Gaurav Taneja, popularly known as the Flying Beast, entered Shark Tank India with growing numbers and a bold vision for his protein brand, Beast Life.

Taneja valued his company at Rs 100 crore and announced revenue of Rs 1 crore within the first hour of its launch.

However, while his achievements impressed some of the Sharks, Anupam Mittal wasn’t buying the hype.

Mittal was sharply critical of Taneja’s approach, questioning whether the social media influencer could really commit to building a sustainable business. “When I started out, I was a lot like you. I thought of myself as a star, but when you think of yourself as a star, you think of yourself as infallible,” Mittal commented, drawing on his own entrepreneurial journey. He emphasized that entrepreneurship demands relentless focus and full-time dedication. “You can’t spend time on startups, you have to be there all the time. It’s not that I don’t trust you, but I trust Indian entrepreneurship. They won’t let a part-timer like you win.

Beast Life’s impressive performance (Rs 14 crore in revenue for six months and a projected Rs 35 crore for the year) earned Taneja praise from Vineeta Singh, who called the numbers “al· shining”. However, the details behind the pitch raised eyebrows. Taneja revealed that he owns 30% equity while his co-founder, Raj, has only 11%. Aman Gupta pointed out this imbalance, noting that Taneja could easily leave if the company failed. “There’s a difference between an investor and a founder,” Gupta said before turning off.

Vineeta Singh and Peyush Bansal also decided not to invest, citing concerns about the company’s scalability and reliance on Taneja’s personal brand. Singh admired the successes, but doubted the long-term sustainability of the model. Mittal, however, took a tougher stance and warned Taneja and the other sharks: “Don’t get carried away, it’s Rs 14 crore in six months. He presents himself as a co-founder. Which influencer-led brand has made money for its investors?”