Two very different starting points — a village in Haryana and Pretoria — and one shared belief: you can start from zero, again and again, and build something big. Here's my story next to his.
The milestones that shaped me.
A small village in Fatehabad, in a home of two government school teachers — books were our wealth.
A district scholarship topper earlier, and a strong Class 10 result that opened the next door.
Launched my first internet venture while still a student.
Engineering degree — and, at 19, my first registered company, Rigitech Solutions.
Executive MBA at the Faculty of Management Studies, University of Delhi.
Founded my real estate consultancy on 1 January 2016.
Built a 150-person sales team in India.
Moved via Express Entry to Brampton and started again: drove Uber and worked in a kitchen while studying for my real estate licence.
Built Team RINE to around 20 people.
Moved the team to eXp Realty and was recognised by eXp Realty Canada.
Moved to Dubai and became a 50% partner in the Investors Clinic Dubai branch.
Joined as Sales Director, built the sales organisation from scratch, and became Chief Sales Officer.
Helping UAE founders build — and writing my autobiography, Bhuna to Burj.
Different scale, similar instincts.
| Ritesh Kumar | Elon Musk | |
|---|---|---|
| Starting point | Bhuna, a village in Haryana, India; teacher parents | Pretoria, South Africa |
| The big move | India → Canada (2018) → Dubai (2023) | South Africa → Canada (1989) → USA |
| First company | Age 19 — Rigitech Solutions | Age 24 — Zip2 |
| Restart from zero | Arrived in Canada at 30 and rebuilt from the ground up | Put his PayPal proceeds back into SpaceX and Tesla |
| Field | Real estate sales leadership, startups | Space, EVs, energy, AI |
| Decision style | Hard numbers first — cost per head, legal risk, then go all in | First principles — break it down to the physics |
| AI | Automating business operations and building his own digital clone | Building xAI and Grok |
| Team style | Lean teams, clear rules, start dates and deadlines | Small, high-intensity teams, urgent timelines |
I've worn many hats — engineer, MBA, film producer, sales leader, founder. The lesson I'm taking from Elon is to channel all of that into one huge mission: helping founders in the UAE build world-class companies through Startup Roof, while leading sales at Dugasta at the highest level. Fewer, bigger bets — with full energy behind them.
Elon Musk details are from public sources. This page is a personal reflection; it implies no affiliation with Elon Musk or his companies.