In an unusual but telling chapter of defence innovation, two students from BITS Pilani Hyderabad have designed, assembled, and delivered combat drones to the Indian Army, all from inside a campus hostel room.
Jayant Khatri, a mechanical engineering student from Ajmer, and Sourya Choudhury, an electrical engineering student from Kolkata, founded their startup Apollyon Dynamics just two months ago, as reported by TOI. Their drones are already operational with Army units in Jammu, Chandimandir in Haryana, Panagarh in West Bengal, and Arunachal Pradesh.
That one reply led to a live demonstration in front of Army officers. They showed off both racing drones and kamikaze prototypes. The feedback was immediate and positive. Follow-up trials came next, and with them, real orders.
The startup officially took shape soon after.
It delivers payloads of up to 1 kilogram with high accuracy, according to Choudhury.
“Our drones are not just fast — they can't be detected on radar,” he said.
Each UAV is made using off-the-shelf parts but tailored for Indian terrain. Every component is assembled by hand, in-house, with a strong focus on adaptability and reliability.
Today, the Apollyon Dynamics team has grown to include six second-year students. Together, they are now developing next-generation vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) and fixed-wing UAV platforms designed for increased mission flexibility.
Their work doesn’t end with delivery. The team also trains Army personnel on how to operate the systems, including those with no flying experience.
The startup says even soldiers with zero background in drone operation can be up and running in a short period, thanks to their hands-on training approach.
The work of Khatri and Choudhury was recently showcased on campus before Chancellor and Aditya Birla Group Chairman Kumar Mangalam Birla. University officials said the startup’s success reflects BITS Pilani’s ongoing push to nurture deep-tech talent for national needs.
According to the founders, Apollyon Dynamics is now expanding its product line. Future UAVs will support long-range surveillance, tactical payload delivery, and more refined strike capabilities.
Their journey, which began with a few cold emails and spare drone parts in a student hostel, now feeds directly into India’s growing need for indigenous defence technology.
In "3 Idiots", Joy Lobo's passion for machines died in silence - no support, no takers. But in real life, two students built war-ready drones in a hostel room. And the Indian Army is listening.
(With inputs from TOI)
Jayant Khatri, a mechanical engineering student from Ajmer, and Sourya Choudhury, an electrical engineering student from Kolkata, founded their startup Apollyon Dynamics just two months ago, as reported by TOI. Their drones are already operational with Army units in Jammu, Chandimandir in Haryana, Panagarh in West Bengal, and Arunachal Pradesh.
It started with a cold email
“I just started shooting cold emails to whoever I could find... Luckily, a colonel responded and called us to Chandigarh for a demo,” said Khatri.That one reply led to a live demonstration in front of Army officers. They showed off both racing drones and kamikaze prototypes. The feedback was immediate and positive. Follow-up trials came next, and with them, real orders.
The startup officially took shape soon after.
What makes these drones different
The duo’s standout product is a radar-resistant kamikaze drone that can travel at over 300 kilometres per hour. That’s around five times faster than standard commercial drones.It delivers payloads of up to 1 kilogram with high accuracy, according to Choudhury.
“Our drones are not just fast — they can't be detected on radar,” he said.
Each UAV is made using off-the-shelf parts but tailored for Indian terrain. Every component is assembled by hand, in-house, with a strong focus on adaptability and reliability.
From campus club to combat deployment
Choudhury recalled how it all began. “Our shared love of robotics brought us together. We started with a defence-tech club on campus. Then came the orders — that's when we knew we had to go big,” he told a TOI reporter.Today, the Apollyon Dynamics team has grown to include six second-year students. Together, they are now developing next-generation vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) and fixed-wing UAV platforms designed for increased mission flexibility.
Their work doesn’t end with delivery. The team also trains Army personnel on how to operate the systems, including those with no flying experience.
The startup says even soldiers with zero background in drone operation can be up and running in a short period, thanks to their hands-on training approach.
Support from the university
Professor Sanket Goel of BITS Pilani praised the young engineers' efforts. “It’s heartening to see what they’ve achieved,” he told TOI. “What they’ve managed to do is extraordinary. This is a rare example of classroom innovation being translated into frontline impact.”The work of Khatri and Choudhury was recently showcased on campus before Chancellor and Aditya Birla Group Chairman Kumar Mangalam Birla. University officials said the startup’s success reflects BITS Pilani’s ongoing push to nurture deep-tech talent for national needs.
According to the founders, Apollyon Dynamics is now expanding its product line. Future UAVs will support long-range surveillance, tactical payload delivery, and more refined strike capabilities.
Their journey, which began with a few cold emails and spare drone parts in a student hostel, now feeds directly into India’s growing need for indigenous defence technology.
In "3 Idiots", Joy Lobo's passion for machines died in silence - no support, no takers. But in real life, two students built war-ready drones in a hostel room. And the Indian Army is listening.
(With inputs from TOI)
