Travel Writing with Shivaji Das

Audiogyan

Today I have, a Writer, traveller, and photographer; Shivaji Das with us on Audiogyan. He has authored few books like, ‘Off the Beaten Track: Collecting Stories of Unheard Lives,’ ‘Journeys with the caterpillar: Travelling through the islands of Flores and Sumba, Indonesia,’ and most recently, "The other Shangri-la".

Shivaji’s writings and work with migrants have been published in journals such as TIME, The Economist, BBC and more... He was born and brought up in the north-eastern province of Assam and now stays in Singapore. Today we are here to discuss about travel writing as a practice or as a profession. Lets find out.

Questions

1. What is different about travel writing? The way we have articles, opinions, factual documentation etc...What sort of sub sections do you have in travel writing? Are there any broad rules for them. For eg: Fiction can not have factual information etc...?
2. I have heard this phrase called ego travel. What does it mean to you? In one of your articles you mentioned, you know when to be honest about the various fears and phobias you are attempting to overcome. Can you please elaborate on that with any example?
3. Do you write about people or places? What is your definition of a place / destination? Is it the people or the geographical location or the cultural found within? Tell us more about "The other Shangri-la". Do you have any favorite experiences/destinations that was most gratifying?
4. The advancement in modes of travel has made it easier to travel to the unreachable places. What have we gained and what have we lost in this transition?
5. With new media coming, how and where does writing fit in this visual world of Youtube and IGTV? What's next with you? and what would be your 2 cents for those who wish to get into travel writing?

Reference

• https://www.amazon.in/OTHER-SHANGRI-Journeys-Sino-Tibetan-frontier/dp/8194201861/ref=sr_1_1?crid=1H709Q2BFCNXC&dchild=1&keywords=the+other+shangri-la&qid=1606239689&sprefix=the+other+she%2Caps%2C271&sr=8-1
• https://www.shivajidas.com
• https://asia.nikkei.com/Life-Arts/Arts/Seeking-magic-in-China-s-other-Shangri-La
• https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/opinion/article/3107642/chinas-lost-queendom-beauty-contests-and-love-triangles-endure
• https://www.outlookindia.com/outlooktraveller/explore/story/47039/offbeat-cruise-singapore-to-hong-kong
• https://theprint.in/pageturner/excerpt/indian-chinese-couple-went-on-a-road-trip-to-chengdu/487420/
• https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/lifestyle/weekend-interview/shivaji-das
• https://twitter.com/shivajiauthor?lang=en
• https://www.linkedin.com/in/shivaji-das-073611/?originalSubdomain=sg
• https://www.amazon.com/Shivaji-Das/e/B00EMT7GYS%3Fref=dbs_a_mng_rwt_scns_share