Learn how to become better allies to people with disabilities, download the Randstad exclusive ED&I 2022 report.
Rose Tommy, aged 24, is brave and daring enough to explore the country all alone. Here is the story and experiences of a woman solo traveller in India.
This friend of mine has always been different. I got to spend two years, in the same class with her, during our masters in Media and Communications. The course was about to end, we were all busy attending interviews, looking for placement opportunities and planning what to do with our first salaries.
But Rose Tommy didn’t care for any of this; instead, she was completely focused on saving every penny possible to travel the length and breadth of this country – India, to begin her travel expeditions.
The very next day of our final exams, with no plans in mind but just a ticket to Manali, she headed north. She was the only one from our class who wasn’t in town to attend our Graduation Day. She shouldn’t have missed it, I thought back then. But now, after listening to all her stories, adventures and experiences, I am truly speechless.
For almost five months since then, she has been all alone, out there interacting with strangers, handling real life situations, doing the things she loves the most like photography and having the time of her life. “The place, it’s warm and welcoming people, mesmerizing nature didn’t let me go back home,” she said to me over the phone.
It’s not easy to take the road less travelled. I always used to wonder how difficult it would have been for Rose to make the choice of a different career path. When I asked her the same, what she said surprised me beyond belief. “It was one of the easiest choices I have made in my life, as I never cared about jobs,” she said from somewhere in the Himalayas.
She has indeed explored a lot in these five months and was happily willing to tell me about some of her major experiences. Manali, Jibhi, Shimla, Mussoorie, Delhi and many places in Rajasthan, the list of places she has been to feels endless.
Rose says that she is not a tourist but a traveller. To sustain such long stays and finance her living, she has been working there as well. Be it as a social media manager or baking at a local cafe, she has done it all. According to her, “The best part about travelling in the random and unexpected fun that you can have. I even played cricket with local children on the streets. It was sheer fun.”
She also feels that it’s not all about fun but there is immense learning as well. In five months she had learnt hindi and some pahari (spoken in the areas of Himachal). Specially everyday interaction with the locals is what is highly educative.
However, Rose strongly feel that India is not a safe place for women. She has had men staring at her, asking unnecessary questions and even trying to scare her just because she is all alone. Talking about one of her discoveries she said, “When people act funny, even if you don’t have a pepper spray, worry not. All you have to do is take out your smartphone and start recording their video. Trust me, in this era of social media where everybody is part of WhatsApp, Facebook etc, they’ll get scared of the video being uploaded and leave you alone.”
Though she is not very certain as to what exactly to do in the future, she has decided to make a living out of travelling.
Towards the end she said, “I am definitely missing my dad and hope to see him soon.” Accordingly she came back home recently. Currently she is working as a volunteer in cleaning up flood hit Kerala. I’m pretty sure that she wouldn’t be staying long at home but making her next plans, packing her bags and heading off following her true calling – travelling and photography.
Image Credit – Rose Tommy
Apart from being the Associate Editor at Women's Web, where I get to read, edit and write a lot of interesting articles, my life is simple. It begins at 'M' (Movies) and ends with ' read more...
Women's Web is an open platform that publishes a diversity of views, individual posts do not necessarily represent the platform's views and opinions at all times.
Stay updated with our Weekly Newsletter or Daily Summary - or both!
Rajshri Deshpande, who played the fiery protagonist in Trial by Fire along with Abhay Deol speaks of her journey and her social work.
Rajshri Deshpande as the protagonist in ‘Trial by Fire’, the recent Netflix show has received raving reviews along with the show itself for its sensitive portrayal of the Uphaar Cinema Hall fire tragedy, 1997 and its aftermath.
The limited series is based on the book by the same name written by Neelam and Shekhar Krishnamoorthy, who lost both their children in the tragedy. We got an opportunity to interview Rajshri Deshpande who played Neelam Krishnamoorthy, the woman who has been relentlessly crusading in the court for holding the owners responsible for the sheer negligence.
Rajshri Deshpande is more than an actor. She is also a social warrior, the rare celebrity from the film industry who has also gone back to her roots to give to poverty struck farming villages in her native Marathwada, with her NGO Nabhangan Foundation. Of course a chance to speak with her one on one was a must!
“What is a woman’s job, Ramesh? Taking care of parents-in-law, husband, children, home and things at work—all at the same time? She isn’t God or a superhuman."
The arrays of workstations were occupied by people peering into their computer screens. The clicks of keyboard keys were punctuated by the occasional footsteps moving around to brainstorm or collaborate with colleagues in their cubicles. Most employees went about their tasks without looking at the person seated on either side of their workstation. Meenakshi was one of them.
The thirty-one-year-old marketing manager in a leading eCommerce company in India sat straight in her seat, her eyes on the screen, her fingers punching furiously into the keys. She was in a flow and wanted to finish the report while the thoughts and words were coming effortlessly into her mind.
Natu-Natu. The mellifluous ringtone interrupted her thoughts. She frowned at her mobile phone with half a mind to keep it ringing until she noticed the caller’s name on the screen, making her pick up the phone immediately.
Please enter your email address