Rishav Agarwal
Building since college, bootstrapped since day one.
I started Picxele in college, skipped placements, and bootstrapped it to 1M+ users and $5M+ in revenue.
- Today
- Running a managed gig-worker platform along with a content, video and branding agency
- Alongside
- Backed 60+ startups as an angel investor and building communities
Users on Picxele
Revenue, fully bootstrapped
Startups backed as an angel
Members in The Ecosystem Community
Companies we have worked with
- Building since college.
- Bootstrapped since day one.
- No Plan B. Just Plan A, done properly.
- Comfort kills more dreams than failure.
Journey of Picxele, from a wall of letters to a studio.
201643 Internships
43 internships in my second year of engineering, nearly all remote and mostly unpaid.
2017A 200-Student Taskforce
A WhatsApp group of 200+ students delivering projects end to end. About ₹20 lakh in revenue.
Jul 2018Killed Plan B
Skipped placements and incorporated Floatex Marketing Solutions Pvt. Ltd.
Jun 2019Picxele Goes Live
The Picxele app launches.
2020–21Lockdown Growth
From 50K to 3.5 lakh+ users, profitable throughout.
2022Hello, Bengaluru
Moved to Bengaluru. 7 lakh+ users by December.
2023White-Collar Pilot
Piloted a managed white-collar freelancer model, backed 60 startups and ran 11 Dhandho cohorts.
Jan 2024Picxele 2.0
Relaunched as Picxele 2.0.
Apr 2025Studio & Podcast
Took our office in HSR, Bengaluru's startup hub, launched WhyMedia Studio, and started Impactables with Rishav Podcast.
Feb 2026TEDxIIMBG
Spoke at TEDxIIMBG, IIM Bodh Gaya.
NowOct 202640+ Team and Growing
The team grew to 40+, with a wider group of companies joining the next phase.
Picxele is a platform where grey-collar gig workers can do tasks and earn money from their location, along with managed skilled freelancers, where we get skilled tasks done by qualified freelancers. As we evolved, we moved more toward content, design, branding, events and more, while also working with a group of companies.
One group, several ways to build.
Video, design, conversations and community. Each company does one thing well, and together they cover most of what a growing brand needs.
Specialises in managing end-to-end video production and editing, including podcast IP management, UGC, ad shoots, product shoots and more.
whymedia.in
An independent design studio with specialised teams working across products, experiences and objects for people.
interactivestudio.co
Impactables
Since May 2025, I've been sitting down with founders, investors, operators and creators to talk about what it really took to build their companies and careers. No highlight reels. Just the decisions, the mistakes and the lessons you can use on Monday.
@impactables-with-rishav
A curated community of 30,000+ founders, VCs, investors and operators, with 200+ meetups and curated mixers across Bengaluru, Mumbai and Delhi. Home to The Startup Tales and the Bengaluru Pitch Circuit.
nas.io/the-ecosystem-community60+ founders I've bet on.
Since 2021, I've written angel cheques into 60+ startups, from pre-seed to Series B, across fintech, consumer brands, food, mobility, edtech and climate. More than ten were founded by students, just as I started my journey as a student. Some of them include:
Tap Invest
Ghost Kitchens
P-TAL
Crib
TrulyMadly
YourPhysio
Jar
Vidyuttech
DrinkPrime
Betterhalf
Zypp Electric
Anveshan
Serri
Vasaas
StyleWork
Pushstart
Vidyakul
UP&RUN
Crego
AppOpen
Tummoc
FlexyPe
Jade Forest
Samosa Singh
Bluetea
Vanghee
Exa Mobility
TBX- & 30-odd more
- Pitch to me
Where I roll up my sleeves.
While building and investing in startups, I add the most value by helping them grow in business, marketing, sales and GTM.
AdvisorBreak Into VC- Entrepreneur in ResidenceTBX (formerly TransBnk)
MentorHashFame- Growth HeadTummoc
Growth AdvisorFlexyPe- Growth AdvisorSerri
- Growth AdvisorAppOpen
Venture PartnerHostelFund
MentorKaroStartup
SupporterPretty In Jewels
On stage, off script.
Keynotes, fireside chats, panels and campus sessions from the last couple of years.
HackShift · IIIT DelhiGuest Speaker
Dare to DisruptIndira School of Business Studies PGDM
Scaler Startup LabsPanel Discussion
Netcore × MetaRoundtable (Agentic AI in Marketing)
IAMAI Marketing ConclavePanel · The rise of microdramas
TEDxIIMBGFeb 2026 · IIM Bodh Gaya
Startup Gravity 2023Panel · Deshpande Startups
The Ecosystem CommunityFounder meetups
SRM Deeptech SummitBack at my alma mater
TAPMI BengaluruSpeaker
Mesa Startup LabStartup Deck Day
Panel DiscussionManipal University (Bengaluru)
Impactables with Rishav
Since May 2025, I've been sitting down with founders, investors, operators and creators to talk about what it really took to build their companies and careers. No highlight reels. Just the decisions, the mistakes and the lessons you can use on Monday.
Bringing the ecosystem into one room.
A curated community of founders, VCs, investors and operators. Alongside it, The Startup Tales supports early-stage startups and runs the Bengaluru Pitch Circuit.
Building Something Need a team that delivers or have a story worth telling?
I'm happy to talk about startups, growth, bootstrapping, investments and community. Pick whatever fits.
Book a call