A Mumbai-based entrepreneur claims he saw Nikhil Kamath at a cafe in the city and passed him a note introducing himself and his startup. Yash Gawde was at Subko Cafe in Bandra with a friend when they both noticed a group of people walking into a private room. The group included Nikhil Kamath, co-founder of Zerodha and one of India’s youngest billionaires.
“I saw Kinhil kamath yesterday. He waved hi to me. And I gave him this note,” Gawde wrote on LinkedIn, sharing a picture of the note that he managed to get delivered to Kamath.
Running into Nikhil Kamath
Yash Gawde, founder of BeHooked, was at Subko to meet with a VC friend named Aakash Sood. The duo got a table at the top floor of the cafe and started talking.
“He was breaking down how VCs think, how to pitch, why storytelling matters, how clarity in your head has to translate into clarity in your pitch… While he was talking, I noticed a group of people walk into the private room right in front of us,” wrote Gawde.
The Mumbai entrepreneur noticed Kamath in the group. HIs friend, too, realised that the Zerodha billionaire had walked in. “We were both starstruck,” wrote Gawde.
Sood immediately asked Gawde if he had any business material on him. The BeHooked founder, however, did not have even his business cards on his person. He did, however, have a diary.
“Do it right now. You have to take all the chances you get,” Sood advised him.
“So I pulled out my diary, scribbled a quick handwritten note about what I’m building (BeHooked), tore the page, and folded it neatly,” said the entrepreneur.
Nikhil Kamath’s reaction
Gawde claims he requested the waitstaff at the cafe to pass the note on to Kamath. “I didn’t want to interrupt his group, so I asked the waiter to pass it along. The staff was super nice, they delivered it to him,” he revealed on LinkedIn.
“Hi Nikhil, Big Fan and Huge Respect for what you have built and achieved,” Gawde wrote in his post. “I am Yash Gawde, an early stage founder building in Video AI space. I built an AI agent that turns your ideas in social media ready videos.
“Sorry to intrude. If this isn’t the time or space. But I just had to take a chance. Would love to connect with you or your team,” he explained, adding his contact information in the handwritten note.
Kamath apparently read the note and even acknowledged the sender. According to Gawde, the billionaire looked up at him, smiled and waved. “That 2-second wave made the entire day worth it,” he wrote.
People in the comments section expressed both surprise and happiness at Gawde’s luck.
“This is literally luck meeting preparation!! Hope you get a call back,” wrote one person. “Great example of turning a moment into an opportunity!” another said.