In a fiery monologue that has sparked intense debate in India’s startup ecosystem, Republic TV’s Arnab Goswami delivered a blunt, no-holds-barred critique of what he sees as a growing disconnect between hype and real innovation in the Indian startup space. In his remarks, Arnab Goswami slams India’s startup culture.
His comments came in the wake of the shutdown of BluSmart, an electric vehicle ride-hailing company, which ceased operations after SEBI (the Securities and Exchange Board of India) issued a damning interim order. According to the findings, BluSmart’s founders Anmol Singh Jaggi and Punit Singh Jaggi, also associated with Gensol Engineering allegedly submitted forged documents to hide loan defaults, diverted public funds, and spent lavishly on personal luxuries like expensive apartments and golf equipment. While the company folded, the promoters, it seems, walked away richer.
But Arnab’s critique wasn’t limited to BluSmart. He also targeted what he called “the ripped jeans culture,” a symbol of the trendy, copy-paste startup model that values high valuations over real value and focuses on burn rates instead of solid business fundamentals.
“There’s this new trend where people wear ripped jeans, act cool, and pitch themselves as the next Mark Zuckerberg, while all they’re really doing is delivering dosas to someone’s house,” he said. The comment, equal parts scathing and satirical, was a reflection of a deeper frustration one that many in the ecosystem privately share.
Arnab went on to describe a troubling pattern: young founders raising massive funding rounds, running companies deep into losses, showcasing token profits just before an IPO, and then exiting with millions, often leaving behind retail investors, employees, and small shareholders to suffer the fallout.
“This isn’t entrepreneurship,” he said. “It’s strategic deception disguised as innovation.”
He didn’t stop at BluSmart. Arnab also mentioned a Bengaluru-based fintech startup, reportedly valued at $5 billion, which spends heavily on marketing but does little more than offer a payment gateway for credit card bills while posting massive losses year after year. Another founder, he claimed, drives a ₹5 crore Aston Martin despite his company bleeding money.
In stark contrast, Arnab pointed to his own experience founding Republic TV a first-generation media startup built from scratch. “We worked hard for profitability. We hired people, built careers, launched products, and kept our balance sheet clean,” he said. “That’s what real entrepreneurship should look like.”
The rant soon shifted into a powerful call for introspection. “Where are our Teslas, our Neuralinks, our Starlinks?” he asked. “Why aren’t we leading in AI, semiconductors, or biotech?”
According to Arnab, of the over 31,000 registered startups in India, only about 500 are actually doing anything truly innovative. The rest, he said, are simply recycling global ideas, dressing them up with a desi touch, and selling the dream of a startup success story.
One of the most cutting observations came when he said, “Even before they start building anything, all these founders care about is their valuation and when they can exit.”
The obsession with funding and exits, he argued, has replaced the focus on solving real problems. “This is not a startup culture. This is a cash-burning race to IPO, designed for founders to cash out and disappear to Goa or Gurgaon in luxury,” he said.
He also drew comparisons to past financial scandals, saying the misuse of public lender funds in the BluSmart case reminded him of the Vijay Mallya saga. “There’s no shame in failing as an entrepreneur. But there’s something deeply wrong in being a fraud,” he stated.
Arnab further criticized companies promising 10-minute grocery deliveries and other speed-focused gimmicks, calling them “marketing illusions,” not real businesses. “Delivering groceries in 8 minutes isn’t innovation. It’s just logistics under pressure,” he remarked.
Perhaps the most thought-provoking part of his commentary was aimed at the media, investors, and policymakers who continue to glorify such ventures. “We keep celebrating the same people in 30-under-30 and 40-under-40 lists who retire the week after their IPOs. What are we really encouraging?”
As someone who’s built a startup himself, Arnab emphasized that he’s not anti-startup. “We are a startup ourselves. We’re proud of it. But we’ve built it on principles, not pump-and-dump tactics,” he said.
The message was clear: it’s time for India to stop chasing vanity metrics and start building real value. Startups need to be more than just flashy branding and pitch decks. They should stand for integrity, invention, and long-term impact.
His final appeal was to founders, investors, and institutions alike: “Wake up. Smell the coffee. We need to stop replicating the West and start leading with original ideas.”
For a country brimming with talent and potential, Arnab’s tirade may just be the uncomfortable but necessary reality check the ecosystem needed.
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