short summary
Table of Contents
Ye kahaani bohot hi jyada interesting he kyunki jab mene iske baare me padh raha tha na to mujhe aisa lag raha tha ki maano me ek hollywood level ki business movie ki script padh raha hu. Aur tum kahaani ke end tak nahi samaj paoge ki ashneer asli villain he ya bharatPe ke directors!
Ye kahaani ek innovation se shuru hokar vaha pe khatam hoti he jaha par kisine bhi nahi socha tha ki ye sab aise hone wala he. chalo kahani ki shuruwaat karte he :
Baat 2018 Ki He
India me UPI revolution abhi abhi aaya tha. Paytm bada player tha, PhonePe aa raha tha — lekin ek gap tha.
Merchants — matlab woh chhote dukandaar, kirana waale, chai waale — unhe multiple QR codes rakhne padte the. Paytm ka alag, Google Pay ka alag, PhonePe ka alag. Bahut jhanjhat thi.
Tab aaya Ashneer Grover — IIT Delhi, IIM Ahmedabad, Kotak Investment Banking background. Sharp, aggressive, aur extremely confident.
Usne socha — ek hi QR code, sabke liye. Merchants ko seedha loan bhi do UPI transaction history dekh ke. No traditional credit score needed.
Yahi bana BharatPe. Ek revolution ya phir ek innovation bhi bol sakte ho!
Rocket Ship Phase —
2019–2021 ke beech BharatPe ne:
- 1 crore+ merchants onboard kiye
- ₹2,900 crore+ fundraise kiya — Sequoia, Coatue, Tiger Global jaisi top firms se
- Valuation pahunchi $2.85 billion tak
- Ashneer Shark Tank India me celebrity founder ban gaya,
Log kehte the — “Yeh banda kuch bada karne ke liye paida huva he.”
Ashneer ka style bhi ekdum alag tha. Loud, blunt, no-filter. Shark Tank pe companies ko seedha bolte the — “Yeh bakwaas hai.” “Ye pitch sunne se pahle kash me mar jaata (LOL)” Logo ko iski ye soch aur bolne ka tarika bohot pasand aaya!
Lekin andar ki kahani kuch aur thi.
Kotak Wala Incident —
Late 2021. Nykaa IPO aa raha tha. Ashneer chahte the shares mile — anchor investor allocation ke liye usne Kotak bank se baat ki.
Allocation nahi mila.
Leaked audio mein Ashneer ek Kotak employee ko gaaliyan deta suna gaya — threatening language, personal insults, ekdum unprofessional.
Audio viral ho gaya. 🔥 ashneer ne uske baad ye bola media ke saath:
Kotak ne legal notice bheja. Media me aag lag gayi. Investors uncomfortable ho gaye.
Ashneer ne kaha — “Woh meri awaaz nahi thi.” Lekin damage ho chuka tha.
Asli Bomb — Paise Ka Khel
Phir board ne internal audit karwayi. Jo nikla woh shocking tha:
- Ashneer ki wife Madhuri Jain — jo BharatPe mein Head of Controls thi — unke upar allegation aaya ki unhone fake vendors ke through company ka paisa nikala
- “Ghost employees” — log payroll pe the jo kaam nahi karte the
- Personal expenses — flights, hotels, shopping — company card pe charge ho rahe the
- Alleged amount? Reports ke mutabik crores me!
Board — jisme Sequoia aur baaki investors the — ne ek simple question pucha:
“Yeh company ka paisa hai ya tumhara personal ATM?”
Ashneer VS Board — Epic fight
Ashneer ne board fight kiya. Kehte rahe:
“Mujhe frame kiya ja raha hai. Yeh sab politics hai. Main BharatPe hoon, BharatPe main hoon.”
Usne legal notices bheje. Board ko public platforms pe call out kiya. Twitter pe fire lagata raha.
Lekin board bhi peeche nahi hata.
February 2022 — Ashneer “voluntary leave” pe gaye. March 2022 — Madhuri Jain ko terminate kiya gaya. March 2022 — Ashneer ne resign kar diya — co-founder, director, sab kuch.
Ek saal pehle jo banda India ka hottest founder tha — woh bahar tha.
Baad Me Kya Hua?
- BharatPe ne Ashneer pe ₹88 crore ka civil lawsuit file kiya
- Ashneer ne counter-suit kiya — bole unhe unfairly ousted kiya gaya
- Ashneer ne book likhi — “Doglapan“ — bestseller bani, apna version bataya
- BharatPe aaj bhi chal raha hai, lekin valuation aur growth slow hai
- Ashneer ab investor aur entrepreneur ke roop mein wapas aa rahe hain naye ventures ke saath
Agar tum startup karne ka soch rahe ho to ye book pahle padhna : Before you startup
lekin asli Asli Sawaal to ye he :
Yeh case sirf ek co-founder ki story nahi hai. Yeh startup governance ki failure ki story hai:
1. Board ki zimmedari kahan thi? Agar ghost employees aur fake vendors the — toh audit itni der se kyun hui? Investors ne pehle kyun nahi dekha?
2. Founder = Company nahi hota Ashneer genuinely BharatPe ko apna samajhte the. Lekin “main hoon toh company hai” — yeh soch kitni dangerous hai?
3. Spouse ko key role dena — ethical hai? Madhuri Jain Head of Controls thi — essentially apne hi husband ke expenses control kar rahi thi. Yeh conflict of interest nahi tha?
4. Culture top se aata hai Agar founder ka behavior — gaaliyan, aggression, entitlement — acceptable tha, toh company ke andar kaisa culture hoga?
5. Celebrity founder ka trap Shark Tank fame ne Ashneer ko untouchable feel karaaya. Kya investors ne usse zyada importance di kyunki woh famous tha?