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| Swati and Rohan Bhargava: Co-Founders of CashKaro |
Hello Folks!
We're inching towards November already. This year seems to have flown by really quickly.
September-October signals the beginning of the festive season across almost all parts of the world. In India this year, we celebrated the South Indian festival of Onam in September, Dassera and Durga Puja in the first half of October, and Diwali in the latter half of the month. And Christmas is just around the corner.
In India, the festive season is all about spending. Households tend to splurge big bucks on new clothes, home decor, gifts, sweets, new gadgets, and even on gold, silver and jewellery. Families often will not hesitate to stretch their budgets to make the occasion feel extra special. And all of this happens organically and without anyone holding back; because in the festive frenzy, spending with an open heart (and wallet) is an expression of love, tradition, and togetherness.
Given these realities, imagine if you could earn back even a portion of your spends (and not just during the festive season) by way of cashbacks and other rewards.
Say hello to the CashKaro app.
CashKaro allows you to earn percentage-based cashback every time you make online purchases via the app on any of its client websites/apps. As of today, it partners with more than 1,500 e-commerce players and retailers/brands with an online presence. This includes popular websites and e-commerce giants such as Amazon, Flipkart, Myntra, Nykaa, Ajio, Pharmeasy, Firstcry, Netmeds, Zandu, Minimalist, Mamaearth, MakeMyTrip, Goibibo, Croma, Reliance Digital, JioMart, and many others.
The best part? These are real cash earnings, where every Rupee earned is equal to exactly one Rupee; no conditions, no conversions, no deductions.
The company's business model is fairly simple. It operates as an affiliate marketing platform for its e-commerce/online retail clients, encourages end-users like you and me to use an app to shop from these businesses, and then shares a portion of its affiliate earnings with us — the customers.
You might wonder why retailers would want to partner with platforms like CashKaro. To put it simply, businesses with an online presence are forced to rely heavily on online ads and push notifications on third-party apps and websites (such as OTTs for example) to generate traffic on their own websites and apps. But only a fraction of that traffic converts into actual purchases. By partnering with apps like CashKaro, they are able to outsource the effort, tools and marketing investments required to draw end-users to their websites. And since they largely have to pay for clicks that eventually get converted into actual sales, the Return on Investment (RoI) for the Amazons and the Myntras of the world is much better when they partner with such platforms.
Although the app itself has been around for more than a decade (it was launched in 2013), it has only been gaining significant traction in recent years. The company which runs the app, Pouring Pounds India Private Limited, was established in April 2013 with its registered office in Gurgaon. Its co-founders, Swati Bhargava and her husband Rohan Bhargava, are alumni of the London School of Economics.
The company had its pivotal moment in 2016, when it managed to secure investments from the Late Ratan Tata and from venture capital firm Kalaari Capital. To date, it has raised investments to the tune of Rs.250 crore, backed by the estate of the Late Rata Tata, Kalaari Capital, Affle Global, and Korean Investment Partners. As per its most recent financial and operating results, the company was able to generate revenues of about Rs.350 crore in financial year 2025. Along with other group businesses, it managed to drive over Rs.6,000 crore in gross merchandise value (GMV; in simple terms the aggregate value of online transactions) for its partner brands, thereby completing over 36 million transactions during the year.
Yours Truly has been using CK since August 2021. I have personally earned close to Rs.17,000 through the app so far. Although it took me more than four years to get to this mark, I would look at it as bonus savings made on transactions that I was going to make anyway. These include shoes and garments, medical supplies, flight & hotel bookings, cosmetics, and even a few bill payments.
How does the app work?
- Download the app (you could use the QR code below to find an installation link)
- Sign up for free with your email or mobile phone number
- Search for your favorite store on the homepage—either scroll through the icons or use the search bar
- Check the cashback terms—including eligible categories, cashback rates, tracking timelines, and payout conditions
- Click the orange button titled “Earn Rewards with [Store Name]” to be redirected to the retailer’s site/app
- Shop as usual
- Wait for the transaction to be tracked—this can take anywhere from 5 minutes to 72 hours
- Once confirmed, your cashback will appear in your CashKaro account (usually within a few weeks, up to 75 days)
- Withdraw your cashback to your bank account (via UPI or bank transfer) or redeem it as Amazon/Flipkart gift cards
What I Like About CashKaro
- It's really a no-brainer: There's zero additional investment involved. If you’re someone who shops online even occasionally, CashKaro is a smart way to earn while you spend.
- Real savings: I’ve earned a lot of cashback on travel deals, groceries, medical supplies, appliances and gadgets.
- Bonus coupons: CashKaro also gives you exclusive promo codes to save even more.
- Referral rewards: You can invite friends and earn when they shop too!
What I Don't Like
- Since retailers want to pay only for sale transaction that were 100% influenced by the app, there are a lot of conditions to be fulfilled in order to ensure that transactions are properly tracked and confirmed. Some of these might come across as painful and outright ridiculous, but it is what it is. Some of these conditions include not having items already lying in your retail cart or in your wishlists before you use the CK app and not having other coupon code websites/apps open in the background/other browser pages. These steps require extra effort.
- The waiting time before confirmations and payouts can be excruciatingly long and frustrating.
- There is a mechanism to raise disputes on the app. However, I have on a few rare occasions found the process very annoying.
What Fellow-Bloggers Might Like
One of the retail partners listed is Bookscape, an online bookstore featuring over 1 million titles. CashKaro offers flat 10% cashback on all orders made on Bookscape via the CK app. Us the coupon code WELCOME10 to get a flat 10% discount on your very first order.
Download the CashKaro app using the QR code below and start earning.
Other Resources
Online articles about CashKaro and its founders
- CashKaro Hits Rs.350 crore in Revenue, Crosses Rs.6,000 crore in Sales for Partners in FY25
- Turning Vision into Value: The CashKaro Founders' Path to Success
- Ambala Girl Who Made Rs.300 crore Business by Giving Cashbacks; Had Secured Funding from Ratan Tata
This post is a part of the Blogchatter Half Marathon: October-November 2025.
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