Jugaadu Kamlesh is an Indian farmer who owns an agri-food company called “KG Agrotech”. He appears on the TV show Shark Tanks (2022) as one of the pitchers who secures investment from the judges (sharks) for his pesticide cart.
Wiki/Biography
Kamlesh Nanasaheb Ghumare was born in 1996 (27 years old; as of 2022) in Dwalpad, Malegaon, Maharashtra. He was educated at NS Deshmukh Vidyla Chikhal O School in Malegaon, Maharashtra. The next year, he dropped out of Maharaja Sayajirao Gaikwad College in Malegaon, Maharashtra.
appearance
Height (approximately): 5′7″
Hair color: black
Eye color: black
family
Parents and siblings
His father is a farmer. His elder brother Nilesh Ghumare is serving in the Indian Army.
Julgadu Kamlesh and his brothers
wife
As of 2022, he is not married.
Profession
After several career failures, he opened a small hotel in his hometown, but he soon had to close it permanently. Speaking on a talk show, he said:
I opened a hotel in my hometown and things were going great. But one day my friend took my phone and called a random girl. The matter became a big deal and caused huge controversy. People started judging my character. People in the village used to laugh at my parents. But my parents supported me and believed I could never do anything wrong. My mother once said to me, we believe you have done some great work and those who laugh at us will come to us for your help. “
Kamlesh then started working as a farmer with his father. One day, while he was working there, he discovered that the pesticides they were spraying on the farm were causing his father serious health problems. In an interview, he recounted the entire incident. He said,
One day, I was on the farm and saw my father spraying pesticides. He got all kinds of skin diseases because of the pesticides, but he never complained. But I decided to do something for my father and other farmers across the country. I thought of making this process easier. I am not an engineer but had a plan and I used to go to a nearby kabaddi shop to pick up some spare parts or scraps. Initially it was like a bicycle structure, not very efficient, but gradually I kept adding elements to it and changing it as needed. “
It took him nearly 7 years to make a pesticide trolley. In 2012, he uploaded a video of his cart on YouTube, which went viral on social media. He even received offers from several companies to sell his products to them, but he rejected the offers.
In 2021, he saw a promotional video for the TV series “Shark Tank” on his mobile phone. His brother-in-law invited him to participate in the show after seeing the commercial. After several rounds of auditions, he appeared in front of the judges (called Sharks in the show) in 2022, together with his brother’s son Naru. He said in his speech,
Hamare muh me, aankh me ye pesticide jane se bimariyan hoti hain, to mere papa ko bhi ye bimari thi (These pesticides cause diseases when they enter our mouths and eyes. My father also suffered from this disease). “
When one of the sharks asked him why he didn’t choose to work in the company, he replied:
Naukri karunga toh 24 ghante ke liye kisi ka gulam rahunga, aur hum kisan hai hum kisi ke gulam nahi rehna chahte (If I do a job, I will be someone’s slave for 24 hours, we are farmers, we don’t want to be someone slave)”
His ideas and propositions were appreciated by the judges, but the investment proposal was rejected by four judges (sharks) Anupam Mittal, Namita Thapar, Vineeta Singh and Ghazal Alagh, with only Lenskart co-founder and CEO Peyush Bansal accepting the proposal. Peyush offered him Rs. 10 lakhs to purchase 40% stake in Kamlesh’s company “KG Agrotech” and a loan of Rs 10 lakhs. 20 lakhs at zero interest rate.
Jugaadu Kamlesh with his pesticide trolley
A few days after the show, Peyush Bansal called him at his home in Delhi to discuss the product. He shared an Instagram Live video with Peyush in which they talked about launching the product in the market.
Jugaadu Kamlesh and Peyush Bansal
Kamlesh has also tried his luck in acting and appeared in a few Marathi web series like ‘Patang Premacha’.
Jugaadu Kamlesh in Patang Premacha
He also stars in “Kaal”, a short film based on the coronavirus pandemic.
Facts/Trivia
- As a teenager, he wanted to join the Indian Army and made several attempts to appear for the entrance exam, but gave up preparations after breaking two fingers on his foot. He was bedridden for several months after the fracture.
- While in college, he participated in various acting and singing competitions. After seeing his acting skills, his friends encouraged him to pursue an acting career. Later, he traveled to Mumbai to try his luck. A friend of his in Mumbai helped him stay there for an audition, where he was rejected because of his looks and language. Then he decided to quit the entertainment industry and return to his hometown.
Jugaadu Kamlesh sang at the event
- He then tried to find a job and a man in the village assured him of a government job with a salary of Rs. 100,000 and submit some original documents. He agreed, but later found out the man was a liar. Kamlesh then decided that he would never do any work. After a series of career failures, he fell into depression and twice attempted suicide.
- His interview was reported by many well-known media.
- In 2021, he won the 24-hour Rising Startup Unicorn Award from Zee.
- Kamlesh appeared on the Josh Talk (2022) and shared his life story.
Jughadur Kamlesh in conversation with Josh
Categories: Biography
Source: HIS Education