The round also saw participation from existing investors W Health Ventures, Endiya Partners and Rebright Partners.
The startup will use the funds to expand its clinic network across multiple Indian cities, strengthen its clinical and operating infrastructure, and to enhance its minimally invasive pain management procedures.
“Interventional pain management is a very young specialty in India. It currently does not exist at scale, similar to where IVF was 20-25 years ago. While the US has close to 4,000-5,000 interventional pain management clinics, India has fewer than 200. That is the gap we intend to bridge,” cofounder and chief executive Nivesh Khandelwal told ET.
Founded in 2023, the New Delhi-based company focuses on non-surgical treatment of chronic pain across the body, including back, neck, knee, headache, migraine and other conditions. It uses a multidisciplinary care model combining pain physicians, physiotherapists and care coordinators to provide non-surgical and minimally invasive care.
“In India, if 100 surgeries are prescribed, only 20 are actually performed. Around 80% of patients choose not to undergo surgery because it can be a frightening experience, involves a lot of uncertainty, and people are generally fearful of surgical procedures,” he said.
According to Khandelwal, roughly 270 million Indians suffer from chronic pain, a figure that is steadily rising due to reduced mobility. As technology becomes increasingly engaging, people are spending more time on devices and computers, leading to more sedentary lifestyles, he said.
It operates its own clinics while also partnering with hospitals to set up clinics. The company currently runs clinics with about 15 specialists across Delhi-NCR, Mumbai, Jaipur and Lucknow. So far, it has conducted more than 40,000 consultations and around 5,000 minimally invasive procedures.
“Our business model is set and product market fit is established. We are now focused on scaling the business. The plan is to expand from the current 15 clinics to around 60-75 clinics over the next four to five years,” he added.
The startup has raised a total of $12 million in funding since its inception.
Commenting on the investment, Mandar Dandekar, partner at Sorin Investments, said, “Pain management is a large, under-served specialty that is structurally difficult to scale within traditional hospital setups. With a significant addressable patient base and limited organised players in this space, we believe Nivaan is well-positioned to build India’s leading integrated pain management platform.”
