Saiprasad Pandilwar from Nanded and Manan Vyas from Indore, both final-year Computer Science students at Vellore Institute of Technology, co-founded MyPerro in October 2023. Combining GPS tracking, health monitoring, geofencing, and activity insights in a smart dog collar, they raised ₹25-30 lakh entirely through stipends and grants, without diluting equity. They appeared on Shark Tank India Season 5 Episode 52.
The Origin — A Dog Named Muffin, a VIT Hostel, and a Problem Worth Solving
• Saiprasad Pandilwar grew up in Nanded, Maharashtra, and made it to Vellore Institute of Technology to study Computer Science. His co-founder Manan Vyas came from Indore, Madhya Pradesh, and shared the same campus, the same passion for technology, and the same deep love for animals.
• “My personal experience with a neglectful pet boarding service was a turning point for me. My dog, Muffin, was severely mistreated while in their care. I wanted to address this particular problem," Saiprasad shares.
• The two founders launched MyPerro in October 2023. The idea was precise and personal: build a smart collar that tracks a dog's GPS location, monitors health vitals, sets geofence alerts, and gives pet parents real-time visibility into their animal's wellbeing, from anywhere in the world.
• They began with on-ground market research, speaking to pet parents, veterinarians, and boarding service providers. The problem was real and widely validated. India's pet industry is growing rapidly, with urban pet ownership rising sharply and pet parents increasingly treating their animals as family. The gap in intelligent, affordable monitoring technology was wide open.
The Strategic Genius — Four Product Iterations, ₹25 Lakh in Grants, Zero Equity Given
• The most remarkable financial story in MyPerro's journey is the one that impressed even a sceptical Anupam Mittal on Shark Tank India.
• When the founders revealed their capital structure, the tank went quiet with respect. Saiprasad and Manan had invested their own stipend and pocket money, approximately ₹5 lakh combined. They then won a grant of ₹4 lakh, followed by another grant of ₹5 lakh. In December 2025, a further ₹10 lakh grant was approved. Total capital raised: ₹25 to ₹30 lakh. Equity given: zero.
• "Yeh India ka jalwa hai," Anupam Mittal said when he heard this. Roughly translated: this is India's magic.
• The product itself had gone through four prototype iterations at the time of the Shark Tank pitch. The smart collar tracks GPS location, monitors essential health vitals including pulse, provides activity insights, enables geofencing with real-time alerts, and integrates with a companion app. The company is an incubatee at IIM Bangalore's NSRCel, one of India's most respected startup incubators.
• MyPerro's go-to-market strategy focuses on partnering with existing dog boarding facilities, equipping them with smart collars to solve the very problem that sparked the company's founding: giving pet parents visibility and peace of mind when they leave their animals in someone else's care.
The Shark Tank Moment — Honest Feedback and a Bigger Lesson
• MyPerro appeared on Shark Tank India Season 5 Episode 52, the Campus Special episode, seeking ₹60 lakh for 8% equity at a valuation of ₹7.5 crore. Anupam Mittal called the timing "perfect" for a pet tech play in India. Mohit Yadav noted how deeply Indian families now regard their pets.
• The Sharks ultimately passed, with Aman Gupta pushing the founders toward more sophisticated technology and deeper innovation. While funding was not secured on the show, the national visibility, the Shark feedback, and the platform that Shark Tank India provided gave MyPerro something more durable: a clear direction for its next chapter.
Scale and The Road Ahead
• MyPerro was founded in 2023, is headquartered in Bengaluru, and is built by two final-year engineering students who are simultaneously completing their degrees and building a hardware startup from scratch. They are incubatees at IIM Bangalore's NSRCel and pre-incubatees at VIT Vellore, giving them access to two of the strongest entrepreneurial support ecosystems in India. The company has 56 active competitors in the pet care space in India, including funded platforms like Petmojo and Kuddle.
• India's pet care market is estimated to grow significantly through 2030, driven by rising urban pet ownership, increasing pet humanisation, and growing demand for technology-driven care solutions.
The Business Lesson — The Most Powerful Capital Is the Kind You Earn Without Giving Away Ownership
• The sharpest lesson from MyPerro's journey is one that every young founder needs to hear: the most valuable early capital is the kind that builds your credibility, your product, and your equity position simultaneously.
• Saiprasad and Manan chose the harder path. Winning grants requires a compelling idea, rigorous documentation, and proof of commitment. It is slower than raising from angels. But it preserved 100% of their equity, forced them to validate through process rather than persuasion, and built a capital story that genuinely impressed some of India's toughest investors.
• They started with a dog, a dorm room, and a problem they had personally lived. They built four hardware prototypes, raised ₹25 lakh without dilution, got incubated at IIM Bangalore, and stood on a national stage while an Indian startup veteran said their funding approach was India's magic.
• Muffin's story sparked a company. That company is just getting started.
Sources: IndiaIPO.in, Snapdeal Blog, StarterSky, Tracxn, ZoomInfo
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