Meet the Indian couple from Delhi, Saurav Jha and Devapriya Roy, who quit their jobs to surrender their lives to their obsessions. They decided to quit their jobs and embark on a journey, through the length and breadth of India.
But, what stops most people from travelling, was taken as a challenge by this couple too. They were just like any other working Indian couple, making a living, and some saving. Money posed the first challenge. Hence, they set out on their mission, with a pre-decided Rs 500 a day budget including all expenses.
“The budget bit was a given, of course. Living in the whole yuppie fashion meant that however much we earned, our savings were paltry. We had to make it last as long as we could. But more than this, we wanted to be free in our travels. Divest everything that kept us tied to our nine-to-six, mall-going, office-tripping identities. There is nothing freer than travelling with no frills.” Saurav Jha told Holiday IQ
They began their journey that started in Himachal Pradesh covering Dharamsala, McLeodganj and Kangra before setting out to Rajasthan where they covered destinations like Jaipur, Jodhpur, Pushkar, and Ajmer. They went further south covering many destinations in Maharashtra, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Kerala. Finally, they left back to their base, New Delhi, from Ahmedabad.
Saurav and Devpriya, not only traveled India on a small budget but also wrote a book about their journey through India in Rs. 500 a day – ‘The Heat and Dust Project: The Broke Couple’s Guide to Bharat.’ The book is an ultimate compilation of stories that you’d love to hear.
“India is full of wacky things! Every street corner has something wacky going on. The book documents a whole host of wacky stuff – and also an array of wacky characters, for example, our friends the Israeli twins, Motty and Zvika Hillel, with whom we spent a lot of time in Rajasthan and in Paharganj, the backpacker hub of Delhi,” the couple shared.
Devpriya and Saurav not only proved that traveling does not require a lot of money, but also proved that traveling with your partner like that was the ‘Ultimate Relationship Test’ – a sub-title they have also used for their book.
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Devpriya says, “We joke that the real sub-title of the book is ‘The Ultimate Relationship Test’! The thing is, once one has traveled like that, the very idea of life afterward becomes a contingent thing, a work in progress. So it’s difficult to say how it worked out, as far as the idea of us is concerned. You know? It’s still working out. But one thing I can tell you, the relationship test has lots of incredible after-effects. For example, together, one will have such a mix of bizarre, exhausting and superb moments between the couple, garnered from the journey, that the texture of your relationship too will become more layered than before.”
And the entire journey changed their perspective towards life and traveling. “You start seeing travel as life itself, not as an interruption of life.” Devapriya Roy perfectly sums up, what is travel.