‘I got fired from my job’: Shark Tank India’s Anupam Mittal shares journey of becoming a millionaire

Anupam Mittal, Shark Tank India judge, founder and chief executive officer of People Group and Shaadi.com, shared his journey of becoming a millionaire at the age of early 20s, in an interview with Himesh Madaan on the YouTube channel ‘Himeesh Madaan’.

Mittal shed light on the life lessons he learnt and the challenges he faced while on his way to becoming a multi-millionaire. He also mentioned that he was fired from his job, after which he started the popular wedding portal Shaadi.com. 

“My career was on steroids. I was a multi-millionaire in my early 20s. I got fired from my job. And that’s when I started Shaadi.com. I was gutted when I was laid off. But it was the best thing that could’ve happened to me,” said Mittal in a conversation with the YouTuber.

Mittal has been vocal about his life lessons and journey; he told the podcast host that getting fired was probably the best thing that could happen to him.

Mittal was working for an American tech company, MicroStrategy. He owned stock options as an employee, and thanks to the dot com boom of the year 2000, Anupam Mittal became a multi-millionaire. 

“I had joined as a sales consultant but very quickly I rose through ranks to become the director of strategic partnerships so I had a lot of stock options and had become a multi-millionaire in my early twenties,” said the angel investor in the Barbershop podcast earlier this year.

During the dot com bubble, the company's valuation became a whopping $40 billion, compared to its earlier level of $100 million. 

Highlighting the risks of the business, Mittal focused on standing ground and taking risks. He highlighted his experience of turning down offers and acknowledged that one has to decide and stand by their choices. 

“I have received so many offers, I could’ve walked away with a $100 million. ₹800 crore is not a small amount. I turned those offers down. I’ve sold a couple of companies for smaller amounts, but I’m still taking risks. There will come a time when I look back and say that I made the right choice,” Mittal told the YouTuber.