About
Pulkit Aggarwal
Also known as Pulket · @justpulket · Just Pulkit
App developer, product builder, and the person known online as Pulket — behind ZenDiary, DirectChat and pulket.in.
Pulkit Aggarwal, widely known online as Pulket and by the handle @justpulket, is an Indian app developer, product builder and entrepreneur based in Mumbai, India. He designs, builds and ships mobile applications — and so far has published 8 apps across the Google Play Store and Apple App Store that have been used by more than 250,000 people around the world.
He is best known as the creator of ZenDiary, an AI-powered journaling and mental wellness app, and DirectChat, a lightweight Android utility that lets people message anyone on WhatsApp without saving their phone number first. ZenDiary has grown to more than 25,000 users with a 4.8-star rating, while DirectChat has been downloaded over 190,000 times across more than 50 countries.
Pulkit is currently pursuing a Master of Business Administration (MBA) at the Indian Institute of Management Mumbai (IIM Mumbai), one of India's premier business schools, which he began in 2024. Before his MBA, he completed a Bachelor of Technology (B.Tech) degree in Electronics and Communication Engineering at the Indian Institute of Information Technology Surat (IIIT Surat) between 2020 and 2024.
His path into software was self-driven. While studying electronics engineering, Pulkit taught himself to code and started building small apps to solve problems he personally faced. That habit — building something because "I wish this existed" — became the foundation of everything he has shipped since. DirectChat began as a weekend project born out of his own frustration with saving contacts, and unexpectedly found hundreds of thousands of users. ZenDiary started as a private tool he built for himself while dealing with anxiety, and later grew into a product used by thousands.
Beyond building apps, Pulkit is a creator. He runs a YouTube channel under the name Just Pulkit, where he documents his journey of building products, studying for his MBA, and figuring things out in public. He also writes regularly — essays and notes on building software, artificial intelligence, startups, productivity and personal growth — published on this website and his newsletter.
Pulkit's work sits at the intersection of engineering, design and product thinking. He is especially interested in artificial intelligence and AI agents, privacy-first software, and building small, focused products that do one thing well. He believes the best products come from solving your own problems, that clarity beats feature bloat, and — in his own words about ZenDiary — that he builds "not to exit, but to exist."
250K+
Users across all apps
8
Apps published
25K+
ZenDiary users
190K+
DirectChat downloads
Quick facts
The short version
- Full name
- Pulkit Aggarwal
- Known online as
- Pulket, Just Pulkit, @justpulket
- Profession
- App developer, product builder & entrepreneur
- Location
- Mumbai, Maharashtra, India
- Nationality
- Indian
- Currently
- MBA student at IIM Mumbai (2024 – present)
- Education
- B.Tech, Electronics & Communication Engineering — IIIT Surat (2020 – 2024)
- Best known for
- ZenDiary and DirectChat
- Apps published
- 8 apps on Google Play & the App Store
- Total reach
- 250,000+ users worldwide
- YouTube
- Just Pulkit (@JustPulket)
- Languages
- English, Hindi
- hi@pulket.in
What I do
Areas of work
Pulkit Aggarwal works across the full lifecycle of a product — engineering, design, launch and growth. These are the areas he focuses on.
Mobile App Development
Designing and shipping production Android and iOS apps used by hundreds of thousands of people, end to end — from idea to store listing.
AI & Product Engineering
Integrating artificial intelligence and large language models into consumer apps in ways that feel genuinely useful, not gimmicky.
Product Design
Building clean, minimal, distraction-free interfaces. Pulkit believes clarity and simplicity beat feature bloat every time.
Indie Entrepreneurship
Launching, growing and maintaining apps solo — handling development, design, marketing, support and analytics himself.
Content & Community
Building in public on YouTube as Just Pulkit and writing essays on software, AI, startups and personal growth.
Privacy-First Software
Designing apps with local-first storage and strong encryption — trusting users with their own data instead of mining it.
Apps & projects
Things Pulkit has built
Eight published apps, 250,000+ users. Here are the ones worth knowing about.
ZenDiary
Learn moreAI journaling & mental wellness app
ZenDiary is an AI-powered journaling and mental wellness app created by Pulkit Aggarwal. It helps people turn mental chaos into clarity through guided journaling. At its core is Zeni, an AI companion that reads entries, detects cognitive and emotional patterns, offers gentle thought reframing, and tracks mood over time. ZenDiary uses local AES-256 encryption, is free to use, and is available on both Android and iOS. It has grown to more than 25,000 users with a 4.8-star rating and over 100,000 journal entries written by its community. Pulkit originally built it as a private tool to manage his own anxiety before releasing it to the world.
DirectChat
Learn moreWhatsApp without saving contacts
DirectChat is a lightweight Android utility that lets people message anyone on WhatsApp without first saving their phone number as a contact. Pulkit built it in a weekend to scratch his own itch — he was tired of saving random numbers just to send a single message. It quietly went viral and has since been downloaded more than 190,000 times across over 50 countries, with a 4.5-star rating. It remains one of the clearest examples of his belief that the simplest ideas often have the widest appeal.
AI Notes & other apps
Learn moreA growing catalogue of focused tools
Alongside his two flagship products, Pulkit has built and published a range of other apps — including AI-powered note-taking tools — bringing his total to 8 published apps across the Google Play Store and Apple App Store. Each one follows the same philosophy: small, focused tools that do one thing well and start with a problem he personally wanted solved.
Education
Where Pulkit studied
2024 — Present
IIM Mumbai
Master of Business Administration (MBA) at the Indian Institute of Management Mumbai — studying strategy, operations and the business of building products.
