GO ZERO FOUNDER CHALLENGES ENGLISH BIAS WITH VERNACULAR HIRING DRIVE

Kiran Shah, founder of India’s leading guilt-free ice cream brand Go Zero, is breaking convention by hiring full-time content creators who cannot speak English. With a ₹10 lakh reward, Shah aims to build vernacular Instagram pages in Kannada and Hindi, reflecting how ice cream is truly consumed in Indian homes.

At a time when English proficiency is often treated as a prerequisite for employment in India, Go Zero founder Kiran Shah is turning the norm on its head. Shah, who built India’s number one guilt-free ice cream brand, has announced a bold hiring initiative: full-time content creators who cannot speak English, with a promise of ₹10 lakh if they hit ambitious growth targets.  

Shah’s reasoning is rooted in everyday life. “Every job in India asks ‘do you speak English?’ and it never made any sense to me,” he says. “Because look at where our ice cream actually goes.” He paints vivid scenes: a family in Bengaluru sharing ice cream while watching a Kannada serial; a child in Lucknow persuading his father in Hindi; a grandmother in Kolkata lighting up at the word “mishti.” For Shah, these moments prove that ice cream belongs to the languages of home, not the boardroom.  

Big brands often rely on translation agencies, converting English campaigns into regional languages. Go Zero is taking a different route. Shah has hired two full-time creators—one who thinks in Kannada, another in Hindi—not as translators or dubbing artists, but as original voices shaping content in their own languages. Their mission is clear: build vernacular Instagram pages and reach 100,000 followers in six months. Success will be rewarded with an additional ₹10 lakh on top of their salaries.  

The initiative begins with Kannada and Hindi, with Marathi, Bengali, Tamil and Telugu to follow. Applications are unconventional too: no résumés, just a 30-second reel selling Go Zero in Kannada or Hindi, posted on LinkedIn and tagged to Shah and the brand. “That is your application,” Shah declares.  

In a final twist, Shah invites everyone to comment on Go Zero in their own language, promising that some of these voices may even find their way onto the brand’s packaging. It is a radical move, but one that underscores his belief that ice cream is eaten in the language of home—and that marketing should reflect it.