Kabira Handmad (Manishankar Oils Private Limited)

A man with a 23-year wholesale oil manufacturing legacy, a National Award from the Prime Minister of India, and a family business heritage stretching back to 1845, who had decided it was time to build a consumer brand. In 1998, in Jaipur, Rajasthan, Dr. Manoj Murarka and his wife Nirmala Murarka founded Manishankar Oils Private Limited, a business rooted in purity and tradition. Believing in the nutritional value of cold-pressed oils, they chose to remain loyal to traditional extraction methods, avoiding any chemical processing or external heating. Their goal was to offer oils that retained their natural qualities without compromise Dr. Manoj Murarka completed his Class 12 boards securing second position in the Accounts Asiad in 1997. He joined the family business and enhanced the efficiency of the factory and workforce with constant use of new technology and training, gradually gaining consumer acceptance for the Kabira mustard oil brand.

Kabira Handmad is a D2C brand of premium, chemical-free, traditionally processed food essentials — principally cold-pressed edible oils (mustard, sesame, groundnut, and others), flours, spices, and dairy products — manufactured by Manishankar Oils Pvt. Ltd. using methods unchanged from ancient Indian food processing traditions. Kabira Handmad serves the essential foods which are required in a normal diet like edible oils, spices, flour, and dairy products. It manufactures these with an ancient, ordinary, and traditional approach. It is completely organic and natural and free from pungent smell. Kabira Kachchi Ghani Mustard Oil is obtained from the first cold pressing of the finest quality mustard seeds, filtered to retain its naturally sharp flavour and pungent aroma. A high content of Monounsaturated Fatty Acids (MUFA 70%), along with Omega 3 and 6, helps slow down the ageing process of body cells.

Amount Asked: ₹1 crore Equity Offered: 5% Implied Pre-Money Valuation: ₹20 crore

Dr. Manoj Murarka's presence commanded immediate respect. A National Award winner. A manufacturer with 23 years of operations. A ₹160 crore revenue business. An oil company whose family heritage dates to 1845. This is not a first-time entrepreneur with a dream — this is an industrialist seeking to make a generational leap from wholesale commodity to premium D2C brand. The product sampling — cold-pressed oils, spices, flour — was received warmly. The quality was unambiguous; these are not commodity products dressed in premium packaging, but genuinely superior products produced through authentic traditional methods. The patriotic packaging drew immediate admiration from Peyush Bansal. Peyush commented that he would copy the martyr-soldier packaging idea in his Lenskart business Sharktankindiaclub — a remarkable compliment that acknowledged how emotionally resonant and commercially differentiated the brand identity was.

Peyush Bansal loved the packaging and the brand concept but ultimately exited, citing the margin concern and his lack of expertise in the food/commodity sector. Namita Thapar exited citing low profitability. Concerns over low profitability led Namita Thapar to opt out. Ashneer Grover was direct. Ashneer said there is good sales of ₹160 crore but low profit margins, so he also opted out. Aman Gupta echoed similar margin concerns and exited. Anupam Mittal was the only Shark who tried to make a workable offer. Anupam's offer: ₹25 lakhs for 10% equity and ₹75 lakhs as a loan.

The negotiation was brief and ended on the founder's principled refusal. Anupam Mittal showed interest and offered ₹25 lakhs for 10% equity, with the remaining ₹75 lakhs as debt. However, Dr. Murarka declined, unwilling to dilute control or deviate from the company's growth strategy The Anupam offer effectively valued the Kabira Handmad D2C entity at ₹2.5 crore — compared to the founders' ₹20 crore ask. An 8x gap in valuation, combined with a structure that kept three-quarters of the investment as debt rather than equity, was a deal the founders were unwilling to accept on either the financial or the strategic terms. Dr. Murarka's refusal was not emotional. It was the decision of an industrialist with 23 years of proven business success who saw no reason to accept terms that valued his new brand at less than what he could generate through his own established channels within a few months.

No Final Deal