Shark Tank’s Anupam Mittal lives in a small house with 20 relatives and can’t afford food: ‘I don’t have…’

Anupam Mittal became a household name by hosting Shark Tank India for three consecutive years. Now the company is offering him equity for free, but for a while he faced challenges like everyone else. Speaking on the Barbershop Podcast, Anupam recalled his journey as an entrepreneur, from living in a small apartment in Mumbai to becoming a multi-millionaire in his twenties. He noted that while his father was successful in the textile business, there was a time when they were not well off.

He shared, “We didn’t realize it as kids, but there were 20 of us living in a 1,000-square-foot house. People slept on the dining table, under the dining table. But as a kid, you don’t think about that. You love having so many kids around”.

As time passed and his father became successful, Anupam went to the United States to study. However, he had difficulty finding work there. He decided not to tell his parents as they would insist that he return to India. He also revealed that he had no money. Talking about his predicament, he recalled: “The situation now is that I have no money, and if I ask them for money, they will say, ‘Where is your salary?’ I have no money. This is the first time I feel Hunger. This is something everyone should do once in a while because experiencing hunger can teach you a lot. One time I didn’t eat for two or three days because I couldn’t eat. How long can friends help? They will help, but You also feel bad after a while…the credit cards are maxed out and it’s over. Even though I wasn’t living on the streets, I did experience some level of deprivation.”

But Anupam’s luck changed and he became a multi-millionaire in his early 20s. “It’s crazy, I never imagined it. I ordered a sports car and we used to have parties at the stadium and our company parties on cruise ships. This is a new level,” he said.