Day one of Eximius 2011, IIM- Bangalore’s flagship entrepreneurship summit held by The Entrepreneurship and Innovation Cell (EnI), at the Indian Institute of Management in Bangalore (IIM-B) on Saturday saw participation from 100 colleges.

The fourth edition of Eximius with its theme ‘Unconventional Entrepreneurship” looked at exploring those unchartered areas that a few start-ups have dared to explore and bring new perspectives to the bright young minds of India.

“The response and participation this year have been good, and a number of colleges from across the country have participated in the fest,” said Dhruv Shah, a student of IIM-B.

Young entrepreneurs, industry leaders, and academicians gathered to discuss innovative business propositions. The summit will host a wide variety of competitions, talks, and workshops.

A panel discussion, in which unconventional start-ups discussed their success stories, was also held. Entrepreneur Harish Hande was the keynote speaker on Saturday.

The focus of Eximius was on social entrepreneurship through Reach, a social entrepreneurship case study competition. The competition invited ideas to market and scale the venture of two women in rural Karnataka who manufacture and sell smokeless chulhas with the help of the NGO, Better Future.

On Sunday, entrepreneurs will get a chance to present their ideas to high-profile venture capitalists and seek funding and mentorship at INGEN — the business plan competition.

It has received a number of entries from various IIMs as well as other B-Schools. The highlight of the day was a keynote address by this year’s Ramon Magsaysay award winner Harish Hande,who expressed hope that in the future more people from elite institutes would come up with sustainable solutions.