Great Indian Travel: Kharghar couple covers 19,400 km road trip in 101 days

The duo had a 101-day road trip across India to support and encourage local businesses affected by the pandemic

Navi Mumbai: Kharghar based couple who had started their ‘Great Indian Travel’ on December 1, are closing off their journey today at Kharghar after covering 19,400 km distance across 28 states and five Union Territories. The duo had a 101-day road trip across India to support and encourage local businesses affected by the pandemic. The couple- Kaustav Ghosh and his wife Laxmi Sorte- both 31, and also founders of The Great Indian Travel were on a North East trip around two and half years ago when they decided that they should cover the whole of India at one go.

Along with networking, the couple made some memories for lifetime which included their interaction and stay with tribals in Bastar, Chhattisgarh (HT)

But when the Pandemic struck, they made this idea into a project to bring together all the small businessmen under one umbrella to help them gain business from each other. “During the trip, we connected with about 800 such businessmen and have asked them to add more people they know around. Further, we plan to tie-up with e-commerce and help all the members to give and take business,” Ghosh said.

Ghosh, a marketing consultant who owns a startup and Sorte, a commercial artist was both working remotely while travelling for 101 days. The duo had saved around ₹5 lakh for this trip but targeted to spend approximately ₹3 lakh which they were successful at. Of the total expenses, ₹1.05 lakh was spent on fuel. The couple drove between 250 to 300 km every day and spent an average of ₹1,200 per day on petrol, ₹700 on accommodation, ₹400-500 on food and ₹100 for miscellaneous expenses. At a few places, they stayed at the places provided by their families and friends spread across the country and at the rest, they stayed in hotels. Ghosh-Sorte’s main idea behind the travel was to reach out to maximum local businesses, guide them with the marketing strategies and share their stories with others. “Travel, network and experience the real India to build a network of sustainable communities across the country,” Ghosh said.