The Karak — thekarak.in

Last Updated: 11 June 2026

Welcome to The Karak (“Platform”, “we”, “us”, or “our”), accessible at www.thekarak.in.

By accessing or using the Platform, you agree to these Terms of Service (“Terms”). If you do not agree, please do not use the Platform.

1. Platform Overview

The Karak is a digital platform that provides:

Startup resources, guides, and educational content
Aurora — AI-powered decision intelligence grounded in real founder decisions
A marketplace connecting users with independent consultants and advisors
Paid consultation sessions booked and managed through the Platform
Digital products including reports, templates, and tools

We act strictly as a technology platform and intermediary. We do not provide regulated professional advice.

2. No Professional Advice

All content, consultations, and AI outputs on the Platform are for informational and educational purposes only. They are not legal, financial, investment, tax, medical, or professional advice of any kind.

You must consult qualified professionals before making decisions. This applies specifically to:

Aurora (AI Decision Intelligence)
Consultant and advisor sessions
Reports, templates, and scoring tools

The Karak does not endorse, verify, or guarantee the accuracy of any content, consultant advice, or AI output.

3. Aurora AI Disclaimer

Aurora is an AI-powered research tool that surfaces evidence from a curated database of real founder decisions. By using Aurora, you agree that:

Outputs are drawn from historical founder data and may be incomplete, inaccurate, or not applicable to your specific situation
Aurora does not understand your full business context and does not replace human judgment or expert advice
Cited sources are provided for reference only; The Karak does not verify the accuracy of third-party source material
Aurora operates within usage limits — free accounts receive 5 questions per month; higher limits are available under a Pro plan

The Karak is not liable for any decisions, losses, or outcomes resulting from Aurora outputs.

4. User Eligibility

To use the Platform, you must:

Be at least 18 years old
Have the legal capacity to enter into a binding agreement
Be a resident of India to make advisor or consultant bookings

Advisor and consultant bookings are currently available to users in India only. All session fees are charged in Indian Rupees (₹). Payouts to consultants are made to Indian bank accounts only.

The Platform’s general content (articles, guides, Aurora in read-only preview) may be accessible internationally, subject to applicable local laws. We make no representation that the Platform is appropriate or available in jurisdictions outside India.

5. User Accounts

You may register via email, phone, or third-party login (e.g. Google). Where you choose to connect a Google account or Google Workspace service, additional permissions may be requested solely to provide requested platform functionality such as authentication, calendar synchronization, appointment scheduling, and related services. You agree to:

Provide accurate, current, and complete information
Keep your login credentials confidential
Notify us immediately at theteam@thekarak.in of any unauthorised access

We may suspend or terminate accounts for misuse, violations of these Terms, or inactivity exceeding 60 days (for consultant accounts — see Section 10.4).

6. Consultant & Advisor Marketplace

6.1 Role of The Karak

The Karak operates as a technology facilitator only. Consultants and advisors listed on the Platform are independent third parties. We do not:

Employ or direct consultants
Guarantee the quality, accuracy, or outcome of any session
Verify all credentials unless a Verified badge is explicitly displayed
Endorse any advice given during a session

The Verified badge indicates that The Karak Team has manually reviewed a consultant’s credentials, experience, and identity. It is not automatically granted.

6.2 Booking & Geographic Restriction

Advisor and consultant bookings are available to users in India only. To make a booking, you must:

Be registered and logged in
Be resident in India
Select an available time slot from the consultant’s calendar
Provide a brief description of your session goal
Complete payment (for paid services)

Booking confirmation is subject to acceptance by the consultant within 24 hours. If the consultant does not respond within this window, the booking request expires automatically and no charge is made.

6.3 Consultant Onboarding

Consultants cannot self-publish a profile. All consultant profiles are reviewed and published by The Karak Team. Approval timelines are at The Karak Team’s discretion. Consultant profiles may be paused (hidden from the directory) after 60 days of inactivity.

6.4 Session Conduct

All sessions are conducted via Google Meet. A unique Meet link is generated automatically when a consultant confirms a booking. Both parties receive the link by email and in their dashboard.

You agree to:

Attend sessions on time
Use sessions for lawful and legitimate purposes only
Not record sessions without the explicit written consent of the other party

6.5 Cancellation Policy

Users: You may cancel a booking that is still in Requested status (not yet accepted). Once a consultant confirms your booking, you may not cancel through the Platform. Contact the consultant directly if you need to cancel a confirmed session.
Consultants: You may cancel a confirmed booking up to 3 hours before the session start time. A reason (up to 50 words) must be provided to the user. You must issue any applicable refund promptly.
No-shows: If a user does not attend a confirmed session, the consultant may mark the booking as No-show. No-show sessions are non-refundable at the consultant’s discretion.
Consultant no-show: If the consultant fails to attend, the user is entitled to a full refund or reschedule.

