Anupam Mittal stops heartbroken 20-year-old Shark Tank India pitcher from leaving empty-handed, reverses decision because of last-minute crisis of conscience

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Anupam Mittal praised his grit, but said that the classifieds industry has gotten the better of many entrepreneurs. He also brought up Amazon, and said that they can easily take over the market if they want. For these reasons, he backed out of the deal. Namita Thapar agreed with Anupam’s points, and said that there might not be a market for classifieds anymore. But Vineeta Singh disagreed. She said that Indians are hesitant about throwing away used books, because they view them as Saraswati. That being said, she didn’t invest in Sanjay’s business. Ritesh Agarwal praised Sanjay’s determination to succeed, and offered offline mentorship, but didn’t invest either. Finally, Kunal Bahl backed out as well, citing the issue of trust.

Just as Sanjay was about to leave empty-handed, Anupam spoke up. “Mujhe bechaini ho rahi hai,” he said. “When I was your age, I didn’t have a mentor to tell me how to run a business. I think you need a real mentor, because your stubbornness is a quality. And I would be betraying my beliefs if I don’t support a boy who reminds me of myself. I’m going to give you your dream deal. If not this, we’ll build something else,” he said.

Anupam offered Sanjay the Rs 40 lakh that he asked for, leaving the young entrepreneur emotional. “I would’ve had sleepless nights if I didn’t make you a deal,” Anupam told him, handing over a cheque.