Inside the Mind of a Startup Investor w/ Avik Ashar

What does it take to go from being a founder to a VC?In this episode, I sat down with Avik Ashar, who’s been on both sides of the table—building businesses and now investing in them. He started as a founder, scaled companies across multiple markets, ran a family office, and now backs early-stage startups and a Principal, at Riverwalk Holdings. We talked about what makes a business truly investible, the challenges founders face, and how venture capital is evolving. Plus, his take on Shark Tank’s impact and what a day in the life of a VC really looks like!IN THIS EPISODE(00:00) The truth about India's startup boom (03:45) India vs. Southeast Asia: Who’s winning the startup race?(05:33) What’s fueling India’s startup growth? You’ll be surprised!(07:38) The dark side of startups: Governance nightmares(10:30) Not every business deserves VC money—here’s why(11:34) How VCs really decide where to invest (16:42) Smart capital vs. dumb money—does it even matter?(18:32) The real talk: What happens to startups that don’t become unicorns?(21:26) From angel investor to VC—what really changes?(25:02) The brutal truth: What needs to change in venture capital(27:28) Has Shark Tank changed India’s startup game? Let’s discuss(31:28) IPOs: Who actually wins in the short and long run?(34:04) Is government policy helping or hurting startups?(37:20) These sectors are the next big thing—are you paying attention?(42:16) Inside the life of a VC—what it’s really like(44:49) Rapid fire! Unfiltered takes on startups & investing Avik AsharAvik Ashar is a Principal at Riverwalk Holdings, focusing on early-stage investments (Seed to Series A) in India. With over 12 years of experience as a founder, operator, and investor, he previously managed a single-family office for the Sutariya family, investing across India and Southeast Asia. His portfolio includes Wellness Forever, Fareye Technologies, and Posist. He played a key role in scaling Zilingo across five geographies, managed a $100M P&L, and helped raise $280M. Additionally, he founded and exited a SaaS startup in the auto insurance space and led sales and account management for Janio, securing major clients like Disney, Swarovski, and Nike.https://www.linkedin.com/in/avikashar/Prantik MazumdarPrantik is an entrepreneur & venture investor and acts as a Digital Transformation Catalyst in organizations to drive sustainable change and impact.After pursuing a major in Computer Engineering & a minor in Technopreneurship from the National University of Singapore (NUS), he kickstarted his career with the Singapore government (Enterprise Singapore) to drive international trade promotion for the island state.He started his entrepreneurial journey with Happy Marketer in 2011 where he spent a decade building & scaling up one of the best and most awarded independent digital marketing services firm in the region that served brands like Standard Chartered Bank, Income, Great Eastern Life, Royal Brunei Airlines, Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf, Starbucks, Ping An, Grab, Shopee, GoJek, Kimberly Clark, PropertyGuru, PegiPegi, Starhub, Singtel, Nanyang Business School, Kaplan, INSEAD amongst many of its prestigious clients.ABOUT TiE TalksTiE Talks brings to you leadership and venture-building lessons from founders, investors and experts in the TiE Singapore network, a vibrant ecosystem of Asian entrepreneurs, angel investors, venture capitalists, and industry professionals.—This podcast is powered by CrazyTok: We help experts become influencers by helping launch, produce and grow your custom-branded audio and video podcast channels.