineered to fix roads in minutes, regardless of the weather. This is not just about recycling; it is a story of how science led business is built!
The Villain That Refuses to Die
To understand the magnitude of ISM’s breakthrough, one must first understand the villain of this story: Multi-Layered Plastic (MLP). It is the shiny, crinkly material that keeps our potato chips crisp, our biscuits fresh, and our medicines safe. It is a marvel of modern packaging—a complex fusion of plastic polymers and aluminum that protects against moisture, oxygen, and light.
However, this engineering marvel is an environmental nightmare once disposed of. Because the layers are fused so tightly, traditional mechanical MLP Recycling Technology cannot separate them. For decades, the industry verdict has been unanimous: burn it (thermal degradation) or bury it (landfill).
“The industry standard for handling MLP Recycling Technology is essentially giving up,” says Dr. Harsh Jadia, Co-Founder of ISM. “Incineration releases toxic emissions, and landfills are just kicking the can down the road. We didn’t look at a packet of chips and see garbage; we saw trapped resources. We saw aluminum and high-grade plastic that were just waiting for the right key to unlock them”.
That “key” became the obsession of ISM. The founders realized that brute force—using heat or harsh chemicals—destroyed the value of the materials. They needed a scalpel, not a sledgehammer.
Cracking the Code: The Biochemical Breakthrough
The result of their obsession is a patent-pending biochemical process that acts as a “molecular key”. Unlike thermal degradation, which melts the plastic down into low-quality sludge, ISM’s process uses specialized agents to selectively target binding between plastic and aluminum.
“Think of it like peeling a sticker off a glass window,” explains Dr. Deepali Jadia. “If you scrape it, you ruin the sticker and scratch the glass. But if you use the right solvent, it lifts off perfectly. That is essentially what we are doing at a molecular level”.
The process is staggering in its efficiency:
- In under 24 hours, and at near-ambient temperatures, the system gently separates MLP Recycling Technology waste.
- The aluminum separates as a pure metal, ready for industrial applications.
- The plastic is recovered at over 95% efficiency, retaining its structural integrity to the point where it can be extruded into high-quality pellets for molding applications, rather than being downcycled into low-grade pavers.
Most importantly, the process is designed for a world that is running out of water.
“We run on a closed-loop water system,” Dr. Deepali notes. “There is zero toxic discharge. We aren’t solving one environmental problem by creating another”.
From the Lab to the Streets: The Bengaluru Pothole Pilot
While MLP Recycling Technology upcycling is their flagship deep-tech innovation, ISM’s philosophy of “applying rigorous science to everyday problems” led them to a second, more visible vertical: road infrastructure.
Road maintenance in India is a perennial crisis. Traditional repair methods are slow, require prolonged lane closures, and effectively vanish during the monsoon season. For the Jadias, this was another material science failure.
“Infrastructure maintenance shouldn’t be a bottleneck for urban mobility,” says Dr. Harsh.
To prove this, ISM recently took their MLP Recycling Technology out of the lab and onto the streets of Bengaluru—literally.
In a live demonstration that turned heads in the city’s municipal circles and the very busy traffic, ISM deployed their Instant Pothole Filler. The pilot showcased a rapid, all-weather solution designed to bond instantly with existing road surfaces. Unlike conventional bitumen mixes that need dry conditions and hours to set, ISM’s material allows for a “fill-and-go” capability. Traffic can resume almost immediately after the repair is made.
“The recent demo in Bengaluru wasn’t just about filling a hole,” Dr. Harsh reflects. “It was about demonstrating that deep-tech engineering can solve everyday civic problems efficiently and permanently. We do have a tool that actually works, so there is no need of patching the same pothole every three months”.
Building Science Led Business
The dual success of the MLP Recycling Technology and the pothole filler can be traced back to the founders’ unique DNA. Dr. Deepali and Dr. Harsh are “old-school scientists” who spent their careers in the rigorous world of testing and certification before ever printing a business card.
- Dr. Harsh’s work has been cited by the US EPA, and he spent years leading complex technical projects for global giants like Intertek.
- Dr. Deepali brings expertise in biodegradability and circular economy frameworks, having managed operations for a testing laboratory serving major conglomerates like IOCL, ITC, Reliance, and Uflex.
“We are environmental biotechnologists with nearly 30 years of deep R&D experience between us,” says Dr. Deepali. “Our journey didn’t begin in a boardroom pitching to VCs. It began in the lab, testing polymers for toxicity and degradability. We started ISM because we saw a gap in the fundamental science of recycling”.
This pedigree has earned them prestigious backing:
- ISM is incubated at NSRCEL at IIM Bangalore and is recognized by Startup India.
- They have received grants from HDFC Parivartan (through IIT Madras), the Maharashtra Government’s MSINS, and NSRCEL, IIM Bangalore.
- Forbes India recognized ISM as one of the Top 100 startups of 2025 in the Leap To Unicorn Season 3 program.
The Holy Grail of Circularity
As India tightens its Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) norms, the timing for ISM’s ascent is apt. Major FMCG brands are scrambling for genuine MLP Recycling Technology solutions. They need to show regulators that their packaging is actually re-entering the supply chain, rather than just being downcycled.
ISM offers them the holy grail: true circularity. By recovering pure aluminum and high-grade plastic, they turn waste from a cost center into a profit center. They are not just waste managers; they are urban miners.
“We are moving from the lab to the market now, ready to be compliance partners,” says Dr. Harsh. “The pilots are done. The science is proven. Now it is about scale”.
In a startup ecosystem often criticized for solving “first-world problems,” Inventive Scientific Minds stands out by solving the critical problems that keep our cities functioning. They are proving that with enough persistence and the right molecules, even the most stubborn trash can be transformed into treasure.
As Dr. Harsh puts it:
“Our job is to invent the key that unlocks these resources. The ability to turn waste into useful products is what will position India as one of the leading countries in the world & we hope to do our bit to achieve it”.
About Inventive Scientific Minds (ISM)
Inventive Scientific Minds (ISM LLP) is a Mumbai-based deep-tech sustainability startup dedicated to recovering value from complex waste streams. Founded by expert biotechnologists Dr. Harsh and Dr. Deepali Jadia, ISM leverages cutting-edge biochemistry to create scalable solutions for plastic circularity and road maintenance.
Website: ismclimatech.com
Contact: contact@ismclimatech.com
Linkedin: Inventive Scientific Minds LLP | Dr. Deepali Jadia
