Rocky and Mayur are all set for another #RoadTrippinWithRnMSeason 4 which goes live on HistoryTV18’s social media pages from July 5, 2021. Shalini Saksena chats up Rocky
How did the idea of series come up?
Last year, in May-June-July, we started getting calls from our friends in Rajasthan that their restaurants and hotels are in big trouble; they have no money and are on the verge of bankruptcy and have to sell assets and jewellery to pay staff. They couldn’t fire them since they have been with them for generations. As soon as the lockdown opened HistoryTV18 and Mayur and I came up with this concept that will help drive tourism to a particular area. It is also a way to show people that one can travel during the pandemic provided one took safety precautions. Mayur and I were on the road for 60 days and met over 1,000 people, we ate at over 300 places but we followed safety protocol and so far we have been safe.
Any particular reason why you chose Gujarat this time?
According to Mayur and me, it is one of the richest States on a number of fronts. First, it has huge number of museums that one can visit. Second, it has great historical monuments and temples. Three, it has incredible cuisine and a wealth of street food. Finally, which is important for me, it has absolutely magnificent wildlife like birds and the Asiatic lion. It is truly a gifted State and hopefully, if it rains, it is one of the most beautiful States. We were contemplating Uttrakhand but it is not safe to travel during this season due to landslides.
What can the viewers expect this season?
We take our job of bringing to you the best food of India very seriously. Most of the comments that we get tag us as Fathers of Vlogging. One of the reasons why we have been in the this business for 15 years is because we find something unique, fresh and new every time. For this road trip too, we have been researching for 15 days — where to go and what to bring for the viewers. We will tell you what tamtam is; what ghari is. This is a road trip, every day will be a new journey as we go around visiting various cities in the State. We will drive six-eight hours, shoot six-eight videos in that city. And there are just the three of us — Mayur, the person with an iPhone on which we will shoot the vlogs and me. It is a live format; if you tells us where to go when we are in a particular city, we might just land up there. It is a powerful format. There are no retakes.
When the vlogging series first started did you expect this kind of fan following?
No not at all. We were stunned to get the kind of numbers that we got. We have over 230 million impressions. On Day 1, we had a million impressions but by Day 4, it was over four million. The numbers really exploded in the first series alone. This format really captured the imagination of the people. None of what we do is fake, it is real-time. This is what makes this roadtrippin so popular with the people. This is a great thing. It also shows how much we love the food of India and the places we go.
How tough will it be to go a road trip during the pandemic?
One had to take precautions. In a 15-day road trip we used over 100 masks, 20 litres of sanitiser to sanitise the area where we stayed. We maintained distance. We ate only hot fresh food. We ensured that the staff who served us wore a mask. We try and eat outdoors and meet people out in the open. It is not easy for us because we are visiting a new place everyday and eating in six-seven restaurants, but it is doable with precautions.
Both of you work well together. Is there a secret behind your onscreen camaraderie?
We have known each other 46 years. We met when Mayur was three and I was six. We have been friends since then. We have been neighbours. We have been working for 15 years. We are like brothers; we fun each others sentences. We have little egos and like different things and that works for us.