6.6 Disputes

All disputes regarding session content, quality, or conduct are between the user and the consultant. The Karak Team may assist in facilitating communication but is not liable for outcomes.

7. Payments & Pricing

7.1 Payment Methods

Three payment methods are available for paid consultant sessions:

Free: Sessions with a rate of ₹0 require no payment.
UPI Direct: You pay the consultant directly using their UPI ID after they confirm. This transaction occurs entirely outside the Platform. The Karak is not a party to UPI Direct payments and accepts no liability for payment failures, disputes, or non-receipt.
Razorpay: Online payment via cards, netbanking, or UPI processed through Razorpay’s checkout. Payment is authorised at the time of booking and captured when the consultant confirms.

All session fees are displayed in Indian Rupees (₹) before booking.

7.2 Platform Commission

The Karak charges a commission on completed sessions as follows:

Razorpay sessions: A 5% platform commission is deducted from the consultant’s payout. This is borne by the consultant, not the user.
UPI Direct sessions: No platform commission applies. The consultant receives the full session rate.
Free sessions (₹0): No commission.
Charity sessions: The platform waives its 5% commission. 100% of the session fee is disbursed to the linked registered charity.

7.3 Razorpay Gateway Fee

For Razorpay payments, a gateway fee of 2% + 18% GST (effective 2.36%) is added to the service rate and is borne by the user. This fee is itemised transparently before you confirm your booking.

7.4 Consultant Payouts

For Razorpay sessions, payouts are processed via Razorpay Route to the consultant’s registered Indian bank account. Settlement typically takes 2 working days after session completion. KYC verification is required by Razorpay before payouts can be made.

For UPI Direct sessions, the consultant is solely responsible for ensuring they collect payment from the user. The Karak has no involvement in or visibility over UPI Direct transactions.

7.5 GST & Taxes

GST and other applicable taxes may apply to session fees and platform invoices. Consultants are responsible for their own tax obligations arising from earnings through the Platform. The Karak issues a platform invoice to users for Razorpay-confirmed sessions.

7.6 Pricing Changes

Service rates are set by consultants. Rate limits apply per session duration (30, 60, 90 minutes). Rates may change without prior notice and apply to future bookings only. Confirmed bookings are not affected by rate changes.

8. Refunds

Refund eligibility is as follows:

Consultant cancellation: If a consultant cancels a confirmed booking, the user is entitled to a full refund.
Consultant no-show: The user is entitled to a full refund or a rescheduled session.
User request: Refunds are at the sole discretion of the consultant. Consultants may issue a full refund within 72 hours of session end. After this window, no refund can be processed through the Platform.
Completed sessions: No refunds are issued for completed sessions unless the consultant chooses to do so.
Expired booking requests: If a booking request expires (consultant does not respond within 24 hours), no charge is made for Razorpay bookings — the authorisation is released.
UPI Direct refunds: UPI Direct payments occur outside the Platform. The Karak cannot process, mediate, or guarantee UPI Direct refunds. These are the sole responsibility of the consultant.

Charity session fees are non-refundable once disbursed to the charity. If a refund is issued before disbursement, the pending donation for that booking is cancelled.

9. Digital Products & Downloads

The Platform may offer reports, templates, and tools for download. These are:

Non-refundable once accessed or downloaded
Licensed for personal or internal business use only
Not to be resold, redistributed, or sublicensed

Intellectual property in all digital products remains with The Karak or the respective rights holders.

10. Consultant-Specific Terms

10.1 Independent Contractor Status

Consultants are independent contractors. Nothing in these Terms creates an employment, partnership, agency, or franchise relationship between consultants and The Karak.

10.2 Profile Accuracy

Consultants are responsible for ensuring their profile, services, rates, and credentials are accurate and up to date. Misrepresentation may result in immediate suspension.

10.3 Service Limits

Consultants may offer up to 5 services. Services cannot be deleted (to preserve session history) but may be deactivated. Rate changes take effect for future bookings only.

10.4 Inactivity

Consultant profiles are automatically paused (hidden from the directory) after 60 days of inactivity (no login). Profiles and all associated data are preserved. The Karak Team can manually restore a paused profile on request to theteam@thekarak.in.

10.5 Charity Sessions

Consultants may link a service to a registered charity from The Karak’s curated list. The charity-linked service rate is collected by the Platform and disbursed to the charity on a 14-day cycle after session completion. The charity designation for a service may be changed once per calendar month per service.

10.6 Earnings & Tax Records

Consultants may export earnings records in CSV format from their Earnings tab by financial year (Indian FY: April–March). Consultants are solely responsible for their own income tax, GST, and other tax filings arising from earnings on the Platform.

