AP
Allahabad, Uttar Pradesh
PhysicsWallah
Alakh Pandey
A teacher who refused to gatekeep. ₹4,000 a year while Kota charged ₹2 lakh. Built an empire by underpricing it.
Teaching as serviceAnti-elitismMargin patience
Struggles
Failed his own engineering entrance. Worked at coaching institutes that underpaid him. Saved every rupee to fund cameras.
Family
Wife Shivani is on the PW board; co-founder Prateek Maheshwari is family-close.
The full story
From day one to today.
The journey
Milestones, not magic.
2014
Started teaching physics on YouTube. Zero subs. A whiteboard.
2020
Lockdown took him to 5M subs. Launched the PW app.
2022
India's cheapest edtech unicorn — profitable from day one.
2024
30M+ students. Rewrote what JEE coaching could cost.
Wins
- Built PhysicsWallah into a defining brand from Allahabad, Uttar Pradesh.
Setbacks
- Failed his own engineering entrance. Worked at coaching institutes that underpaid him. Saved every rupee to fund cameras.
News, interviews & references
Read, watch, dig deeper.
Live links — open the latest articles, interviews and profiles about Alakh Pandey across the web.
Next journey
Kunal Shah — CRED