Pavitra Bahadur Gautam's inquisitive nature was always drawn to science and technology. From a curious child to the CEO and Co-founder of Karkhana, his journey has been one of learning, growth, and innovation. Gautam is a former president of the Nepalese Young Entrepreneurs' Forum (NYEF), Kathmandu Chapter, and is currently an executive member of its National Governing Council. An electronics and communication engineer by profession, he focuses on promoting scientific thinking and strengthening science and STEM education in schools. Through NYEF, he also advocates for youth entrepreneurship.

At the end of his schooling, he became interested in computer programming. After SLC (now SEE), he began an internship, which he considers crucial to his growth and development. He believes, "The sooner you engage in professional activities, the better."

While studying engineering in college, he became interested in robotics. In 2009, he co-founded the Robotics Association of Nepal, where he volunteered for three years.

Karkhana was founded in 2013 and was initially envisioned as a space to connect engineering with innovation. However, as they continued exploring, they realised that fostering innovation was more important than just focusing on engineering. The key was cultivating the right mindset, scientific thinking, and a culture of experimentation rather than simply teaching tools and concepts. This shift in focus led to Karkhana evolving into an educational platform.

Karkhana was created to promote a culture of experimentation and encourage Nepal students to develop the right mindset and attitude. Gautam highlighted that students can take control of their future by thinking scientifically and embracing experimentation. He believes this kind of education should begin in schools where science is taught in an engaging, relevant, and meaningful way. Karkhana’s goal is to nurture science as a way of thinking, not just as a subject to study.

Karkhana also creates science kits that align with the school curriculum. Beyond just making these kits, it is working to build a comprehensive ecosystem. In addition to the kits, Karkhana develops lesson plans, resources, and workbooks and trains teachers to use them effectively, helping integrate science into classrooms in a fun and meaningful way. Everything included in the kits is engineered and designed by Karkhana itself.

In addition, it is involved in manufacturing, research, teacher development, lesson plan design, pedagogy design, and digital content creation.

Nearly 1,000 different materials are used to create Karkhana kits. While Karkhana designs all the materials, some are imported, others are designed locally but manufactured in factories, and some are produced in-house. All materials are assembled and distributed from Karkhana's factory. To make the kits more eco-friendly and sustainable, minimal plastic is used, with most materials made from paper and wood. Gautam emphasised that although many assume the Karkhana kit is a toy, it is a learning tool designed to be playful.

Karkhana collaborates with the local government and the education ministry, which supports its efforts. The organisation partners with large and government schools in rural areas of Nepal. The ultimate goal is to ensure quality education for everyone.

A major challenge for Karkhana is the lack of awareness. In Nepal, science is often seen merely as a subject rather than a culture and way of thinking. Additionally, there is a perception that manual labour has a lower status than intellectual work, which poses another challenge. Access to capital has also been a significant hurdle, especially in Karkhana's early days.

He notes, “Sometimes working in an economy and country like Nepal feels like moving forward in a leaking boat. There’s always something going on, whether the current economic crisis, past political turmoil, Covid, earthquakes, etc., making running a business very challenging. We’re constantly in a fight-or-flight mode, which complicates business operations.” He also highlights a recent concern: the growing hopelessness among young people and the trend of brain drain, which negatively impacts the ecosystem, human resources, quality of work, and the governance system.

He notes that in Nepal, there is a fear associated with admitting that one is in business. People are often reluctant to acknowledge profit openly, as if profit itself is fraudulent. He points out that while Karkhana is a profit-making company, it reinvests its profits into further research and development.

As someone who has managed Karkhana for over a decade, he acknowledges that sustaining and operating a business in Nepal is challenging due to the lack of quality in education, life, and livelihood. People seek a healthy economic environment, growth opportunities, and meaningful work, but these are often scarce in Nepal. He admits that while it is difficult, it is not impossible. To address these challenges, he suggests leveraging one's privileges effectively, fostering a strong work culture, and improving salary scales.

He argues that Nepal's education system has not effectively equipped students to handle failure. As a result, many people seek the least risky path to success, with the prevalent belief that going abroad is the safest route. However, he contends that this is not necessarily true. Karkhana’s ultimate goal is to cultivate a generation skilled in scientific thinking so that they are not merely following a path but creating their own. Building scientific thinking involves more than studying subjects like physics and biology; it requires developing a mindset for forming hypotheses, experimenting, observing results, and generating new knowledge applicable to various fields. He believes significant positive changes can be achieved if society embraces scientific thinking.

Karkhana’s kits have helped students reduce screen time by engaging them in hands-on activities during their free time. Additionally, the kits have equipped teachers with practical resources to enhance their teaching. Currently, Karkhana has reached 150 schools across 25 districts, supporting 400 teachers and enabling 35,000 students to practice science in a practical manner.

Regarding his role in NYEF, he explains that the organisation aims to foster positive thinking among young entrepreneurs. Recognising that leadership can be a lonely journey, NYEF helps unite people to collaborate and build a strong community. It organises numerous events to promote young entrepreneurship and also provides seed funding. Last year, NYEF hosted 180 events. With 14 chapters and nearly 900 young entrepreneurs, the organisation creates about 35,000 to 40,000 jobs in Nepal. As NYEF supports younger entrepreneurs, its members are all under 40.

He notes that Nepal offers numerous opportunities since many areas remain untapped. However, there is a lack of flexible policies and adequate access to funding. Through NYEF, he aims to give back to the community he came from. Meanwhile, Karkhana serves as a platform for him to turn his dreams into sustainable action.