Founder Thesis

This week on Founder Thesis podcast host Akshay Datt is in conversation with Hemant Kanoria - Chairman at SREI Infrastructure Finance Limited. A pioneer in the field of infrastructure finance, Hemant started SREI in 1989 and in the last two and half decades has scaled it to be India's largest integrated infrastructure institutions with an asset base of around USD 5.5 billion.  But that’s not...

We all have that one habit which we’ve developed as kids & that’s still stuck with us even as adults.  Aprameya Radhakrishna, our guest today, recalls that his childhood habit that stayed with him is observing things around him. A habit which helps him a lot today as an entrepreneur to understand things like consumer behaviour and much more.  A habit we think made him take notice of...

It may sound weird for a sports enthusiast to be in IIT. Right?  Well, Saumil Majmudar, our guest today, says that it's possible, and that it's an excuse kids make, there are a lot of people who balance academics and sports. They can coexist! Sports have always been a part of his life and it's something he assumes should be in life always.  Saumil Majmudar is the Co-founder, CEO and Mana...

   "Successful businesses are built on deep customer insights about unsolved problems of the customer." This powerful insight from Sanjeev Bikhchandani underscores his entire entrepreneurial philosophy. It's not just about having an idea, but about deeply understanding a genuine customer pain point and offering a real solution – a principle that led to the creation of Naukri.com and...

As an IIT Bombay graduate in metallurgical engineering and materials science, trying to figure out his way through life, he was not really sure what he wanted to choose as his field of work per se. A problem-solver, Harsh Shah is always thriving and striving to make an impact. In this episode, he shares with us personal and professional experiences he encountered during his quest.  Starting F...

"Raising investment should not be celebrated. It's like you are proving that you are unable to generate a profit from your company so that you need to sell your own equity." This contrarian take from Tanutejas Saraswat offers a refreshing perspective on startup funding, emphasizing sustainable business building over the glamour of fundraising. He believes the focus should always be on creating a f...

"Success isn't about greatness. It's about consistency. And those who are consistent are bound for greatness!" This profound insight from Jitendra Chouksey, founder of Fittr, encapsulates his journey and philosophy. It highlights that sustained effort and adherence to fundamental principles are more crucial for achieving long-term success, both in personal fitness and in building a disruptive busi...

Coming from a small village to building one of the fastest-growing viral content websites, WittyFeed, Vinay Singhal has had an intriguing journey. He was the first person in his family to get educated, and hence he was completely clueless about the outside world. This did not dent his determination to arrive at the grand goal that he had set for himself.    What goal? To become the riche...

Being a modern person in a hidebound culture isn’t easy. Especially when you are a woman because then, your resume is crafted for getting a placement in a ‘good family’. Your qualifications, work experience, education and description all count!  But, the less the better!  Just like many other women, this is a part of Anuradha Agarwal’s story as well. However Anuradha chose to author the...

This week on Founder Thesis Akshay Datt is in conversation with serial entrepreneur  and investor Sachin Bhatia. You may know him best for his stint as the Co-Founder and CMO at Make My Trip. However Sachin is also the Co-Founder of online dating site TrulyMadly.com and, his latest venture, Bulbul.tv  Bulbul is a revolutionary video commerce platform that is redefining online shopping by...

"Why can't we all just work without salary for a few months?" Imagine facing near-certain bankruptcy during the 2008 financial crisis, only to have your team propose this solution. Aloke Bajpai shares the incredible story of how Ixigo's team rallied, taking pay cuts (with founders taking none), extending their runway, and ultimately surviving to become a market leader. It’s a powerful testament to...

"At the end of the day, I only care about process. I can't care about outcomes." This core philosophy from Dr. Aniruddha Malpani highlights a powerful mindset applicable to both medicine and angel investing. He emphasizes that while outcomes (like getting pregnant or a startup succeeding) involve uncertainty, focusing on a sound, ethical process is what truly matters and is within our control. Dr....

"Offline retail, in spite of being 95% of retail, is dark in terms of data." This core insight drove Anshoo Sharma to leave his successful venture capital career and build Magicpin. He saw a massive, data-poor market ripe for a technology solution that could bring performance marketing, traditionally used online, to the vast world of offline stores. Anshoo Sharma is the Co-founder and CEO of Magic...

