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Jitendra Emmani
Hyderabad-based entrepreneur Jitendra Emmani has said that it is alright if a founder starts a company to make money and not solve a problem.
In response to Investor Aviral Bhatnagar’s viral post that founders should build companies out of passion rather than financial ambition, Emmani said that wanting to make money is a reason enough to start a business.
'Stop listening to gyan'
Emmani further said that his first venture, Picxy, was created to solve a problem he genuinely cared about.
He was studying at Northern Illinois University in the US and working on a media portal sharing stories from South India when he noticed a lack of stock images representing India, according to YourStory. So, he started Picxy to fill this gap.
Picxy solved a problem by providing stock images for Indian businesses, but the idea never really took off.
“Started my first company to solve a problem I deeply cared about. A stock photo company for India. Worked 6 years pretty hard and it didn’t take off beyond a point,” Emmani said on X.
Next, he founded Cozy Farms with the ambition of making money. In one year, the second startup has made more in revenue than Picxy did in six years.
“Only do it if you're crazy enough to do whatever it takes to solve a problem you deeply care about,” Bhatnagar had advised on launching a startup.
Emmani responded to the post: “Started my second company to make money and be happy with the work I do.”
“Year 1 revenue of Cozy Farms >> 6 years cumulative revenue of Picxy which is my first company,” he further revealed.
Hyderabad entrepreneur Jitendra Emmani said, “Stop listening to the gyan. Build for money, it’s totally fine.”
Started my first company to solve a problem I deeply cared about.
— Jitendra Emmani (@JitendraEmmani) November 22, 2025
A stock photo company for India. Worked 6 years pretty hard and it didn’t take off beyond a point.
Started my second company to make money and be happy with the work I do.
Year 1 revenue of Cozy Farms >> 6… https://t.co/kLC5b2CRSJ
Netizens respond
Many netizens applauded Emmani in the comments section for staying honest.
“Great to see such a turnaround. I can relate with founder pain and 6 years of no concrete results. Realising what's working and what's not is really important,” commented an X user.
“Obviously business is supposed to be for making money, even most of the big NGOs are running a profitable business. In fact if one is not practical enough to be driven by money they shouldn't think of starting the business,” wrote another user.