The Dream Didn't End. It Just Took a Different Runway. Inside the Mind of BEING.'s Co-Founder- Kush Verma

Sometimes life doesn't ask you to let go of a dream. It simply asks you to carry it differently.

Kush Verma once imagined his future inside an aircraft cockpit. Today, he spends his days building BEING., a Gen Z-focused creative marketing agency, helping brands understand India's youngest consumers, while continuing to nurture his love for aviation through his YouTube platform, Aviation-O-Holic. His journey isn't about replacing one passion with another; it's about discovering that purpose can evolve without erasing where it began.

In this interview, Kush shares the lessons behind entrepreneurship, friendship, creativity, AI, consumer psychology, and the decisions that quietly shape a meaningful career.Q1. You once wrote that you never really wanted to go to college and instead dreamed of becoming a commercial pilot. 

Q1. Looking back today, what made you finally choose entrepreneurship over aviation, and do you ever wonder about the life you left behind?

So, why even college happened was because my parents wanted me to do a degree because being a pilot is not easy, one messup and one can lose his/her flying license - so it was more of a safety net sewing plan, that I would just do a degree and then go for training and start clearing pilot exams through my third year in college to save on time.

Which seemed like a fair deal to me because I don’t have a high risk-taking ability as of now, although it has improved since then. Even on the day I reached college, and through my first few weeks there was something in me that kept reminding me that I am going to waste the next 3 years of my life, because if I had joined pilot training right after 12th, I would be flying in that much time. I just kept going and started having fun.

I found great friends, my best friend coincidentally joined the same college - so college was not as hard as I had expected it to be. Fun fact: I went there to do a degree in Economics, but the math was too complex, and since it was just a degree, I chose to do a BA in Politics. I think that was a smart choice, because it came very naturally to me, and I would debate in every class.

The journey happened so that on a day that I felt like I would want to explore being a business consultant, I sat with Anushka to help her figure out what she could do with a double major in Biology and Literature. During that 2-hour mind map drawing conversation on a coffee table, BEING. got birthed.

It was an idea lying in my mind, and one thing that stood out as Anushka’s strength was marketing - so we just started without any knowledge, but on having conversations with Ishan and Aadya (the other two partners), we sensed a gap in the market, and with a feasible amount of capital, it seemed like a bet the four of us were very motivated to take.

Aviation stands as a dear hobby of mine. I still go planespotting and, just to stay in touch with what is happening, I put out a video on Aviation-O-Holic every week to educate and engage with the aviation community in India.

But don’t be surprised if I still get a PPL (Private Pilot’s License) in a few years and buy a private jet to fly across the world! As of now, BEING. has my whole heart, brain, kidney and everything else possible.

I do not know what life would have been like if I were a pilot because I was never one, but I do not look back at anything as a regret because I trust whatever has happened, and will happen - keep a close eye :)

Q2. You describe BEING as working “in a very Indian way” and not as a conventional agency. What does that philosophy actually look like in practice when dealing with clients, deadlines, or disagreements within the team?

What does being Indian mean, and how do you feel about it, is a counter question I would have asked if we were sitting and chatting, but an Indian way is just an Indian way - I just feel it, you might also feel it, and I find it hard to describe it.

What we are aiming for is to understand India in the best way possible, and we are doing it by having conversations. No time limit on client meetings, having conversations with as many applicants as possible - and what is one thing every Indian (or even a non-Indian) person, place, culture has? A story.

For me, stories are more of an Indian thing. Grandparents love telling stories, parents love telling stories, and kids build their world inside stories. The chaiwala narrates stories, the autowala narrates stories, the maali narrates stories.

So my first question to any client, or to any team member, is about them - the person, their journey, their story. Everything that we need to know about the brand is right there.

Clients have cried while narrating their story to me. They have shown me old pictures talking about their ancestral homes. Sounds unusual for an agency, but we want our clients to trust us like they trust their loved ones.

Inside our agency, the people we work with or work for are like family, even if they joined yesterday. We sit and eat lunch together, spend time talking after lunch, and deal with deadlines and disagreements by simply finding a solution or a jugaad.

