Shark Tank India Season 5 Episode 17 Review

Shark Tank India Season 5 Episode 17 Review

Episode 17 of Shark Tank India Season 5 presented an unusual scenario where three pitches unfolded, but only two sets of entrepreneurs walked into the tank—revealing a strategic dual-pitch approach that sparked controversy among the Sharks. The episode showcased founders navigating multiple ventures simultaneously, testing the Sharks’ patience and highlighting fundamental questions about entrepreneurial focus versus diversification.

Episode Summary

Success Rate: 2 out of 3 deals closed

Total Investment: ₹3 Crore deployed across two successful pitches

Key Theme: The episode centered on the risks and rewards of running multiple businesses simultaneously, with founders facing intense scrutiny over divided attention and commitment.

Pitch 1

Pure Flow Shark Tank India Episode Review

Pure Flow Tape appeared on Shark Tank India Season 5, Episode 17, with co-founders Parikshit Batra, Jashanjot Singh Bindra (inspired by personal mouth-breathing struggles), and Dev Sharma (who met at Hyderabad bar July 2023) seeking ₹1 Crore for 3.3% equity (₹30 Crore valuation) but left with no deal as all five Sharks declined.

The body-care brand offers non-medicated nasal strips with spring-like bands expanding nasal passages and mouth tape encouraging natural nasal breathing during sleep, addressing urban air pollution and poor sleep hygiene with immediate relief. Growing from ₹65 lakh (FY 2024-25) to projected ₹8 Crore gross sales (FY 2025-26).

With 434 monthly organic visitors, they faced harsh criticism—Namita backed out over running two simultaneous brands and low repeat customers while correcting sleep apnea definitions, Kunal viewed it as “product-selling” not sustainable brand, Mohit called it “dropshipping” from China without internal R&D, Anupam advised against being “opportunistic” urging single-brand focus, and Aman reminisced about importing from China but didn’t offer. Operating in India’s $2.5 billion sleep market (8-10% CAGR) with 14 of world’s 20 most polluted cities and 30% post-pandemic increase in preventive healthcare spending, Pure Flow targets sleep-deprived professionals (25-45), performance athletes, and biohackers within 480 million urban population and 5-7 million active fitness enthusiasts seeking drug-free respiratory solutions.

Pitch 2

Get Snappy Shark Tank India Episode Review

Get Snappy appeared on Shark Tank India Season 5, Episode 17, with founders Parikshit Batra, Jashanjot Singh Bindra, Dev Sharma (who also run Pure Flow Tape), and Harshita Joshi (met at Goa bar) seeking ₹60 lakh for 5% equity (₹12 Crore valuation) and successfully closed a deal for ₹2 Crore for 20% equity (₹10 Crore valuation) with Shark Aman Gupta after other Sharks declined.

The fashion-fix brand offers Snappy Body Glue—an all-purpose skin-safe, water-soluble, clear-drying adhesive keeping clothing/accessories in place as alternative to safety pins, scaling explosively from ₹2 lakh (May 2025) to ₹14 lakh (June 2025) maintaining ₹14-16 lakh monthly through September with 711 organic visitors. Pitching two brands simultaneously surprised Sharks—Namita disapproved of dual businesses questioning retention, Kunal viewed it as “product-selling” not sustainable brand, Mohit labeled it “dropshipping,” Anupam advised against being “opportunistic,” while Aman empathized with entrepreneurial “trial and error” offering restructuring help.

Operating in India’s $109.5 billion apparel market (2025) growing to $146.3 billion by 2032 (9% CAGR) within $35.92 billion BPC D2C market by 2032, Get Snappy targets Gen Z/millennial women (18-35) in Tier 1/2 cities addressing wardrobe malfunctions for strapless tops, dupattas, and complex outfits within 461 million urban dwellers, 16.8% rising female workforce, and $50 billion Indian wedding industry representing massive seasonal peaks.

