"I didn't plan to start a company. The mountains kind of forced my hand."
When I first came to Pune, I was just another engineering student trying to figure things out. Then I went on a trek to the Sahyadris — and something clicked. That first trek felt real. Like, this is what I want to do more of kinda real.
What started as random weekend plans with friends slowly became a full thing. I started organizing treks for my college gang — picking trails, arranging transport, packing snacks, guiding everyone through the climbs. Word spread. Friends told their friends. Soon we had big groups asking, "Bhai, next trek kab hai?"
That's when I thought — yeh toh kuch bada ho sakta hai.
I called up my friend Abhishek Mahalle. He's also a trekker, and even more of a "let's build something" kinda guy. Together we launched Trekbaaz — a travel startup made by and for young explorers. Then came PlanYourGoaTrips, taking the same energy to Goa.
We registered an actual company. North2South Trekbaaz Travels Pvt. Ltd. I was 19, in my 2nd year of B.Tech, with zero business experience and a lot of conviction.
"Running a startup this young is like a steep uphill trek — full of obstacles, sometimes you're out of breath, but the view at the top? Worth it."
We faced budget issues. Convincing parents. Managing time between assignments and trek planning. Dealing with last-minute dropouts. Raising money. Doing customer support at midnight. But every trek where someone came back saying "semester ka best weekend tha yeh" — all the effort felt worth it.
We analyzed customer booking trends, ran marketing campaigns, handled business operations, and planned to move into hospitality — our own nature stays in the hills. By November 2025, the chapter closed. Not with a bang, but with a lot of lessons packed in a backpack.
