Project Clay

Dyumna Madan and Shivom Sood are Season 4's youngest and most impressively poised founders. As teenage entrepreneurs from Goa, they founded Project Clay in 2020, when most of their peers were focused on school, social media, and gaming. Their founding observation was intensely personal: traditional college counselling in India is out of touch with current reality and prohibitively expensive, leaving millions of students making life-defining decisions (which college, which course, which career) with no credible guidance. The "elder sibling" concept is Project Clay's most psychologically astute positioning: instead of pairing students with intimidating adult counsellors (who graduated decades ago and have limited relevance to today's academic landscape), Project Clay pairs them with relatable near-peers, university students currently studying at the student's dream institution, or young professionals currently working at companies the student aspires to join.

Project Clay is a mentorship marketplace connecting students with near-peer mentors who have recently navigated the same decisions the student is currently facing. The platform addresses multiple critical life milestones: choosing the right college (mentors currently attending those colleges share insider perspectives), creating a first resume (mentors who recently built theirs provide practical guidance), starting freelancing (mentors currently freelancing share real client acquisition strategies), launching a first startup (mentors who have recently launched share practical lessons), and acquiring new skills (mentors currently learning or teaching those skills provide structured guidance). The "elder sibling" framing is the most commercially distinctive and most psychologically effective positioning in the mentorship market.

Amount Asked: ₹15 lakhs Equity Offered: 10% Implied Pre-Money Valuation: ₹1.5 crore

Dyumna and Shivom walked into Season 4's Campus Special episode as the most maturely articulate teen founders of Episode 10. Despite their age, their pitch was clear, structured, and emotionally resonant: they opened by framing the crisis that every Indian student and parent recognises: critical life decisions (college, career, skills) being made with zero credible guidance because traditional counselling is either unaffordable or irrelevant. The "elder sibling" concept was demonstrated through specific examples: a Class 12 student considering IIT receives mentorship from a current IIT student who navigated the same JEE preparation, college selection, and hostel adjustment challenges within the last 2 to 3 years. A young professional wanting to start freelancing is paired with someone who started freelancing in the last year and can share which platforms work, how to price services, and how to find first clients.

Namita Thapar was the most personally resonant Shark. She immediately connected with the founders' mission to make mentorship accessible and affordable, recognising the platform's potential to scale across India's 300 million plus student population. Kunal Bahl appreciated the concept and the founders' maturity but did not make a competing offer. Vineeta Singh acknowledged the founders' impressive presentation but did not invest. The mentorship platform category sat outside her consumer brand expertise. Peyush Bansal recognised the founders' potential but did not compete with Namita's immediate offer. Anupam Mittal appreciated the teenage founders' clarity and ambition but did not invest, deferring to Namita's domain-aligned conviction.

The founders asked ₹15 lakhs for 10% equity (₹1.5 crore valuation). Namita offered the exact terms without negotiation: ₹15 lakhs for 10% equity at ₹1.5 crore valuation. No counter-offers, no royalty, no debt, no conditions. The founders accepted immediately. Season 4's most frictionless deal closure: two teenage founders received exactly what they asked for from the Shark whose Emcure mission of empowering Indians through healthcare and education most closely aligned with Project Clay's mentorship mission.

Dyumna Madan and Shivom Sood accepted Namita Thapar's offer of ₹15 lakhs for 10% equity at ₹1.5 crore valuation. Namita's Emcure institutional network, personal commitment to youth empowerment, and Shark Tank mentorship track record (she has invested in multiple education and empowerment startups across seasons) made her the most mission-aligned Shark for a platform dedicated to making quality mentorship accessible to every Indian student.

Project Clay continues building post-Shark Tank with significantly enhanced visibility. The website (projectclay.com) now prominently features: "A Shark Tank founder will help you bring it to life. Our mentors are students at your dream universities, and young professionals at India's top startups." The Shark Tank national broadcast during the Campus Special episode reached millions of Indian students and parents simultaneously, creating the most efficiently targeted marketing event possible for a student mentorship platform. Every parent who watched the episode and recognised the college counselling gap in their own child's life became a potential Project Clay customer.