Homegrown TikTok Alternative Chingari announces 20% cuts in workforce

20 per cent of employees at Chingari short video app will be affected by new layoffs. The move is expected to start an "organisational rebuilding for improved effectiveness"

According to reports, Chingari, a India-based short video app has announced a new round of layoffs that will affect around 20% of its employees. The startup company shot to popularity after TikTok was banned in June 2020. It competes with brands like Instagram and Snapchat.

"We deeply regret the need for these workforce reductions of 20% as a part of Chingari's organisational restructuring. These were one of the toughest decisions for our management and we understand the impact they have on our employees. We are appreciative of their contributions and commitment to Chingari," said a Chingari spokesperson. 

 

Chingari layoff: Current Overview

Sources reported that the HR team informed employees who were affected by the layoffs in one-on-one interactions. The company currently employs approximately 248 people, and if 20% of its workforce is reduced, approximately 48 jobs will be eliminated. About 27,000 people have lost their jobs at Indian startup companies since 2022.

Co-founder Aditya Kothari left the startup company a few weeks ago. Chingari has offered the affected employees a two-month salary as severance pay to compensate them for the uncertain job loss. In addition, it has extended their health insurance for an additional three months.

Chingari layoff: Company overview

The company was established in 2018, after the popular video app, TikTok was banned in India due to tensions between India and China. Aditya Kothari, Biswatma Nayak, Deepak Salvi, and Ghosh started the business. Chingari application users can transfer their recordings and cooperate with companions and furthermore offer, and browse the content.

Additionally, the application owns the native cryptocurrency token GARI enabling the video content creators to earn on the application's blockchain from their content. India, the United Arab Emirates, Indonesia, Turkey, and the United States currently support the application. 

Chingari layoff: Previous Overview

At a time when cryptocurrency and short-video apps are struggling for survival, the layoff reflects the company's financial health.

Chingari received a significant investment from Aptos a few months ago. At that time, it was stated that the funding would be put toward user growth, product development, global expansion, and building up the technical team. According to reports, the business also planned to join the unicorn club and was in discussion to raise significantly more capital than it had previously raised.