Terms of service

Operated by

Rajdatta Sakharam Sawant, a sole proprietor carrying on business as "Aksho" (Udyam Registration No. UDYAM-MH-31-0061037), with registered office at 982, Gangai, Bhatwadi Road, Kanduli, Kaleli, Kudal, Sindhudurg, Maharashtra 416519, India ("Aksho", "we", "us", "our").

1. Introduction and acceptance

1.1 These Terms of Service (“Terms”) govern your access to and use of Aksho — the web application at app.aksho.in (installable as a Progressive Web App), the Android application (com.tryaksho.app), and related services (together, the “Service”). Aksho is a business-management application for Indian photographers and content creators, covering clients, shoots, expenses, vendors, equipment, subscriptions, loans, capital, payment records, and reports.

1.2 By submitting a signup request, creating an account, or using the Service, you confirm that you have read and agree to these Terms and the Aksho Privacy Policy, which is incorporated by reference. If you do not agree, do not use the Service.

1.3 If you use the Service on behalf of a studio, firm, company, or LLP, you confirm you are authorised to bind that business, and “you” / “your” refer to that business.

2. Definitions

“Account” — your registered account on the Service.

“Your Studio Data” — the studio business records you create or store in the Service (clients, shoots, expenses, vendors, equipment, subscriptions, loans, capital, payment records, notes, and attached photos). This is end-to-end encrypted (Clause 7).

“Your Clients” — the individuals or businesses whose information you store in the Service.

“Account Information” — data we hold about you to run your Account, such as your email, studio name, name, phone number, and account status.

“DPDP Act” — the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023 and rules made under it.

3. Eligibility

3.1 You must be at least 18 years old and able to enter into a binding contract under the Indian Contract Act, 1872.

3.2 The Service is intended for adult studio owners and operators in India. It is not directed to, or intended for, children, and is not designed to collect data from individuals under 18 as direct users.

4. Account creation and access

4.1 Approval-gated signup. Access is currently granted by approval. You submit your name, studio name, email, and phone at app.aksho.in/signup; we review the request; on approval you receive a one-time invite link to set your password and complete onboarding (creating your PIN and generating your encryption keys).

4.2 Account states.

Pending

Created but not yet activated; you can sign in and complete onboarding but cannot access studio features until activation.

Active

Full access to all features.

Suspended

Access is restricted (e.g. for non-payment, breach of these Terms, or extended inactivity); your data remains stored and recoverable.

4.3 You are responsible for all activity under your Account, for keeping your login details accurate, and for safeguarding your password and PIN (see Clause 7). Notify us at security@aksho.in of any unauthorised use.

5. Fees, billing, taxes, and payments

5.1 Price. The Service is offered at ₹99 per month, per studio, charged from the day you authorize the subscription. There is currently no free trial. Pricing may change on at least 30 days' notice, effective from your next billing cycle.

5.2 Billing cycle. Subscriptions are billed monthly, in advance, starting on the date you authorize the subscription. Subsequent charges occur on the same day each month.

5.3 Payment processing. Payments are processed by Razorpay Software Pvt Ltd (“Razorpay”) via UPI Autopay or card autopay mandate. When you subscribe you authorize Razorpay to debit your chosen instrument ₹99 immediately and ₹99 on each subsequent monthly cycle until you cancel. Razorpay's terms of use and privacy policy apply to its handling of your payment instrument data. We do not store your full card number, CVV, UPI VPA, or bank credentials on our servers.

5.4 Taxes / GST. GST is not currently charged on the subscription, as we are not presently registered for GST. If we become GST-registered, GST will be added and shown separately, and we will update these Terms and our pricing accordingly.

5.5 Cancellation. You may cancel at any time from Settings → Payment in the app, or by emailing support@aksho.in. Your data remains accessible until the end of the paid period, after which your Account moves to Suspended.

5.6 Refunds. Refunds are at our discretion. Generally, the most recent month's charge is refundable if you request it within 7 days of that charge. Refunds are processed via the same payment instrument used for the original charge.

6. Acceptable use

You agree not to: (a) use the Service unlawfully or in breach of any applicable law, including the Information Technology Act, 2000; (b) upload content you have no right to upload, or that is unlawful, infringing, or harmful; (c) probe, reverse-engineer, decompile, or attempt to defeat the Service's security, except to the extent the law prohibits restricting this; (d) resell or provide the Service to third parties except as permitted; or (e) misuse the Friends Network (Clause 9). We may suspend or terminate access for suspected breaches.

7. Encryption, your keys, and data-loss risk

7.1 End-to-end encryption of Your Studio Data. Your Studio Data is encrypted on your device with a data-encryption key that is itself protected by two secrets you control — your password and your 6-digit PIN. We do not hold your password, your PIN, or your unencrypted data-encryption key. As a result, we cannot read, reset, decrypt, or recover Your Studio Data, and neither can our infrastructure providers.

7.2 You are responsible for your secrets. Because of this design, you are solely responsible for remembering and safeguarding your password and PIN. If you enable PIN-only (“Maximum Security”) mode, your password can no longer unlock your data, so your PIN becomes the only key.

7.3 No recovery if your secrets are lost. You understand and agree that if you forget or lose your password and/or PIN (as applicable to your security settings), Your Studio Data may be permanently and irretrievably lost, and we will not be liable for that loss. You are responsible for maintaining your own backups — you can export your full studio to Excel at any time via Reports → Export.

7.4 What is not end-to-end encrypted. Certain Account Information and networking data — your profile (studio name, name, phone, email, account status, push token), signup details, Friends Network connections, shoot-assignment snapshots, and payment/billing references — are not end-to-end encrypted (they are protected in transit and at rest by our providers, but are readable by us to operate the Service). Our “we can't read your data” promise applies to Your Studio Data, not to this operational metadata.

