How do you know you are skinny fat? Do you have skinny arms but fat around the tummy? (Hips wider than shoulder).

You should start tracking your macros, even before you decide to gain muscle or lose fat.

Hitting the gym is a good idea as your progress will be limited with your equipments.

my friend, you need to track your macros (protein, carbs & fat) & total calories, then only you can know whether you need protein shake or not.

calculate your TDEE (you can find calculators online). based on your profile, i think your TDEE should be around 2200'ish calories. this would be your maintenance. eat around this for another 1-2 months, while you learn about lifting techniques.

whether you should eat more (to build muscle) or eat less (lose fat) than your TDEE, it depends on how much bodyfat level you are on at the moment - best to get it measured by a proper scale. for skinnyfatters, it is good to get lean first (lose fat) before you can build muscles. if your bodyfat is above 20%, the more you eat, most likely you will become the bigger version of skinnyfat person. get lean at least below 15% bodyfat and then you can start to bulk up.

to build muscle, you need to build strength, hence hitting the gym is a good idea as you will have access to more weights and machines. if you can't, then start incorporating bodyweight exercises such as pull ups & dips. these are good for upper body strength.

My friend, you need to gain strength to gain size. You dont have to lift balls out like a powerlifter but to get bigger, you need to get stronger to lift more weight. Progression is key.

good luck, all the best. but remember, lower down your expectations. build mass for muscle will take years.

you cannot achieve 74kg (with muscles) at 15% body fat with the remaining 8 months.

maybe set a different target like leaning down from 20% (or whatever your bodyfat level is) to 12% in 8 months while gaining newbie muscles. at this point your weight will be around 60-62kg. after that, start to lean bulk (slow progress) to achieve your desired weight. most likely will take another year or two.

when getting lean, you will shred most of the fat, hence your weight will be reduced. to maintain muscle (to some extent, you can gain newbie muscles), eat enough protein (1.8g per your kg bodyweight). if you can't get enough protein from home cooked food, then by all means whey protein shake is your best friend. but once in a while, try to eat something like quarter grilled chicken at every meal. cook your own if you need to.

dont worry about BMI just yet while cutting. for a skinnyfat person with > 20% bodyfat can even have a normal BMI. the first phase is to get lean (you will shred fat and lose weight). once you reach below 15% bodyfat, then start the second phase, which is lean bulking (approx. 10% calorie surplus). this is where you will start to gain good muscles with not much fat gainz. this is better for long term.

if you bulk now, with your current bodyfat level, you will gain weight yes of course, but mostly it will be made up of fat and water. don't do this