We have all grown up reading books. While reading many a times we have become so entangled with the characters and the plots in those that the line between imagination and reality has blurred quite often. Be it chasing Alice down the rabbit hole or following Harry Potter’s adventures. We have often wondered what inspires those writers to conjure such magic through their words. S Venkatesh (Venky) is one author for whom travel is an integral part in writing. He is someone who is inspired by travel, someone who travels to research and quite often writes while traveling. His two books KaalKoot an ..read more

In this episode titled “Marathons - Where’s the finish?” of the show Fiya’s Trivia (FT) on The Rustik Travel Podcast we will talk about the history of marathon, interesting anecdotes, how a woman conned the organizers to run the Boston marathon, ultra-marathons and unique marathons held in locations like Antarctica, Great Wall of China, Rann of Kutch desert and other interesting facts. Fiya’s Trivia (FT) is a show on The Rustik Travel Podcast that is just about everything under the sun. And beyond! The show is meant for 8 to 16 year olds with interesting information for all age groups to liste ..read more

In this episode titled “Cuisines of the World” of the show Fiya’s Trivia (FT) on The Rustik Travel Podcast you will learn about how humans evolved from sitting on trees eating fruit to making gourmet food, how cooked food made us smart, some popular cuisines like Chinese, Mexican, Italian, Japanese and more and how every region of India has its own ethnic food and dishes. Fiya’s Trivia (FT) is a show on The Rustik Travel Podcast that is just about everything under the sun. And beyond! The show is meant for 8 to 16 year olds with interesting information for all age groups to listen in to enrich ..read more

What does it take to travel solo? And esp. if you are a woman in India given the typical conservative social structure, safety concerns you have to face. Rooparekha Kathirvelu not only faced these obstacles but she overcame them. With geography as her favourite subject from school, she got around to actually studying it practically while traveling. All she had to do was to just step outside her home and world became her oyster. Traveling solo was liberating. It was not lonely as she met strangers, her fellow travelers who have now become her lifelong friends. A mother, grandmother and a busine ..read more

Samosa is one of the popular snacks across the world. For every Indian, it's one snack filled with memories. All this while we had been thinking that it's an Indian snack, but you will be surprised to know that our beloved samosa did not originate in India. If we go by the reports and facts, samosa originated during the 10th century in the Middle East region. The first official mention of samosa was found in Iranian historian Abolfazl Beyhaqi’s work Tarikh-e Beyhaghi, where it was referred to as ‘Sambosa’. They were very small in size and that’s the reason they were used as a snack by travelle ..read more

There used to be a time when after reaching late into their middle ages one used to retire and enjoy the rest of your life taking it easy. Not anymore. Anand Krishnamurthy and Priya Anand is one such couple who have busted such myths. Rather than retiring in the Himalayas, they decided to trek there instead. They have proven that age is just a number and that its never too late to discover and pursue new passions however difficult they might be. Anand has been a metallurgist with a long innings in the corporate sector. Priya is a development consultant, writer and poet. Priya also regularly wr ..read more

In this episode titled “Fiery and Vibrant Spanish Flamenco” of the show Fiya’s Trivia (FT) on The Rustik Travel Podcast you will learn about the Spanish Flamenco - guitar, foot tapping, clapping, passionate music and dance, the vibrant red dresses and the sassy dancers. You get to listen to some fiery flamenco music too and understand the history and evolution of Flamenco in Spain and the Indian influence. Fiya’s Trivia (FT) is a show on The Rustik Travel Podcast that is just about everything under the sun. And beyond! The show is meant for 8 to 16 year olds with interesting information for al ..read more

Flying, modelling, a glamorous corporate life and now a Yogi. That's Neetu Singh for you, who listened to her inner calling, quit everything to become a Yogi. Born in an army officer's house, she was brought up in various cantonments. This frequent change of place instilled in her a passion for travel. As she says, she used to let go of old friends and make new ones every 2-3 years. Later, like most of us, she chased worldly ambitions and got whatever she wanted. She became an air hostess, was a show stopper in fashion shows and made  it to the cover page of a glamorous magazine. She real ..read more

In this episode titled “The Fascinating International Space Station” of the show Fiya’s Trivia (FT) on The Rustik Travel Podcast you will travel into space, learn how the station was constructed in space, how astronauts eat and sleep and spend their time, what experiments are conducted and what long term space travel does to the human body. ISS can experience 16 sunrises and sunsets and many more interesting facts! Fiya’s Trivia (FT) is a show on The Rustik Travel Podcast that is just about everything under the sun. And beyond! The show is meant for 8 to 16 year olds with interesting informati ..read more

Sanjay Desai is a design engineer by training and an artist by passion. While pursuing these he has traveled far and wide in India and across the globe. A self taught artist he has walked on the Bohemian parts of Paris, knocked on Kafka’s door in Prague and strolled along the scenic ghats of Varanasi looking for inspiration. He spends time observing quality of light, shadows, shapes, architectural details, people, light, food, aromas in order to make the paintings authentic. He has exhibited his paintings internationally, delivered demonstration in watercolour festivals. His paintings are in c ..read more