ZeroDor

Founded by Sachin Joshi and Uttam Banerjee, the startup Zerodor produces retrofit equipment that can be deployed in any commercially available urinal. Uttam Banerjee and Sachin Joshi are Season 3's most research-origin sanitation founders. Their journey began in 2008 as a college project at IIT Delhi studying human urine, evolved into the invention of the ZeroDor waterless urinal in 2010, was formally incorporated as Ekam Eco Solutions in 2013, and launched commercially in 2014. Uttam's founding motivation was deeply personal: he came from a small village in Jharkhand where there was no washroom, which became a reason his wife did not want to visit his village. This personal experience of sanitation deprivation, combined with the IIT Delhi research capability, gave ZeroDor both the emotional founding motivation and the technical credibility that most sanitation startups lack.

Zerodor's waterless urinal boasts a unique mechanical system. A valve allows urine passage while blocking ammonia emissions, eliminating the need for water flush. Start Up Article ZeroDor is India's most academically researched waterless urinal solution, using a patented mechanical valve system that creates a one-way passage (urine flows through, ammonia gas cannot return), eliminating both water consumption and odour simultaneously. The retrofit design allows installation on any existing commercial urinal without replacement, making adoption a simple retrofit rather than a costly infrastructure replacement. The technology addresses a specific chemical problem: when urine sits in conventional drains, it decomposes and releases ammonia gas upward through the urinal, causing the persistent restroom smell that expensive chemicals, air fresheners, and constant water flushing only temporarily mask.

Amount Asked: ₹1 crore Equity Offered: 3% Implied Pre-Money Valuation: ₹33.33 crore

Uttam and Sachin opened Season 3 Episode 19 with the most fundamentally necessary sanitation pitch of the season. The founders shared that traditional urinal systems waste enormous amounts of water and money while failing to address the root cause of restroom odour. Their CPR framework (Conserve, Protect, Restore) positioned ZeroDor as a triple-benefit solution rather than a single-product company. The pitch demonstrated the retrofit mechanism: showing how the patented valve could be installed on any existing commercial urinal in minutes, immediately converting it from a water-consuming, odour-producing unit to a waterless, odour-free one. The simplicity of installation was the most commercially compelling operational argument.

Aman Gupta exited stating his interest does not lie in this field. He specifically pointed out that the revenue was very low considering the 10 plus years the founders had spent in the business. Ritesh Agarwal exited noting the founders had not realised the true potential of their business. He advised them to focus on one segment rather than spreading across handwashes, cleaning solutions, and urinals simultaneously. Radhika Gupta (guest Shark) was displeased with the slow rate of profit growth. She questioned why a decade-old company with IIT Delhi research origins had not achieved significantly larger commercial scale. Vineeta Singh questioned the major reason behind starting the business and challenged the founders on taking ₹2 crore from investors over 7 years without generating meaningful returns on that investment. Peyush Bansal found the concept genuinely interesting and was the only Shark to make an offer.

Peyush Bansal offered ₹1 crore for 10% equity, on the condition that Zerodor focuses solely on waterless urinals and hires a lead salesperson. This offer was rejected by the founders due to the low valuation. IndiaTechDesk Peyush's offer matched the capital ask (₹1 crore) but at 10% equity (₹10 crore valuation) versus the founders' 3% equity ask (₹33.33 crore valuation). The two conditions (focus only on waterless urinals; hire a sales lead) were the most operationally specific Shark conditions of Episode 19. The founders rejected the offer because the ₹10 crore valuation was 70% below their ₹33.33 crore ask. No counter-offer was made and the deal collapsed.

Uttam Banerjee and Sachin Joshi left Shark Tank India Season 3 Episode 19 without any investment. Peyush Bansal's conditional offer, the only formal offer made, was rejected due to the valuation gap. The founders' decision to walk away from the only available offer communicated strong conviction in their technology's value, a conviction that Zerodha's Nithin Kamath would subsequently validate publicly.

"We have been using Zerodor for the men's urinals at our offices for the last six months or so. Our water bills are down 50% — we did not expect it to be this much," Nithin Kamath said. ZeroDor's most significant post-Shark Tank validation came not from a Shark but from India's most respected fintech founder. Zerodha's Nithin Kamath publicly endorsed ZeroDor on X (formerly Twitter), revealing that after 6 months of use at Zerodha's offices, water bills had dropped 50%. Kamath's Rainmatter Foundation (Zerodha's climate impact fund) is now supporting ZeroDor, providing both credibility and climate-focused capital that the Shark Tank panel did not offer. Kamath further mentioned that his company Rainmatter is supporting the venture. "We liked the product because they are doing whatever is necessary to preserve water, which has become supercritical. We are supporting them through Rainmatter."