When Paytm's Vijay Shekhar pitched to Ashneer Grover who worked with American Express

BharatPe co-founder Ashneer Grover’s admiration for Paytm boss, Vijay Shekhar Sharma, is well-known even though the two are known to be rivals operating in the same industry. In an interview with edtech platform, Master’s Union, Grover praised Sharma and even called his energy “enviable.”
 
“I was very impressed with him,” he said, adding, “He is a great guy and I love him. He has this energy which is enviable.”
 
Grover recalled how he came in contact with Sharma. It was a time when Sharma was raising a funding round from Jack Ma-led Alibaba and Grover was working at American Express. He also praised Sharma’s knowledge and even said that he sat in the former’s office for three hours to understand the fintech ecosystem. 
 
Grover said that Sharma was extremely eloquent at giving presentations. “Vijay being Vijay was giving a presentation in full flow and then suddenly started showing his term sheets which he got from Mastercard and others,” recalled Grover. 
 
He also said that while Grover’s boss (at American Express) was “spooked” by Sharma’s attitude of showing the term sheets by other investors, he was impressed by how transparent Sharma was being. 
 
During the conversation, Grover reminisced about his own journey. He said that it took him nine years to find his true calling, which is to become an entrepreneur. Grover quit American Express to join Grofers which was founded by his IIT-Ahmedabad batchmate, Albinder Dhindsa. Post his stint at Grofers, Grover went on to launch fintech unicorn, BharatPe in 2018. 
 
“They have the guts to build something big,” he said while talking about entrepreneurs and the start-up ecosystem. 
 
Grover’s popularity grew significantly after reality show Shark Tank India hit Indian television last year. He came to be known for meme-worthy one-liners. This year he won’t be featuring in the second edition as he got caught in a series of controversies. Currently, he and his family members are embroiled in a courtroom battle with BharatPe for misappropriation of funds, among other accusations. 
 
Grover will also be seen in a separate show with a similar format as Shark Tank India. He will be seen in the popular series, TVF Pitchers.