#85: How Suresh Kumar Bootstrapped to $1M in 3 Months, Mastered Proactive Sales, and Said No to Investors

In this episode of The Galata Podcast, I’m joined by Suresh Kumar, the founder of Pepul Tech, a privacy-first social network that’s reimagining how people connect online. Suresh has an incredible journey: he bootstrapped Pepul from zero to a million users in just three months, built strong relationships that powered growth, and even turned down funding offers to stay true to his vision. In this conversation, we dive into the art of proactive selling, the courage it takes to say ‘no’ when everyone expects a ‘yes,’ and the deeper philosophy behind building a social platform that’s designed to make the internet more human.

Resources mentioned in the episode:

Books mentioned:
As a man thinketh 

The Secrets by Ronda Bryan

Tough Times Never Last, But Tough People Do! - Robert H. Schuller

7 Habits of Highly Effective People - Stephen R. Covey

Zero to Million Dollar by Suresh Kumar G | MacAppStudio at AIC Raise

Steve Jobs' 2005 Stanford Commencement Address

The making of Girish Mathrubootham - Factor Daily article

Movies 

Founders - McDonald's movie

Padayappa

Baashha

Shoutouts:
Balaji Kalyana Raman

Girish Mathrubootham
Vijay Shekar Sharma 

Rajnikanth

M. G. Ramachandran