Biker, author and short film-maker Kedarnath GM has set out on a four-year long journey to break barriers, discovers Saimi Sattar
This man is on a mission. In a world where barriers are coming up every day, Kedarnath GM has decided to break them down. The author of two books, Dream to Ride the World, a coffee table book and the more recent No Country Man, plans to ride across the world — for four years. But rest assured, this is no joyride, for there is a message that he wants to convey as he travels through South East Asia, Australia New Zealand, United States, United Kingdom, part of Europe, Africa and back to India via Central Asia. “People are afraid of their neighbours and there are physical as well as mental divisions among people that I want to break down,” says Kedarnath who won the best film to promote world peace at the Rajasthan International Film Festival, 2016 for his short film, A Voyage on My Motorbike.
And it took some time and two long expeditions for Kedarnath to come to the understanding that this was something that was important enough for him to devote four years of his life. Soon after he bought a bike in 2012, Kedarnath rode to Khardung la all the way from Hampi, which is a journey of about 4,000 km. It took him 39 days to finish this. Then in September 2013, he undertook another six-month trip which took him to Tehran and travelled to Turkey, Bulgaria, Romania, France Czech Republic and Greece.
It was during his journey that Kedarnath realised that the similarities between countries far outweighed the differences. On his second trip, he realised that though Turkey and Iran were neighbours and Muslim countries but they were against each other. “One is Sunni and one is Shia. One speaks Turkish, the other Persian. When I crossed into Turkey, people asked me about Iranians and I told them that they were good to me. They always retorted that I was lucky. Incidentally, the Iranians had the same things to say about the Turks,” he says. The goodness and love of people also made him realise that, “When I don’t associate with a region or a religion, I connect with people from everywhere. I want to tell everyone that we first belong to this world and later to whatever region or religion and once they realise that, the physical boundaries will disappear over time,” he adds. Kedarnath believes that this vision did not come to him overnight, rather it was given to him by people from different countries all of whom treated him well.
However, in his initial years, biking was never a passion. Kedarnath started riding when he was about 28 — and that too in the pursuit of other things that he liked to do. He was working as an engineer for JSW Steel in Hampi and wanted to commute easily to office. later, when he went into adventure sports like trekking, white water rafting, he realised that he needed something more powerful to get him to places which were out-of-reach. “All these places are offbeat and to go there, you have to hire a 4x4 vehicle which is expensive,” he says. As a cheaper alternative he decided to buy a bike. He zeroed down on an Enfield as he loved the history and the story behind the brand which was a part of the World War.
Soon after he got the bike, he made a trip to Bangalore and followed it up with one to leh. “I didn’t tell anyone about my programme as I was not sure. Neither did I carry winter clothing and bought it later along the way,” he says. Kedarnath stopped whenever it got dark. He slept at dhabas along the way. “Seeing the number plate, they didn’t charge me for the food. The charpoy which usually carries an overnight rent of Rs 200 too was free. I don’t know if they wanted to be a part of this expedition or something,” he says.
Once back, Kedarnath settled into his corporate job, till the day a corpcomm person came from Mumbai. “We were introduced and for some reason I shared the story of my journey with him. He said that he wanted the entire story which would be published in the in-house corporate magazine. Incidentally, the magazine only talks about things like new project developments, awards, HR practices and the like. He ensured that a full four pages were devoted to my journey and that it appeared at the beginning rather than being confined to the back pages,” he says. Kedarnath soon became a small-time celebrity in the company. “When you are up to something, the universe conspires and makes you meet with people who will help you,” he philosophises. In same story he had also mentioned that he would travel across Iran, Pakistan and Turkey.
To fulfill his dream, he approached the company for support. Thanks to the article as well as the preparation that Kedarnath had done, his idea was approved. “I had all the details, the cost, documents required for each of the countries as well as cost,” he says.
For Kedarnath, the journey became the destination and some of his experiences made him realise the oneness of people all over the world. “A French lady nursed me to health like my mother when I was ill. A Czech family hosted me when it was drizzling and I was looking for a place to camp. The best part is that they didn’t know English and I didn’t know their language,” he says.
When he came back from the trip, he had about 6,000 photographs, of which 600 were selected and featured in the coffee table book. The footage that he had captured was used for the short film, A Voyage on My Motorbike.
And having experienced this kind of humanity and love, Kedarnath is now travelling for four years on his Royal Enfield Himalayan to spread the message of a borderless world. However, to travel on a motorbike for that long needs fitness levels that are certainly above average. “I have my father to thank for this. When I was young, he did not give me breakfast till I ran two km in the morning. This became a routine. I played kho kho and kabaddi and also represented my school and college in athletics,” he says.
To finance this long trip, he decided to resign from his company and withdraw his PF and gratuity. “It is also partially financed by the sale of my books and T-shirts,” he says.
For those who think that it is a great way to see the world, it can be said that it is certainly not an easy thing to do. Besides braving the elements, there are other things that you need to factor in. “For anyone who feels that they want to do something like this, I want to ask them if they you really want to do it or is it just a fancyIJ There are many compromises that you have to make along the way — on the emotional, comfort, financial and relationships front. If you aren’t destined to do this, the journey will only leave you frustrated because of the compromises,” he says as he signs off.