“Big lesson to take away from this story … once you have clarity perhaps you don’t need a college degree. The confidence with which they dropped out is worth reflecting upon. These guys are at a profitable revenue run rate of ₹3 crore. Their resourcefulness, their tenacity and their clarity compelled us to invest and we are happy to lend our wings to their flight,” Mittal wrote on LinkedIn on Friday evening. 

He had previously dubbed it a ‘gritty team’ with a favourable mix of product, ops and leadership who were “going to do very well”.  Patil had begun running the food delivery service in 2016 following the death of her husband. 

But it was PatilKaki’s two 21-year-old partners – her son Vinit Patil, and his friend Darshil Savla – who helped bring the business into the digital era. The duo – both college dropouts – had set up a website for her homemade snacks (such as chakli puran poli, modak and more) and helped successfully scale up the business. 

“Patilkaki, besides being one of the cutest founders I have met, is a true embodiment of the entrepreneurial energy that is bursting forth in every nook and cranny of our country,” Mittal wrote on LinkedIn.

“Thank you very much to the Sharks for investing in our dream! #PatilKaki hopes that this collaboration will help us take the taste of our delicacies to every household!” the company wrote on Instagram following the funding.