Chingari short video app to cut 20% of workforce for 'organisational restructuring'

Short video app, Chingari, announced a fresh round of layoffs which will impact around 20 per cent of its workforce, according to media reports. The short video app is a rival of brands like Instagram and Snapchat, and gained popularity after the ban of TikTok in June 2020.

"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," confirmed a Chingari spokesperson. The news was first reported by Inc42.

Employees who were affected by the layoffs were informed about the decision by the HR team during one-on-one interactions, sources told Inc42. The company has roughly 248 employees, and trimming of 20% of its workforce will result in the loss of jobs of around 48 people. Since 2022, around 27,000 people have been laid off by Indian startup firms.

Weeks ago, the company's co-founder Aditya Kothari exit the startup firm. To compensate the employee for the uncertain loss of the job, the firm has offered a two-month salary as severance pay to the affected employees. Moreover, it has extended their health insurance by three more months.

The company was founded in 2018 and was able to make its place after the popular video app TikTok was banned in India due to India-China tensions. The company was founded by Aditya Kothari, Biswatma Nayak, Deepak Salvi, and Ghosh. Chingari app users can upload their videos and interact with friends and also share, and browse content.

The application also owns a native cryptocurrency token GARI, which enables video content creators to earn from their content on the application via the blockchain. The application is currently available in India, the UAE, Indonesia, Turkey, and the USA.

The layoff is the reflection of the financial health of the firm at a time when both cryptocurrency and short-video apps are struggling for survival.

Months ago, Chingari bagged a major chunk of investment from Aptos. At that time, the funding amount was declared to be used for user growth, product development, and global expansion to strengthen its technical team. The company was also planning to enter into the unicorn club and was in talks to raise much more capital than what it raised, according to media reports.