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Aman Gupta tells Shark Tank India pitchers ‘bhai mere liye to nahi hai’, calls Japanese-style pod hotels ‘useless concept’
On the lates episode of Shark Tank India 5, two brands providing pod hotel services lost out on funding from the Sharks. While Aman Gupta said the concept was not meant for him, Anupam Mittal called it underwhelming.
Aman Gupta Anupam Mittal school pod hotel founders on Shark Tank India 5 (Photos: SonyLiv Screengrab)
On the latest episode of Shark Tank India 5, judges Aman Gupta, Anupam Mittal, Kunal Bahl, Namita Thapar, and Mohit Yadav witnessed pitchers from Delhi and Karnatak bring their pod hotel business to India. While they compared these versions to the pod hotels in Japan, both the brands – Nap Tap Go and BLR Pods, lost out on funding after they failed to convince the Sharks that this concept could scale in India.
About Nap Tap Go and BLR Pods
Nap Tap Go is a pod hotel providing hourly pods and flexible check-ins. It’s a budget hotel with high hygiene standards. Founded by Himanshu Shukla and Nitin Malhotra from Delhi, they came to the tank asking for an investment of Rs 2 crores in return for 2.5 percent equity, valuing their company at Rs 80 crores. When the founder spoke about selling a previous start-up at a Rs 45 crores valuation, the Sharks were impressed.
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The Nap Tap Go founders shared that in 2023-24, they made a revenue of Rs 20 lakhs, and faced a loss of Rs 50 lakhs. In 2024-25, they earned Rs 1.1 crore and their loss was Rs 1 crore. Year to date, they have done sales of Rs 1.2 crores and are estimated to close at Rs 3.5 crores. So far, their loss is projected to be Rs 1.5 crore.
As for BLR Pods, they manage to impress the Sharks, stating that they were a micro-hotel, which is pocket-friendly. Stating they are bootstrapped, the Sharks found their pods more appealing. While Aman Gupta complained about the pods being claustrophobic, Kunal pointed out that these pods were very similar to those quite popular in Japan. Aman said, “Bhai yeh mere jaiso ke liye toh hai nahi,” as he added that he felt claustrophobic soon after going inside.
Unlike Nap Tap Go, BLR Pods is profitable. In 2024-25, they earned Rs 66 lakhs with an EBITDA of Rs 14 lakhs; their profit after tax was Rs 73,000. Year to date, they have done business of Rs 46 lakhs with an EBITDA of Rs 14 lakhs. With 70 percent occupancy at all times, at a 50 percent return ratio, also impressed the Sharks.
Aman Gupta calls it a useless concept, and Anupam finds the pods underwhelming
Sharing their feedback, the Sharks didn’t make any offers to either of the founders. Opting out of Nap Tap Go, Aman Gupta said, “Your pod gives a hostel-like feel; it is just surrounded by plastic. One pod in a room is a useless concept, never heard of; there is something not right in your model, so I am out.” Kunal Bahl also added, “The biggest issue in your business is its in a no man’s land, it’s neither a budget hotel, nor is it cost efficient. So I am out.”
Namita also tapped out and said, “I would agree with Kunal, we heard BLR Pods pitch too, and even at 70 percent capacity, they were profitable, they have done optimum utilization of real estate. Your positioning is not so sharp that you can make profits, and your numbers show that too. I am not getting that confidence, so I am out.” Mohit Yadav said, “Once this gets popular, some brand will come and scale this faster. I am not getting the comfort that you’ll become a household name, so I am out.”
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Anupam Mittal also backed out and said, “I think this will grow. India is a low-capita GDP and value-seeking market. For Rs 800 to 1000, you will find many people to take a room. The problem is that you have positioned yourself as a luxury, which raises the expectation. This cannot be the definition of luxury; your missions were quite underwhelming, so I am out.”
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BLR Pods also had similar feedback. Namita Thapar told the founders, “I like that you guys have a focused positioning. But I feel it will be difficult to scale beyond an industry-specific use case. I am not able to visualize that it can create awareness on a Pan India level; for that reason, I am out.” Anupam Mittal added, “I am convinced this will be a huge business, but the question is what’s the differentiation? Anybody can do this; there is no USP, so I am out.”
Mohit Yadav said, “The user cases for this can be defined, but still, that is not clear, so I am out.” Kunal Bahl also added, “Between the two companies, I like you guys more, but there is an issue in differentiation. It reminds me of the early days of electric two-wheelers; everyone thought it would be a big space, but there was no clarity. So I am out today.” Aman Gupta also added, “I don’t think the pod market can grow in India. Just because something worked in Japan doesn’t mean it will work in India too. India will do some jugaad, so I don’t see this scale beyond a point, so I am out.”
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