“You Took Features from Everywhere!”, Kunal Bahl Calls Out Unclear Vision: Medial on Shark Tank India

Building a social media platform now is no easy task. The internet is dominated by giants like Twitter, LinkedIn, and Reddit, making it incredibly difficult for new entrants to stand out.

That didn’t stop Medial, a startup founded by Aishwarya Raj Pandey, Harsh Dwivedi, Niket Raj Dwivedi, and Prateek Kaien, from entering the Shark Tank India stage with a bold claim, they were creating a professional social network designed specifically for startups and entrepreneurs.

The idea?

• A dedicated space for startup founders to connect, share ideas, and seek funding.
• Users could interact with anonymity or real identities.
• A curated news feed delivering updates on startups, tech, and finance.

On the surface, Medial’s vision sounded promising, but as the sharks dug deeper, they weren’t convinced.

Click here to visit their website: Medial

Related: From a Failed Venture to Shark Tank Funding: Dorabi on Shark Tank India

Before entering Shark Tank India, Medial had already gained some traction:

• User Base: 75,000+ users
• Revenue Model: Pre-revenue (no monetization yet)
• Product Offering: A mix of social networking, startup news aggregation, and community discussions

• Aishwarya Raj Pandey: 16.72%
• Harsh Dwivedi: 16.72%
• Niket Raj Dwivedi: 16.72%
• Prateek Kaien: 6.72%
• Investors & Others: 33.12%

The founders asked for ₹50 lakh in exchange for 1% equity, valuing the startup at ₹50 crore. But as soon as the sharks started questioning the pitch, things quickly fell apart.

The first red flag came from Shark Kunal Bahl, who immediately questioned Medial’s uniqueness.

“You took features from everywhere. A bit of Twitter, some LinkedIn, a little GitHub. What exactly makes this different?”

The lack of a clear product-market fit became a major concern.

• Shark Ritesh Agarwal pressed the founders on user engagement.
• Shark Anupam Mittal demanded hard retention numbers, only to be met with vague responses.
• Shark Kunal Bahl cut them off, saying, “If the answer is no, just say no.”

Things only got worse when the sharks questioned their acquisition strategy. As the founders struggled to defend their retention metrics, Anupam grew frustrated.

“Aap baat ghumaiye mat, don’t switch the narrative.”

The sharks felt Medial was burning cash to acquire users without a clear plan for keeping them engaged.

Shark Aman Gupta then asked a critical question—if the founders were willing to pivot their vision for funding. His concern? Building a product solely based on what investors wanted, rather than a clear mission.

Then came shark Anupam’s harshest critique, “Bhai, aapne apna product bhi aggregate karke banaya aur roadmap bhi sabka advice leke bana rahe ho. I don’t think you can build anything.”

Aman agreed and backed out. Namita Thapar followed, saying the founders lacked direction. Within minutes, every shark except Ritesh Agarwal was out.

Just when it seemed like Medial would walk away empty-handed, shark Ritesh Agarwal stepped up.

Despite shark Namita shaking her head, he saw potential. His offer was ₹50 lakh for 2.5% equity (cutting Medial’s valuation in half).

The founders reluctantly accepted, not their ideal valuation, but better than leaving with nothing.

While the other sharks dismissed Medial, Ritesh saw a few key opportunities:

1. The Startup Community is Growing – A dedicated social network for startups could work if executed well.
2. Refinement, Not Reinvention – With better retention strategies, Medial could build a real niche audience.
3. First-Mover Advantage – No Indian platform had fully cracked this space, leaving room for Medial to experiment.

Though other sharks weren’t convinced, Ritesh believed in fine-tuning the model rather than abandoning it entirely.

Startups looking to pitch on Shark Tank India can learn several lessons from Medial’s experience:

1. Have a Clear Product Identity – Copying existing platforms without a strong differentiator is a red flag.
2. Retention Matters More Than Acquisition – Paid users don’t mean anything if they don’t stick around.
3. Be Prepared for Tough Questions – Avoid vague answers, as sharks will call out weak points immediately.

Medial’s Shark Tank India appearance sparked debate, raised concerns, and ultimately landed an investment.

While most sharks believed the startup lacked originality and user stickiness, Ritesh Agarwal saw a chance to refine the model.

Now, the real challenge begins—can Medial evolve into a valuable platform, or will it fade into just another forgotten social network? Only time will tell.