Even language matters. I often ask clients if I can explain things in Hindi, and suddenly the room becomes more comfortable. To serve a market like India, one needs to believe in the Indian-ness of people, culture, and places.

Q3. A recurring theme in your writing is that brands often misunderstand what Gen Z truly wants. In your opinion, what is the biggest mistake businesses make when trying to market to young India?

To be honest, I am not very Gen Z when it comes to consumption patterns. But as someone helping brands communicate with Gen Z, I see a lot of confusion.

The biggest mistake is that brands are not willing to spend enough time familiarising the consumer with the product and the brand. They want quick conversions without investing in education, entertainment, or trust-building.

Today’s consumer is exposed to sponsored content constantly. They may love your content for months before following you, and follow you for months before buying from you. The journey is unpredictable.

Brands that only chase immediate ROI often underestimate the time investment required to win young consumers.

Q4. Building a startup with college friends sounds exciting from the outside, but it can also strain relationships. How have you and your co-founders handled disagreements while protecting both the business and the friendship?

We handle disagreements daily. But we are aware of keeping friendship and business separate and always prioritising the business.

There are times when one person is completely in disagreement with the other three, or vice versa, but that is just part of the process.

I genuinely think it is best to build a company with friends - provided they are the right friends, motivated enough, and willing to stay through the low phases.

Hard times feel less daunting when your friends are building alongside you and still cracking jokes in the middle of the chaos.

Q5. OffShoot aims to replace expensive product shoots with AI-assisted workflows. As someone building with AI while also working in a creative field, where do you personally draw the line between using AI as a tool and allowing it to replace human creativity?

I strictly treat AI as something that makes work more efficient. If it can solve a brand problem faster, create product visuals cheaper, or improve delivery, great - use it.

But AI does not have a subjective understanding of people, places, and culture. That still requires human conversations, context, and judgment.

So the line is simple: AI can assist execution, but humans must guide meaning and strategy.

Q6. In one of your posts, you mentioned trying to understand “how India actually works” through informal economies and city cultures. Has there been an experience or observation that completely changed the way you view consumers or businesses in India?

Every conversation I have, every 5-10 km that I travel, and every city I visit becomes a unique observation.

My view does not suddenly change because of one moment. It evolves with each new piece I encounter.

Q7. You often write about purpose alongside performance. Has there been a moment while building BEING? When financial growth and personal values pulled you in different directions? If so, how did you make that decision?

Yes, some decisions need to be made that may not align perfectly with one person’s values. In those moments, we try to solve for the purpose of the decision.

If someone genuinely needs help but cannot afford our pricing, we may refer them to a younger company that can serve them better. We try to do what feels right while still respecting the financial responsibilities of the business.

That said, I trust my team. If Ishan is handling finance and believes a certain pricing decision is necessary after a purpose-led discussion, I trust his judgment because that is his responsibility within the company.

Q8. Finally, if a student reading this interview is torn between following a long-held dream and adapting to changing industry realities—as you once were—what would you tell them?

Go with the flow and trust what is happening.

I do not know whether BEING. It is the final thing in my life, but while it is a part of my life, I am trusting it completely.

Take a decision that feels like your decision, take accountability for it, and own the outcome. I do not blame my parents for asking me to complete a degree because I chose to agree with them.

We live in a controlling society, but the control ultimately becomes yours when you take responsibility for your choices.

And most importantly: be wise. If you truly believe you can take the risk of following your dream even when the industry says otherwise, do it - but make the decision objectively, not emotionally. 

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About Conversations by Brains in You

Conversations by Brains in You is a curated interview series featuring students, professionals, entrepreneurs, creators, researchers, and changemakers whose journeys offer meaningful lessons beyond conventional achievements.

Rather than focusing solely on titles or milestones, each conversation explores the decisions, experiences, challenges, and perspectives that shaped the individual behind the profile. The aim is to create a growing repository of practical insights that help students and young professionals navigate their own careers with greater clarity, productivity, integrity, and purpose.

Every featured conversation is thoughtfully selected with the belief that authentic experiences can inspire informed decisions, lifelong learning, and better human development.