This episode of The Nutgraf was first published on 26 April.

Unlock immediate access to the latest episodes and all of The Ken’s audio offerings. Subscribe to The Ken’s Premium plan at the-ken.com/pricing/, or purchase a monthly audio subscription for The Ken Premium on Apple Podcasts (Rs 299 in India).

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For over a decade, startups were religiously pursuing hockey stick growth.

But in 2025, we discovered that was not true anymore. Startups weren’t growing like they used to—so we were discovering newer, more unfamiliar curves. Most strikingly, we now knew what the shape of the downward curve looked like.

How startups and companies responded to the pressures of a new environment where growth was no longer easy could be represented through a melting ice-cream curve. And it had three distinct stages.

Praveen Gopal Krishnan explained in this episode of The Nutgraf. Tune in.

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You can also read this edition here: https://the-ken.com/the-nutgraf/the-melting-ice-cream-curve/

Earlier edition referenced here: https://the-ken.com/the-nutgraf/founders-are-choosing-respawning-over-resistance/

From original podcasts to writer-narrated versions of our subscriber newsletters, you can now listen to The Ken each day. Discover them all at the-ken.com/podcasts. You can also subscribe to The Ken Premium on Apple Podcasts for an easy monthly price (Rs 299 in India). The channel will include ALL our premium podcasts and audio.

This episode of The Nutgraf was first published on 19 April.

Unlock immediate access to the latest episodes and all of The Ken’s audio offerings by subscribing to The Ken’s Premium plan at the-ken.com/pricing/, or purchase a monthly audio subscription for The Ken Premium on Apple Podcasts (Rs 299 in India).

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Around the middle of April, Blusmart informed customers that it was temporarily pausing operations. This came after Sebi alleged that two out of the EV firm's three co-founders were involved in financial impropriety. What the markets regulator discovered in its investigation or the arcane methods of how the founders orchestrated this scheme was, frankly, less interesting.

Instead, it was the broader response to this that was much more fun to talk about. As Youtube view counts often demonstrate, reaction videos can often be much more enthralling than the event itself.

And the response to news about the Blusmart collapse was strikingly consistent.

In some ways, Indian businesses, startups, and media personalities have built and monetised a content economy that's ultimately conformist, unremarkable, and post hoc.

Praveen Gopal Krishnan explored how in this edition of The Nutgraf. Tune in.

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You can also read this edition here - https://the-ken.com/the-nutgraf/blusmart-and-the-dogs-that-didnt-bark/

Read 'Blusmart’s relationship with co-founder’s listed company could prove costly' here - https://the-ken.com/story/blusmarts-relationship-with-co-founders-listed-company-could-prove-costly/

From original podcasts to writer-narrated versions of our subscriber newsletters, you can now listen to The Ken each day. Discover them all at the-ken.com/podcasts. You can also subscribe to The Ken Premium on Apple Podcasts for an easy monthly price (Rs 299 in India). The channel will include ALL our premium podcasts and audio.

This episode of The Nutgraf was first published on 12 April.

Unlock immediate access to the latest episodes and all of The Ken’s audio offerings. Subscribe to The Ken’s Premium plan at the-ken.com/pricing/, or purchase a monthly audio subscription for The Ken Premium on Apple Podcasts (Rs 299 in India).

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How many vehicles does Ola Electric actually sell in a month?

Nobody knows the answer.

In February 2025, the firm sold 25,000 scooters, but only 8,390 were registered on the government’s VAHAN portal. This discrepancy existed due to a renegotiation of contracts with two firms that carry out registration of vehicles for the EV maker.

If you are a public company in the business of making automobiles and you’re in the middle of a bad narrative—as Ola Electric has been—the timing of this was… unnecessary. Most people are already spooked about your company’s performance. Now, you’re messing around with the one reliable source they had to track how you’re doing and creating room for all kinds of conspiracy theories to take root.

For Ola Electric, this was the definition of a self-goal.

So why do it?

