Road Trip

“It’s easy to beg,but the real fun is when you manage to borrow or even better,steal,” the rule-breaker rubs his hands in glee as he tells us his little stories. Like the kind lady who gave him a sweater on a cold night in Palampur,and another generous man who gave him Rs 60 for a bus ride to Mandi. “When you are a penniless backpacker,you come across all kinds of people,and I had my share of warm and cold waves,” the most adventurous was perhaps his search for a restroom. Raja thought he’d find one at the police station,but the cops didn’t think so! “I was kicked out of the place and was told that I’ll be arrested if I harass them with such petty issues!” Raja walked another excruciating half km to relieve himself. “Only to be chased by people again for I didn’t pay two bucks for the service,” he laughs. From hanging on to a bus ladder all the way to Shimla,flirting with girls for numbers and money in Chandigarh (he still has their cell numbers!),losing a money task to an elderly man,begging for food,stealing a rickshawala’s mobile,Raja had a ball. “But the worst was when I stole the UTV Bindass crew’s car and they punished me by making me wear a bra underneath my shirt in Dehradun. It was late at night and some drunken men followed me and tore open my shirt!” Raja ran for his life. The crew made his life a living hell by punishing him more – they changed maps and routes on his mobile! “That was evil,” he,however,mentions a Mr Pandit in Chandigarh who opened his doors to him and offered a room for the night. “That was the sweetest thing,” remembers Raja. Finally,it was the 16km river rafting stretch sans professional help in Rishikesh that made him richer by 30 grand.

“I generally travel alone,and this particular stretch I thought stealing would make excellent TV content,” says the prankster who’s all set for another road trip. Till then.