New Delhi:
Two women business leaders, Kanika Tekriwal and Gazal Kalra, shared what they have found about today’s youth when it comes to quality of life. It’s not about hoarding objects but more about living life in the now, Tekriwal, Founder and CEO of JetSetGo, said at NDTV Yuva 2026. For Kalra, Co-Founder of Nuuk, today’s youth want more than just the basic necessity.
“I think the yuva are very aware and are looking for great experiences. For the first time, India is not buying subsistence stuff. The youth are buying products and services that are great because finally they have woken up to the fact that Indians deserve better,” Kalra said.
“I mean we build products for homes till my grandmother’s age or my parents’ age, but with the yuva you want mist-cooling function, you want it to look good, it to be silent, portable and you want it personalised. So it’s no longer about just price or function, but more about value,” she said.
Nuuk describes the brand as a force behind award-winning, design-first and high-performance products built for a new India.
On the shift in the aviation sector, Tekriwal said that the average age of a JetSetGo customer in the post-Covid period is 35. It used to be 48 in the pre-Covid days, she added.
“That shows you a big shift. I think it’s no longer about owning things; it’s about feeling things, seeing things. When I was small I remember my parents used to say buy jewellery every birthday, buy land, buy house. Today, I don’t think about buying, but it’s trying new things and going down the path that’s not been taken that matters today for the youth,” Tekriwal said.
“You see 10 friends split money to take a private jet to go to the Maldives, which was unheard of before. You’re seeing bachelor parties happen in private jets. Even parents are also agreeing to spend on these things. So it’s a transition through and through. Indians in general are no longer hoarders.
“I think that generationally, the previous generation were hoarders. We used to love to acquire things and it was more about status. That I have so much land, I have such a big house. Now, renting is cool. I think we’ve moved away from the owning economy as well and we’re seeing a new age youth who is about living life in the now,” Tekriwal said.