Introduction: The Dream That Became a Nightmare
Once upon a time, Byju’s was a hero.
Parents loved it. Students used it. Investors threw money at it.
At its peak, Byju’s was worth ₹22 lakh crore (about $22 billion).
Yes. 22 lakh crore rupees.
It was India’s most valuable startup. Everyone thought it could never fail.
But today? Byju’s is almost dead.
The company is in bankruptcy court. Thousands of employees have not been paid. Founders are fighting with everyone. And students are leaving in crores.
How did this happen?
This is the story of the biggest mistake in Indian startup history.
Let us break it down. Simple words.
Mistake #1: Growing Too Fast, Too Madly
Byju’s grew like a monster.
In 2020, COVID hit. Schools closed. Parents panicked.
Byju’s saw an opportunity. They said, “Use our app. Your child will not fall behind.”
And parents listened. Millions of students joined.
But Byju’s got greedy.
They hired 50,000+ employees in just two years. Before COVID, they had only 15,000.
They opened offices everywhere. They spent money like water.
They thought the growth would never stop.
But COVID ended. Schools reopened. Parents said, “We don’t need the app anymore.”
Byju’s was left with 50,000 employees and no new customers.
Never grow faster than your real demand. If you hire for a boom, you will fire in a bust.
Mistake #2: Buying Everything That Moved
Byju’s had too much money. So they started shopping.
They bought startup after startup. Names you may know:
- WhiteHat Jr (the coding class company)
- Aakash Institute (the coaching giant)
- Epic (a US-based reading app)
- Osmo (a toy company)
- TutorVista (old tutoring brand)
They spent over ₹18,000 crore on these purchases.
That is 18,000 crore rupees.
But here is the problem. They never mixed these companies together.
WhiteHat Jr kept doing its own thing. Aakash worked separately. Byju’s app worked differently.
No one talked to each other. No one shared customers. No one saved money.
Byju’s became a big messy house. Too many rooms. No connection.
Buying companies is easy. Fixing them is hard. Never buy what you cannot digest.
Mistake #3: Selling Like a Loan Shark
Byju’s sales team was very… aggressive.
Let me give you an example.
A salesperson would call a parent. The parent would say, “I am not interested.”
The salesperson would not stop. He would call again. And again. And again.
Sometimes, they would call 10 times in one day.
If a parent still said no, the salesperson would say, “Your child will fail without Byju’s.”
Yes. They said that.
Parents got scared. They bought the course.
But the real problem was auto-renewal.
Byju’s would take money from your bank account automatically. Even if you did not want to renew. Even if your child stopped using the app.
Thousands of parents complained. Some went to court. Some went to the police.
The government had to step in. They said, “Stop this cheating.”
Byju’s said sorry. But the damage was done.
If you sell by fear and force, customers will leave you forever. Good business is built on trust, not pressure.
Mistake #4: Lying to Investors
Byju’s raised money from the biggest names in the world.
- Sequoia Capital
- Tiger Global
- Silver Lake
- Chan-Zuckerberg Initiative (Mark Zuckerberg’s own fund)
These investors gave thousands of crores.
But Byju’s did not show them the real picture.
Byju’s said, “We have 10 crore students. We are growing 50% every year.”
None of that was fully true.
Many students had joined for a free trial and then left. But Byju’s counted them as “customers.”
Many parents had paid only ₹100 for a test. But Byju’s counted them as “paying users.”
When the truth came out, investors were angry. Very angry.
They demanded their money back. But Byju’s had already spent it all.
Do not lie to people who give you money. Truth always comes out. And when it does, trust is broken forever.
Mistake #5: The Founder Refused to Leave
Byju’s founder is Byju Raveendran.
He is a very smart man. He built a great product. He changed Indian education.
But he made one big mistake.
He refused to listen to anyone.
When the company started failing, his investors said, “Please step down. Let professional CEOs run the company.”
Byju Raveendran said no.
When the board said, “We need to fire 50% of employees to save money,” he said no.
When the banks said, “You must sell Aakash Institute to pay debts,” he said no.
He kept saying no. Until there was nothing left to save.
Now, he is fighting everyone in court. His own investors. His own employees. His own lenders.
A founder is not the company. If you cannot take hard decisions, step aside. Ego has killed more startups than lack of money.
The Final Result: Where is Byju’s Today?
Let me give you the current situation (April 2026).
- Court case: Byju’s is in bankruptcy court. A judge will decide if the company dies or gets sold.
- Employees: Thousands have not been paid for 3-6 months. Many have left. Many have filed police complaints.
- Students: Crores of students have left the app. New sign-ups are almost zero.
- Money: Byju’s owes banks and investors over ₹10,000 crore. They have no way to pay.
- Founder: Byju Raveendran is in Dubai. He has not come to India for over a year. His office in Bengaluru is locked.
The company that was worth ₹22 lakh crore is now worth almost zero.
Some experts say Byju’s will shut down completely by the end of 2026.
Others say someone will buy it for just ₹500 crore.
From ₹22 lakh crore to ₹500 crore.
That is not a fall. That is a crash.
What Can Indian Startups Learn from Byju’s?
Here are 5 simple lessons.
Lesson 1: Slow is okay. You do not have to grow like a rocket. Slow growth with happy customers is better than fast growth with angry customers.
Lesson 2: Do one thing well. Byju’s tried to do everything. App. Coaching. Coding. Toys. Textbooks. They did nothing well in the end.
Lesson 3: Honesty pays. If you lie to investors, customers, or employees, you will get caught. Always.
Lesson 4: Listen to your board. If smart people with money tell you something is wrong, maybe they are right.
Lesson 5: Ego is expensive. Byju Raveendran’s ego cost 50,000 people their jobs. And his own company.
A Message for You, Dear Reader
You came to MistakeIndia.com to learn from mistakes.
Byju’s is not just a mistake. It is a masterclass in how to destroy a company.
But here is the good news.
Every mistake teaches us something. And Byju’s has taught India a very big lesson.
The next time a startup says, “We are the next big thing,” you will remember Byju’s. You will ask questions. You will not believe the hype.
That is wisdom. And wisdom is priceless.
So thank you, Byju’s. For the lessons. Even though they cost you everything.
What Do You Think?
I want to hear from you.
- Do you think Byju’s can still be saved?
- Have you or your child used Byju’s? What was your experience?
- Which Indian startup do you think will fail next?
Share your thoughts in the comments below.
And if you liked this article, share it with one friend who needs to read this.
Because in India, we celebrate success. But at MistakeIndia.com, we celebrate learning from failure.
And that is the real win.
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