The Second Whistle

A government agency once asked Shubhi Mishra if she was the real CEO or just a figurehead. Years later, Leonardo DRS agreed to acquire her defense tech company, Raft, for $450 million.Shubhi grew up in Ghaziabad, India, in a family that expected her to become a doctor. She chose engineering instead, because it was her way to America. She landed in Boston knowing no one, went to law school at night in Washington, D.C., and in 2018 founded Raft as a complete outsider to government contracting. Today Raft builds AI and data software that helps the U.S. military make faster decisions in the field.The Second Whistle is a podcast about immigrant and first-generation builders in America: the decisions, sacrifices and second chapters behind what they built.📩 Join the Newsletter: https://thesecondwhistle.comCHAPTERS0:00 Intro1:25 Are You the Real Thing?6:44 The Advantage She Gave Up11:16 Software for War18:38 Supposed to Be a Doctor25:18 The Better Way30:58 Back Against the Wall37:58 Always the Bad Guy40:48 The DestinationFOLLOW THE SECOND WHISTLE📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thesecondwhistle/👍 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thesecondwhistle🔔 Subscribe for a new conversation every other TuesdayCONNECT WITH KUTRAL𝕏 X: https://x.com/Kutral💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kutralABOUT THE GUEST🌐 Raft: https://teamraft.com

In this episode of The Second Whistle, Kutraleeshwaran sits down with Siva Nadarajah of JOGO Health, who grew up during Sri Lanka’s civil war and describes two near-death experiences that changed how he thinks about risk.

From those early years to building in America, Siva explains how that perspective shaped the way he approaches entrepreneurship, leadership, money, and difficult decisions.

The conversation also explores the patient encounter that pulled him into JOGO, why reimbursement was harder than FDA approval, an early Google opportunity he declined, learning to say no to distracting markets, bootstrapping, investor judgment, and delegation.

At the heart of the episode is a larger question: what does risk mean when tomorrow once felt uncertain? For founders, operators, investors, and immigrants building a life between two worlds.00:00:00 - Cold Open00:01:28 - When Tomorrow Wasn't Guaranteed00:06:33 - The Patient Who Made JOGO Personal00:12:17 - The Video Store That Taught Him Business00:17:15 - America, Hotmail and the Cost of Saying No00:24:08 - Making a New Kind of Care Work00:36:08 - What Scarcity Taught Him About Money00:44:06 - Leading With Humility, Learning to Let Go00:50:15 - Living Between Two Worlds

In this episode of The Second Whistle, Kutraleeshwaran sits down with Inger Sivanthi, founder and CEO of Droidal, to unpack healthcare AI, agentic automation and what it takes to build inside a regulated industry. Inger explains why Droidal moved from financial services into healthcare revenue cycle operations, why AI fails when workflows are broken, and how he thinks about human oversight, hiring, founder risk and money. At the heart of The Second Whistle is a deeper question: how do immigrant roots shape the way people build in America? Inger’s Tamil upbringing shows up in his work ethic, customer trust, family values and leadership across cultures. This episode is for founders, operators, executives and professionals thinking about risk, leadership, reinvention, culture and what it takes to build across countries and careers.Timestamps:00:00:00 - Cold Open00:01:26 - No Plan B00:04:20 - The Market Pulled Him Into Healthcare00:09:32 - AI Was Overhyped. Not Anymore.00:14:24 - How the Founder Was Built00:25:00 - What Almost Broke It00:33:36 - Three Cultures, One Operating System00:36:45 - Money Is a Byproduct00:41:57 - Between Two Worlds

In this episode of The Second Whistle, Kutraleeshwaran sits down with Vivek Raghunathan, Co-Founder and CEO of Xscape Photonics, to unpack a hidden bottleneck in AI infrastructure: how thousands of GPUs communicate at scale.

Vivek explains how years turning deep-tech research into commercial products at Intel, Rockley and Broadcom positioned him to spot the problem, why he left Broadcom to build Xscape, and what founder conviction looks like when investors and advisors disagree.

The conversation moves through deep-tech execution,hiring mistakes, leadership, risk and the responsibility that comes with other people betting on your company. At the heart of The Second Whistle is a deeper question: how do the roots immigrants carry shape the way they build in America?

Vivek connects his Indian upbringing to humility, authority, family, money and leadership.

A practical conversation for founders, executives, engineers,investors and professionals.

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In this episode of The Second Whistle,Kutraleeshwaran sits down with Emmanuel Umoh, founder and CEO of KrillPay, to examine how a Nigerian immigrant is building cross-border fintech for migrants and underserved communities.

Emmanuel explains why most remittance platforms optimizesending while overlooking the recipient, how his background in banking security shaped KrillPay’s product and trust model, and what bootstrapping teaches a founder about capital, rejection and conviction.

