Harsh Jain is the mastermind behind Dream11, a game-changing fantasy sports platform. Discover his story and how he built one of India’s most successful startups.
Table of contents
- Who is Harsh Jain?
- How Harsh Jain founded Dream 11?
- Anand Jain – Harsh Jain’s Father
- Dream 11 – Users & revenue
- Harsh Jain Net Worth
Who is Harsh Jain?
Harsh Jain is an Indian entrepreneur who is the Co-Founder of the Indian fantasy virtual game portal Dream 11 and Dream Sports Group. Presently serving as the CEO of Dream 11, he co-founded the startup in 2008 with his friend Bhavit Sheth.
Born in Mumbai, India, he is the son of Anand Jain, the business magnet of India and Sushma Jain. After completing his schooling in Maharashtra, Harsh moved to the United States to pursue his Bachelor degree in Electrical Engineering at the University of Pennsylvania. Afterwards, he completed his MBA degree from Columbia Business School in New York. Harsh is married to Rachana Shah Jain with whom he has one son.
Dream 11 Founder Harsh Jain serves as the President of the Federation of Indian Fantasy Sports from 2017.
How Harsh Jain founded Dream 11?
Since he was young, Harsh was deeply passionate about sports. He is an ardent fan of the Indian cricket team and the Manchester United football club. In 2008, the year the Indian Premier League (IPL) began, he and his college friend Bhavit had the idea to launch Dream 11. The journey began at that point of time with several hardships but there was no looking back for the two young men since then. Harsh oversees product, design, tech and marketing of the company while Bhavit manages operations.
In the early phases of Dream 11, the founders solicited around 150 venture investors for funding, but they were rejected. Harsh Jain Dream 11 Founder said in an interview that these early failures provided them with a chance to explore and understand more about this industry and eventually by persevering; they built a Rs 65,000 crore company that stands strong today. In 2019, the BCCI formally designated Dream 11 as the IPL’s official partner.
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Dream 11 Founder Harsh Jain’s Father – Anand Jain and his close relationship with Mukesh Ambani
Indian businessman Anand Jain serves as the CEO of Urban Infrastructure Venture Capital Ltd and the Chairman of Jai Corp Limited. Having over 30 years of expertise in several industries, he is sometimes regarded as Dhirubhai Ambani’s third son. During the course of more than 25 years, he formed a strong relationship with the Fortune 500 Reliance Group.
His bond with Mukesh Ambani dates back to their time together as students at Hill Grange High School. Their bond strengthened with time and during 1980s, he subsequently joined the Reliance group. He served as the Vice-Chairman of Indian Petro Chemicals Ltd and Reliance Capital.
He is frequently referred to as a free-floater who is always there for Ambanis whenever there is a crisis in India’s biggest private sector group. He is currently a senior executive with the Reliance Group and a member of the Management Council of Sir H. N. Reliance Foundation Hospital and Research Centre.
Dream11 – Users and Revenue
Dream Sports’ primary brand is Dream 11, which also includes FanCode, Dream X and DreamSetGo. Dream 11 founders Harsh Jain and Bhavit Sheth launched these brands in 2008. As the first gaming company from India to join the unicorn club, Dream 11 is a forerunner in the fantasy game industry. It was founded 15 years ago and has a total investment of $1.62 billion, with revenue of $359.03 million in FY21.
It was also included among the top 10 innovative Indian companies for 2019 by Fast Company. With more than 13 crore users playing fantasy cricket, football, kabaddi, basketball, hockey, volleyball etc in India and overseas in it, Dream11 is currently India’s largest fantasy sports platform. The platform has expanded throughout time to incorporate variety of games and services.
Some Lesser Known Facts About Harsh Jain – Dream 11 Founder | Net Worth of Harsh Jain
| Full Name | Harsh Jain |
| Harsh Jain’s Net Worth | INR 796 Crores |
| Harsh Jain’s Wife | Rachna Shah Jain |
| Harsh Jain Father | Anand Jain (Close relationship with Mukesh Ambani) |
| Mother | Sushma Jain |
| Siblings | Neha Jain (Sister, married to Anurag Bagaria – Owner of Kem Well Pharma) |
| Harsh Jain Age | 37 (as of 2023) |
| Companies Founded | Dream 11, Red Digital (Now acquired by Gozoop) |
| Other Ventures Founded | FanCode, Dream Capital, Khelo More, Dream Set Go, DreamX |
| Other Designations | President – Federation of Indian Fantasy Sports |
| Harsh Jain Education | Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering (University of Pennsylvania), Master of Business Administration (Columbia Business School) |
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