IDLE CHATTER
The wise say that there is no better education than a journey. Indeed, after a month of hectic travelling around the Indian countryside I have to agree that nothing teaches you about your own country like back-to-back road trips
THE MONTH OF AUGUST BEING THE MONTH OF Bike India’s anniversary (this year we completed 11 eventful and wonderful years) it’s always a time of the year that involves a lot of travelling. As a result, the months of June and July have seen me travel across a large swathe of India. Although, being automotive journalists with a passion for exploring on wheels, we are accustomed to long road trips, I find new revelations with each road trip that I undertake. As I travel through the vast and mostly over-populated countryside, I can’t help being transported back to fourth grade at school when our first geography teacher imparted our very first lessons of how big and varied our wonderful country truly is.
It’s incredible how much changes as you move from one region to another. Before these random road trips became a part of my regular life I had little idea that even the simplest of things, such as a cup of tea, could be prepared in such a wide variety. For instance, I have tasted the thick, frothy, overly sweetened milky tea that is so popular in Punjab and northern India; only to find that as one moves eastwards (towards Bengal and Odisha) the tea becomes less sugary and milky. Instead the richness of the milk and sugar combo is replaced almost in its entirety by the delicateness of aroma and flavour that the tea leaf induces in the beverage by the time you reach Bengal. Yes, India is indeed incredible in her diversity.
I recall, a couple of years ago when I had gone to Italy to testride the KTM RC 390 and 200, one of the Turkish journalists who was a member of the media contingent had wondered why my colleagues and I did not speak in ‘Indian’. The three of us who were from India had laughed and tried to explain that even though we carried the same passport we came from different parts of the country and, therefore, spoke different mothertongues, had different social customs, cuisine and even outfits. Our three languages did not even share a common script. He said he was bowled over by the fact that there could be any country that boasted of such immense diversity.
At the time I had little idea of the import of our explanation. Yet, every time I take to the roads the full significance of our casual conversation shared over a shot of espresso somewhere outside of Modena never fails to impress me. As I travel from one state to another, from one Union Territory to another, everything — starting from political situations, food habits, people’s aspirations and expectations of life to living conditions and standards — changes. The variety is astounding and in every state you learn something new, you taste something novel, you hear something not heard before.
In all honesty, I can never really put down in words (even though words are what I make a living out of) just how much I have learnt through these journeys. The moral of the story, therefore, is a simple one. If you’ve got a bike and a thirst to know your country, take to the road. You will not regret it. After all, in the words of the great Steven Tyler of the rock band ‘Aerosmith’, “Life’s a journey, not a destination.” Just remember to be safe and have fun.
@anindasardar