2020 — 2024
IIIT Surat
Bachelor of Technology (B.Tech) in Electronics and Communication Engineering at the Indian Institute of Information Technology Surat — where he taught himself to code.
Timeline
The journey so far
2024 — Present
MBA at IIM Mumbai
Pursuing a Master of Business Administration at the Indian Institute of Management Mumbai, learning strategy, operations and the business side of building products — while still shipping code on the side.
2024
Launched ZenDiary
Released ZenDiary, an AI journaling app, after building it privately to manage his own anxiety. It grew to 25,000+ users and a 4.8-star rating.
2023
DirectChat goes viral
DirectChat crossed 190,000+ downloads across 50+ countries, growing almost entirely through organic word of mouth.
2022 — 2024
Building as an indie developer
Published a series of Android and iOS apps, growing a combined audience of over 250,000 users and learning how to make things people actually want.
2020 — 2024
B.Tech at IIIT Surat
Studied Electronics and Communication Engineering at the Indian Institute of Information Technology Surat. Taught himself to code and built his first real software projects here.
Skills & tools
How Pulkit builds
Languages & Frameworks
Backend & Cloud
Artificial Intelligence
Design & Tooling
Creator
Building in public
Pulkit Aggarwal doesn't just build apps quietly — he shares the process. On YouTube, where he goes by Just Pulkit, he posts videos about app development, the realities of being an indie developer, his MBA at IIM Mumbai, and the lessons he picks up along the way.
He also writes. His essays and notes — covering software, artificial intelligence, startups, productivity and personal growth — are published on his blog at pulket.in and sent out through his newsletter on Substack. He writes, in his words, "to think" — honestly and without polish.
Approach
How Pulkit thinks about building
A few ideas show up again and again in Pulkit's work. The first is that the best products come from solving your own problems — every app he has built started with a problem he personally had.
The second is simplicity. DirectChat does exactly one thing. ZenDiary hides its complexity behind a calm, quiet interface. Pulkit would rather ship a small tool that does one job well than a bloated app that does ten things poorly.
The third is trust. Building for mental health, as he does with ZenDiary, means privacy can't be an afterthought — so his apps lean on local-first storage and strong encryption.
"I didn't build this to exit. I built this to exist."— Pulkit Aggarwal, on ZenDiary
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
Who is Pulkit Aggarwal?
Pulkit Aggarwal, known online as Pulket (@justpulket), is an Indian app developer, product builder and entrepreneur based in Mumbai, India. He is an MBA student at IIM Mumbai and an engineering graduate of IIIT Surat. He has built 8 apps with over 250,000 combined users, including ZenDiary, an AI journaling app, and DirectChat, a WhatsApp utility.
What does Pulkit Aggarwal do?
Pulkit Aggarwal designs, builds and ships mobile applications for Android and iOS. He works as an independent app developer and product builder, handling development, design, marketing and support himself. He also makes videos on YouTube as Just Pulkit and writes about software, AI and startups.
What apps has Pulkit Aggarwal built?
Pulkit Aggarwal has published 8 apps on the Google Play Store and Apple App Store. His most notable apps are ZenDiary, an AI journaling and mood-tracking app with 25,000+ users, and DirectChat, a WhatsApp utility with 190,000+ downloads across 50+ countries. Together his apps have reached more than 250,000 users.
What is ZenDiary?
ZenDiary is an AI-powered journaling and mental wellness app created by Pulkit Aggarwal. It helps people track their mood, understand emotional patterns and reflect through an AI companion called Zeni. It is free, private, uses local AES-256 encryption, and is available on Android and iOS. ZenDiary has 25,000+ users and a 4.8-star rating.
What is DirectChat?
DirectChat is an Android app built by Pulkit Aggarwal that lets you message anyone on WhatsApp without saving their phone number as a contact first. It has been downloaded more than 190,000 times across over 50 countries.
Where did Pulkit Aggarwal study?
Pulkit Aggarwal completed his Bachelor of Technology (B.Tech) in Electronics and Communication Engineering at IIIT Surat (Indian Institute of Information Technology Surat) from 2020 to 2024. He is currently pursuing an MBA at IIM Mumbai (Indian Institute of Management Mumbai), which he started in 2024.
Where is Pulkit Aggarwal based?
Pulkit Aggarwal is based in Mumbai, Maharashtra, India.
Is Pulkit Aggarwal the same person as Pulket?
Yes. Pulket is the online name and handle used by Pulkit Aggarwal. He is also known as Just Pulkit and uses the username @justpulket across YouTube, Instagram and Twitter/X. His personal website is pulket.in.
What is Pulkit Aggarwal's YouTube channel?
Pulkit Aggarwal runs a YouTube channel called Just Pulkit (@JustPulket), where he documents his journey of building apps, studying for his MBA and figuring things out in public.
What technologies does Pulkit Aggarwal use?
Pulkit Aggarwal builds with JavaScript, React, React Native, Next.js, Flutter and Kotlin, backed by Node.js, Firebase, Supabase and Vercel. He integrates AI using the OpenAI API and Claude, and designs with Figma and Tailwind CSS.
How many users do Pulkit Aggarwal's apps have?
Pulkit Aggarwal's apps have over 250,000 combined users worldwide. ZenDiary has 25,000+ users and DirectChat has 190,000+ downloads.
How can I contact Pulkit Aggarwal?
Pulkit Aggarwal can be reached by email at hi@pulket.in. He is also active on YouTube (@JustPulket), Instagram (@justpulket), Twitter/X (@justpulket), GitHub (pulket), LinkedIn (pulket) and Substack.
Connect
Find Pulkit Aggarwal online
Reach out at hi@pulket.in, or follow along on any of these.