Every year, students reach Classes 10, 11 and 12 and face a decision that can shape the next decade of their lives.

Science, commerce or arts? Engineering, medicine, design, architecture or business?

The decision is important, but many students are expected to make it without ever experiencing the careers they are choosing. Most of the information comes from parents, relatives, teachers, friends or what they find online.

Pranathi Reddy believes there is another way.

Her startup, READY, is being built around a simple idea: instead of asking students to choose a career based on what they have heard, let them experience it first.

A student can be interested in design, architecture, engineering, science or business without actually knowing what working in those fields looks like.

They might know what a profession is called, but not what the work actually involves. What does a designer do throughout the day? What happens inside an engineering company? What does an entrepreneur's day really look like?

For Reddy, this lack of exposure is a major part of the career confusion students face.

READY's philosophy is simple: you don't know what you're good at until you actually try it.

That changes the way career exploration works. Instead of telling a student what a career looks like, READY wants to bring them closer to the people, workplaces and problems that exist inside those careers.

Founded in April 2026 and based in Bengaluru, READY describes itself as a platform connecting the next generation with the real world of work.

The company is building experiences where students can meet professionals, visit workplaces, interact with people from different industries and work on real-world challenges. For students who want to explore further, the model also includes longer experiences and internships.

The idea is not to tell a student which career they should choose. It is to give them enough exposure to make that decision with more context.

READY's approach can be summed up through three words: Explore. Experience. Connect.

Students explore different industries, experience them through interactions with professionals and real-world activities, and then reflect on what actually interests them.

READY is also trying to bring parents and schools into the process.

For students, the goal is to make career exploration more engaging and practical. For parents, it offers a chance to see their child's interests through actual experiences rather than only through marks or conversations at home.

For schools, READY wants to become a bridge between the classroom and the wider career ecosystem. Industry professionals and companies, meanwhile, get an opportunity to interact with and inspire the next generation.

That also makes the business more complicated. READY has to bring together students, parents, schools and professionals, each with their own expectations.

Reddy's own background adds an interesting layer to the story.

Before READY, she founded THE HOUSE OF THI, a bespoke interior design studio that she continues to work on. Her move from design into career education may seem like a significant shift, but the idea behind READY is also centred around experience.

Rather than keeping career exploration theoretical, she is trying to put students closer to the real people, workplaces and problems that make up different industries.

She is also putting herself at the centre of how READY communicates.

On the company's Instagram page, Reddy regularly speaks directly to students and parents through short videos. One of her messages is aimed at students in Classes 10, 11 and 12 who are unsure about what they are good at.

Her argument is straightforward: you cannot always know what you are good at until you try it.

In another video, she speaks to parents and asks them to imagine their child spending a day with a doctor, police officer, designer or entrepreneur. The student could visit the workplace, interact with the professional and work on a real-world challenge.

Then comes the more practical question: would parents actually send their children for such experiences, which careers would they want them to explore, and how much would they be willing to pay?

READY is currently asking parents these questions through its research and survey efforts.

For a young company, that stage matters. The idea may be clear, but the next step is understanding exactly how students, parents and schools want such an experience to work.

India already has career counselling, aptitude tests and an enormous amount of information available online.

READY is betting that information alone may not always be enough.

A student can read about a career for hours, but spending a day with someone who actually does that job can create a completely different understanding.

The experience may confirm what a student already wants. It may also show them that a particular career is not for them.

Both can be useful.

Because career clarity is not always about finding the perfect answer immediately. Sometimes it starts with discovering what you do not want.

That is the idea Pranathi Reddy is building around with READY.

Don't choose a career just because you've heard about it. Experience it first.