Namita Thapar, a prominent judge on Shark Tank India and Executive Director of the pharmaceutical giant Emcure, has embarked on a bold new chapter as a founder. After 19 years in her family's Rs 20,000 crore business, she launched her own wellness supplement brand, Arth, in 2024, navigating a steep learning curve that included a significant financial setback.
The Corporate Leader's Founder Pivot
For nearly two decades, Namita Thapar operated within the vast structure of Emcure Pharmaceuticals, a company founded by her father Satish Mehta in 1981 and headquartered in Pune. As Executive Director handling domestic business, she managed a massive team of 5,000 people. Her transition to founder in 2024 meant a dramatic shift in scale and responsibility.
In a candid conversation with fellow Shark Tank India panelist Vineeta Singh, CEO of Sugar Cosmetics, on the SUGARQuoted YouTube channel, Namita reflected on this change. She expressed a sense of revelation, wondering why she hadn't taken the founder plunge earlier. "I have gone from a team of 5,000 to 15 for Arth," she stated, highlighting the need to personally engage with every aspect of the business, from marketing to product development, with no room for delegation.
Embracing Failure and Learning from Investees
The founder journey for Namita has been punctuated by costly lessons. She openly admitted to a major early failure where a batch of products had to be completely discarded. "We had to literally throw away everything... That was a Rs 20-30 lakh hit," she revealed. While such a sum might have been absorbed within the large P&L of Emcure, it represented a critical loss for her fledgling startup, underscoring the high stakes of entrepreneurship.
In an ironic twist, the tables have turned in her learning process. The founders of Arata, a brand she and Vineeta Singh jointly invested in on Shark Tank India, have now become her mentors. After investing Rs 1 crore for a 1.33% stake in Arata, Namita now seeks their expertise for Arth. "They show me the dashboards, they have introduced me to their digital marketing head... our founders have become my teacher now," she shared, appreciating the support from her 'Shark Tank guys'.
Building the Arth Brand from Scratch
Namita launched Arth in 2024, initially focusing on menopause wellness before expanding into a broader range of daily wellness supplements in March 2025. The brand operates in the over-the-counter (OTC) market and notably appointed cricket legend Mahendra Singh Dhoni as its brand ambassador.
Her hands-on approach extends to product testing, where she has been the primary guinea pig. She recounted the challenge of creating a palatable Brahmi gummy, having to taste 12 different versions before finalizing the formula. Arth operates under the umbrella of Emcure Pharmaceuticals, which reported a revenue of Rs 7,960 crore in FY 2025 and holds a market capitalisation of around Rs 20,097 crore, ranking as India's 12th largest pharma company.
Namita Thapar's story is a powerful testament to the realities of building a business from the ground up, even for someone accustomed to corporate giants. It highlights resilience, the humility to learn from unexpected sources, and the stark difference between managing an established empire and nurturing a newborn startup.
