The Boy Next Door

Varun is your usual boy next door, which you would find in any of your urban well-off Indian homes. He is 28 years old but don’t think for a moment that he isn'twell traveled.

I'll tell you a bit about his travel exploits but before we hear his story, you need to know about his brief background. He was born and bought up in Mumbai. He went to a posh school, cool college for undergrad and a classy university in Australia. He comes from your typical gujju family with all the pampering a kid can get without developing into a spoilt brat as well.

Well you might be thinking, What a charmed life this guy has. He has nothing to worry about ever. What problems could he ever have? But as the saying goes, there are always two sides two a coin. His problem was over-protective parents. Since he has no siblings, he has always had some type of obstacle in his so called dream life.

So here is a guy who has just completed his graduation. He worked almost full-time for an NGO during these three years and now needs a break to travel to places and recharge his batteries. But there is one tiny little problem. He has never traveled alone before and always been with family and friends with all the comforts money could buy within reason.

So now, he decides that he wants to do something radical and convinces his family. He decides to go backpacking in New Zealand. Within a week, he organizes his visas and travel plans and convinces his parents to let him go. This plan turns into the biggest adventure he's had to date.

It is also his first trip going overseas [so he has no idea about customs/security checks/ culture differences…..and the entire shebang]. So he takes a late night flight, very excited about his first trip with probably all the people he knows coming to see him off and leaving him with a lot of advice.

He lands in Christchurch weary eyed and jetlagged. He tries to understand the way to the city and find a backpackers hostel. His next few days were just like a modern day exploring adventure. He learns to cook, wash clothes, get groceries, does day to day budgeting, trys to find air travel deals, stacking up frequent flier points and using them wisely etc….

He does all the cool stuff there is to do in NZ. He goes scuba diving, bungee jumping, sky diving, sailing, fishing, trekking, white water rafting, glacier walking, ice climbing, swimming with dolphins and whales. Everything to do with adventure, so away from the safe confines of family. And who paid for all these things……logic would say daddy dear but no, he worked for 2 months on an organic farm and wine yard to earn money for all the things mentioned above. He even managed to pay for all his air tickets and 90% of his travel expenses. During his travels, he fell in love with 2 airlines in particular. Singapore Airlines and Emirates. He went to Singapore, Dubai and Australia after going to NZ and he only traveled with either of these airlines. The reason behind it was that he learned how to fly with them. It was his first time ever.

Opportunity: Be the support and the constant in the world of the new and the unexplored.

Posted by Hinoti, SAATCHI & SAATCHI, INDIA