In a recent episode of Shark Tank India Season 4, Ayush Chauhan, a young entrepreneur and founder of Dacby Technologies, took the stage to pitch his innovative business.

Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) dropout Ayush revealed that he buys and resells used game consoles and accessories online through his business. Seeking Rs 75 lakh for 2.2% equity, Ayush valued his company at Rs 34.09 crore.

He also convinced two of his batch mates to join him, but when the business didn’t pan out, it led to conflict between him and his co-founders, forcing Ayush to buy out his stake. He revealed that he went into debt to do so, adding that he is operating at a loss.

In response to OYO’s Ritesh Agarwal, who is also a judge on the platform, Ayush said that he has only Rs 4,000 left in his personal bank account and has not received a salary in over a year.

He said he has already raised funding of around Rs 2 crore but is burning through around Rs 5 lakh per month. Of this, it pays Rs 3.5 lakh as salaries to its 16 employees and has a balance of Rs 15 lakh. When asked how he survives, Ayush said his father gives him Rs 30,000 as pocket money every month.

Despite his challenges, Ayush’s determination impressed everyone, including Namita Thapar, who turned to Ritesh Agarwal and commented, “He reminds me of you, Ritesh.”

This reminded Ritesh of his early days. “I used to live in a barsaati, I couldn’t tell my parents because they would have called me home,” he said, offering Ayush Rs 10 lakh as a grant through his office, but only for his personal use .

However, Aman Gupta was blunt in his assessment. “You have made many mistakes. You left IIT, you made your friends leave IIT, you took money from your parents, you raised money from investors. If I call you a good entrepreneur, I will make a mistake,” he said. “You are not a good entrepreneur. You are not cut out for this. My suggestion to you, don’t do business.”