After India's first software-as-a-service (SaaS) startup Freshworks got listed on US stock exchange Nasdaq, a throwback video of its founder and chief executive officer Girish Mathrubootham shaking a leg onstage is taking Twitter by storm. Shares of the Accel and Sequoia Capital-backed company rose 32 per cent after raising $1 billion in an initial public offering priced above a marketed range, reported Bloomberg. As congratulatory messages poured in for Mr Mathrubootham, Sequoia Managing Director G V Ravi Shankar treated his followers to a video of the Freshworks CEO dancing onstage.
Mr Ravi Shankar shared a 2017 clip as he congratulated his business partner. The video shows Mr Mathrubootham dancing with Sequoia Managing Director Mohit Bhatnagar to the song Pottu Vaitha Kadhal Thitam from the Tamil film Singaravelan.
"Check out @mobhat and @mrgirish storming the stage, circa 2017!" wrote Mr Ravi Shankar while sharing the clip. "Talk about VC value add!" he quipped. "Clearly, we'll do anything to partner with the best founders in the world!" He concluded his message by congratulating Freshworks on the IPO.
Shares of the software company closed at $47.55 Wednesday in New York trading, giving it a market value of $13 billion. After the listing, Girish Mathrubootham took to Twitter to thank Freshworks employees, partners, and investors.
''Today is a dream come true for me - from humble beginnings in #Trichy to ringing the bell at @Nasdaq for the FreshWorks IPO. Thank you to our employees, customers, partners, and investors for believing in this dream,'' wrote Mr Mathrubootham on Twitter.
Freshworks was founded in Chennai and moved to Silicon Valley to be closer to customers. Now based in San Mateo, California, the company retains a substantial workforce in the Tamil Nadu capital.
Mr Mathrubootham is a well-known fan of Tamil superstar Rajinikanth - he has been known to take his entire team to watch Rajinikanth's films when they hit the screen. After the Nasdaq listing, he summed up his journey by quoting a Rajinikanth dialogue during an interview with MoneyControl.
He said, "Singa nadai potu sigarathil yeru. Sigarathai Adainthal vaanathil eru."
"I see this as a peak that we have scaled. Most people when they reach the peak, they climb down. But, what Rajinik says is 'sigarathai adainthaal vaanathil eru'. So, now it is our moment to climb the skies," Mr Mathrubootham explained the dialogue.
Meanwhile, his throwback video has created a buzz on Twitter, where talks of the IPO have been the centre of discussion.
Sequoia India's official Twitter account dropped two laughing-face emojis in response to the video
Mr Bhatnagar shared a picture with the Freshworks CEO, taken outside Nasdaq
"I like the fun vibes of this in contrast with the usual VC investment stories. I'm partial also because it's a Tamil song," a Twitter user said.
Another compared the chief executive to ace dancer Prabhu Deva
With the listing, Freshworks joins other major Indian companies such as Infosys, Wipro, and HDFC Bank to trade on the US stock exchanges.
