Inside a Unicorn by Saptarshi Prakash is an intimate, clear-eyed account of life inside Indian startups, told by a leader who spent eleven years across Housing.com, Zeta, and most significantly Swiggy. Rather than glorifying founders or offering a formula for success, it explains what startup life actually feels like from the inside: chaotic, fast, political, energising, unfair, deeply human and often transformative.
About Inside a Unicorn
The book follows the author’s journey from first encountering newbie Swiggy to eight years inside the company as it grew into a household name and reached its IPO moment. Along the way it explores the unwritten rules of startup culture: learning jargon nobody explains, figuring things out without a map, noticing small frictions, navigating competition, surviving workplace politics, understanding founders as ordinary people, and discovering how good managers and mentors quietly shape careers.
It shows the thrill of building products like Swiggy Daily, Bolt, Snacc and One BLCK, as well as the emotional toll of promotions denied, credit lost, burnout, public criticism and ambiguous ownership. Highly relatable and a breezy read, it offers a keyhole view into life at a top Indian startup. Published by Penguin Business (Penguin Random House India), this 240-page paperback (ISBN 9789377300678) is scheduled for October 2026 with an India MRP of ₹499.