Pitch 3

Awayddings Shark Tank India Episode Review

Awayddings appeared on Shark Tank India Season 5, Episode 17, with co-founders Ashish Godghate (CEO, ex-OYO Weddingz.in from Pune) and Vijay Kumar (COO, met in Goa) seeking ₹2 Crore for 5% equity (₹40 Crore valuation) and successfully closed a deal for ₹1 Crore for 10% equity + ₹1 Crore debt at 10% interest for 2 years with Shark Aman Gupta, who insisted his name not be featured in operations citing past “burnt hand” in similar business.

The Pune/Goa-based destination wedding planning platform launched 2021 with ₹42 lakh joint investment specializes in affordable destination weddings (₹10-15 lakh for 80 guests, 3 days) expanding to ₹2 Crore high-end packages, achieving ₹1.95 Crore revenue (2024-25) with 10-12% EBITDA and projecting ₹3.6 Crore (2025-26, 70+ weddings) with 0 organic visitors requiring SEO improvement and 30% word-of-mouth marketing praised by Namita.

Entering with dhol beats, founders faced scrutiny over cap table showing previous investor (Kesari Tours) took 50% equity for ₹1.23 Crore (Anupam called it “taking away identity”) before restructuring to 75-25 founder favor, while Sharks cited “ops-heavy” challenges—Anupam noted OYO struggled with “thankless” model, Kunal said city-by-city scaling is “10x harder,” Namita worried about seasonality and need for “mini-founders” managing multiple simultaneous weddings. Operating in India’s $75 billion wedding industry (20-25% YoY growth) with 15-20% urban couples preferring destination weddings from 10 million annual marriages ($15 billion organized planning potential), Awayddings targets millennials/Gen Z (25-35) in Tier 1 cities with ₹15-30 lakh household income seeking “Instagrammable” experiences without logistical hassles within 90% unorganized sector.

Episode Highlights

The Dual-Brand Controversy

The episode’s most dramatic moment came when the same founding team (Parikshit Batra, Jashanjot Singh Bindra, and Dev Sharma) pitched both Pure Flow and Get Snappy consecutively. This unprecedented move divided the Sharks:

• Critics: Namita, Kunal, Mohit, and Anupam questioned the founders’ ability to build two sustainable brands simultaneously, with Anupam specifically warning against being “opportunistic”
• Supporter: Aman empathized with the entrepreneurial journey of “trial and error,” ultimately investing in Get Snappy with plans to help consolidate their efforts

Market Opportunities Showcased

The episode highlighted three distinct Indian market opportunities:

• Sleep & Wellness: India’s ₹2.5 billion sleep market with 30% post-pandemic increase in preventive healthcare spending
• Fashion & Personal Care: ₹109.5 billion apparel market growing to ₹146.3 billion by 2032
• Wedding Industry: ₹75 billion wedding market with 15-20% preferring destination weddings

Shark Dynamics

Aman Gupta emerged as the episode’s most active investor, closing both successful deals despite other Sharks’ reservations. His willingness to back founders with multiple ventures showed a contrasting philosophy—believing in learning through experimentation rather than singular focus from day one.

Namita, Kunal, Mohit, and Anupam maintained consistent positions across pitches, emphasizing the importance of brand-building over product-selling and questioning the sustainability of businesses without deep R&D or proprietary technology.

Key Takeaways

• Focus vs. Diversification: The episode raised critical questions about whether entrepreneurs should commit to one venture or explore multiple opportunities simultaneously
• Product vs. Brand: Multiple Sharks distinguished between selling products (potentially sourced/dropshipped) and building sustainable brands with unique value propositions
• Valuation Reality: Both successful deals saw significant equity dilution from initial asks, reflecting Sharks’ valuations based on current traction rather than future projections
• Operational Complexity: The Awayddings pitch highlighted how operations-heavy businesses face unique scaling challenges despite large market opportunities

What Made This Episode Different

Episode 17 stood out for its meta-commentary on entrepreneurship itself. Rather than just evaluating individual businesses, Sharks debated fundamental strategies: Should founders go deep on one idea or test multiple concepts? Is importing and selling products a legitimate business model or just “dropshipping”? Can entrepreneurs successfully manage multiple ventures or does divided attention doom both?

These philosophical differences among the Sharks themselves provided valuable insights for viewers, showing that even experienced investors disagree on the “right” path to building a business.