The conversation also explores money as a tool, the limitsof traditional financial access, and the leadership habits he carried from Nigeria into American business. At the heart of The Second Whistle is a deeper question: how do cultural roots shape the way immigrants build, lead and takerisks in America?

A practical founder interview for fintech entrepreneurs,executives, professionals, students and anyone building a second chapter.

Music by Magnific https://www.magnific.com/audio

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Timestamps:

00:00:00 - Cold Open

00:02:25 - Nigeria, Family and Growing Up Fast

00:09:43 - The Stranger Who Changed His Path to America

00:21:00 - Work, Trust and the Stranger Who Paid His Fees

00:31:34 - Inside KrillPay: The Problem He Chose to Solve

00:44:45 - The Moment KrillPay Became Real

00:50:24 - Bootstrapping, Rejection and the 3x Rule

01:03:32 - What Does “Enough” Really Mean?

01:14:49 - Living Between Nigeria and America

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In this episode of The Second Whistle, Kutraleeshwaran (Kutral) sits down with Jay Jayaraman, founder of Mylapore, to explore an immigrant entrepreneur’s unconventional journey from hospitality in India to software, insurance and real estate in America and ultimately back to building a growing South Indian vegetarian restaurant business.

Jay shares how he created a trusted restaurant brand, why choosing a clear niche can be more powerful than chasing a larger market, and what founders can learn about central kitchens, consistency, customer loyalty, community building, cash discipline and controlled growth.

At the heart of The Second Whistle is a deeper question: how do the cultural roots immigrants carry from their home countries shape the way they think, lead, take risks and build in America? This candid immigrant founder interview explores how Jay’s Chennai upbringing continues to influence his leadership, relationship with money, business decisions and sense of community. It is an honest first-generation success story filled with practical startup and small-business lessons for founders, executives, professionals, students, aspiring entrepreneurs and anyone building a second chapter in America.

Music licensed through Soundstripe.Code: AL8KXS0XQ62YFTROTimestamps:

00:00:00 - Cold Open

00:05:55 - The 1997 Move & The Software Visa Hack

00:13:07 - From 5-Star Hotel Boss to Waiting Tables

00:22:45 - Inside the Massive Fremont Batter Kitchen

00:32:50 - The Smallest Decision with the Biggest ROI

00:41:36 - Fine Dining vs. QSR: The Profit Margin Play

00:48:10 - How Chennai Roots Shape a US Kitchen Empire

00:52:49 - The Financial Reality of the Full-Time Jump

00:57:43 - Why His Mom's Recipes Are the Ultimate Moat

01:09:50 - The One Warning Sign He'd Give His 2008 Self

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In this episode of The Second Whistle, Kutraleeshwaran (Kutral) sits down with Ganesh Shankar, founder and CEO of Responsive, to explore how an immigrant entrepreneur turned years of repetitive RFP work into an enterprise software company.

Ganesh explains why founders must validate problems beyond their own experience, treat customers as funders, avoid unnecessary dilution, integrate acquisitions carefully and build trust across a growing team.

The conversation also examines how generative AI is reshaping RFP software and why current, governed enterprise knowledge still matters.

At the heart of The Second Whistle is a deeper question: how do the cultural roots immigrants carry from their home countries shape the way they lead, take risks and build in America? Ganesh’s Coimbatore upbringing continues to influence his capital discipline, people-first leadership and approach to growth.

A practical conversation for immigrant founders, SaaS leaders, executives, professionals, students and aspiring entrepreneurs.

Music licensed through Soundstripe.Code: BYFMACEDG6Q5YBTR

Timestamps:

00:00 - Cold Open

2:42 - Roots, Family and a 10×10 Room

11:20 - His Second Flight Ever: Arriving in America

15:13 - America’s Unwritten Rules & the Pain That Sparked Responsive

24:03 - What Responsive Does and Who It Serves

34:40 - Building the Moat: Focus, Feedback and Acquisitions

45:50 - Fundraising, Dilution and the Customer as Funder

54:06 - Can AI Replace Responsive?

1:03:04 - How Coimbatore Shaped His Leadership

1:08:30 - Money, Risk and Putting People First

1:16:29 - Family, Identity and Life Between Two Worlds

This short introduction explains why I created The Second Whistle, the personal journey behind its name, and the conversations I want the show to create.

The Second Whistle features long-form, peer-to-peer conversations with immigrant and first-generation builders who left their home country and built consequential careers, companies and communities elsewhere.

We explore business, leadership, money, risk and failure, alongside culture, family, identity and the experience of living between worlds.

The show focuses on immigrant builders, but it is for anyone interested in the people and decisions behind enduring businesses and builds.

The first three episodes go live August 18 at 8:00 AM CT.

Become a Founding Reader: https://thesecondwhistle.com

Founding readers get early access to the three launch episodes a day before, plus a free Decision Playbook.

New episode every other Tuesday. Newsletter every Thursday.