Ashneer Grover talks about downside of Shark Tank India fame: ‘I delete abusive comments at 3 am’

Entrepreneur Ashneer Grover was the breakout ‘star’ of the first season of the reality show Shark Tank India, which concluded recently. Ashneer was one of the seven ‘sharks’ or entrepreneurs on the show, and his forthright attitude and blunt feedback to contestants made him popular with the fans.

The BharatPe co-founder quickly went from businessman to celebrity. But there is a downside to the fame as well. His blunt attitude has several critics too, who feel he is unnecessarily rude to the contestants. In a recent interaction, Ashneer revealed how he deals with that negative attention.

Speaking to comedians Rohan Joshi and Sahil Shah for Rohan’s YouTube channel, Ashneer responded to a question about the drawbacks of being that direct on Shark Tank India and said, “Bahut gaali padti hai. Abhi bhi raat ko chhup chhup kar main 3 baje uth kar gande comments to delete maarta hoon (I get abused a lot. Even now, I get up at 3 am and sneakily delete abusive comments from my social media).”

He added that he even blocks people on social media en masse. “I block them also and even select the option ‘not only this person but any account they create in the future’,” he said. During the interaction, Ashneer said he found his new-found fame puzzling. He said, “People often come to click selfies and I have to smile at two different cameras while they do that. I don’t get it. If you want a selfie, get one with a pretty actress, why me?”

Also read: Ashneer Grover reacts to wife wearing designs of Shark Tank contestant he slammed: ‘She doesn’t listen to me’

Shark Tank India is a show where entrepreneurs pitch their business ideas to a panel of tycoons aka sharks, who offer their investment and guidance in exchange for equity. It aired on Sony Entertainment Television on weekdays at 9 pm for over two months. There are speculations that the show will return later this year for a second season. However, it is not known if Ashneer or the other sharks from season 1 will return.