Swiggy CEO makes rare appearance at IPO listing, shares origin story

Swiggy’s CEO, Sriharsha Majety, who rarely makes an appearance, surprised many by attending the company’s stock market debut on the National Stock Exchange (NSE) in Mumbai.
Known for keeping a low profile, Majety joined Swiggy’s leadership team along with Swiggy’s delivery partners, Jigar Khan and Namrata, for the milestone, marking a memorable moment in the company’s journey from a startup idea to a listed entity. Unlike his industry counterpart, Deepinder Goyal of Zomato, who is often seen in the spotlight, Majety typically avoids public events, making his presence at the IPO listing a notable one.
At the listing ceremony, Majety shared Swiggy’s origin story, offering a rare insight into how the company began.
He revealed that the initial concept of Swiggy came to him during a college project at the Indian Institute of Management (IIM) Calcutta.
“I completely forgot about it after that college project finished,” Majety admitted.
“And then, in a very different way, I came across it again without realising the connection at first.” Reflecting on Swiggy’s journey from an idea to a large-scale business, Majety called it “an absolute miracle” that the idea reached the size and scale it has today.
Majety expressed gratitude towards Swiggy’s leadership team for playing a crucial role in bringing the company to this milestone. He highlighted the combined efforts of the team in overcoming challenges and building Swiggy into a dominant player in the food delivery and quick-commerce markets.
Swiggy’s market debut comes at a time of fierce competition within India’s growing delivery sector. The company now stands in direct rivalry with Zomato, a larger, publicly listed competitor, as well as Zepto, a privately held company focusing on quick-commerce.
While both Swiggy and Zomato operate in the food delivery and instant grocery delivery spaces, they differ greatly in leadership styles and public engagement. Zomato CEO Deepinder Goyal is active on social media platforms like Instagram and X (formerly Twitter) and often interacts with the public, even hosting podcasts. In contrast, Majety stays out of the public eye, and his last post on X was in May 2023.
Besides the listing, Swiggy’s IPO brings significant rewards for its employees. The public offering includes a substantial Rs 9,000 crore Employee Stock Option Plan (ESOP) payout, creating around 500 crorepati employees. This generous ESOP payout is one of the largest in India’s startup ecosystem, where such wealth distribution among employees is rare. The payout underscores Swiggy’s growth and the success of its long-term employees who have contributed to the company’s journey.