Tushar Kansal.
Tushar Kansal at FICCI - Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce & Industry
From founding Kansaltany Ventures to getting a handsome exit from his Engineering Entrance coaching business to reconsidering how investors make decisions, Tushar Kansal discusses the experiences behind his approach to entrepreneurship, capital and public life.
Your career spans Entrepreneurship, Corporate Finance, Investment Banking, Private Equity and Advisory. What connects these different chapters?
Tushar Kansal: I have repeatedly had to reconsider what I thought my future would look like. In 1999, I seriously considered moving to the United States for a Technology career. Family circumstances prevented that. Having studied Engineering, I then pursued Finance because my reading convinced me that Technology and Finance were shaping the modern world.
I completed my MBA in Financial Management at the University of Delhi in 2001 and started an Education business. Later, working across Corporate Finance and Advisory in Deloitte & Touche gave me different perspectives on the same question: where should Capital go, and what makes its deployment worthwhile?
I do not see these chapters as unrelated careers. Building a Business taught me the consequences of decisions that a Financial Model can only describe. That experience still influences how I work with Founders at Kansaltancy Ventures.
How did rejection become your first Business opportunity?
Tushar Kansal: In 1993, I joined Vidyamandir Classes for IIT-JEE preparation but could not keep pace and was not retained for the Class 12th batches. My father was a 1971-batch IIT Delhi alumnus; that rejection affected my confidence deeply.
Yet it introduced me to the economics of Coaching. North Delhi had ambitious students and relatively few high-quality options. After my MBA, I borrowed money from my Father and established IIT-entrance training Institute there.
Our Physics, Chemistry and Mathematics departments were headed by senior Professors who had previously been Heads of Department at Delhi College of Engineering. Their experience was a substantial strength. I had gone from struggling within a Coaching institution to building one around excellent Teachers. The opportunity was real, but so was the responsibility of delivering quality.
Tushar Kansal winning the Award for the work done by Kansaltancy Ventures in the STEM Field, from the hands of Dr Kiran Bedi, the First Female IPS Officer of India and Governor of Puducherry
Why sell a business you had built yourself?
Tushar Kansal: Our net margins fell from approximately 40% to 5% after large Coaching brands entered our market. By 2006, we had three centres, and expansion had a commercial logic: more Students could absorb Faculty costs, and larger Institutions could advertise greater absolute numbers of IIT selections. Parents often noticed those numbers more than selection percentages.
But our three senior academic leaders were ageing. Scaling meant replacing difficult-to-replace expertise while committing more capital in a market with deteriorating margins. My father believed those margins could turn negative in the very next Financial year.
Narayana Institute's handsome buyout offer allowed us to transfer the student base and educational operations while retaining our three commercial properties. We separated the value of the operating business from the value of the real estate.
The decision taught me to assess the next rupee of investment on its merits. The effort already spent building the Institute could not, by itself, justify spending more and reinvesting massively.
What did Corporate Finance teach you about Startup success?
Tushar Kansal: It taught me to respect the boundaries of authority: what I could approve, what needed escalation and what was outside my remit. Founders sometimes regard such distinctions as bureaucracy, but unclear authority eventually creates confusion over both decisions and responsibility.
I also learned that Relationship management extends across the hierarchy. Understanding the work of colleagues and juniors matters as much as maintaining a relationship with your boss. Competence has to support those relationships.
Entrepreneurship added what I call constructive paranoia. At my Institute, our Teachers were a strength, but their ability to sustain demanding schedules was also a Business dependency. That is why I watch talent retention alongside costs and competition.
The purpose is to anticipate problems early enough to respond calmly. A Founder cannot eliminate uncertainty, but can understand where the business is vulnerable.
What do Founders misunderstand about raising Venture Capital?
Tushar Kansal: A Founder enters the meeting hoping to impress; an Investor often enters looking for reasons to decline. One inconsistent number or an important risk the Founder has not considered can undo an otherwise polished presentation.
I describe the Founder as a Seeker and the Investor as a Selector. Cash-flow pressure makes the Founder impatient, while the Investor can compare the opportunity with many others.
A reference from a Founder already funded by that Investor can establish that you are worth listening to. It does not establish that your Business is investable. At Kansaltancy Ventures, I therefore emphasise relevant warm introductions alongside credible documentation and commercial evidence.