“You can't build a large company and build for scale without laying the foundations” - Hari T.N If you are seeking guidance on problem solving or building an organization for scale Hari is the person you should go to. As a part of the management team at various startups, he’s helped shape four successful exits in different industries!  Hari started his career at Tata Steel as a part of their...

"Before you become a Founder... you have to know who you are." In this candid conversation, Ambarish Gupta unpacks this profound insight, stressing that deep self-awareness is the crucial first step before embarking on the intense entrepreneurial path. It's the bedrock upon which leadership and resilience are built. Ambarish Gupta is the pioneering founder of Knowlarity, which became Asia's larges...

"The Big D is not Data.. it's Decision." This core insight from Dhiraj Rajaram encapsulates the philosophy behind Mu Sigma. It highlights that the true value lies not just in accumulating data, but in using it effectively to make better decisions, a principle that guided him in building India's first unicorn. Dhiraj Rajaram is the Founder of Mu Sigma, the pioneering decision sciences company recog...

"I am the most qualified guy to write about the failures of CL, nobody knows it." This powerful statement from Satya Narayanan R encapsulates a key takeaway from the episode: true entrepreneurial wisdom comes not just from success, but from deeply understanding and learning from the inevitable failures along the way. It speaks to the vulnerability and resilience required to build something lasting...

From Ambala to Singapore to London & then back to India! Here is the story of Swati Bhargava, the Co-Founder of CashKaro.com India’s largest & fastest growing cashback & coupons site. Remember your class topper in school? Well, Swati was the scholar of her batch scoring a 100/100 in maths in her 10th standard board exams. A young Ambala girl aspiring to study at the prestigious St. Ste...

In what has been one of the most fun conversations we’ve had on Founder Thesis - we sit down for a chat with Dharamveer Singh Chouhan, Co-Founder & CEO of Zostel - the largest chain of backpacker hostels & experiential homes in Asia.  An explorer & nonconformist at heart, Dharamveer’s journey into entrepreneurship is an exciting story. Through his early career days he has single-m...

“I believe little in luck & more in working hard & getting something done” - Rishabh Chopra In this episode of Founder Thesis we talk Rishabh Chopra, the founder of The Ayurveda Experience (Transformative Learning Solutions). An alum of the prestigious student run global organisation AIESEC, Rishabh started his career here beginning as a volunteer and moving on to be elected to run the loc...

"My loyalty is not to Josh but to unlocking human potential" - Shobhit Banga  A school drop out, a state level Tennis player, India’s youngest qualifier of the elite “Paris - Brest - Paris” International cycling event, founder of two NGO’s - Sach & Half Glass Full, a Forbes 30 Under 30 entrepreneur and the Co-Founder of Josh Talks - Shobhit Banga can be described in many ways. But wh...

“I was never governed by fear” - Bijai Jayarajan  From being a young small town boy in South India to building a Multi Million Dollar company, Bijai Jayarajan is truly a fearless entrepreneur. Bijai founded Loyalty Rewardz in 2008. In his 10 year stint he raised venture capital investment to the tune of USD 26 Million & in 2017 Loyalty Rewardz was acquired for a whopping USD 100 Million!&...

“For education to be meaningful it cannot be superficial" - Hari Krishnan Nair.  Co-founder of Great Learning, India’s largest online learning platform Hari Krishnan Nair is the entrepreneur who made professional education easily accessible to Indians so that they could equip themselves with career critical competencies.  A trailblazer in the ed-tech segment Great Learning has delivered...

“You can’t change what the market wants, you can only serve what the market wants” - Tonmoy Shingal.  For this week's Founder Thesis episode, we sat down for a conversation with Tonmoy Shingal the co-founder of HF-tech SAAS platform, Mettl. A tech solution that changed the way organisations hire talent.  We talk to Tonmoy about the genesis of Mettl to its stupendous growth to finally bei...

“We will see in our lifetime a generation of products being built online only for women” - Sairee Chahal.  Founder of Sheroes - a social networking site exclusively for women, Sairee is a pioneer in building up women at work and future-of-work conversations in India. She has several accolades under her belt, such as Devi Award, Femina Achievers Award, Cartier Award, Editor’s choice for L’Orea...