Praveen Gopal Krishnan explains in this episode of The Nutgraf. Tune in.

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You can also read this edition here: https://the-ken.com/the-nutgraf/ola-electric-didnt-stop-digging/

Edition referenced in the episode: 'Are Trump's tariffs a crisis or an opportunity for India?' - https://the-ken.com/podcasts/two-by-two/no-easy-moves-is-india-facing-a-crisis-or-an-opportunity/

The Ken is hosting a subscriber event at the Bangalore International Centre on May 19! Join Two by Two hosts Rohin Dharmakumar and Praveen Gopal Krishnan and three distinguished guests as they discuss new ways of thinking about investing to ensure you’ll be in a good position 10, 20, or even 30 years from now. Buy tickets here.

This episode of The Nutgraf was first published on 5 April. Unlock immediate access to the latest episodes and all of The Ken’s audio offerings. Subscribe to The Ken’s Premium plan at the-ken.com/pricing/, or purchase a monthly audio subscription for The Ken Premium on Apple Podcasts (Rs 299 in India).

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Earlier this month, Piyush Goyal, India's commerce minister, kicked the hornet's nest with his comments on the country's startups.

Essentially, Goyal’s main complaint was… “why are Indian startups like this? Just look at China."

As the minister’s remarks went viral, India’s startup leaders, executives, and thought leaders took a break from making Studio Ghibli-style AI images and decided to hop on the next trend—posting their thoughts on Goyal’s comments on Linkedin and X.

Most of them were variants of—“Don’t blame startups, look at how many jobs we created”, or “China also started with food delivery before they built deep-tech companies”, or the more aggressive version: “Maybe you should help startups instead of blaming them.” A few leaders, quite predictably, even agreed with the minister and exhorted startups to take it as “constructive criticism”.

These were all valid points of view, but they don't answer the most intriguing part of it all—why did Goyal say what he said?

Praveen Gopal Krishnan explains why in this episode of The Nutgraf. Tune in.

P.S.: You can also read this edition here: India is the mark

This episode of The Nutgraf was first published on 22 March. To gain access to the full episodes when they're published, subscribe to the Premium plan on The Ken. Or buy a monthly subscription to The Ken's Premium channel on Apple Podcasts for Rs 299/month.

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Online advertising is brutal. It’s a jungle out there.

And just like the jungle, some beasts are at the top of the food chain. You’ve probably heard of some of them. GroupM. Publicis. Dentsu. Madison. IPG. These are the ones who’re bigger than everyone else and hold the accounts of some of the world’s biggest advertisers. Coca Cola. Nike. Unilever.

In March, Coca-Cola took away its North America media business from GroupM and gave it to Publicis for a cool US$700 million dollars.

In the jungle, these ad agencies are giants. And in March, three days before the IPL—India’s biggest marketing event—the Competition Commission of India attacked all the giants, all at once. Why?

Praveen Gopal Krishnan explores in this edition of The Nutgraf. Tune in.

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You can also read this edition here: https://the-ken.com/the-nutgraf/an-ipl-whodunit/

Earlier edition referenced: 'Jiohotstar is not content' - https://the-ken.com/the-nutgraf/jiohotstar-is-not-content/

Earlier this week, Blusmart informed customers that it was temporarily pausing operations.

What Sebi discovered in its investigation or the arcane methods of how Blusmart’s founders orchestrated this scheme is, frankly, less interesting.

Instead, it’s the broader response to this that’s much more fun to talk about. As Youtube view counts often demonstrate, reaction videos can often be much more enthralling than the event itself.

And the response to news about the Blusmart collapse has been strikingly consistent.

In some ways, Indian businesses, startups, and media personalities have built and monetised a content economy that’s ultimately conformist, unremarkable, and post hoc.

Praveen Gopal Krishnan explores how in this week's The Nutgraf.

You can stream the full episode on The Ken app with a Premium subscription or on Apple Podcasts for just Rs 299/-.