I also look beyond the usual explanation for Investors favouring elite Institutions. Alumni networks can help with customer access, recruitment and subsequent funding. That is a practical advantage, although pedigree should never be mistaken for proof of Entrepreneurial capability.
Tushar Kansal at the shoot with Leading Finfluencers Deepak Wadhwa and Pooja Wadhwa
Has your understanding of Investors changed?
Tushar Kansal: I once thought a strong Market, Financial model and scalable proposition would make funding essentially a rational decision. I now recognise how much early-stage investment depends on conviction in the Founder after those basic requirements have been examined.
Investors may observe a Founder over three to six months: were promised customers acquired, did revenue develop as expected, and were setbacks explained honestly? Those interactions reveal more than a confident 45-minute presentation.
I also used to think that a reasonably successful Business could raise US capital without excessive difficulty. Experience taught me how long even obtaining the first meeting can take. An introduction and a completed Fundraise are very different achievements; Institutional discussions can stretch over years.
My conclusion is: the rational factors get you through the door; conviction gets you the cheque. Access begins the process. Execution and Trust sustain it.
Can too much Money damage a Startup?
Tushar Kansal: Yes, particularly when expenditure shifts towards looking successful. Building Distribution, Technology or a useful Customer database serves a Business purpose. A magnificent Office may simply absorb money. I ask whether the spending strengthens the Business and whether the proposed Fundraise justifies the Equity being diluted.
There is another difficulty in India: consumers can expect International standards of quality while remaining highly price-conscious. If growth depends on discounts, raising prices later may drive customers away. Cutting staff indiscriminately can damage the Organisation's animal spirts and growth-energy. Fixing Unit Economics after the money runs out is much harder.
I have also witnessed a Founder's relationship with a Government-backed Institutional Investor deteriorate over compliance requirements. The Founder was eventually removed, and the company subsequently declined. My concern was the Institutional knowledge of the exact Business Plan lost with him: the reasoning behind agreements, margins and operating decisions.
Additional Capital cannot settle every disagreement about how a Company should be run.
Tushar Kansal at the shoot with Leading Influencer Abhishek Kar
How did you become a Public Speaker and Podcaster with 100+ Million views in the public domain?
Tushar Kansal: In 2016, an MBA Senior Mr. V Swaminathan, invited me to judge an event supported by his Venture Capital Fund. Its photographs, videos and discussions circulated online, bringing calls, messages and Business leads. That was when I first understood the reach of a single public engagement.
I went on to participate in 51 Venture Capital TV shows, with professionals from countries including Singapore, the US, UAE, Hong Kong and the UK. Hearing different perspectives was an education in itself.
At Physical conferences, I sometimes noticed that people were more engaged in exchanging cards rather than listening to the discussion. Digital conversations offered a way for interested listeners to engage with the ideas beyond the event.
My content and appearances have crossed 100 million cumulative views across platforms. But permanent visibility on an online platform also means accountability: people can revisit your words indefinitely. I have read painful comments on my videos which are so disparaging and vengeful, but I learnt that Public recognition brings scrutiny alongside opportunity.
Who remains when the Titles and Designations are removed?
Tushar Kansal: I remember calling my wife Pooja's landline during our College days and asking her Father, "Can I speak to Pooja?" I also remember childhood in Roorkee, near a canal, orchards and greenery. Those memories belong to a simpler life, and my family remains at the centre of mine.
I have read for roughly three hours daily since around 1988. I am devoted to Goddess Saraswati and believe in Gyaan Marg, the path of knowledge to attain higher consciousness. I recommend learning the Bhagavad Gita with a knowledgeable practitioner who can explain its context and essence.
I have also learned something about my own directness. At my age, maturity includes knowing what to leave unsaid. I still speak my mind, but I understand the consequences better. I hope to be remembered for such open, direct and precise knowledge that helped people make sense of their lives and hence the motto of all my conversations is "Simplifying Life & Industry with meaningful Talks"
About Tushar Kansal
Tushar Kansal of a reputed Speaker, Venture Capitalist, Author and Podcaster with 100+ million views in the public domain. He is the Founder of Kansaltancy Ventures
