Ep 29: Of ancient festivals, snow-capped mountains, and medieval shipyards

Highway On My Podcast

Has the coronavirus pandemic disrupted your plan to take that long trip? Is the ongoing lockdown making you crave going off-road? Fret not. If you can’t go to the highway, Rocky, Mayur, Prashant, and Abhinandan — the team behind shows like Highway On My Plate, Vital Stats of India, Jai Hind, and Rocky and Mayur's Food Xpress — will bring the highway to you!

So, here goes the newest offering from Newslaundry: Highway On My Podcast. The creators of the much loved TV travel show revisit their travels across India, sharing stories, anecdotes, trivia, and — for when the roads are open and inviting again — recommendations on food, culture, people, and much more.

In this special episode of Highway On My Podcast, Rocky, Abhinandan, Mayur, and Prashant take a trip down memory lane, and recount some of their favourite experiences together in the past years.

The team recounts their memories of witnessing Onam at the ancient Thrikkakara Temple in Kochi, Kerala. While the festival is celebrated by people of all religious backgrounds — both devout and otherwise — no one wants to kill anyone, which according to Mayur truly showcases India at its secular best. From costumed elephants and quarrelsome bulls to a never ending feast, the port city does not disappoint the discerning travellers.

The panel also reminisces the magical interconnectedness between the Himalayan town of Darjeeling and Mount Kanchenjunga, visible through every window frame, doorway, and verandah. Although they missed a ride on the iconic toy train, they did visit some of the town’s most celebrated eateries, including Glenary’s Bakery and Pub and the original Keventer’s which serves what is arguably India’s best continental breakfast.

Later in the episode, the gang remembers their trip to Mandvi, a small but historic town in Kutch, Gujarat. Mandvi is home to India’s most exclusive and most talented dabeliwala, the now-late Gababhai. Talk of the quaint, medieval shipyard in the beach town evokes in Rocky and Mayur memories of the time they replicated the iconic ‘king of the world’ move from the movie Titanic.

And since any journey across India is as rich a gastronomical tour, the group also recalls some of their favourite meals together, including the royal wazwan in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pahalgam, the theatrically-prepared chaat at Indore’s legendary Sarafa Bazar, and in Nagpur and Tezpur, chillies hot enough to make your life flash before your eyes.

All this and more, only in this week’s episode of Highway On My Podcast.

For more trivia and behind the scenes moments from Rocky and Mayur’s travels across India, sign up for the HOMP newsletter.

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