Zayaan Bawany: I Wanted To Sell DRY FRUITS In Pakistan After Coming Back From The UK! | 466 | TBT

Find out more about Endeavor: https://pakistan.endeavor.org

In this episode of Thought Behind Things, we’re joined by Zayaan Bawany, the Co-Founder & CEO of TicketWala, Pakistan’s largest entertainment marketplace redefining how events, concerts, and live experiences are built.

From selling his own birthday tickets to running a company with 95% market share, Zayaan shares the wild journey of turning a scrappy blog into the country’s fastest-growing entertainment startup.

We uncover:
How TicketWala became Pakistan’s biggest event platform
The early days with zero tech knowledge
Building credibility through small events during COVID
Managing payments, logistics, and large-scale entry systems
Why Pakistan can’t yet host global-level concerts
Why Pakistani artists are more famous in India than Pakistan
The risk-averse mindset of event stakeholders

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Special thanks to Kickstart for providing us with the studio space.
You can find out more about them at: https://kickstart.pk/

Listen on:
Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3z1cE7F
Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/3cgIkf
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Credits:
Executive Producer: Syed Muzamil Hasan Zaidi
Associate Producer: Saad Shehryar
Publisher: Talha Shaikh
Editor: Jawad Sajid

Timestamps:
0:00 - Intro
4:43 - Early Life & Exposure
8:18 - Bayview & Karachi American School
10:23 - University in the UK
12:09 - What Drove Him to Create Events?
17:02 - Return After Degree & TicketWala Idea
19:45 - When Was TicketWala Launched?
19:58 - Was He Working Elsewhere When TicketWala Launched?
21:09 - Idea to Execution & Initial Start
30:57 - Tech Issues in Development
35:14 - Event Workflow & Customization
38:38 - Managing Payments
42:42 - Event Validation & Entry Management
46:39 - How the Laptop Scans at Entry
47:09 - Current Entry Team Logistics
49:33 - Business Model & Economics
53:38 - Personalizing Services
56:30 - Working with Artists
1:01:42 - In-House Development Team
1:02:02 - Raising Funds & Scaling
1:07:45 - Increasing Event Capacity & Expanding the Industry
1:21:51 - Are Artists and Stakeholders Open to Change?
1:28:04 - Lack of PR & Brand Management for Pakistani Artists
1:37:27 - Artists Uninterested in Interacting with Consumers Online?
1:43:08 - Raising Investment for Global Scaling
1:46:15 - Pakistan in 2050
1:50:03 - Value Propositions & Expansion
1:52:37 - End Closing Note