Archive · 28 Aug 2026
At 17, Aditya Bansal’s DM Leads to ₹1 Crore
Aditya Bansal was 17 when he wanted to find a way to earn money online.
He tried graphic design and website development, but those attempts did not work.
After watching Raj Shamani discuss ways to earn money, Bansal wrote a Twitter thread based on the ideas.
He sent the thread to Shamani in a late-night direct message.
Bansal said Shamani liked the response and offered him paid work after the thread received about 1,200 likes.
Since Bansal did not have a bank account, he said he received Amazon gift cards as payment.
He said Shamani’s testimonial helped him find more clients and eventually work with over 45 founders.
Bansal claims he earned ₹1 crore by age 22, although he also described periods when he had no clients or income.
Aditya Bansal said a late-night 2021 message to podcaster Raj Shamani led to his first paid writing opportunity.
Bansal said Shamani published his Twitter thread after it received about 1,200 likes and then hired him to write five or six threads.
Because Bansal did not have a bank account, he said he was paid through Amazon gift cards.
Bansal said a testimonial from Shamani helped him secure his first retainer client and later work with more than 45 founders.
He claimed that his work and business opportunities eventually helped him earn a total of ₹1 crore by age 22.
- Who
- Aditya Bansal and podcaster Raj Shamani.
- What
- A late-night direct message led to Bansal writing Twitter threads for Shamani and helped begin his freelance career.
- When
- The initial message and opportunity occurred in 2021, when Bansal was 17; Bansal said he reached ₹1 crore in total earnings by age 22.
- Where
- The contact took place online through a direct message, with the work involving Twitter threads.
- Why
- Bansal was seeking ways to earn money online after trying graphic design and website development.
- Initial message time
- Bansal said he sent the direct message at 10:41 pm and received a reply at 3:53 am.
- Thread response
- The Twitter thread received about 1,200 likes, according to Bansal.
- Work completed
- Bansal said he wrote around five or six Twitter threads for Shamani.
- Payment method
- Bansal said he was paid with Amazon gift cards because he did not have a bank account.
- Career network
- He said he later worked with more than 45 founders.
- Earnings claim
- Bansal claimed he earned a total of ₹1 crore by age 22.