I’m Arnav Gupta (@championswimmer on Twitter), spent 10 years in tech in India, moved to UK recently. Ask my anything!
Hi Grapevine
I figured having this non-anonymous account on Grapevine is useful for one thing - which is doing AMAs
I’m Arnav, currently Director of Engineering at JioCinema, in the past co-founded CodingBlocks and FAANGShaadi and worked at Scaler and Zomato.
Lived most of my life in Delhi, and after a short stint of 3 years in Bengaluru, recently moved to London.
Here to answer any questions about life, work and everything in between. Don’t take any answers as financial advice :)
I’ll be around till tonight answering questions.
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Being an ex-founder and also leading the engg team of large org. What do you think excites you more? Both in terms of $ and learning asking as I am looking for the next challenge and can't decide which path to choose?
Till you feel like you’re not earning enough, keep optimising for that. Once you’ve stopped thinking about money is when you can truly discovery what you love
How is the startup ecosystem in London ? How would you compare it to Bangalore ?
The fintech space is crazier than anything in the world (maybe except NYC). Lots of financial products that I had no idea can exist.
Startups pay well too. Also smaller teams doing bigger impact (in terms of $$$) here. So overall the talent is sharper, more sincere, cares about the products they build. In Bangalore that happens only in pockets but not across the board.
A follow up question. How is the market for experienced engineers in UK. Do you see ageism over there ?
Arnav, I’ve gotta ask. Why the UK and not US?
The fastest way to change passport without learning a new language.
Canada and Australia are too far and too boring places (which were also options that fit into the description)
Also US does pay more than UK, but you can figure out how to get paid like US in most places of the world regardless of where you stay if you’re figured out how to make yourself valuable.
How long did it take from the time you decided to eventually move there ?
What was your thought process for choosing UK/London as your place of settlement amongst other countries in Europe? Do you feel there's enough opportunities to move around, or is it the case that you've not really "permanently settled" in UK? Do you feel Bangalore has an edge compared to all European countries in terms of career growth?
Also curious, did (can) JioCinema sponsor your UK work visa?
I’m on a Global Talent Visa. It is self petitioned and employer has no role to play in it.
Pick of place - will in Europe, London is still the hub for fintech, tech startups and still the biggest center for new startups opening up. US-bound Europe startups use London as the launchpad too.
Anyway for me personally - the GTV route gets me a PR in 3 yrs. That’s the shortest without learning new languages, or learning to drive the other side of road.
Also the variety of food, culture and art to explore in London definitely was a big factor for me liking this city.
Are you getting paid in INR? Did your employer adjust your pay after you moved?
What advice would you give to engineers who feel they are underpaid but are hesitant to switch jobs frequently due to concerns about loyalty or stability? How can they advocate for better compensation without constantly moving between companies?
A 5yr career should have at least one 2yr+ stint
A 10yr career should have at least 2 2yr+ or one 4yr+ stint
Rest you can keep switching to build better comp, it is fine.
How's is London? Are you still working with JioCinema? Are you allowed to work more than x number of days outside of India?
London’s nice. Have always liked the city.
Yes still at JioCinema.
As long as you pay taxes in the correct place you’re a tax resident of, it is legal to work from anywhere. Our head of design is a Scottish guy from Glasgow :)
India is currently witnessing a tech boom with startups IPOing rapidly. Given this growth, why do you think so many talented individuals, including yourself, still choose to leave India?
Taxes in India are just 3-4% less overall than what you pay here, and you get very little out of it in comparison.
The overall infrastructure that supports a pleasant daily life starts to matter at a point.
Could you detail out some things which affect your day to day which are better in London as compared to banglore or india in general
whats your prediction of job market in coming months for freshers ?
Really bad. Very hard to get jobs for freshers. Prepare accordingly. No sugarcoating this fact
What do you think developers should stop doing and what do you think developers should do more of ?
Is your team in India ? Wondering how you are able to manage time zones.
Stop doing: too many chai sutta breaks. You can finish your workday in 6 hrs if you work properly
Do more: write long form, read books, improve communication
Yes in India. I need to wake up really early, that’s all