Hornback

The founders of Hornback are Nishith Parikh and Rajkumar Kewat, an award-winning IIT Bombay alumnus who have designed and launched several innovative products such as Baja Racing Cars, Kamikaze Drone for DRDO, Home Automation System (Patent). Nishith Parikh and Rajkumar Kewat are Season 2's most decorated hardware engineering founders IIT Bombay alumni whose prior design achievements included Baja Racing Cars (student motorsport engineering), a Kamikaze Drone built for DRDO (India's Defence Research and Development Organisation), and a patented Home Automation System. Rajkumar's DRDO project credential is particularly significant: designing a drone for India's premier defence technology agency requires precision engineering at the highest institutional standards India can demand.

Hornback is the world's first full-size diamond frame folding electric bicycle combining the structural integrity and ride quality of a full-size conventional bicycle (diamond frame, full-size wheels) with a patented folding mechanism that allows the bicycle to be folded without lifting, making it compatible with escalators, metro trains, car boots, apartment elevators, and compact storage spaces. The cycle is handling better than usual bicycles. Their vision is to revolutionize urban commuting by introducing a product that is economical and pushes the users towards a sustainable and healthy lifestyle.

Amount Asked: ₹50 lakhs Equity Offered: 1% Implied Pre-Money Valuation: ₹50 crore

Nishith and Rajkumar opened Season 2 Episode 37 with the most practically specific urban cycling frustration argument the "portability problem" that every electric bicycle user experiences. The argument was sequential and irrefutable: electric bikes are the best urban commuting solution; but they cannot go in metros (too heavy to carry up stairs), cars (too large to fit in the boot), apartment elevators (too large), or be left outside (theft risk). Hornback solved every one of these portability problems simultaneously through the patented folding mechanism. The physical folding demonstration showing the bicycle folding in seconds without lifting was Season 2 Episode 37's most impressive hardware product demonstration. The sight of a full-size bicycle collapsing to half its size in seconds, without the rider bending down or exerting significant force, communicated the product's practical value in the most direct possible way.

Namita Thapar was the most specifically product-sceptical Shark questioning whether the foldable feature was commercially significant enough for Indian consumers to pay the ₹44,999 premium over conventional electric bicycles. Peyush Bansal exited with the most commercially constructive advice recommending a strategic automotive industry investor rather than financial investors. Aman Gupta and Vineeta Singh and Anupam Mittal exited on various grounds the total addressable market size concern (Anupam calculated that the India market for premium foldable e-bikes was relatively small), domain expertise mismatches, and the hardware startup's specific scaling challenges. Amit Jain was the most commercially aligned Shark CarDekho's automotive marketplace experience gave him direct familiarity with India's vehicle consumer behaviour, EV adoption trends, and the specific urban mobility market that Hornback was targeting.

They sought an investment of ₹50 Lakhs for 1% equity, asking for a ₹50 crore valuation. Amit Jain invested in Hornback for ₹50 Lakhs for 2.5% equity. IMDb The negotiation moved from the founders' 1% equity ask (₹50 crore valuation) to Amit's 2.5% equity final deal (₹20 crore valuation) a 60% valuation markdown that the founders accepted in exchange for Amit Jain's automotive marketplace network and the strategic relevance of a CarDekho founder as an investor in a two-wheel EV company.

Nishith Parikh and Rajkumar Kewat accepted Amit Jain's offer of ₹50 lakhs for 2.5% equity at ₹20 crore valuation. Despite asking for 1% equity (₹50 crore valuation), the founders accepted 2.5% because Amit's CarDekho automotive marketplace experience was the most commercially relevant strategic asset for an EV bicycle manufacturer seeking distribution and consumer market penetration. The deal was confirmed and formally closed after the episode aired.

Hornback continues operating the Anand Mahindra tweet in October 2023 providing the most commercially credible national public endorsement available for an Indian EV startup. Mahindra's specific technical praise ("35% more efficient," "stable at higher than medium speed") communicated that the Mahindra Group chairman had personally evaluated the product's technical claims and found them accurate. The Amit Jain investment gave Hornback the CarDekho automotive marketplace network including relationships with dealerships, EV adoption insights, and urban mobility consumer behaviour data that accelerates the commercial validation process for a two-wheel EV product entering the Indian market. The electric bicycle market in India grew significantly in 2023 to 2024, with government incentives, fuel price pressure, and urban traffic congestion all accelerating consumer interest in e-bikes as daily commuting alternatives.