Made in Fire - by Rajnish Kumar (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

Every successful company begins not with a plan, but with a fire.

The real challenge isn't starting; it's keeping that fire alive while everything around you tries to put it out. Competitors. Doubt. Scale. Sometimes even your own success.

Made in Fire is the story of how the team behind one of India's leading travel platforms did exactly that, building not just a company, but an ecosystem of technology ventures along the way.

Part origin story, part builder's playbook, the book captures the lessons that only emerge in the trenches of real entrepreneurship: how culture becomes a company's invisible engine, how teams of believers outperform lone heroes and how founders must constantly reinvent their companies before the world forces them to.

This isn't theory dressed up as experience. It's what building actually looks like, the bets, the near misses, the decisions that change everything.

For founders, builders and future entrepreneurs, Made in Fire is a candid look at how enduring companies are truly forged.

Review Quotes

Made in Fire is a practical guide that covers the principles that truly matter: how to assemble believers, how to keep your customer at the centre of every decision and how to grow as a leader. I recommend it to anyone who is serious about building something that lasts.--Ashutosh Sharma, head, investments and M&A, Prosus

A raw, unfiltered playbook that shows how real companies aren't built with ideas but forged in fire, through culture, conviction and relentless ownership.--Ankur Warikoo, bestselling author

If you are looking for a front-row view into an incredible entrepreneurial journey, this book is for you. You will see firsthand what buzzwords like resilience, pivot and agility really mean.--Ranjay Gulati, professor, Harvard Business School and bestselling author

Most founders underestimate the role of culture in building great companies--this book doesn't. Made in Fire is a clear, experience-driven take on what actually compounds over time: ownership, customer obsession and the ability to scale without losing your soul. It's practical, unfiltered and highly relevant for today's builders.--Harshil Mathur, co-founder and CEO, Razorpay

The next best thing to going through the journey of building a high-growth company yourself is to read Made in Fire. Rajnish shares the journey of the core intrinsics of what really matters in building a scaled company through stories of personal growth, perseverance and sacrifice. The advice and knowledge here is otherwise only learnt after years of effort.--Shailesh Lakhani, investor and partner, Ambition Capital

There are people who think and there are people who do. Rajnish is a good combination of someone who thinks out of the box and gets his hands dirty at the same time. Founders: read this, lead by example and write your own manual.--R. Srinivasan, CIO - Equity, SBI Funds Management Ltd

About the Author

Rajnish Kumar is the co-founder and group co CEO of ixigo, India's leading AI-based travel platform. Since co-founding the company in 2007, he has played a pivotal role in shaping its vision across new product development, technological innovation, growth marketing, research, AI initiatives and the building of global talent.

An alumnus of IIT Kanpur, where he earned his bachelor's degree in computer science and engineering, Rajnish began his career as a software development engineer at Amadeus before returning to India to build ixigo. Under his leadership, ixigo went on to develop category defining travel products, including the ixigo Trains app, which ranked among the most downloaded travel and navigation apps globally in 2022, according to data.ai.

He was honoured with the 2023 Distinguished Alumnus Award by IIT Kanpur. Today, he continues to build and scale AI-driven innovations at ixigo, which has grown into a leading OTA for the next billion users, serving over 540 million annual active users in FY25.