In the long and eccentric tradition of the intrepid British explorer, I have set myself the challenge of circumnavigating the four corners of India, travelling only by sleeper-class railway train. I shall visit the Eastern, Southern, Western, Northernmost, highest and lowest train stations in the Indian sub-continent, as well a few fascinating diversions en-route. In an effort to reconcile the pomp of the Victorian gentleman, who introduced the railway to India in 1853, and the self-inflicted poverty of the wandering Hindu mystic, I shall perform this great pilgrimage (possibly wearing a tweed suit), with a severely limited trunk of possessions, and a budget of only £200 sterling (to spend on train tickets, food, accommodation and anything else).
I must warn you though, this is no sight-seeing jolly… Circumnavigating Indian by rail will involve nineteen, almost back-to-back train trips in twenty days, with fourteen nights aboard the train. Travelling by sleeper-class (the cheapest Indian train class in which a sleeping-berth is provided) during July means I’ll be contending with very little sleep, unbearable 40°C+ temperatures, monsoon rains, toilets of questionable hygiene, dubiously prepared platform-food and thus near continuous Delhi-belly.
A grand and pointless jaunt should need no excuse, but nonetheless I’ve come up for a suitably pukka one for this trip. My aim is to raise as much capital as possible for FRANK Water, a UK-based charity which funds sustainable clean water projects in the remote villages of central India. For more information on these honourable souls, please see the ‘The Cause’ page, or visit their website:
Being somewhat of a film-maker, I will be capturing my experiences on the rails in an effort to put together a riveting videographical travelogue of the expedition. I’ll be talking with fellow passengers and railway workers, rediscovering the legacy of the British Raj, visiting unfrequented sights and spectacles, admiring the incredible feats of railway engineering, and all the way tackling the extremes of sleeper-class Indian railway travel.
As this is a charitable project, I will be funding all costs of the expedition and film production. However, so that I can raise money for FRANK Water, I’m making an appeal to all you train-spotters, chaps, dandies, Gandhis, ladies and gentlemen out there to donate as much or as little as you can afford. What I shall offer you in return is a ‘Thank you’ credit at the end of the finished documentary, an invitation to a special sponsors’ screening of it and a warm, fuzzy feeling in your cockles, having done a spiffingly good deed for some very thirsty people. I am truly grateful for all contributions…
Many thanks goes out to Mr. Mark Lester, who is putting together a similarly mad-cap shenanigan, and from whom I have sneakily pilfered a few top-notch ideas. He is also attempting a rail circumnavigation of the nation, but with a gaggle of fellow nutters in tow… To join him and help raise money for another noble cause, Railway Children, please visit his site here:
