In 1978, Nand Kishore Chaudhary (NKC) got a job offer from a Government bank and the chance to move from Churu to Jaipur -- something most people could only dream of back in the day. But, he declined that offer. He saw an opportunity in the carpets business which was a 100% export market and was growing steadily. He also saw this as an opportunity to impact lives and connect with people. So, he took a leap of faith. He took a loan of INR 5000 from his father. Bought a bicycle. Two looms. And sta...
May 03, 2025•45 min•Season 1Ep. 42
The story of Mikiamo begins in Agra, with 3 friends [Aakriti, her husband & Davide] chilling out discussing [drunk] business ideas in the midst of a lot of beer, wine & whisky. While discussing business ideas, their Italian friend [Davide] asked if he could have a shot of Limoncello -- and all of them came to the realisation that there was no proper Limoncello brand in India. Lo & behold, an idea formed in their minds. Why not bring this traditional Italian drink to India? And that's...
Jan 05, 2025•57 min
In this episode, I invited Jigar Mehta - founder of Honey Twigs, a company that is reshaping how we think and consume honey. Honey has a lot of nutrients. Rich in anti-oxidants. Better for blood sugar. Helps in healing. Honey is a segment which has not been disrupted for a VERY long time. The first thought that I get when I think about honey, is that it is a medicine. We're not really motivated to consume it daily. With Honey Twigs - Jigar is on a mission to change that perception. They make aes...
Oct 11, 2024•57 min•Season 1Ep. 40
In this episode, I invited Krishi Fagwani — founder of Thrive, a company in the food aggregation space. This space is dominated by Zomato + Swiggy, but suffers from a few issues like high restaurant commissions, low customer rewards etc. Thrive wants to solve that. They are a restaurant first platform offering low commissions, rewarding customers for their activity with cashbacks & offering various loyalty programs. It is a platform where restaurants & customers can thrive, together! I h...
Sep 02, 2024•1 hr 2 min•Season 1Ep. 39
In this episode, I invited Garvita Mamodiya - founder of Teela, a company which is curating unique experiences with its [aesthetic looking] glamping resorts. With the fast paced work culture that we're heading towards, people are not getting an opportunity to truly connect with nature. To fully detox. To engage in adventurous activities. Enter Glamping. A phenomenon which is emerging in India which is a mixing luxurious accommodation with camping. Teela is providing unique experiences for it's c...
Jul 07, 2024•53 min•Season 1Ep. 38
In this episode, I invited Shubham Singh – founder of Craste, a company creating value added products like packing materials, panel boards and paper from agricultural residue with the vision to create wealth from waste. India generates more than 500 MILLION tonnes of agricultural residue every year. We are all aware of the incredible amount of pollution caused by stubble burning because farmers don’t know what to do with so much waste. Shubham saw this problem as an opportunity. With an abundanc...
May 26, 2024•1 hr 1 min•Season 37Ep. 1
In this episode, I invited Bhuman Dani – founder of WickedGud, a company promoting guilt free eating with the mission of un-junking one kitchen at a time. Did you know that the noodles you eat are already deep fried? The pasta that you eat has a lot of refined flour? If you’re consuming these packaged foods on a daily basis, it’s not healthy – especially if it is being consumed by kids. How do you solve this problem? You eliminate the deep fry process. You eliminate the refined flour. At the sam...
Apr 05, 2024•54 min•Season 1Ep. 36
In this episode, I invited Bhagyashree Bhansali – founder of The Disposal Company, an organization that is helping brands to achieve plastic + carbon neutrality. Imagine that you’re a brand that is using 100KG of plastic in your packaging, production etc. and you want to be able to offset your plastic footprint without setting your own recycling plant. You reach out to the folks at The Disposal Company. They understand your plastic footprint. They coordinate with recyclers to ensure 100KG of sim...
Feb 19, 2024•1 hr 2 min•Season 1Ep. 35
In this episode, I invited Preksha Chopra - founder of Welme, a health and wellness company which has created a period pain relief device. Welme, uses TENS technology to reduce period pain in women. It's clinically tested. Has no side effects. It's portable. It's sleek. You can wear it even while you work. Or while you party. No anti-biotics required. I learnt a TON in this episode about period pain and asked a LOT of questions (some stupid ones too :P) and Preksha was kind enough to answer all ...
Oct 15, 2023•58 min•Season 1Ep. 34
I enjoyed the conversation with Sharan so much that we created content equal to two episode. This is the second part where we spoke about the following: (00:13): What does it take to build a company in India? Talking about challenges + key learnings (06:04): How to get your product placed in supermarkets and offline distribution channels? (08:49): How does the FMCG business work? (11:58): BOOTSTRAPPING VS FUNDRAISING (20:07): How do you compete with a player who is funded when you’re bootstrappe...
Sep 10, 2023•40 min•Season 1Ep. 34
In this episode, I invited Sharan Kripalani - founder of Sober & Co, a ready to drink premium handcrafted lifestyle beverage company. They use exotic ingredients to curate innovative flavors, and looking at their aesthetic bottles will make you want to partyyyy! Staying sober, would be a challenge ;) I had a lot of fun talking to Sharan about how things work in the FMCG beverage market and learnt a ton of stuff in this conversation. We covered a range of topics like: (00:00): Introduction (0...
Sep 10, 2023•54 min•Season 1Ep. 33
In this episode, I invited Harshit Puram - founder of Oknomodhomes, a company in the business of making portable sustainable homes and delivering it across India in just 90 DAYS! Real estate construction takes a lot of time [and money]. You need to reach out to the builders, plumbers, electricians, designers & a whole lot of other people. It's like a side job. Oknomodhomes takes care of this entire process and makes it extremely hassle free. Plus, they build houses from sustainable building ...
Jul 01, 2023•53 min•Season 1Ep. 32
In this episode, I invited Anish Malpani - Founder of Ashaya, a non profit organization that functions with a simple vision : 'To recycle the worst kind of plastic waste while empowering waste pickers'. Multi-layered plastics (also known as MLP) is one of the hardest plastics to recycle. It continues to overburden our landfills. Destroys marine life when discarded in the oceans. Recycling MLP is tough, so much so that no one wants to invest their time & money to do it. Anish - saw that as an...
Apr 09, 2023•1 hr 28 min•Season 1Ep. 31
In this episode, I invited Vivek Gulati - CoFounder of GRIP, a company which is on a mission to open up the alternative asset class to the retail investor. When you think about investment opportunities for retail investors - you think Stocks, Bonds, Gold, ETFs & Mutual Funds, PPF and so on. However, the risk appetite of the retail investor is increasing. They want access to more opportunities. Broader asset classes. And that's where GRIP comes in. GRIP wants to bring opportunities that were ...
Mar 05, 2023•1 hr 4 min•Season 1Ep. 30
In this episode, I invited Abhijeet Anand - Founder of abCoffee, a brand which is on a mission to bring specialty coffee to every Indian at affordable rates. Specialty premium coffee is not yet mainstream in India. The Indian middle class doesn't consume freshly brewed coffee on a daily basis. The prime reason? It is extremely costly. Abhijeet understood that, when he went on a trail across India to taste coffee brewed in different parts of the country. And that's how the idea of abCoffee was bo...
Nov 26, 2022•1 hr 2 min•Season 1Ep. 29
In this episode, I invited Jatan Bawa - Founder of Perfora, a company which is infusing tech into oral care. Perfora has a range of products starting from an electric toothbrush, a smart water flosser, an extremely effective toothpaste and lots more! Perfora wants to change the way people brush & look after their oral hygiene. Oral care is a segment which is ripe for disruption & Perfora has positioned itself very well to reap the benefits of a transformation in the industry. I really lo...
Oct 06, 2022•1 hr 3 min•Season 1Ep. 28
In this episode, I invited Ayushi Chamaria - CEO & Founder of Sippin', a company which makes cocktail (and mocktail) mixes. It's an extremely new concept in India, but if you're looking to experiment with your drink and want to add some classy flavors to it - Sippin' has you covered. The industry for cocktail mixes, although niche - is growing rapidly presenting opportunities to existing players. One of the things that stood out to me while talking to Ayushi, was the sheer passion in her voi...
Jun 12, 2022•46 min•Season 1Ep. 27
In this episode, I invited Deep Harlalka - CEO & Founder of VeClan, a company which makes vegan spreads & dips. Veganism isn't a new concept. It's been followed in the western countries for a while & is slowly making its way to the heart of India. But there is a long way to go before it gets mainstream, because it has to compete with a behemoth that is the DAIRY INDUSTRY. Deep Harlalka, is a passionate individual to say the least. And he wants to dip his feet into all things vegan. W...
Apr 02, 2022•48 min•Season 1Ep. 26
In this episode, I invited Vivek Bajaj - Founder & CEO of StockEdge and Elearnmarkets, two platforms that are empowering retail investors in India. If you look at the statistics, a lot of retail investors LOSE money in the stock markets. They get their fingers burnt, and they never look back at the stock markets as a medium to generate wealth. Vivek Bajaj & his team are changing the game for these investors. We spoke about a range of topics in this episode like: (00:00) Introduction (04:...
Mar 18, 2022•56 min•Season 1Ep. 25
In this episode, I invited Karan Mehra - Founder & CEO of Tyke Invest, a company that has created a platform which enables people to invest in startups with as little as INR 5000. Up until now, retail investors had to watch VCs corner the BIG gains from increase in startup valuations, but now the game is open for everyone. Through Tyke, everyone can get in on the act & own a piece of the pie. I had a really fun session & learned a lot conversing with Karan. We spoke about a range of ...
Feb 06, 2022•36 min•Season 1Ep. 24
In this episode, I invited Kuonal & Aayushi - founders of 23BMI & Upnourish, two brands which are perfectly positioned to tap into the growing meal replacement market in India. We spoke about a range of topics in this episode like: (00:00): A brief into Kuonal & Aayushi's respective backgrounds and how the idea of starting a meal replacement company popped in their minds (08:55): Talking about the R&D process, building new products and execution of the idea into action (13:15): H...
Jan 09, 2022•52 min•Season 1Ep. 23
In this episode, I invited Karan Kalra who is a visual engineer & has a decade long experience in creating illustrations, motion graphics & animations. We spoke about a range of topics in this episode like: 1. Karan's journey exploring various creative crafts 2. How he got into NFTs 3. What exactly is an NFT & how it's different from other Cryptos 4. How NFTs work - what are some technical aspects to keep in mind while minting/selling NFTs 5. Platforms where you can trade NFTs 6. How...
Dec 05, 2021•1 hr 11 min•Season 1Ep. 22
In this episode, I invited Vaibhav & Sayantani - cofounders of What’s up Wellness, a company in the health & wellness space. Their first product is a [delicious] gummy which is packed with nutrients which targets the skincare/haircare/nailcare segment. We spoke about a range of topics in this episode like: How working for various D2C startups helped Vaibhav & Sayantani in creating their own company The idea behind entering the nutraceuticals market & the filtering process they us...
Oct 10, 2021•55 min•Season 1Ep. 21
In this episode, I invited Jayanti & Shalini - two sisters who have created India Hemp & Co, a company which sells various products made from Hemp - like protein powder, hemp oils etc. We talked about a range of topics in this episode like: 1. The central idea behind building a company in the Hemp space 2. Challenges faced during the initial days (insert - the pandemic) & how they turned crisis into opportunity. Also spoke about the GTM strategy and the target market of the company. ...
Sep 08, 2021•56 min•Season 1Ep. 20
In this episode, I hosted Shailesh Ganeriwala & Animesh Thakur - cofounders of OGHemp, a company which is making paper & packaging materials from Hemp. We dived into their respective journeys, how they got in the Hemp space & why they specifically targeted the paper industry. Shailesh explained the benefits of making paper from Hemp & why it is a no brainer to do so! Animesh covered the process they follow to make paper from Hemp & also spoke about the challenges in the initi...
Aug 23, 2021•52 min•Season 1Ep. 19
In this episode, I invited Guneesh Sahny - founder of Kensho, a company exploring the world of Nootropics or 'Cognitive Enhancers' This was a really interesting episode, and Guneesh explained how he came up with the idea to start Kensho, explained what exactly does a 'Nootropic' mean. He also touched upon the benefits of each ingredient that goes into their product 'Elevate' & how Nootropics help people deal with stress & unproductivity. Guneesh explained how educating people about the p...
Jul 24, 2021•1 hr 2 min•Season 1Ep. 18
In this episode, I invited Ajinkya Dhariya - owner of Pad Care Labs, a company providing end to end solutions in the Menstrual Hygiene segment. We spoke about how Ajinkya embarked on this journey, how during his engineering days he came across the problem in the Menstrual hygiene space & started Pad Care Labs. Ajinkya also explained the difficulties & the challenges he faced while building the company & what are the things to keep in mind while scaling a product based company. You ca...
Jul 10, 2021•35 min•Season 1Ep. 17
In this episode, I invited Silawath Irshad - host of 'The Growth Mindset Podcast', to talk about some trade secrets in the podcasting world. We spoke about Silawath's journey, how he got into podcasting & how he was able to grow and attract such great minds on the podcast. Silawath broke down the process of how he approaches people and the level of research that goes behind the scenes. We also dissected the future of podcasting in India and how it's at a tipping point at the moment. If you'r...
May 22, 2021•42 min•Season 1Ep. 16
In this episode, I invited Mehul Patel - owner of PaanCasa, which is the world's most innovative Paan place & they have the ambition to become a globally renowned brand in the next few years. Mehul walked me through his journey, how his Nanima sparked his interest into Paan when he was a kid and how he turned his hobby into a serious business. We also talked about the challenges of running a tobacco & nicotine free Paan cafe & how he turned this challenge into an opportunity. Mehul e...
May 16, 2021•44 min•Season 1Ep. 15
In this episode, I invited Hansika Chhabria - owner of OneLess, a sustainable clothing company. The fashion industry is the second largest polluter in the world after the Oil industry. To build some context, it takes around 20,000 Liters of water to make just 1kg of cotton! Imagine that, in a country like India where there's massive water shortages. And, to address this problem statement - Hansika started OneLess. We spoke about how Hansika got into sustainable clothing & what motivated her ...
Apr 17, 2021•31 min•Season 1Ep. 14
