On the way to Arunachal Pradesh

It’s a story about two young hearts, Dinesh Menaria from Udaipur, Rajasthan and Shobhit Sharma from Dehradun, Uttrakhand, both born in the same month and year (September 1984).

Dinesh is a Science graduate and did his MBA in Retail Management from ITM Business School, Navi Mumbai, while Commerce graduate Shobhit passed his MBA in Marketing and International Business from IMS Dehradun.

Both of them worked together for 3 years in the Retail division of Reliance Communication, Bangalore.

The similarity between them doesn’t end here.  To realize a dream deep down somewhere inside their heart, they set out on a journey of transformation and they call it “Sancharan” which is all about finding out the meaning of one’s life.

When they started

 Impelled by common aspirations and similar dreams, the two restless and impassioned spirits started a journey across the country with just a backpack and maps on November 15, 2011 from Udaipur.

Their purpose was to redefine the meaning of life through spiritual, social and adventurous experience.  They took up this journey of experience, a journey of learning and a journey of transformation as they realized that though everything at their job was going right but that was not the work they were supposed to do for the rest of their lives.  They thought they were born to do something else not just for themselves but for others, for humanity and for the country by serving them.

“There are many problems but the real problem lies in education, not the one which just gives certificates but education that makes a man, moulds his character, inculcates right values, imparts useful skills and in brief makes him a good citizen, who lives not only for the self but also for others”, says Dinesh Menaria, who is now in Udaipur.

Somewhere in Rajasthan

Posing at Guru Dongmar- North Sikkim

Menaria said, “There are around 6 and a half lakh villages in India and the irony is that they are not getting this sort of education.”

“The Guru-Shishya relationship in which the former took the responsibility of molding the character and insert moral values is completely missing”, Dinesh continues.

Dinesh and Shobhit believe that each and every child is born with endless capabilities and possibilities and his quality of creativity and innovation are waiting to be explored and developed.  Real education helps develop all these qualities.  However, the present system of education is killing creativity and making the pupil’s life purposeless and meaningless and has converted the learner into an automatic machine, the sole aim of which, is to mint money.

Majority of people are not aware of the real talents that they possess.  But Dinesh and Shobhit have taken a pledge to set things right and ensure that education doesn’t remain just a certification programme.

chit-chatting at Girnar Range, Gujarat

About the arduous journey, Dinesh says “309 Days, 22,589 Kms, buses, trains, bicycles, motorcycle…the vast Thar Desert in the west, the great Indian Ocean in the south, the enchanting Garo and Khasi Hills in the east and the mighty Himalayas in the north, we went to villages, schools, tribes, nomads, deserts, sea shore, hills, forests from living nomadic life to lavish life, from sleeping on footpath to a 5 star hotel stay, taking whatever coming up in our stride.  We were touched and felt the magnanimous and compassionate hearts of our countrymen.”

“We were at times, physically down but that didn’t dampen our spirits.  The condition of India revealed to us the reality and ignited our spirits to serve the country and its people.  The unplanned journey Sancharan is over but in fact it didn’t end here and we feel that we have miles to go before we sleep.”

Enjoying chapatis at Himachal Pradesh

They didn’t carry much money with them, they did odd jobs like working in farms, highway restaurants, Langar at Gurudwara, Temples and earned little to meet their travelling expenses.  After 5 months of their journey, they bought a used motorcycle using their medical emergency money to explore more in the Himalayan region and travel remote villages and tribes.

With students and teachers of RKM School, Arunachal Pradesh

About food and stay, they say that “India and its people have a big heart and they took care of us”.  They did have a tent which they used when there was no other shelter.

Getting ride at Assam

After a short break, Dinesh and Shobhit plan to recommence their journey to discover more and to enthuse people especially the young brigade of their country to wake up, think what life is really about and to pursue a life to achieve some purposeful goals.

Self Posing – Dinesh and Shobhit at an unnamed Jungle somewhere between Maharashtra and Karnataka borders

At night at 11000 ft at Uttrakhand with few locals