I didn’t create Hostelbird just to “start a company.”
The Outsider
For most of my life, I carried the feeling of being an outsider.
In my family.
Among friends.
Even in conversations, where words often felt shallow, mismatched, or simply not mine.
It’s a strange loneliness — being surrounded by people, yet unable to connect. You begin to believe the problem must be you. That you’re too different, too closed, too misunderstood.
I lived in that silence for years. Until one accident shifted everything.
The Mistaken Booking
It was a trip to Delhi. I had booked what I thought was a cheap hotel room online. When I arrived, the receptionist led me to a space filled with bunk beds. Some people were sprawled across them, scrolling through Instagram reels. One was balancing his laptop on a pillow, attending a meeting. Another walked casually to the washroom, towel on his shoulder.
I froze.
“This is not what I booked,” I thought.
I checked the app. Four stars. Affordable price. And yes — it was a hostel. Something I had never even considered before.
In that moment, I felt misplaced again. Another outsider, in another room.
The Common Room
Because you can’t spend the day lying in a bunk, I wandered into the common area to work. That’s when it happened.
A traveller sat at the table across from me. He looked up and asked:
“Bro, where are you from? What do you do?”
I answered with a heavy voice, cautious as always. My instinct was to protect, not open. But then came a question I did not expect —
“Do you play UNO?”
I had no idea how to play. But boredom, curiosity, and something deeper nudged me to say yes.
He taught me the rules. We played one game, then another. More travellers joined. By nightfall, we were a group of strangers laughing, sharing stories, and heading out for dinner together.
That night, for the first time in years, I opened up.
No judgement. No dismissals. Just connection.
The Liberation
The next day I flew to Mumbai and booked another hostel — Namaste Hostels in Bandra, which remains one of my favorites.
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Again, strangers became friends. Again, I felt lighter.
From Delhi to Goa to Rishikesh, the pattern repeated: conversations with people from all over the world, deep late-night talks, meals shared, adventures lived.
Something inside me was healing.
I was beginning to see a truth I had never considered:
If you struggle to connect with people around you, it’s not always your problem. Sometimes, you just haven’t found your tribe yet.
Back home, I still felt misunderstood — but I was okay with it. Because I knew, whenever it got too heavy, I could pack a bag, check into a hostel, and find ears that listened without judgement.
The Gap
One day, while booking another hostel, I noticed something:
The platforms I was using weren’t built for hostel travellers.
Hotel booking apps focus on rooms — luxury, amenities, star ratings. But staying in a hostel isn’t about the bed. It’s about the common room. The community. The people you meet and the stories you share.
Global platforms for hostels exist, but they don’t understand India’s unique travel ecosystem. And in India, there was no dedicated hostel booking OTA.
The gap was clear.
The Birth of Hostelbird
That realization, combined with my own transformation, gave birth to Hostelbird.
Hostelbird is not just another travel platform. It’s a bridge — for outsiders, seekers, wanderers. It’s built to help people find not just a place to stay, but a place to belong.
We’re building a system where the common room matters as much as the bed, where travellers can connect through chat, earn rewards, discover events, and most importantly — find their tribe.
For me, Hostelbird is more than a startup. It’s my way of merging work and play, love and purpose. It’s about creating a world where people can step out of uncomfortable places and discover connection.
Because I know what it feels like to believe you’re the problem. And I know the freedom of realizing you were never broken — you were just searching in the wrong places.
The Journey Continues
Every time I see a traveller in a hostel — sitting with strangers who, by the end of the night, become family — I’m reminded of that first UNO game.
It taught me that belonging is not about fitting in everywhere. It’s about finding the right space, the right people, the right moment.
That’s the spirit of Hostelbird.
A home for outsiders.
A platform for connection.
A reminder that you are not alone.
