The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly Angels

Founder Udham (or “Fudhu”, as his friends called him) had recently incorporated his start-up “Dream Labs”. As every other entrepreneur, Fudhu was looking for Angel Investors.

Fudhu asked his friends who had founded other start-ups, and had experience of raising money. He got to know of different stories about Angels.

The Good

One Founder met Angel Mowgli over a coffee. Mowgli heard the Founder story, and asked a few questions. In about 30-40 minutes, Mowgli decided to back the Founder. He committed INR 40 lakhs immediately. He said that part of the money will come through his network; and if there is any shortfall, he will personally put in the rest. The whole deal got signed off in one meeting.

The Bad

Another Founder met Angel Sher Khan at a conference. Sher Khan liked the Founder, but was not convinced about the business idea. He was blunt in rejecting the first idea. He challenged the Founder's thoughts, and probed on topics which the Founder had not pondered yet. The two of them had several follow-up discussions; the Founder kept refining his plan and kept making progress. In about 4 months, the Founder and Sher Khan got aligned. End outcome - Sher Khan and his network put in 2 Cr into the start-up.

The Ugly

Kaa was the leader of Nalayak Angels. Founder Bechara pitched in one of the Nalayak Angels’ regular events.?

Conversation immediately after the event:

Founder Bechara: So what was the feedback? Think you guys will invest?

Kaa: Oh, absolutely. People were excited. We have identified a Lead Investor - Chacha Chaudhary. Chacha will speak with you soon.

Conversation 2 weeks after the event:

Founder Bechara: What happened to Chacha? When can we have a call?

Kaa: Oh, sorry about that. Chacha had to travel. He will connect soon.

Chacha finally speaks ~4 weeks after the event. Conversation ~6 weeks after the event:

Founder Bechara: So what did Chacha say? Are you guys in or out?

Kaa: Oh, Chacha is super excited. He is cheering for you guys. He will get a group of investors together. We expect to put in 50L - 1 Cr in your start-up.

Conversation 8 weeks after the event:

Founder Bechara: What is the status? Are you guys investing or not?

Kaa: Hang in there, guys. These things take time. We are certainly excited. We will come in. By the way, while we have not yet confirmed how much money we are investing, we will ask our legal guys to speak with you soon… we need special terms and conditions.

Founder Bechara (in his mind): @#$%^&

Fudhu is hoping to get a Good Angel on his side. His search continues.

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{Ram (https://www.dhirubhai.net/in/ramakrishnanm ) has raised money for his start-up, as well as invested in other start-ups. This is part of a comical series on how people across the entire start-up ecosystem - Founders, Investors, LPs, Investment Bankers, Accelerators - are constantly selling dreams to each other}