In 2001, as the dot-com bubble burst and took countless tech dreams down with it, Anupam Mittal found himself laid off in the United States. It was abrupt, disorienting, and without a safety net. He had no plan B, no fallback option. In a candid LinkedIn post, he recalled the moment vividly: “I still remember that walk back from the office. It wasn’t long, but it felt like a free fall.” The emotional impact far outweighed the financial loss. In fact, he admitted most of his finances had already been drained by the market crash. What hit hardest was the sheer uncertainty — for the first time in years, he didn’t know what to do next.
The layoff triggered more than just anxiety; it shook the foundation of his identity. He admitted to spiraling into frustration, constantly refreshing job boards as if they held the answer to his future. Like many in his position, he blamed the economy, cursed his luck, and waited for something — anything — to change. But no external source of motivation came to the rescue. What finally sparked a shift was a simple question he wrote down in his diary: “What would I build if I had nothing left to lose?”
That question changed everything. There was no sudden confidence, no brilliant epiphany — just a spark of curiosity that ignited excitement. With no clear path ahead, he made a bold decision: to stop applying for jobs and start building something of his own. He had no savings, no influential network, and certainly no venture capital funding. What he did have was family support and a dial-up internet connection. It was with these humble resources that he built his first rough version of what would eventually become Shaadi.com.
The journey began with one crude website and a single step forward. There was nothing glamorous about those early days. Mittal is quick to point this out, saying he doesn’t share his story to romanticize failure. It was difficult, raw, and filled with doubts. Yet, through persistence, his project grew — from an idea born out of uncertainty into a platform that would go on to redefine how an entire generation approached marriage and matchmaking in India and abroad.
Reflecting on his journey, Mittal emphasizes a truth that many aspiring entrepreneurs overlook: action is the real game-changer. “Action is the lead domino,” he wrote. Taking that first step — even in fear, even without clarity — is what sets everything else in motion. He believes most people place too much weight on strategy and underestimate the power of momentum. We wait for the right time, the right plan, the perfect amount of funding. But clarity, he says, doesn’t come before action — it emerges from it.
His story stands as a reminder that some of life’s most meaningful ventures don’t begin with certainty, but with courage. That even when you feel like you’re in free fall, the act of simply moving forward can eventually help you fly.
