Ritesh Agarwal

Most people spend their time observing success. The colleague who’s miles ahead. The startup that raised quicker. The founder who made it big. But success never comes from observation. It comes from building. Stop dreaming. Start doing.

Your thoughts and mindset would always have some influence of the environment you’re in. No, I am not asking you to start questioning your friendships, but as the timeless old saying still stands true, “You are the average of the five people you spend the most time with."

People usually see Shark Tank as a business show, which of course it is. But if you’ve spent enough time in rooms where ambition, money, conviction, disagreement, and suspense all show up together, you know there are moments that feel a lot more cinematic than corporate. This edit felt appropriate.

I’ll tell you why each of these qualities matters. Coachability and humility: startups are a constant feedback loop. If you can’t learn fast, you stall. Resilience: there will be weeks where everything breaks at once. You still have to show up and decide. Problem obsession: trends fade, real problems stay. The best founders keep iterating till it works. Adaptability: plans change. Facts change. You need to adjust quickly, without ego. Integrity: bad news always comes. Say it early and say it straight.

Referrals beat cold hiring almost every time. When someone you trust vouches for a person, you’re not starting from zero.

Your next hire, your next customer, your next investor, your next partner, all are probably one conversation away. Keep those conversations alive.

A day in my life. Early calls. Tough calls. Long hours. People often ask what the secret is. There isn’t one. I just show up. Every single day. When it’s exciting. When it’s messy. When no one’s watching. Consistency isn’t glamorous but it builds everything.

Honestly, you’ll have to make peace with the fact that a lot of people around you won't have faith in your entrepreneurial journey until it becomes a success story. And it’s perfectly fine as long as you have that faith. You’re anyway not in it for the applause.

The entrepreneurs who last aren't the ones who find it easy. They're the ones who decide it's worth it.

You may not believe it but entrepreneurship teaches you magic tricks too. My favourite trick is disappearing at the sight of the camera.

Entrepreneurship is a luxury. When I dropped out of college and asked my parents for that one chance, I genuinely felt this might be the only opportunity I would ever get to do something meaningful. If I wasted it, I couldn’t blame anyone else. That mindset changes how you work. You stop treating it like an experiment. You treat it like responsibility. In India, we don’t just need more startups. We need founders who understand the privilege of building. If you get the chance, approach it like it’s once in a lifetime.

Most pitches lose investors in the first minute. Too long. Too vague. Too focused on who's involved instead of what actually works. Your product is the story. Everything else is supporting cast. Say it fast. Say it clearly. Make them lean in. First impressions don't get second chances.

Being at Stanford reminded me that ecosystems don’t just create companies, they create courage. Here, failure is respected. Speed is normal. And ambition feels collective, not isolated. India doesn’t need to replicate Silicon Valley. We need to strengthen our own foundations with patience, resilience, and long-term belief.

Most founders think differentiation is about being better. Wrong. It's about being the only one who can do it this way. Your edge isn't in features. It's in the unfair advantage no one can copy. Find it. Build around it. Make it impossible to ignore.

With Season 5 going on, many people focus on the pitch. But investing doesn’t begin with a pitch, it begins with how scalable and defensible the business really is.  As Sharks, we’re constantly asking: Can this grow 10x? Is this solving a real problem? Is this founder thinking long term? So we decided to share a short series called “Taiyari Pitch Ki.” Through this, I’ll break down how Sharks evaluate businesses and what makes something truly investable. This isn’t only for entrepreneurs already in the market, it’s also for those who aspire to build something meaningful and scalable. Episode 1 focuses on Spotting a Shark-Worthy Opportunity. New episode every day.

Why settle for 8% when everyone's chasing double digits? Because optimization beats ambition when resources define the game.

I came for @seahawksPR vs @Patriots , stayed for the Bad Bunny halftime fiesta. These @NFL guys don’t just run, they launch. I’m over here comparing it to cricket like a confused math student. Then Bad Bunny shows up with Spanish hits, and the whole stadium dances. Next IPL season better come with reggaeton too!

No DeLorean. No TARDIS. Just entrepreneurship warping spacetime.

As one of the largest consumer brand investors and owners from India in the United States, this is a truly positive and timely outcome. India and the U.S. are natural partners, and we congratulate Hon’ble Prime Minister Shri @narendramodi ji and Hon’ble Commerce Minister Shri @PiyushGoyal ji on concluding this landmark agreement. As one of the world’s lowest-tariff economies, India is well positioned for its next phase of growth, and this agreement creates meaningful opportunities for both countries to learn from, invest in, and grow with each other. The two economies have complementary strengths, and there is immense potential in what they can build together. We would also like to acknowledge the Indian-American community in the U.S., who have not only been partners in our journey but have consistently championed a stronger India–U.S. relationship. This agreement is a validation of their long-held belief that closer ties between the two nations are good for businesses, people, and the broader global economy @ficci_india

Budget 2026–27 sends a strong signal of reform-led growth, with a clear focus on building a more connected and future-ready India. The continued push on infrastructure, along with proposals spanning improved logistics, freight corridors, waterways and faster inter-city connectivity, can be a meaningful enabler for travel and tourism, helping unlock demand across Tier 2 and Tier 3 destinations and creating large-scale employment in hospitality and allied services. The implementation of the Income Tax Act, 2025 from 1 April 2026, with simplified rules and redesigned forms, is an important step towards reducing compliance friction and improving certainty for taxpayers and businesses, which ultimately supports household confidence and spending. For startups and MSMEs, measures aimed at improving risk capital and working-capital access, such as the proposed SME Growth Fund, the top-up for micro-enterprise risk capital, and stronger payment/liquidity frameworks through platforms like TReDS, can help job creators scale faster and build more resilient businesses. Overall, the Budget reinforces long-term competitiveness while keeping growth broad-based and inclusive. #Budget2026