AppsForBharat’s FY22 Loss Widens 19X To INR 9 Cr

Bengaluru-based spiritual and religious services providing platform AppsForBharat’s loss widened 19X to INR 9 Cr in the financial year ending March 31, 2022 from INR 46.9 Lakh in FY21. 

The startup’s total revenue jumped to INR 2.3 Cr from INR 10.4K in FY21. Though the startup, founded in 2020, saw a substantial increase in its total revenue in FY22 as compared to the previous year, it must be noted that a majority of its revenue came from the interest it earned on its investments. 

AppsForBharat earned a mere INR 3.8 Lakh from sales, whereas it earned INR 2.2 Cr from interest on its investments. The low revenue of the startup could be attributed to the lifting of travel restrictions imposed by the government as the Covid-19 cases dropped following an increase in vaccination coverage in the country. 

However, founder Prashant Sachan informed us that the app has instead seen their daily active users (DAU) and monthly active users (MAU)  increase by 10X after the COVID19 restrictions were lifted. As per him, the startup’s DAU has increased from 50K to 60K between June – July, 2021 to 525K in 2022 (June-July). Similarly, the startup’s MAU increased from 200K to 2 Mn in over a course of a year. 

AppsForBharat was conceived in the pandemic-ridden 2020. As per its website, it claims to be on a mission to assist a billion Indians in their spiritual journey and help them feel happier, peaceful and more content. 

The startup’s only live product, Sri Mandir app, lets users set up a virtual temple on their phones. The app allows people to perform pooja, light diyas, offer flowers and other such activities which people often do when they visit a temple.

Sachan also added that the startup is at present in the pre-revenue stage, and is focussed on building products and hiring aggressively. 

Rise In Expenses

The startup’s total expenses increased to INR 11.4 Cr in FY22 from INR 46.6 Lakh in FY21. A majority of its expenses went towards employee benefits. AppsForBharat spent INR 6.7 Cr on employee benefit expenses in FY22, a 19.4X increase from INR 34.9 Lakh in FY21. 

Employee benefit expenses usually comprise employee salaries, PF contributions, gratuity, and other employee welfare benefits. The increase in employee welfare benefits is also an indication that the startup increased its employee headcount. Besides, it spent INR 1.6 Cr on advertisements in FY22.  As per Sachan, the startup’s employe headcount increased from 10-15 people in 2021 to 75 people now. 

AppsForBharat was founded by former Trell founder Prashant Sachan. The startup has raised over $10 Mn in funding to date. It last raised $10 Mn in its Series A funding round which saw participation from Elevation Capital, Sequoia Capital, and Matrix Partners India. AppsForBharat is also backed by angel investors like Bhanu Pratap Singh, Kunal Shah, and Vidit Aatrey. 

The startup competes against the likes of Paavan, VAMA.app (Virtual Astrology & Mandir app). As per EMR market report,  India’s religion and spirituality market was worth $44 Bn in 2021 and the market is expected to grow at 10% CAGR between 2022-27. 

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Update | 11th October, 18:00

The story has been updated to include AppsForBharat founder Prashant Sachan’s responses on company’s financials and app downloads.