All hell broke loose on the first episode of the brand-new season 5 of Shark Tank India on Sony Liv. where influencer Dr Manoj Das pitched his natural skincare and haircare wellness brand, Lewisia Wellness, to the sharks.
Although the influencer revealed that he identifies himself as a naturopath and aromatherapy specialist, his assertions during the pitch left Sharks Aman Gupta and Anupam Mittal visibly exasperated—and quickly turned the spotlight on him. Here’s what went wrong.
In the episode, released by Shark Tank India on YouTube on 7 January, the influencer introduced himself as Dr. Manoj Das – but the explanation behind the use of the prefix ‘Dr’ quickly left the judges stunned.
Das said he identifies as a naturopath and aromatherapy specialist, which, according to him, is why he uses the title “doctor” before his name.
This left Anupam baffled, "Agar aap keh rahe ho ki aap Bachelors in Aromatherapy kar rahe ho aur aap doctor naam laga sakte ho! Mein bhai mera naam badal dunga (If you're saying you're doing a Bachelor's in Aromatherapy and you can use the title "Doctor," then I'll change my name)."
The Shaadi.com founder grilled the presenter and question his intentions in selling products that target people's vulnerabilities, including hair loss, weight loss, ageing, and more.
During the pitch, Dr. Das raised an ask of ₹1 crore in exchange for 1% equity, seeking the Sharks’ support to scale the brand and expand its presence in the growing wellness market.
Snapdeal co-founder Kunal Bahl also pressed Dr Manoj Das to disclose the ratings and reviews on his website and online marketplaces—numbers that, he claimed, had helped the brand generate profits of around ₹4 crore.
Das claimed his products had a 3.5 rating on Amazon.
When Anupam Mittal suggested the reviews may have been paid for, Das pushed back, saying there were “50 reviews” in total—an answer that left the Sharks even more surprised, given his claim that his brand, Lewisia Wellness, sells ‘ ₹5 crore worth of inventory.’
After the episode was aired, social media has also been abuzz with claims made by Manoj Das.
One netizen alleged that Dr Manoj Das is a ‘living example of how people scam through Instagram Reels.’
“His pitch right from the beginning made me angry. It was all lies clearly visible. But the sales number shocked me. I assumed no one buys this shit. But Indian appetite for so called natural gimmicky products is crazy. And btw he didn’t make 149 crores,” another X user claimed.
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