₹120 Crores Raised. ₹0 in the Bank.

A Wake-Up Call for the Startup Ecosystem

By Rajeev YSR | Entrepreneur | Founder Mentor | EV Visionary

Recently, Harsh Pokharna — founder of OkCredit and IIT Kharagpur alum — shared something brutally honest:

“₹120 crores raised. ₹0 in the bank.”

It wasn’t just a headline — it was a gut punch.
Because I’ve seen this story unfold up close — with friends, with founders I’ve mentored, and even in my own journey.

The Illusion of “Making It”

Raise a big round 💰
Get featured in the media 📰
Start trending on LinkedIn 🌟

And everyone assumes you’ve arrived.
But behind the applause?

You’re:

• Struggling to make rent 🏠
  
• Skipping meals 🍛
  
• Praying your UPI works at the grocery store 🛒
  

This isn’t rare — it’s routine.

The System Is Broken

Founders are expected to be:

• Hungry 🍽️
  
• Desperate 😓
  
• Compliant ✔️
  …but never secure 💼
  

And when a first-time founder dares to ask for a liquidity window — to pay off loans, support family, or simply breathe — they’re told:

“It’ll kill your hunger.”

Here’s the twisted irony:

🌴 The same system that preaches sacrifice to new founders…
💼 Has no problem backing serial entrepreneurs with beach houses and retirement funds.

It’s not just hypocritical — it’s broken.

Founders Deserve Stability, Not Just Survival

As someone who’s:

• Built companies from the ground up 🧱
  
• Faced the grind of entrepreneurship ⚙️
  
• Mentored founders across India’s startup landscape 🚀
  

Let me say this clearly:

💬 Money doesn’t make founders weak — it makes them fearless.

It clears the noise.
It relieves the anxiety.
It gives room for bold thinking, sharp action, and courageous building.

Stop Glorifying Suffering

To every founder carrying this silent burden 🎒 —
You are not alone.
You are not wrong for wanting stability and dignity along with your dreams.

💔 Let’s stop celebrating burnout.
❤️ Let’s start championing founders as humans — not just hustlers.You deserve to win.
And you don’t need to be broken to build something great.