Pilgrim’s Progress

“It’s believed that the book’s protagonist stayed at Gurudev Siddha Peeth at Ganeshpuri in Maharashtra. Since they do not welcome casual visitors,we have devised similar packages for the intrepid traveller,” says Rajesh Khanna of Abercrombie and Kent,India. This US-based travel agency is offering a 14-day tour,packing in visits to Khajuraho’s temples,witnessing the aarti on the Varanasi ghats,viewing the Taj Mahal at sunrise and sunset among other activities at $ 8,685 per person.

STA Travel,another US-based travel operator,is offering an eight-day trip at $1,099 per person,to experience the bylanes of Old Delhi,holy Buddhist sites at Sarnath,the ghats of Varanasi,a visit to the Taj Mahal among others. “There’s significant interest in the script-based tours as part of Eat Pray Love promotion,” says Patrick Evans,spokesman for STA Travel.

While the entire concept for these packages is to mirror the author’s 21-day journey in the book,the operators are tweaking them to suit the customers. So there is the day trip to Ashram Harimandir in Pataudi where the movie was filmed,with lunch at the Pataudi Palace adjacent to the ashram. There’s also a day’s wellness routine at the famous Ananda spa in the Himalayas.

While most of these tours are designed by foreign travel agencies for their local tourists,Indian tour operators say they are yet to customise tours on the lines of Eat Pray Love,particularly since the movie has not released in the country yet. “We can customise tours based on the movie,but so far,there haven’t been any queries,” says a spokesperson the leading tour operator SOTC.