An Indian-origin tech founder based in San Francisco sparked a discussion online after claiming he was mistaken for a food delivery worker despite wearing a classic startup attire.
Mehul Agarwal, founder of startup Koyal, shared the incident on X, writing, “Indian uncle standing on apartment porch seeing me in my YC jacket with CMU backpack & Meta Raybans: Are you from DoorDash? SF is cooked.”
(Also Read: Indian techie says quitting $250K Microsoft US job improved his quality of life: 'I have a cook and driver now')
Social media reactions
The post quickly drew attention, with several users criticising Agarwal and accusing him of sounding elitist.
{{/usCountry}}The post quickly drew attention, with several users criticising Agarwal and accusing him of sounding elitist.
{{/usCountry}}“Your post implies the whole world should know you are some sort of big shot... It is normal for door-dash delivery drivers to dress like millionaires in the bay area. Common for our physical appearance to match a profile of someone we are not... not a big deal at all,” one user wrote.
Another shared a similar experience, saying, “No one gives a shit. A friend who loves wearing all black, drove his Customized Cybertruck to pick up food while driving home. Parked in front of restaurant, owner noticed him and his car, and asked him. DoorDash?’”
Some comments directly questioned Agarwal’s sense of status. “A $400 pair of glasses makes you a status symbol to the general public? You think far too highly of yourself,” one person wrote.
Another user added, “How come one opinion of a random person makes an entire city cooked? And if you need all those things that you mentioned to make you look special, we know who is cooked.”
Amid the backlash, Agarwal clarified in the comments that he meant no disrespect toward delivery workers and had only intended to share a humorous moment. “Absolutely no shade to DoorDash drivers. Anyone can be one. Love and respect DoorDash drivers, startups wouldn’t survive without them. Just a funny post about what happened to me!” he wrote.
Meanwhile, others responded with humour. One user joked, “he thinks you are high level VC running some undercover test as doordash food delivery dude trying to figure out the math for YC brand new drone delivery system but he doesn't want to blow your cover.” “he only correct answer, ‘kinda’” commented another.