Travel Shaper Archana Singh, New Delhi – TravelSeeWrite
From today, in ‘Travel Shapers’, I’ll bring you an up close and personal view of what shaped a travel influencer. Who knows, it may even inspire you to join the clan! I will publish these posts on the last Sunday of every month. And I kick off the series with Archana Singh of TravelSeeWrite.
I have known Archana Singh for the last 4 years. I was to travel to the Philippines to speak in TBEX Asia 2016 (Travel Blog Exchange). One fine day, she messaged me from the Philippines requesting me to fetch some stuff from India that her father will deliver. After preliminary checking about the contents of the parcel, I agreed. And met her in Manila during TBEX.
This chirpy, gutsy lady can fool you with her frailty. But under this slight-built, is a rock-solid human. During the time we’ve known each other, we have met many times – in travel conferences, award ceremonies, fam trips, and social occasions. Every meeting made me believe in her ability and uncanny flair as a blogger. She has excellent PR and is helpful to boot. In fact, she has swung a few fam trips my way courtesy of her rapport with Destination Marketing Agencies, and Tourism Boards. Here’s what shaped her, in her own words.
Who is Archana Singh?
Hi, I am a Brand Strategist turned Travel Entrepreneur, who visits offbeat places in search of untold stories. Until 2017, I had a full-fledged corporate career handling marketing campaigns for some global leading brands in FMCG, automobiles, banking, broadcast, tourism, and many more. In 2017, I gave up everything to pursue my most cherished dream of travelling with a purpose. There were two life-defining moments before I took the plunge.
Life-event 1
In August 2014, flood gates had opened in Northern India. I was visiting Ladakh – my most awaited trip. I was in Manali dreaming about the open blue skies and wide vistas. The trip organiser had collected the entire amount as an advance. I was to join a group of 6 people and reach Ladakh by riding bikes and jeeps. But the lady luck went missing.
Few hours before I was to leave for Ladakh, I was told they had cancelled the trip as the group backed off and now the trip wasn’t viable for the organiser. They gave me two choices – join the organiser for a brief trip to Chandratal, or I am on my own. In both cases, I wasn’t getting a single penny back. It was a hard decision to make. To make it worse, I had done no prior research on Ladakh and had no contacts. But when the going gets tough, the tough get going. And that’s what I did.
I pursued the trip despite having zero knowledge and limited cash. During my Ladakh trip, I had a life-changing experience that I felt compelled to share with others. What happened to me could have happened to anyone. However, every dark cloud has a silver lining. Ladakh was beyond physical beauty. I experienced varied faces of beauty – the beauty of the land and the beauty of the heart. I wrote a travelogue series – 11 days in Ladakh. 11 faces of beauty. The response to that series was phenomenal. And that’s how I got into travel writing.
Life-event 2
The second life defining moment happened in October 2017 when I attended the TBEX conference in the Philippines. Until then, I pursued travel writing as a hobby, but it was here I noticed travel content creation is a full-fledged career (BTW I met Ajay here only). Four months after attending that conference, I put in my papers and returned to India for good. Since then I have been to over 60 countries, published in over 100 publications, worked with over 200 brands, and have also won over 15 awards both in India and abroad.
TravelSeeWrite Focus
Travel See Write is all about exploring untold human stories from offbeat places. So, whether the story angle is food, heritage, people, nature, wildlife, or anything else, it doesn’t matter. I am more into nature and adventure, so most of my travels revolve around these two.
Her Favourite Destinations
Scandinavia – for their love for nature and minimalist lifestyle
Japan – their politeness and incredible natural beauty
Laos – unique culture that looks to be from a different world altogether
Serbia – a place waiting to be explored
New Zealand – the adventure capital of the world
Archana Singh – The inspirer
During one of my solo travels in the Philippines, I met a Filipino, and we had a lengthy discussion about different topics. The most beautiful thing he said after the trip was, “Hey Arch, thanks for inspiring me to travel solo. As a foreigner, you know more about my country than I do. You don’t fear traveling solo here whereas I do. You made me realize that if I keep waiting for others to travel along, then I’ll always be traveling as per their travel plans, not mine. From here on, I’ll try to travel every weekend.”
Over the years my travels have made me realize that despite us being separated by different geographies, cultures, and religions, we are still the same from within. Language is not a barrier. It is our unwillingness to look beyond our differences that create most of the problems in the world.
Her views on a bucket list
For me, collecting unique experiences and getting absorbed in the social fabric of a place is more important than fulfilling a bucket list. Neither a backpacker nor spoiled for luxury. I am just an inquisitive Traveller who loves visiting all kinds of places as no two places are similar and not experiences are the same. But there are a few destinations that have attracted me since I was a kid such as
1. Antarctica because there’s no bigger virgin adventure playground.
2. Argentina because I was a big fan of Diego Maradona and Gabriela Sabatini
3. Africa for the great wildlife
Her recent trip
My most recent trip was to the ‘Tiger State of India’ – Madhya Pradesh, where I visited three of the most important Tiger Reserves of India – Bandhavgarh, Kanha and Pench. It was one of the most memorable trips of 2020 as I was traveling long-term for the first time after the March 2020 lockdown. I was apprehensive about my safety, but all was well when I reached Bandhavgarh. A lot of hospitality companies over-promise, and under-deliver on safety, eco-tourism and impeccable service. But with Pugdundee Safaris, it was like visiting my own home. The pleasant staff had the safety of guests as their top priority. Cherry-topping was the jungles were brimming with flora and fauna. I managed to see a lot of rare animals and birds.
Pandemic Pandemonium
Before COVID-19 pulled emergency brakes on our normal life, my travel plans were all firmed up until October 2020. And 90% of them were overseas. Some of them were dream projects about the issues I care for – sustainability and promoting offbeat places. But everything got cancelled. Overseas trips are now a distant dream. At least, until the end of next year, or until the vaccine is available. But I am glad I am healthy and safe.
Plans in immediate future
I had planned a couple of domestic trips in October to December. But, because of the increasing number of COVID-19 cases, even those had to be deferred. It’s better to take precautions and stay at home than contribute to spreading the virus, or putting unnecessary strain on an already-stretched healthcare system of states that don’t have good medical infrastructure.
A word of advice
Platforms are temporary, but the talent is not. Today you have Instagram, Facebook, YouTube tomorrow you might have something else. So instead of acing the platforms ace your USP. Find your unique voice and the topics you are most passionate about. Focus on your storytelling skills, create thoughtful content in the most authentic way, and then just share it on whichever platform you are most comfortable with. If your content is unique people will find you, no matter where you are. CONTENT IS THE KING and will always be.
