At 19, most people are still figuring out what they want to do. Pavan Allena was already trying to build something from scratch. That first attempt — a blur of passion, chaos, and unstructured ambition — quietly planted the seed for Bower, an entrepreneurial school redefining how young people learn to think, build, and fail forward.
Today, after reaching over 1.5 lakh students through his earlier venture, Metamorphosis, and raising Rs 11.5 crore in seed funding for Bower, he’s on a mission to make entrepreneurship a mindset, not a subject. From AI-powered learning systems to global campuses, his journey proves that clarity often emerges from chaos and that the best classrooms are the ones where learning comes from doing.
In a conversation with CE, Pavan reflects on the failures that shaped him, the philosophy behind Bower, and why he believes entrepreneurship is less about building companies and more about building people.
Excerpts
You started your first venture at 19 and later founded Bower. Looking back, what was the most formative failure or lesson from that early venture that shapes how you lead today?
When I started my first venture at 19, I had raw passion but zero structure. I didn’t know how the startup ecosystem worked — how to raise funding, build a prototype, or validate an idea. Everything was instinct-driven. Exciting, but chaotic. That phase taught me something fundamental: ideas don’t create impact — systems do. Entrepreneurship isn’t just creativity, it’s process. It’s running experiments, seeking feedback, and aligning with mentors who accelerate learning. At Bower, I’ve created the structured environment I wish I had at 19 — a place where students can test ideas, fail safely, and learn the mechanics of venture-building. It turns enthusiasm into execution.
How did your academics influence your decision to build an entrepreneurial school?
Vellore Institute of Technology (VIT) taught me how to build. Harvard HBX taught me how to think. Both were valuable, but they also exposed a gap. Theory and practice often exist in silos. I wanted to build a place where learning, doing, and reflecting happen together. That’s what inspired Bower.
You left Metamorphosis after reaching 150,000+ students globally. How did that exit influence the creation of Bower?
Exits aren’t finish lines, they’re checkpoints. Metamorphosis proved entrepreneurship education could scale, but scale without depth felt incomplete. With Bower, I wanted depth — to develop entrepreneurs who think clearly, decide confidently, and act with intent.
At Bower, you emphasise a mindset-first approach. Why prioritise mindset over content?
I’ve seen brilliant ideas collapse because the founder lacked resilience. Content teaches you what to do. Mindset teaches you how to think when things don’t go as planned. Mindset determines whether someone sustains or gives up. That belief drives everything at Bower.
Tell us about a non-business interest or hobby that shapes your approach to entrepreneurship education.
Sports. I’ve played competitive sports for years. You win some, lose some — but every match teaches discipline, teamwork, and endurance. That philosophy shapes Bower: learn by doing, fail fast, come back stronger.
What role do you believe entrepreneurship plays in society — especially in India?
Entrepreneurship is nation-building. It creates problem-solvers, not job-seekers. In India, it shifts the mindset from ‘What can I get?’ to ‘What can I create?’
Bower recently raised Rs 11.5 crore in seed funding. How will this reshape the student experience?
The investment is strengthening three areas:
1. AI-powered learning infrastructure
2. Deep industry collaborations for live ventures
3. Campus venture labs that simulate real startup environments
4. Every rupee goes toward active learning — students don’t just learn concepts; they build outcomes.
Your flagship programmes — SEED (K–12), UG, and LEAD — cater to different age groups. How do you ensure progression across them?
We design around mindset:
1. SEED (K–12) builds curiosity through stories and small projects.
2. UG builds structure — market analysis, validation, venture economics.
3. LEAD rebuilds courage — professionals learn through simulations and mentor-led sprints.
You’re developing an AI-powered course builder, Bower EDGE. What challenges do you face?
Mindset is personal. Users start with different motivations and fears. EDGE adapts to each learner’s pace and goals. But mindset alone isn’t enough, action matters. So we’re building tools that track consistency, measure outcomes, and support accountability. Technology must be empathetic, yet outcome-driven.
Bower is expanding to Southeast Asia, the Middle East, Europe, and the US. What global inspirations guide this vision?
We’re not copying a global model — we’re bringing an Indian one back to the world. Ancient Indian learning was experiential: gurukul, apprenticeship, learning by doing. We’re modernising that philosophy with technology and global exposure, while staying rooted in relevance, community, and experience.
For students joining without any startup experience, what is the most common limiting belief?
‘I need an idea before I start.’ We flip that. Start first — the idea evolves. Small wins build confidence; confidence kills fear.
Ten years from now, what does success look like for Bower?
Success is when entrepreneurship is a default subject, not an elective. We want to enable 10,000 student-led ventures globally. But the deeper impact? Moving education from knowledge consumption to knowledge creation. Every student should leave not just with a degree, but with something they’ve built.
How does Bower embrace failure as part of learning?
Failure isn’t a side effect here, it’s the curriculum. Students run live ventures, face real challenges, and reflect on outcomes. Mentors guide post-mortems — what worked, what didn’t, what’s next. We don’t celebrate perfect plans. We celebrate progress. That’s how real entrepreneurs are built.