Entrepreneur and Shaadi.com founder Anupam Mittal, who also appears as one of the investors on the business reality show Shark Tank India, recently opened up about his investments made through the show and how the process unfolds behind the scenes. Anupam revealed that while the “Sharks” commit to deals on television, not all of them actually go through after detailed verification and due diligence. Speaking to Pinkvilla, he shared, “We question them and we assume whatever they’re telling us is the truth. We only get one hour time to question them. You see the pitch in 15 minutes after editing. After the show, we do due diligence and if there is a difference of 5-10% then it’s okay, but if they have lied outrightly, then obviously, they fail the due diligence.” Talking about how his investments have fared, Anupam said, “Out of the 40-50 investments I have made, 8-10 are doing well and about 6 of them are doing very well. Those six have reached Rs 10 to 50 crore revenue range which is good according to Shark Tank lens. Because when they came to the Tank, they were running Rs 20-30 lakhs per month.” Anupam also disclosed the total sum he has committed to businesses through Shark Tank India. “Total, I might have committed Rs 30-35 crore and from that (after due diligence) I would have actually invested half of that amount about Rs 15-20 crore,” he revealed. The entrepreneur also shared his personal investment advice, stressing the importance of traditional assets like gold and property. He admitted that he once advised his wife against buying gold — a decision he now regrets. “That gold she bought has become 3 to 4X. From what face do I now tell you not to invest in gold. An embarrassed person is telling you now that it is always a good idea to invest in gold.” He added, “What our ancestors used to say — that invest in gold and a house — that has a lot of wisdom. I am not saying that it should be your only investing strategy, but when you have money, buy a primary home. These YouTube people say that you will get 3% yield if you rent, but that money will come only if you are able to save some money. If you have a home, you never have to worry about rent and you can take more risk.” Anupam also revealed that he missed out on investing in the online food delivery giant Swiggy. “Swiggy had come, and we almost had a deal, but something happened… it happens sometimes. I don’t have to invest in every good company,” he said. During a rapid-fire round, when asked to share his first thought about fellow Shark Tank India personalities, Anupam had a cheeky response. When Ashneer Grover’s name was mentioned, he instantly replied, “Kaun?” while calling Aman Gupta his “buddy.”
