shark tank - which side are you on?

my twitter feed is full of folks who come from two india’s — one who are dissing the show mainly because of the brash sharks (few, not all) and others who are busy explaining that how the show is meant for a different tg, basically, a wider ‘bharat’ audience.

here’s my perspective.?there are 3 sides to this story.

1. sony — great timing (the hoo haa about startups is at an all-time high) and launch buzz. great set, music (inspired from the og) etc. full feels. what are they interested in — trp’s and $$. so all the drama where ashneer grover shouts “mein tera do gala pan nikalta hun” is great for them. that line alone created the most buzz online. the world divided in their opinions is exactly what they need as it leads to more opinions, views and tweets → higher trp’s → more advertising $$.?founders winning, bharat learning about startups is the by-product.?

2. sharks — good selection from the startup world but what are they primarily interested in? they are all leveraging the show to build their personal brands. nothing wrong with that, mind you. it’s super cool to be a shark. investing in startups and maybe an upside there is the by-product.?

3. the founders — pretty obvious why they are there. to raise $$. marketing is the by-product for now but as the history of the original show tells us, this can soon become the primary reason to appear on the show.?

what have i enjoyed about the show —

1. the drama. hate it or love it all the masala, arguing, deal-making is fun.?
2. the snippets where sharks explain concepts like tam, cac etc. great addition to the show.?
3. entrepreneurs who might not have access to the ecosystem in india now have a massive platform to talk about their products.?
4. the stories — two women in their 50’s from a small town in bihar building a pickle business. how else would you ever hear about them. the way they answered all the questions was heartwarming and i was rooting for them to get funded and was gutted when they didn't. almost like a sports game when you cheer for an underdog. (you can order the pickles and read more about their story here — https://www.jhajistore.com/).?

what have i not enjoyed about the show —

1. ashneer grover — he goes on and on about how he built 3 brands, how he knows everything in this world, how he is always right blah blah blah. no one cares, ashneer.?

2. aman gupta — calling brands fuddu, mocking brand names, licious toh apna bhai hai, i know marketing like no one else, brand toh mein bana dunga, design toh mein theek kardunga and he goes on and on and on.?

3. more camaraderie between the judges — feels like they are still a bit unsure of what lines to cross.?

4. upgrad masters in business analytics — if you know you know.?

overall i think it delivers much more than i thought it would.?and if you think this blog didn't deliver as much, well it’s for a different tg.?

here’s an idea that i’m sure all sharks will fund–a new sony live app.?