It started innocently enough. Texts popped up on our SGX WhatsApp group.
“Did you check Kalyan’s session?” one volunteer asked. “It was one of the best sessions organised on Hubspot implementation,” said another. There were many more such gushing texts.
I lurk in these groups often, occasionally participating in conversations, but I prefer staying quiet. This time, I was curious. Who is Kalyan?
I dialled up Ankit Oberoi and asked him about the man. Ankit was effusive in his praise and insisted I attend one of Kalyan’s sessions to see him in action. A few weeks later, I was at a Growth Summit in 2022 featuring Kalyan. I sat in the back, silently taking notes. But a few minutes in, my notepad and pen lay forgotten. I was enthralled.
- His understanding of ICP is unparalleled.
- The energy during the session was unbelievable.
- His openness to pay it forward was unique.
It’s not often that I stumble across someone who is a natural giver. During these sessions, he would never hold back — that honesty and transparency hooked founders, who would speak about moments from the session for days.
At that moment, I saw a genius in Kalyan, introduced myself, and thus started a ride that was unlike any other. He and I spent an hour discussing his journey from Vizag to Bangalore, his intention to relocate to Atlanta, his company, Almabase, and its mission, and his philosophies in life. All of this while being grounded.
My introduction to Kalyan was through his proficiency in translating CRM into an art form, but to truly do justice to our volunteer, we need to go deeper into the person he is rather than the professional.
Kalyan reminds me of the famous Hindi proverb, “A tree laden with fruit bends low.” Despite being a successful founder, Kalyan’s humility and empathy are visible. Kalyan holds himself differently from the other founders associated with our community. Despite being among the most intelligent people I’ve encountered, he never tries to grab the limelight or show off. Instead, he approaches every conversation with genuine curiosity, asking “What do you do?” with the kind of empathy that’s counterintuitive in today’s world. Often, he will disarm you by saying he’s Kalyan and works in Kalyan Nagar. It seems like a bad dad joke, but during high-intensity meetings, the little things break the ice. Hence his counterintuitive empathy.
Despite being a founder, where he has to network, organise events, and fundraise, he finds time to sit on meaningful community conversations. During Caravan 2024, he was the program manager and assisted on the GTM track while networking with Indian delegates, imagining the entire event from scratch. When you work with Kalyan, there’s one thing you can count on: when he owns something, you don’t need to worry about it. You don’t even need to look at it again. This isn’t just reliability, it’s the mark of someone who thinks through every angle so you don’t have to.
There’s evidence of that in his process. Often, he doesn’t give you an answer immediately. Instead, he considers it and then comes back with insights grounded in first-principles thinking. His questions are deep and challenging, and they have this unique quality of making you think harder about your assumptions and approaches.
But one of my favourite memories of Kalyan involves a group of 12-15 of us bunking together in an Airbnb during Caravan. While most people might feel awkward in such close quarters, Kalyan naturally became the social architect of the group. He was the champion at playing Mafia and owned that game, involving all of us and creating an atmosphere of pure fun and connection. That’s when I saw his leadership.
In a world full of loud voices and self-promotion, Kalyan represents something different: the quiet power of thoughtful leadership, genuine curiosity, and the art of asking questions that matter. Thank you for all that you do, Kalyan!
From the Author:
SaaSBoomi began in 2015 as a small gathering of ~50 founders, and today, with over 500 events across three countries and countless lives touched, we’ve only just scratched the surface.
None of this would have been possible without the unrelenting passion of our 125+ volunteers — the lifeblood of SaaSBoomi.
Their contributions go beyond effort; they’ve built a community bound by camaraderie, empathy, and a shared vision for a Product Nation.
Pay it FWD is my tribute to every pay-it-forward champion I’ve encountered on this incredible journey.
Their contributions to SaaSBoomi and the broader ecosystem have been immeasurable, yet there remains a story left to be told — one that echoes the impact they continue to create.
