It Takes Two To Zepto

Two of the youngest rich Indians' and founders of the clutter-cutting grocery delivery app, Kaivalya Vohra and Aadit Palicha explain how idiot-proof software, care towards their riders, and a huge proportion of personal sacrifice makes their business tick

- Sharan Sanil

On the surface, Kaivalya Vohra's (KV) anxieties seem pretty in line for any ambitious 19-year-old - he works hard at applying his skills, learns more about his passions, and tries to squeeze in time for a workout or two through the week. His old friend, Aadit Palicha, works in tandem, facing many of the same uphill battles that twentysomethings do when they join the workforce and discover their potential. But this duo isn't on the same playing field as most of us Vohra and Palicha are two of the 'youngest rich Indians' to ever exist, with a collective worth of over Rs 2,200 crores.

Schooled in Dubai and native to Mumbai, both entrepreneurs enjoyed building software as kids, although admittedly, Vohra had the upper hand and eventually took on CTO responsibilities, while Palicha's penchant for storytelling and business drew him into the CEO role. Together, the duo spearheaded school projects at the age of 10, applied to Stanford together, and stepped back from it all to conquer their own slice of India's mammoth grocery ecosystem.

"Groceries are such a pain," remarks Palicha, remembering his mid-2020 foray into the delivery business with the then-nascent predecessor to Zepto, Kiranakart. At the time, Palicha and KV were living as bachelors in Mumbai, having freshly dropped out of college. And it was clear to them that like the Larry Pages, Steve Ballmers, and Elon Musks of the world, entrepreneurship was far more compelling than a Computer Science degree from the world's #3 university. "We just wanted to solve something for our neighbourhood," Palicha recalls.