Category: News

Kids-focused cultural learning brand Panda’s Box featured on Shark Tank India, where founders Rajat Mendiratta and Sukriti Mendiratta shared how they are building a content-led brand that blends Indian culture, storytelling, and interactive learning for young children.

During the pitch, the founders shared that Panda’s Box was founded in April 2022 as a cultural education company with a strong focus on children in the 0–2 years age group. The brand operates across categories such as plush toys, puzzles, sound boxes, sound books, and décor, with a clear emphasis on sensory and interactive learning rather than passive consumption.

The founders highlighted that Panda’s Box currently offers 40+ SKUs, with its key differentiator being interactive plush toys paired with audio-led content. Each product includes up to 30 minutes of storytelling and mantras, supported by a dedicated mantras library hosted on the brand’s website. The content spans stories, mantras, and cultural audio, reinforcing Panda’s Box’s education-first positioning.

At launch, the brand introduced Baby Krishna, Baby Ganesha, and Baby Hanuman plushies handmade, India-made divine toys priced at ₹799 (small), ₹999 (medium), and ₹1,599 (large). The founders also shared that the company has expanded into publishing with the recent launch of “My First Book of Mantras.”

On the business front, the founders presented a strong growth trajectory. Revenue stood at ₹53 lakh in FY 22–23, grew sharply to ₹2.93 crore in FY 23–24, and reached ₹8.77 crore in FY 24–25, with year-to-date sales of ₹8 crore. Looking ahead, Panda’s Box is projecting ₹14 crore in revenue for FY 25–26.

Profitability trends were also discussed during the pitch. EBITDA improved from ₹9 lakh in FY 22–23 to ₹13 lakh in FY 23–24, and further to ₹55 lakh in FY 24–25. While the brand currently reports YTD EBITDA of -₹49 lakh, the founders shared that they expect to reach EBITDA breakeven in FY 25-26.

In terms of distribution, Panda’s Box operates a diversified channel mix. About 33% of sales come from its own website, 37% from quick commerce platforms, 25% from Amazon, and the remaining 5% from other channels. The founders noted a 15% repeat rate YTD on the brand’s website (12% in FY 24–25), while Amazon listings maintain strong 4.5–4.6 star ratings. Channel-wise, the brand recorded 100% growth on its website in FY 24–25, with 40% YTD growth, and 30% YTD growth on Amazon.

Panda’s Box is currently bootstrapped. On the show, the founders shared that they are seeking ₹80 lakh for 2% equity, which puts the company’s valuation at ₹40 crore.

During the pitch, a deal was eventually closed with Aman Gupta and Namita Thapar, who invested ₹1.2 crore for 12% equity, along with a 2% royalty until the ₹1.2 crore amount is recovered. This deal values the company at ₹10 crore.

The founders also highlighted a key team milestone, sharing that October 2024 marked Rajat joining the business full-time, signaling deeper founder involvement as Panda’s Box enters its next phase of growth.

UPI-based voucher platform CotoPay stepped into the Shark Tank India with founders Aviral Gupta (CEO), Vidit Sidana (CBO), and Syed Uzair Ahmed (CTO), pitching a smarter way for businesses to control how digital money gets spent using India’s existing UPI rails.

At its core, CotoPay is all about bringing control and transparency to vouchers. Instead of handing out prepaid balances with little visibility, companies can issue UPI-linked vouchers that come with clear rules where the money can be spent, how long it’s valid, and full traceability of every transaction.

The founders explained that unlike traditional voucher systems, the money issued through CotoPay doesn’t immediately leave the company’s account. Funds stay within the company ecosystem until the voucher is actually redeemed. Employees or users simply scan a QR code and pay via UPI, while businesses retain full oversight on categories, usage, and spend behavior.

CotoPay kicked off closed user group testing in December 2025 and currently has five pilot users. The startup has already tied up with five banking partners and is initially focusing on SMEs and fleet operators. Its revenue model is straightforward, earning a 0.5% to 0.7% commission on the monthly transaction value processed through the platform.

The product is available via web, iOS, and Android, with key use cases ranging from corporate expense management to loyalty-driven spending programs.

In the Tank, the founders asked for ₹50 lakh for 1% equity, valuing the company at a Rs 50 crore valuation. After discussions, Anupam Mittal and Kunal Bahl came together to seal the deal Rs 75 lakh for 2% equity, plus 1% advisory equity, valuing CotoPay at ₹37.5 crore.

Before Shark Tank, CotoPay had already raised Rs 2.94 crore in 2024, with investors collectively holding 17.8% of the company. Among the founders, Aviral Gupta owns 45%, Vidit Sidana holds 35%, and Syed Uzair Ahmed has 20%.

