SaaS unicorn Freshworks has filed for an IPO in the United States, citing an offer size of $100 million. Freshworks is among the first few SaaS startups from India to become successful globally.

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The company saw a nearly 50 percent growth in revenues in the last twelve months to $308 MN and has also been cutting down losses.

Freshworks saw a net loss of $9.8 MN in six months ended June 2021. The company had seen losses of $57 MN in the corresponding period of 2020.

Founder Girish Mathrubootham has penned a personal letter as part of the filing, speaking about the company's journey from a 700 ft warehouse in Chennai.

In the postscript, Mathrubootham thanks South Indian actor Rajinikanth: "The code name for our IPO was Project SuperStar, named after the most successful movie star from Tamil Nadu, Rajinikanth. I want to express my love and gratitude to him for being my maanaseega guru. There is no comparable English word to express what this means. It is a mentor; a role model that lives in your mind, from whom you learn a lot by watching from afar. SuperStar is a man who is loved and worshipped by millions of fans globally. He is immensely successful yet humble and down to earth. Thank you, Thalaivaa!"

In the letter, Mathrubootham also talked about going against naysayers in building a global business out of India.

"Freshworks is the company that wasn’t supposed to win. Whether we could differentiate ourselves in crowded markets, or compete with larger players, or build a global SaaS company from India, the doubts were always there. And people were not shy about telling me!" Mathrubootham says.

"We started in a 700 square foot warehouse in Chennai in 2010. Our simple idea was to create a ‘fresh’ helpdesk in response to a poor customer service experience I had. We didn’t plan nor expect to change the world. Our dreams came in increments, each building on the next and expanding our vision over time.In 2011, our big dream was to get to $1 million of revenue. In 2012, we started dreaming of our second product - Freshservice - even before we reached that threshold with Freshdesk., " he added.

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(Edited by : Yashi Gupta)