The Ken - https://the-ken.com/podcasts/the-nutgraf/

Apple Podcasts - https://podcasts.apple.com/in/podcast/the-nutgraf-premium/id1808596991

You can also read this edition here: https://the-ken.com/the-nutgraf/stories/

Read 'Blusmart’s relationship with co-founder’s listed company could prove costly' here - https://the-ken.com/story/blusmarts-relationship-with-co-founders-listed-company-could-prove-costly/

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This is the audio edition of The Ken’s popular weekend newsletter, The Nutgraf. Every Saturday, author and host Praveen Gopal Krishnan reads aloud his latest edition, where he synthesizes and tells a story about the most interesting thing that happened that week in India’s business, tech and startup scene.

How many vehicles does Ola Electric actually sell in a month?

Nobody knows the answer.

In February 2025, the firm sold 25,000 scooters, but only 8,390 were registered on the government’s VAHAN portal. This discrepancy exists due to a renegotiation of contracts with two firms that carry out registration of vehicles for the EV maker.

If you are a public company in the business of making automobiles and you’re in the middle of a bad narrative—as Ola Electric is—the timing of this seems… unnecessary. Most people are already spooked about your company’s performance. Now, you’re messing around with the one reliable source they had to track how you’re doing and creating room for all kinds of conspiracy theories to take root.

For Ola Electric, this is the definition of a self-goal.

So why do it?

Praveen Gopal Krishnan explains in this week's edition of The Nutgraf.

Stream the full episode on The Ken app with a Premium subscription or on Apple Podcasts for just Rs 199/-.

The Ken - https://the-ken.com/podcasts/the-nutgraf/ola-electric-didnt-stop-digging/

Apple Podcasts - https://podcasts.apple.com/in/podcast/ola-electric-didnt-stop-digging/id1794924619?i=1000703240087

You can also read this edition here: https://the-ken.com/the-nutgraf/ola-electric-didnt-stop-digging/

'Are Trump's tariffs a crisis or an opportunity for India?' - https://the-ken.com/podcasts/two-by-two/no-easy-moves-is-india-facing-a-crisis-or-an-opportunity/

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This is the audio edition of The Ken’s popular weekend newsletter, The Nutgraf. Every Saturday, author and host Praveen Gopal Krishnan reads aloud his latest edition, where he synthesizes and tells a story about the most interesting thing that happened that week in India’s business, tech and startup scene.

On Thursday, Piyush Goyal, India's commerce minister, kicked the hornet's nest with his comments on the country's startups.

Essentially, Goyal’s main complaint was… “why are Indian startups like this? Just look at China."

As the minister’s remarks went viral, India’s startup leaders, executives, and thought leaders took a break from making Studio Ghibli-style AI images and decided to hop on the next trend—posting their thoughts on Goyal’s comments on Linkedin and X.

Most of them are variants of—“Don’t blame startups, look at how many jobs we created”, or “China also started with food delivery before they built deep-tech companies”, or the more aggressive version: “Maybe you should help startups instead of blaming them.” A few leaders, quite predictably, even agreed with the minister and exhorted startups to take it as “constructive criticism”.

These are all valid points of view, but they don't answer the most intriguing part of it all—why did Goyal say what he said?

Praveen Gopal Krishnan explains why in this week's edition of The Nutgraf.

---------

You can stream the full episode on The Ken app with a Premium subscription or on Apple Podcasts for just Rs 199/-.

The Ken - https://the-ken.com/podcasts/the-nutgraf/india-is-the-mark/

Apple Podcasts - https://podcasts.apple.com/in/podcast/india-is-the-mark/id1794924619?i=1000702274934

You can also read this edition here: https://the-ken.com/the-nutgraf/india-is-the-mark/

--------

This is the audio edition of The Ken’s popular weekend newsletter, The Nutgraf. Every Saturday, author and host Praveen Gopal Krishnan reads aloud his latest edition, where he synthesizes and tells a story about the most interesting thing that happened that week in India’s business, tech and startup scene.