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The first episode of Shark Tank India 2 saw the co-owners of Recode pitching their cosmetic brand. While their business data impressed the sharks, they were also subjected to a lot of harsh feedback. Social media ever since has been abuzz criticising the ‘sharks’ for mocking the pitchers. Namita Thapar (Emcure), especially, was called out for declining to invest in them given her friend, Sugar’s Vineeta Singh, also owns a similar brand.
While Namita responded to the criticism via a social media post, co-founder Dheeraj Bansal shared that he had a fruitful experience on the show. In a chat with indianexpress.com, the entrepreneur said that he has received positive feedback for the episode. He also mentioned that he took the criticism in a positive sense and implemented changes suggested by them. “There has been tremendous feedback and we are seeing growth on social media also. While we did not get an investment, virality toh huyi (we got viral), hence, there is no regret. We have been doing good business for a long time but now people are talking about us and our products, which is a positive change. We had come on the show because of the success it gained last season, and I think we benefitted from our presence,” he shared.
The audiences called the sharks’ behaviour unfair but Dheeraj said that he understands their perspective and he couldn’t force anyone to invest in his company. He also said that he did not mind them saying they will not fund a company similar to their friend’s company.
“I did not mind their decision as it’s their hard-earned money and an individual has the right to choose who they want to invest in. Koi dikkat nahi lagi mujhe (I didn’t find it an issue). If I was a shark myself, maybe I too would have made a similar decision for a friend. I really didn’t find a problem,” he shared.
As readers would know, a section of people thought that Thapar was ‘making faces’ and Aman was ‘mocking’ the pitchers’ inability to speak in English fluently. Dheeraj Bansal did agree that he could have been treated better on the show if the sharks were a little ‘broad-minded’. He said, “Honestly, every person has a different personality and that’s what sets them apart. I think it’s upon the other person how they look at us. Also, we really had a nice pitch and were seeking good funding on the given valuation. As for the language, Hindi is our mother tongue and we speak it with pride, so we are happy in our zone.”
We further discussed how there could be similar brands as the sharks coming in the show and could end with the same fate as Recode. Dheeraj agreed that the makers could look at the format and filter out pitches accordingly. “However, I must add that Peyush Bansal (Lenskart) and Anupam Mittal (Shaadi.com) gave me rational reasons, so I don’t think we can question the format. Also, may be we could have had a chance if Amit Jain (CarDekho) was around.”
In the episode, while Sugar’s co-founder Vineeta Singh feigned ignorance about knowing a brand named Recode, Dheeraj Bansal had revealed Sugar follows his company on social media. When asked if Sugar still follows Recode, he laughed to say, “Woh toh mauke pe chauka hogaya tha. We had created quite an uproar in the market and this is why they must have followed us. It’s been a year and I don’t know why she said she didn’t know us. Swara Bhasker is our brand ambassador and we are doing great business.”
Shark Tank India 2 airs on Sony TV and SonyLIV.
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