'Shark Tank India 2: Jewellery brand co-owner impresses judges with her story of struggle

MUMBAI : 'Shark Tank India 2' contestant Chinu Kala impressed the judges with her story of establishing herself as an entrepreneur after going through a lot of ups and downs in her life.

She shared how she left home at the age of 15 after an argument with her father with just Rs 300 in her hand and now she is a co-owner of a jewellery brand with her partner Amit Kala. Her story was so inspiring that Namita Thapar, Aman Gupta, and Vineeta Singh gave them a lucrative offer of Rs 1 crore for 1 per cent equity and Rs 50 lakh debt at a 12 per cent interest rate.

However, Anupam Mittal has an argument with Namita over the debt offer. He said that he is never in favour of debt while Namita asserted that debt is cheaper than equity. Anupam said: "Debt is not cheaper at this stage"

Chinu, who came on the show along with her partner for cracking a deal with the sharks and getting investment for her brand, recalled her days of struggle and said she left home at the age of 15 with just Rs 300 in her pocket. "I had an argument with my father and he asked me to leave the house immediately. I left home and stayed at a railway station for two days. I started looking out for work and was employed for a job selling door-to-door household products. It was not easy and I had nothing to eat. I cried a lot but decided not to go back to my place."

"There was just darkness around me and it was like I had no place to go. Then I participated in a beauty pageant. Then I realised how a piece of jewellery can change your entire look. And this is how I thought of entering this business. Today we are the fastest-growing jewellery brand. We started in 2014," she added.

Both Chinu and Amit asked for an investment of Rs 1.5 crore for 0.5 percent equity.

When the pitchers demanded that the equity part be replaced, Namita said that debt is cheaper than equity. Finally, they agreed and decided to go by the offer of Namita Thapar, Aman Gupta, and Vineeta Singh.

'Shark Tank India 2' is judged by Anupam Mittal (Founder and CEO of Shaadi.com - People Group), Aman Gupta (Co-Founder and CMO of boAt), Peyush Bansal (Founder and CEO of Lenskart.com), Namita Thapar (Executive Director of Emcure Pharmaceuticals), and Vineeta Singh (Co-Founder and CEO of SUGAR Cosmetics), and Amit Jain (CEO and Co-founder of CarDekho Group and InsuranceDekho.com).

'Shark Tank India 2' airs on Sony Entertainment Television.

Source : Ians