8. Your Studio Data and Your Clients' data

8.1 Ownership. As between you and us, you own Your Studio Data. You grant us a limited licence to store, replicate, transmit, and back up the encrypted form of it solely to provide the Service.

8.2 Roles under the DPDP Act.

(a) For personal data of Your Clients that you store in the Service, you are the Data Fiduciary and we act only as a storage provider that cannot read it. You are responsible for having a lawful basis to collect and store your clients' data (including any notice/consent under the DPDP Act and obligations relating to children's data under section 9).

(b) For your Account Information, we are the Data Fiduciary, as described in the Privacy Policy.

8.3 Your representations. You confirm you have the rights and consents needed to store Your Clients' data in the Service, and that doing so does not breach any law or third-party right. You will indemnify us (Clause 13) for breaches of this.

9. Friends Network and shoot assignments

9.1 The Friends Network lets you connect with another Aksho studio and hand off a shoot at a fixed quote. When you connect with another studio, your name and email become visible to that studio (and theirs to you).

9.2 When you send a shoot assignment, the recipient sees only event date, shoot type, location, your free-text “about the client” line, optional notes/message, and the quote amount. The recipient does not receive your client's name, phone, email, address, your pricing, or any of your other records.

9.3 Your responsibility: the “about the client” line, notes, and message are free text you write. Do not enter your client's name, phone number, or other identifying details there. You remain the controller of your client's identity and are responsible for what you choose to share.

10. Intellectual property

10.1 The Service — including all software, design, and trademarks (including the “Aksho” name and logo) — is owned by us or our licensors. We grant you a limited, non-exclusive, non-transferable, revocable licence to use the Service during your subscription for your internal business purposes only.

10.2 If you send us feedback or suggestions, you grant us a perpetual, royalty-free licence to use them without obligation to you.

11. Third-party services

The Service depends on third-party providers (database/auth hosting via Supabase, payment processing via Razorpay, email delivery via Resend, crash reporting and push notifications via Google Firebase, and app distribution via Google Play). We are not responsible for third-party services, and your use of them is subject to their own terms. A current list of our sub-processors is in the Privacy Policy.

12. Warranties and disclaimers

12.1 We provide the Service with reasonable skill and care.

12.2 To the maximum extent permitted by law, the Service is provided “as is” and “as available”, without warranties of any kind (including merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, uninterrupted availability, or error-free operation), except for any warranty that cannot be excluded under applicable law.

13. Limitation of liability

13.1 To the maximum extent permitted by law, neither party is liable for indirect, incidental, special, consequential, or punitive damages, or for loss of profits, revenue, goodwill, or (subject to Clause 7) data.

13.2 Our total aggregate liability arising out of or relating to the Service and these Terms will not exceed the total fees you paid to us in the 12 months before the event giving rise to the claim.

13.3 Nothing limits liability for fraud, wilful misconduct, or any liability that cannot be limited under applicable Indian law.

14. Indemnity

You agree to indemnify and hold us harmless from claims, damages, and reasonable costs arising from (a) your breach of these Terms, (b) Your Studio Data or your use of the Service, (c) your obligations as Data Fiduciary for Your Clients' data, or (d) your misuse of the Friends Network.

15. Suspension, termination, and deletion

15.1 You may cancel at any time (Clause 5.5).

15.2 We may suspend or terminate your access for material breach, non-payment, unlawful use, or extended inactivity, with notice where practicable.

15.3 Account deletion. You may request deletion by emailing support@aksho.in from your registered email. Within 7 working days we will delete your encrypted studio data and your encryption keys (which makes any retained backup permanently undecryptable), delete your authentication record, anonymise your profile, and drop your Friends Network relationships. Provider backups roll off per their retention windows, after which deleted data is unrecoverable. A record of the request (not your data) may be kept for up to 12 months to demonstrate compliance.

16. Changes to the Service and these Terms

We may modify the Service or these Terms. For material changes to these Terms, we will give reasonable notice by email or in-app. Continued use after changes take effect is acceptance.

17. Grievance redressal / Grievance Officer

In line with the Information Technology Act, 2000 and the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021, and to provide grievance redressal under section 13 of the DPDP Act, our Grievance Officer is:

Name: Rajdatta Sakharam Sawant
Email: admin@aksho.in
Address: 982, Gangai, Bhatwadi Road, Kanduli, Kaleli, Kudal, Sindhudurg, Maharashtra 416519, India

We will acknowledge complaints within 48 hours and aim to resolve them within the timelines required by applicable law.

18. Governing law and dispute resolution

18.1 These Terms are governed by the laws of India.

18.2 Subject to Clause 18.3, the courts at Sindhudurg, Maharashtra, India have exclusive jurisdiction.

18.3 Arbitration. Any dispute will be finally resolved by arbitration before a sole arbitrator under the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996, seated at Sindhudurg, Maharashtra, India, conducted in English.

19. General

Force majeure — neither party is liable for delays caused by events beyond its reasonable control.

Notices — legal notices to us go to admin@aksho.in and our address; we may notify you at your Account email.

Assignment — you may not assign these Terms without our consent; we may assign on a merger or sale of the business.

Entire agreement / severability / waiver — these Terms and the Privacy Policy are the entire agreement; if a provision is invalid the rest stands; not enforcing a provision is not a waiver.

Contact

Rajdatta Sakharam Sawant, trading as Aksho
982, Gangai, Bhatwadi Road, Kanduli, Kaleli, Kudal, Sindhudurg, Maharashtra 416519, India
Email: support@aksho.in