Akshay Kumar & Karan Johar Back ₹100 Crore Fashion Fund as Pitch To Get Rich Returns for Season 2

When Bollywood's two most commercially savvy names put ₹100 crore behind an idea, the fashion industry tends to pay attention.

Akshay Kumar and Karan Johar, alongside a heavyweight consortium of Indian business leaders, have announced the return of Pitch To Get Rich - India's only business reality show built exclusively around fashion entrepreneurship. The second season comes with a dramatically expanded investment pool that dwarfs its predecessor by 150%, making it arguably the single largest structured funding opportunity available to homegrown fashion founders right now.

The money is being channelled through the Fashion Entrepreneur Fund (FEF), which also counts industrialists Ravi Jaipuria, Naveen Jindal and Gaurav Dalmia among its backers, along with entrepreneur Sonali Dugar, real estate veteran Manju Yagnik and FEF Chairman Vagish Pathak. Registrations for the new season opened this week at thefef.net.

Why it matters

India's fashion industry is worth upwards of ₹10 lakh crore, yet access to serious capital remains stubbornly out of reach for most emerging designers and brand founders. FEF is positioning Pitch To Get Rich as the bridge between ambition and infrastructure - offering participants not just funding, but mentorship, strategic connections and what it describes as a "venture studio model" designed for long-term growth.

Season 1 offered early proof of concept. Alumni brands including Love Kiki, Banana Club and DMO Dot have each posted notable milestones since appearing on the show, though the fund has stopped short of disclosing specific revenue figures.

The pitch from the top

"India's fashion entrepreneurs have the talent and ambition to build world-class brands," said Akshay Kumar, who serves as a promoter and investor with the fund. "This ₹100 crore commitment is our investment in the future of Indian fashion."

FEF Chairman Vagish Pathak and Founder Sanjay Nigam were more direct about the gap the show aims to close. "We are building the platform we wish fashion entrepreneurs always had," the two said in a joint statement. "Season 1 proved that when promising founders receive the right support, extraordinary outcomes follow."

Who can apply

The fund is casting a wide net. Eligible founders include those working across apparel, footwear, accessories, couture, sustainable fashion, direct-to-consumer brands and broader lifestyle ventures - provided they can demonstrate a scalable business model and genuine growth potential.

With the expanded fund, higher stakes and the added pull of two of Bollywood's biggest names as visible champions of the platform, Season 2 arrives with considerably more firepower than its debut.

Applications are open now at thefef.net/register.

Link to Announcement Video: https://youtu.be/swi_ntSmuyM?si=MD61dGIOmZIkMkPj