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The Neon Show

The Neon Show

Author: Siddhartha Ahluwalia

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Hi, I am your host Siddhartha! I have been an entrepreneur from 2012-2017 building two products AddoDoc and Babygogo. After selling my company to SHEROES, I and my partner Nansi decided to start up again. But we felt unequipped in our skillset in 2018 to build a large company. We had known 0-1 journey from our startups but lacked the experience of building 1-10 journeys. 

Hence was born the Neon Show (Earlier 100x Entrepreneur) to learn from founders and investors, the mindset to scale yourself and your company. This quest still keeps us excited even after 5 years and doing 200+ episodes. 

We welcome you to our journey to understand what goes behind building a super successful company. Every episode is done with a very selfish motive, that I and Nansi should come out as a better entrepreneur and professional after absorbing the learnings. 


295 Episodes
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India’s leadership story is a fascinating journey full of lessons for anyone looking to make an impact.In just two years, opening up the space economy has led to over 100 new startups in aerospace, sparking innovation and fueling the dreams of a new generation of changemakers.And it doesn’t stop there—India is heavily investing in future-focused areas like green hydrogen, quantum computing, and the blue economy, showing a clear vision for industries that will define tomorrow.Drawing from its ...
Harish Bhat, ex-Brand Custodian of the Tata Group, joins us to share unique moments from the extraordinary life of Ratan Tata. From creating India’s first indigenous car, Tata Indica, to his on-ground response during the 26/11 Taj Hotel attacks, to the Tata Finance crisis, to leading India’s fight against cancer, Ratan Tata led from the front.Harish shares how he first met Ratan Tata and the personal note he received, highlighting Ratan Tata’s integrity, humility, and more-than-a-busines...
In 2010, Facebook opened its first office in India, four years after it went online.They needed someone bold to lead their journey in India which had a major customer base potential.That someone was Kirthiga Reddy.Under Kirthiga’s leadership, Facebook not only grew its user base but also planted deep roots in a complex and rapidly evolving digital ecosystem.Today, India has the most Facebook users with over 448 million, followed by the US (258 million).After six years of phenomenal growth at ...
How a 1,500-Year-Old Game Became an Online SensationIt started as a simple idea in 2005—a hub for chess enthusiasts to connect, chat, and share their love for the game.Erik Allebest and Jay Severson, two college buddies with a shared passion for strategy, had just purchased the domain Chess.com for $55,000. Initially, it was a forum, but then the demand for online play began to soar.In 2007, they launched the first subscription-based version of Chess.com. Within a few years, the pla...
These farmers lost around $1.72B in a single morning.It was all because of tit-for-tat import taxes.But what really happened and who were these farmers?It all started when Donald Trump walked into the White House in January 2017, promising to take on what he called “unfair trade” with China.March 2018, Trump slapped $50 billion in tariffs on Chinese goods, aiming straight at the heart of China’s industrial ambitions—its "Made in China 2025" strategy. This marked the start of the trade wa...
In this episode of the NEON Show, Boris Wertz, a renowned venture capitalist and entrepreneur, shares his extensive journey through the tech and investment world over the past 25 years. From founding a company that was acquired by Amazon to becoming an investor and backing emerging fund managers globally, Boris offers a rich and unique perspective on the evolution of venture capital.Timestamp00:00 - Trailer 01:40 - Introduction and background03:17 - Journey as a venture capitalist04:49 -...
In this episode of the NEON Show, Ashok K. Lahiri, a leading economist and former Chief Economic Advisor, talks about India’s economic journey and the changes in its tax system. Lahiri shares why India has fallen behind some countries, pointing to missed opportunities in education, healthcare, and infrastructure. He also highlights the importance of India’s democracy and federal system in shaping its progress.Check out Ashok K. Lahiri’s book, India in search of glory, https://www.amazon.in/In...
The world’s largest tech-focused venture capital fund. And the man behind it is Masayoshi Son, often referred to as Masa.At 16, Masa moved to California, drawn by the entrepreneurial spirit of Silicon Valley.Before he turned 21 years old, Son sold his first company— a multilingual translator bought by Sharp for about $1 million.Masa returned to Japan and founded SoftBank as a software distribution company. In 1995, Masa made one of his first bold investments— a $100 million for a 30% sta...
Why does 50% of India’s workforce remain in agriculture while the U.S. has just 2%?Despite all those hands in the soil, the sector contributes just 15-18% to the GDP. While countries like the U.S. and Europe shifted quickly from agriculture to industry, India's progress was pretty slow. So, is it too late for India to catch up and move on from agriculture?Although India did build textile mills and steel plants, its industrialization lagged behind faster-growing Asian economies like Japan...
In India, financial security often seemed just out of reach, especially when it came to insurance. For many, insurance was complex, filled with hidden terms, and often mis-sold.That’s exactly what happened when an engineer-turned-consultant discovered that his father had been duped by insurance agents into purchasing a policy that was both confusing and overpriced.Instead of just shrugging it off, this experience sparked an idea: why not create a platform where people could get straightforwar...
Ever heard of the M Document?Montek Singh Ahluwalia, an economist in govt of India, saw that India needed to make some big changes to keep up. So, he started working on what would become the M Document. The M Document suggested bold reforms. Many government officials thought these ideas were too radical. Then, something unexpected happened: the M Document got into the hands of journalist Ashok Desai, who saw its potential, and gave it the now-famous name, the M Document.Even though ...
After India’s big economic shift in 1991, each state grew at different rates—but they didn’t all get there at the same speed.Western and southern states saw major benefits, while many in the east and north struggled to keep up. In fact, by 2021-22, the per capita income in the top five states was 3.3 times higher than in the bottom five—a clear sign of the widening divide.So, what does this uneven growth look like?In the 1960s, Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, and West Bengal were leading India's ...
The breakup of the Soviet Union in 1991 was a game-changer for India, shaking up its economy, defence strategy, and foreign relations. For years, the USSR had been India’s largest trading partner, pumping in vital support through the rupee-ruble trade agreement. But then, December 25, 1991, arrived, and the Soviet Union collapsed. While the Soviet Union’s collapse seemed like a disaster at first, it actually pushed India to evolve—fast. In this episode of The NEON Show, a...
From Baker's Son to Global Investment Legend.Mark Mobius is known as a foundational figure in emerging markets investing. He is the chairman of Mobius Emerging Opportunities Fund. Before that, he led the Templeton Emerging Markets Group for over 30 years, during which the group's assets under management grew from $100 million to over $50 billion.In this episode of The NEON Show, Mark shares his rules for wealth creation, why India is his top investment pick, his reasons for pulling investment...
In 1947, India gained independence with a per capita of around $2000(adjusted with inflation).But over the next few decades, the govt adopted socialist policies, emphasising self-sufficiency and state-led development. As a result, India’s economy grew at a slower pace of 3.5% per year.In 1991, India introduced a series of reforms— liberalisation, privatisation, and globalisation. India’s growth rate picked up, and by 2023, India’s per capita GDP was back to $2,600, driven by market-friendly p...
How the 1991 crisis got India to rethink its economic approach.By early 1991, India’s reserves were nearly gone.The government took a desperate step—it sent 67,000Kg of gold abroad to secure a loan from the IMF.This was a last-ditch effort to avoid default, but it only bought a little time. But soon, the govt collapsed again, leading to a new election.In June 1991, P.V. Narasimha Rao became Prime Minister, and he chose Manmohan Singh as his Finance Minister— and things changed.Rao and S...
In the competitive world of online grocery shopping, BigBasket is a name that stands out.But how did they get here?By 2011, smartphones were everywhere, and you could buy almost anything online—except groceries. The co-founders decided to try the grocery game online again, leading to the birth of BigBasket.In 2015, BigBasket pioneered the dark store model, using small, strategically placed warehouses to speed up deliveries and roll out express delivery services. In May 2021, Tata Digital...
Every entrepreneur dreams of turning a small startup into a global powerhouse. But how do you do it without following the typical "build a product, get funding, scale it, and exit" playbook? Luca Ferrari, founder and CEO of Bending Spoons, did just that— their journey is anything but conventional.It started in 2013, when their first-ever startup Evertale flopped and left them with just $40,000. After Evertale missed PMF, they pivoted, bootstrapping Bending Spoons by focusing on acquiring digi...
To say that India needs to create more jobs, is a downplay - what we need are 20 million jobs every year. But jobs can’t be created out of the wishing well.We have resources, but not proper skills. We have opportunities, but not proper initiatives to boost on the employment elasticity. We need a shift from Tier 1 to Tier 2 cities. We need a shift of capitals. We need immigration-based jobs for our youths, and we definitely need the women workforce landscape to improve at the earliest. But, wi...
Over the last decade, we have been getting news updates, social media highlights, and WhatsApp forwards about India being the “fastest growing economy” in the world. IMF, World Bank, and ADB have confirmed this. The question is, in the face of demonetisation, GST, and the drastic shift of focus to the organised sector from the unorganised one, is this data a true reflection of India’s economic reality? Today, Neon talks about these facts with Professor Arun Kumar, a renowned author...
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Comments (14)