11. Acceptable Use

You agree not to:

Use the Platform for any unlawful, fraudulent, or harmful purpose
Misuse Aurora or other AI tools (spam, scraping, reverse engineering, prompt injection)
Attempt to hack, overload, or disrupt the Platform or its infrastructure
Upload, transmit, or distribute illegal, abusive, defamatory, or misleading content
Impersonate any person or entity
Book sessions for purposes other than genuine consultation
Record sessions without the explicit consent of all parties

Violation of these terms may result in immediate suspension or termination of your account without notice.

12. Intellectual Property

All Platform content — including but not limited to branding, design, AI systems, Aurora’s decision intelligence database, tools, reports, and editorial content — is owned by The Karak or licensed to us by rights holders.

You may not:

Copy, reproduce, modify, or distribute Platform content without written permission
Reverse engineer any Platform tool, system, or AI model
Use Platform content for commercial purposes without explicit written consent

If you submit content to the Platform (e.g. session goals, reviews, or feedback), you grant The Karak a non-exclusive, royalty-free, worldwide licence to use, display, and improve our services with that content. You confirm you own the rights to any content you submit.

13. Data & Privacy

Your use of the Platform is governed by our Privacy Policy at www.thekarak.in/privacy-policy. We may collect and process:

Personal data (name, email, phone, location)
Usage data (pages visited, features used, session history)
Inputs to Aurora and other AI tools, which may be processed to improve our services
Payment data (processed securely by Razorpay — The Karak does not store card details)

By using the Platform, you consent to the collection and use of your data as described in our Privacy Policy.

13.1 Google Calendar & Google Workspace Integrations

The Platform may allow users to connect their Google account and Google Calendar to facilitate appointment scheduling, calendar synchronization, availability management, event creation, event updates, meeting coordination, and related platform functionality.

By connecting a Google account, you authorize The Karak to access and process only the Google Workspace and Google Calendar data necessary to provide the functionality you have requested. Access is limited to the permissions explicitly granted by you through Google’s authorization process.

Google Workspace and Google Calendar data accessed through the Platform may include calendar events, availability information, event metadata, and other information required to support booking, scheduling, and synchronization features.

The Karak does not sell, rent, or disclose Google Workspace API data to third parties except where necessary to provide the requested functionality, comply with applicable law, protect Platform security, or with your explicit consent.

The use and transfer of raw or derived user data received from Google Workspace APIs will adhere to the Google API Services User Data Policy, including the Limited Use requirements.

Google Workspace API data is not used to develop, improve, or train generalized artificial intelligence or machine learning models. Such data is not used for advertising purposes, marketing profiling, or any purpose unrelated to providing user-facing functionality requested by the user.

Users may revoke Google account access at any time through their Google Account security settings or by disconnecting the integration within the Platform. Upon revocation, future access to Google Workspace data will cease, subject to any lawful retention obligations and the Platform’s Privacy Policy.

14. Limitation of Liability

To the maximum extent permitted by applicable law, The Karak and its affiliates, officers, employees, and agents are not liable for:

Business losses, financial losses, or decisions made based on Platform content, Aurora outputs, or consultant advice
Errors, delays, interruptions, or unavailability of the Platform
Loss or corruption of data
Indirect, incidental, special, or consequential damages of any kind
Payment failures, disputes, or losses arising from UPI Direct transactions
Actions or omissions of independent consultants

All services are provided “as is” and “as available” without warranties of any kind, express or implied, including but not limited to warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, or non-infringement.

Where liability cannot be excluded by law, our total aggregate liability to you is limited to the amount paid by you to The Karak in the 3 months preceding the claim.

15. Indemnification

You agree to indemnify, defend, and hold harmless The Karak, its affiliates, directors, employees, and agents from and against any claims, liabilities, damages, losses, and expenses (including reasonable legal fees) arising out of or relating to:

Your use of or access to the Platform
Your violation of these Terms
Your violation of any third-party rights
Any content you submit or transmit through the Platform

16. Termination

We may suspend or terminate your access to the Platform at any time, with or without notice, for:

Violations of these Terms
Misuse of the Platform or its features
Fraudulent or illegal activity
Extended inactivity (consultant accounts)

Upon termination, your right to access the Platform ceases immediately. Sections relating to liability, indemnification, intellectual property, and governing law survive termination.

17. Modifications to These Terms

We may update these Terms at any time. Changes will be published at www.thekarak.in/terms-of-service with an updated “Last Updated” date. Material changes will be communicated by email to registered users where reasonably practicable.

Your continued use of the Platform after any change constitutes acceptance of the revised Terms.

18. Governing Law & Jurisdiction

These Terms are governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of India. Any disputes arising from these Terms or your use of the Platform shall be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of Bengaluru, Karnataka, India.

The Platform is operated by The Karak from India. We make no representation that the Platform complies with the laws of any jurisdiction outside India.

19. Contact

Email: theteam@thekarak.in

Website: www.thekarak.in

Help & FAQs: www.thekarak.in/help-faqs/

Terms of Service