Interesting Story of My First Startup - Bichana (Never Launched!)

Published on February 1, 2024

Every founder's story supposedly begins with a flash of genius. Mine began with a lumpy mattress and terrible water shortage.

Fresh out of university, I was grinding away at my first real job in a tech startup— as an accountant. I was ambitious, climbing the ladder fast, and taking on every responsibility I could, from HR to web development. But at the end of the day, I'd come home to a "mess," the shared bachelor flats common in Dhaka, and the daily frustrations would pile up. There I struggled with enough water to bath, quietness to sleep, and zero privacy. The search for a decent, clean, and available place to live felt like a second full-time job I simply didn't have time for.

This constant, nagging friction wasn't just an inconvenience; it was an opportunity. I kept thinking, "There has to be a better way." That simple thought was the spark for starting my first startup, a journey that taught me more in its failure than any success ever could have. In my decade as an engineer and now as a CEO, the lessons from this first venture remain most valuable.

The Problem That Became an Obsession

If you've ever been a young professional in a bustling city, you know the struggle. You're trying to build a career, but your living situation is a constant source of stress. Finding a new "mess" or even a single available bed meant endlessly scrolling through fragmented Facebook groups, making dozens of calls, and visiting places that looked nothing like their blurry photos.

It was inefficient, untrustworthy, and deeply frustrating.

For a busy professional, time is the most valuable asset. And I was wasting hours of it on a problem that felt solvable with technology. I saw my friends and colleagues facing the same battle. This wasn't just my problem; it was a city-wide headache for thousands of bachelors.

The "Aha!" Moment: An Airbnb for Bachelors

The idea hit me like a lightning bolt: Bichana.com.

It would be a dedicated marketplace where anyone with a spare bed or room in a bachelor flat could list it, and anyone searching could easily find and book it. Think of it as a Deshi version of Airbnb, but exclusively for bachelors.

The vision was clear and intoxicating. I bought the domain immediately. I could see the app, the user interface, the solution taking shape in my mind. This was it. This was my million-dollar idea.

The WordPress Wall

Having tinkered with WordPress since I was 16, my first instinct was to build it there. It's fast, it's cheap, and I knew my way around it.

But I hit a wall. Hard.

The specific needs of the Bangladeshi market were beyond what any off-the-shelf plugin could handle. A generic solution wouldn't work. To succeed, Bichana needed to be custom-built, flexible, and ready for rapid iteration.

The Founder's Dilemma: Code, Cash, or Co-Founder?

So, I needed a custom-coded platform. The problem? I was an accountant, not a programmer. This left me with three options:

Hire a developer: I didn't have the funds.
Find a technical co-founder: The idea felt so personal, so mine, that I was terrified of sharing equity. I foolishly believed my "holy idea" was the most valuable part of the equation and feared it would be stolen.

I now know that an idea is a multiplier of execution. At the time, I thought the opposite. I was so paralyzed by the fear of losing control or being ripped off that I almost chose option three. I didn't apply for grants or pitch to anyone. It was a classic rookie mistake.

But that mistake, born of ignorance and fear, forced my hand. It led me to an unexpected fourth option that would change the entire trajectory of my career.

From Founder to Coder: The Unexpected Pivot

If I couldn't afford to hire a coder and was too naive to partner with one, there was only one path left.

I had to become one.

It sounds insane, but the obsession with solving the problem was that strong. By a stroke of luck, Meta was launching a professional certificate in full-stack development. I pre-enrolled and, thanks to their launch promotion, my first month was paid for.

I dove in headfirst. I was a man on a mission. I didn't just do the coursework; I devoured it. I’d finish every module early and wait impatiently for the next one to be released. With the foundation from the course, a burning desire to build my startup, and ChatGPT at my side, I started to learn the language of computers.

[Image: A screenshot of the Meta course certificate or a code editor. Alt Text: Learning to code to build my first startup, Bichana.]

The biggest profit from my failed startup wasn't financial. It was the skill I was forced to learn: coding.

This single decision to learn, rather than wait, was the most valuable outcome of the entire Bichana saga.

Why Bichana.com Never Truly Launched

So, I was learning to code, and the dream was closer than ever. But Bichana.com never saw the light of day. Why? The unfiltered truth is it died a slow death from three self-inflicted wounds.

The Product Trap. I still couldn't build the perfect product I envisioned in my head. My new coding skills were foundational, not expert-level. Instead of launching a simple Minimum Viable Product (MVP), I was stuck chasing a flawless version that was beyond my reach. [Internal Link to: how to validate a startup idea before building]
My Personal Problem Disappeared. In a major life change, I moved from the chaos of Dhaka back to my hometown. Suddenly, the lumpy mattress and the frantic search for a "mess" were no longer my reality. I had mistakenly believed that solving my own problem was the same as being passionate about the market's problem. When my pain went away, so did a huge chunk of my motivation.
The Lure of a "Bigger" Idea. As I was wrestling with Bichana, another, much larger problem space began to fascinate me. It was a billion-dollar dream that felt more urgent, more challenging, and ultimately, more compelling. The shiny new object syndrome took hold, and my focus drifted completely.

Bichana wasn't killed by a competitor; it was abandoned.

My Unfiltered Lessons from Bichana.com

Execution is Everything: Your brilliant idea is worth absolutely nothing without the ability to execute it. Don't hide it; build it, test it, and prove it.
Solve the Market's Problem, Not Just Your Own: While personal pain is a great starting point, your motivation must survive once your own problem is solved. Stay close to your target users.
Launch Before You're Ready: I was chasing perfection and never launched anything. A buggy, simple MVP in the hands of real users is infinitely more valuable than a perfect product that only exists in your mind.
The "Detour" Might Be the Path: My goal was to build a startup. The outcome was learning to code. That "failure" gave me the single most critical skill for my future success as a tech entrepreneur.

Frequently Asked Questions

What was the single biggest mistake you made with your first startup? My biggest mistake was falling in love with my idea instead of the problem. I was overprotective of the concept ("my million-dollar idea") and didn't focus enough on the fastest, cheapest way to validate if anyone else actually wanted it.

Would you recommend that all founders learn to code? Not necessarily. But I strongly recommend every founder learns the language of their product. Whether it's code, manufacturing, or marketing, understanding the fundamentals of how your product is built is a superpower. It allows you to lead with credibility and make smarter decisions. [Internal Link to: choosing the right tech stack for your MVP]

Is the idea for Bichana.com still a good one? Absolutely. The problem of finding bachelor housing in cities like Dhaka is very real and a huge market opportunity still exists. For a founder with the right focus and execution, it's a problem worth solving.

Failure is Just Data

Bichana.com is a story of failure. There's no other way to put it. But it's also the origin story for everything that came next. It forced me to confront my naivete, acquire a skill I desperately needed, and understand the difference between an idea and a business.

It was the most valuable failure of my life. And if you're standing on the edge of your own first venture, my advice is simple: jump. You might not land where you expect, but you'll learn exactly what you need to for the next leap.

What's the biggest lesson you've learned from a project that didn't go as planned? Share your story in the comments below.

About the Author

Mahmud H. Shakir is a tech entrepreneur and academic researcher. As the CEO of kobul.com and an experienced software engineer, he has expertise in building and scaling technology startups. His practical expertise is backed by academic inquiry as a doctoral candidate at Inti International University, Malaysia. Connect with him on https://www.linkedin.com/in/mahmudshakir/.