Paja Storec

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Jan 15th
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Paja Storec

✅WATCH>>ᗪOᗯᑎᒪOᗩᗪ>>👉https://co.fastmovies.org

Jan 15th
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Yogesh Singla

the episode ends abruptly. is the file corrupted:?

Jan 16th
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Yogesh Singla

Weirdest episode so far. Siddharth was very patient and asked good questions. The entrepreneur himself wasn't very open and sounded egotistic. Being a user of healthifyme myself disappointed. Was hoping to hear more from the entrepreneur and more expressive answers. :(

Oct 18th
Reply

Sadik Emran

Awesome

Jun 6th
Reply

Ashootosh Bhardwaj

audio quality is not upto the mark for this particular episode.. you guys should try to refine audio before publishing

Mar 16th
Reply

prashant patil

Great insights .... thanks again Can you also discuss with VC on “ how one can become VC ?. Also what are process / registration to be done .

May 13th
Reply

ASk be unique

amazing sir

Apr 26th
Reply

ASk be unique

thanks for this amzing podcast show

Apr 13th
Reply

ASk be unique

amazing..its totally amazing,helping me a lot

Mar 16th
Reply

jayanth Ramesh

fabulous podcasts..very useful..kindly add the different segments and their timing at the cover photo/description ...for reference you can check play to potential

Sep 24th
Reply

100x Entrepreneur

Agree completely with you Nimish. The narrative on how brands are built will be completely different from now.

Jul 22nd
Reply (1)

Nimish Jain

High speed internet will be disrupting the Marketing game for all consumer based start-ups in India within 4-5 years. Excited to see how it unfolds ✨

Jul 22nd
Reply