Puneet Gupta, the founder and CEO of the astrology services platform Astrotalk, recently shared a humorous incident on X (formerly Twitter) that highlights how perceptions of wealth can influence behavior. Gupta, who hired a driver for the first time, noticed a significant shift in the driver’s demeanor on the third day of employment. The driver, who had been performing his duties normally for the first two days, suddenly became overly deferential, rushing to open the car door for Gupta in an unexpected display of respect.
Puzzled by this sudden change, Gupta asked the driver why he was going to such lengths, to which the driver replied that opening car doors was part of his job description. Gupta, however, suspected the real reason lay in a phone conversation he had the previous day. During the call, he had discussed a deal ranging between ₹100 to ₹500 crore.
Gupta surmised that his driver must have overheard this substantial figure and consequently developed a perception of him as a “bada banda” (a big shot or important person), prompting the driver to offer him such elaborate courtesies. He recounted the realization: “Later I realised, on the second day I was discussing something on call where I was talking about 100-500 crores. And suddenly he realised ki bada banda hai ye toh darwaja bhi kholna padega.”
About Puneet Gupta
Puneet Gupta, who hails from a “lower-middle-class family,” founded Astrotalk, a company now valued at ₹2,560 crore. Despite his significant financial success, Gupta has maintained a modest lifestyle, still driving a Hyundai Grand i10 purchased in 2015. He previously shared on Quora that his entrepreneurial journey was partly fueled by a relationship with a woman from a more affluent background who encouraged him to earn more. After a breakup and a period of struggle, he founded an IT service company called CodeYeti, which he later pivoted into the successful astrology platform, Astrotalk.