Last weekend, I planned for a trip to a city, where I had spent a good amount of time during my college days. This time, it was supposed to be a leisure trip after getting done with one of our key projects at the work.
It had been quite a while since I left the place, though I occasionally returned to catch up with some good old friends.
Initially, we had only planned to visit a junior colleague at the hostel and return, but on our way back, we chose to stay longer. My co-founder Manas and I decided to meet some senior staff members on the campus.
We asked the driver to wait in the parking area while we proceeded toward the premises.
We respectfully greeted both staff members present over there by touching their feet, following our cultural tradition. They warmly inquired about our well-being and expressed their joy seeing us back on the campus after so many years.
One of them soon had to leave to attend to some work, while we stayed back with the other.
With his signature cunning smile, he looked at me and asked, “So, Sourav! What’s the value of your company’s share?” I was momentarily taken aback, initially assuming it was just a light humor, given that he was aware of our business venture.
I humbly replied, “Sir, we haven’t gone for an IPO yet, so there isn’t much to discuss on that front.” He didn’t seem too convinced. Instead, he pressed further, asking, “Then tell me about your net worth!”
For a moment, I wondered—are we some Tata or Birla to have a net worth, even worth discussing? We were just two founders who had started seeing some light after relentless struggles in our startup journey. Manas and I exchanged a brief smile but chose not to respond.
He didn’t stop there. Taking it a step further, he asked, “So, what’s your turnover for the FY 2024-25?”
At that moment, we realized—this entire conversation was just his way of figuring out how much we were earning. Fair enough!
That’s probably the first thing you’d ask a pair of your old students! No hard feelings—it’s the Shark Tank inspired generation, after all!
Manas quoted a number to give a sense of our financial standing. Without missing a beat, he immediately responded, “Oh! That’s really Low, boys!”
He then went on to mention a few names from our circle who were doing significantly better in terms of numbers—the names we were already well aware of.
After all, we were there for a casual conversation, not for a discussion on investment strategies. We explained about our recent projects to give him an impression of our growth story, but that seemed to fall short in front of his ambitious talks!
What surprised us even more was that he had personally visited the offices of those founders he mentioned and still maintained close ties with them to serve his own interests. Clearly, we weren’t part of that club.
As he continued talking about their ongoing projects, I couldn’t help but wonder—was he flaunting his corporate connections or subtly trying to undermine us?
Just then, a junior student approached him. He took the opportunity to introduce us, and out of nowhere, he insisted that we arrange an internship for the student. A few minutes ago, we weren’t even in his league, and now we were suddenly his go-to recruiters? The irony was almost amusing!
Manas suggested a few companies where the student could apply, but before he could finish, the staff member cut him off and demanded that we secure the internship within the next 2-3 days. He was trying to check on our capabilities.
It was clear he had preconceived notions about us—assuming we made big promises but never followed through. This whole interaction felt shockingly unprofessional, making me realize why so many alumni never bothered looking back at the campus!
In front of the junior, he casually brought up some uncomfortable matters about one of our business colleagues who wasn’t even present that day. Surprised, I asked how he knew about those happenings. With an evil smile again, he went on saying, he keeps an eye on everything—almost as if it were his official duties!
He then started probing into our personal backgrounds, trying to piece together connections he could potentially hook upto. He even asked about our office rent and the other advantages we had—none of which seemed remotely relevant to him.
Soon, he began sharing some of his own startup ideas for building a brand, though they weren’t even worth mentioning here. As I had said before, it’s a Shark Tank-inspired generation—where many are mere commentators in the startup world.
They’ve never played a single over on the ground, yet they act like they know it all—thanks to the endless theoretical knowledge they absorb from the internet!
As founders, we always welcome constructive criticism and new ideas—but they need to be delivered with dignity. Otherwise, what’s the point of being part of a civilized society? Criticizing is the easiest thing to do, but if he was genuinely concerned, he could have gone a step further—offering solutions or sharing useful contacts.
Instead, it felt like he was either expecting some kind of loyalty from us or simply trying to exert a bit of dominance. Nevertheless the tough waters of corporate have made us strong enough to stand through these anyday.
We had no idea that the joyful steps we had taken forward in the campus would lead us straight into trouble, where we’d be put through intense grilling. Honestly, we weren’t prepared for it—especially as two business professionals who had set aside the load of their corporate roles to reconnect as normal old students.
That was quite disturbing. It took me nearly three hours to wipe off the negativity of that toxic conversation.
We’ve always believed to Win in the Market & nowhere else. Answering people outside of marketplace is a waste of time.
This episode is just another passing chapter in our journey, soon to fade away like countless others before it!
A handful of people are taking the risk of entrepreneurship and that needs to be backed with care, instead of getting bullied by the powerhouses. Nobody is expecting grand applauses, but a basic societal acceptance would go a long way!