AI-powered music creation platform Soundverse AI took the spotlight on Shark Tank India, where founders Sourabh Pateriya (CEO) and Riley Williams (CTO) shared how they are building a creator-first and ethical alternative in the rapidly evolving AI music ecosystem.

During the pitch, the founders shared that Soundverse AI was launched in January 2024 as an AI assistant for music and content creation, designed to give creators deeper control over how songs are generated, edited, and refined.

They highlighted a key industry concern: many AI music tools are trained on copyrighted tracks without authorisation and offer limited creative flexibility. Soundverse aims to solve this by training its foundation model exclusively on licensed data from artists, labels, and publishers, ensuring legal compliance while protecting creator rights.

Entering the Tank, the founders sought ₹1.35 crore for 1.5% equity, valuing the company at ₹90 crore.

The founders demonstrated Soundverse’s growing suite of AI-driven tools, which includes full song generation, editing and modification of existing tracks, and a dedicated Soundverse Agent to support end-to-end creative workflows. One of the platform’s standout features is “Sharks’ Suggestions,” which allows users to guide the AI using mood and style descriptors such as Hans Zimmer, Excited, or Charm. They also pointed to industry credibility, including a professional connection to Ash Pournouri, a judge from Swedish Idol.

Sharing traction metrics on the show, the founders revealed that Soundverse AI has crossed 25 lakh users (2.5 million) since inception, with around 1.7 lakh monthly active users as of May 2025. The platform is currently accessible via its website, the Apple App Store, and the Google Play Store.

Revenue growth, as shared during the pitch, accelerated significantly toward the end of 2025. Monthly revenues increased from ₹11 lakh in September 2025 to ₹13.5 lakh in October, before jumping sharply to ₹86 lakh in November.

Earlier in the year, revenues had grown steadily from ₹5.5 lakh in June 2025 to ₹9.5 lakh by August. Soundverse follows a subscription-led model, offering three monthly plans Creator (₹150), Pro (₹350), and Max (₹999) and currently operates at a monthly burn of around ₹15 lakh.

Looking ahead, the founders shared ambitious targets, aiming to reach ₹8–10 crore in ARR within the next 6–12 months.

After discussions, Namita Thapar closed the deal by investing ₹1.35 crore for 5% equity, bringing Soundverse AI’s valuation down to ₹27 crore.

Prior to its Shark Tank appearance, Soundverse AI was entirely bootstrapped, making Namita Thapar’s investment its first external funding.

Clean-label meat marinade brand Kilrr made a strong impression on Shark Tank India, where founder Hitesh Bhagia, an engineer and IIM Kozhikode alumnus shared his vision of simplifying meat cooking through preservative-free, ready-to-use spice mixes.

During the pitch, Bhagia explained that Kilrr was launched in December 2023 to address a clear gap in the market: convenient, flavourful marinades made specifically for meat dishes, without preservatives or artificial additives.

Positioned as an “unapologetically non-vegetarian” brand, Kilrr caters to fitness-focused consumers, modern home cooks, and convenience seekers. Its tagline, “Slay the mess, savour the taste,” reflects the brand’s promise of ease without compromising on taste.

Entering the Tank, the founder sought ₹1 crore for 1% equity, valuing the company at ₹100 crore.

Bhagia shared that Kilrr’s current portfolio includes 11 powdered marinade variants and three gravy mixes, each priced at ₹70, with an average order value of ₹660. All products use 100% vegetarian ingredients, with dehydrated vegetables blended directly into the masalas.

The brand maintains a strict clean-label stance, with no preservatives, artificial flavours, additives, or added sugar, resulting in a six-month shelf life, lower than industry norms but aligned with its natural positioning.

On the operations front, Kilrr set up its manufacturing unit in March 2024 and began scaling sales soon after. Financials shared on the show revealed ₹2.6 crore in net sales in FY24–25, with momentum picking up sharply ₹2.5 crore each in Q1 and Q2 of FY25–26. For the current fiscal year, the startup is projecting ₹13 crore in net sales, while operating at a projected -25% EBITDA as it continues to invest aggressively in growth.

The founder also outlined the company’s unit economics. Kilrr operates with 65% gross margins, while COGS account for 35%, logistics and packaging for 12%, and marketing spends exceed 50% of revenue. Monthly fixed costs stand at around ₹22 lakh. The brand has already fulfilled over 2,000 pilot orders and reports a 35% cumulative retention rate.

Sales are currently driven largely through direct-to-consumer channels, with 55% of revenue coming from Kilrr’s own website and 35% via quick commerce platforms.

After negotiations, Anupam Mittal closed the deal by investing ₹1 crore for 1.06% equity, bringing Kilrr’s valuation to approximately ₹94.3 crore, subject to customer-love and legal diligence.