Startup journeys are often a roller-coaster ride. One needs sheer grit and determination are two absolute requirements, in addition to skill and talent.
The story that Vikram Pai, a Bengaluru startup founder, has shared on X has garnered interest for the same reason. Pai, the co-founder of a referral app named ReferRush, took to X to share his gratitude to Zerodha co-founder Nikhil Kamath after the startup secured the WTFund grant.
Pai said that over six years, he had five failed businesses from which he earned and lost Rs 2 crore. "6 years. 5 failed businesses. Rs 2 crores earned and lost... They called me Elon Musk. Half my body got paralysed. I went down to my last Rs 4,000 and couldn’t pay co-founders salary. Here’s the screenshot before I sent him Rs 36,000 for the month. He had responsibilities," he said.
"Everyone told me to quit. Even my grandma questioned me. I was called delusional. Dad said I was ‘playing business’. Aunties gossiping about my career. My mom lost belief. My best friend betrayed me. I cried," he continued in the long post on X.
However, he said he never lost his belief in himself. "I always had food and a home. That’s all I needed. Today @referrush was selected as one of 9 out of 2400+ companies for the @TheWTFund grant. It took us 4 months to generate Rs 1 lakh for our customers. Today we’re generating Rs 1.5 lakh a day. We’re profitable. And we’re just getting started," Pai shared.
"The first five years aren’t where you win. It’s where you get good. Grateful for my parents. For Rohan. For this opportunity. For this life. Never give up. Believe in yourself. Every e-commerce brand in the world will use @ReferRush. We are inevitable. Follow me for the road to a 100,000 crore company," he concluded as he thanked Kamath.
Kamath-backed WTFund has launched its second cohort of 22 founders across nine startups. The initiative provides up to Rs 20 lakh in grant funding, along with mentorship and strategic support, helping early-stage startups scale their impact.