'Rakhdoo' - the spirit of travel

Many of my friends and colleagues ask me, "Why have you chosen the name 'Rakhdoo'?" I can understand their anxiety and at times displeasure. The name, on the first encounter, fails to invoke respect. And, we Indians, always want to be respected, isn't it? No matter what, I should be honoured - is the general expectation. A kind of 'class' or, so to say, 'caste' consciousness is so deeply imbibed that our guiding spirit tells us what to do and what not to do, in every event of our insignificant life. In such a scenario, 'Rakhdoo' surely appears to be an epithet that may, at best, be avoided.

But there are some who look at the world with "Oolta Chasma - a la Tarak Mehta", and ask 'why not?'

When I launched my website and was searching for the word that would best sum up the 'spirit of travel', I could go no further than this most provoking noun of Indian lexicon - 'Rakhdoo!".

It was much later that I ran into a travelogue written by renowned Kakasaheb Kalelkar in Gujarati - "Rakhadvaano Anand". The title and the content was the affirmation of my faith in this typically expressive noun, that has now become so dear to me, my family, friends and associates.

'Rakhdoo' is no longer being frowned upon. As 2011 is about to set in, I promise, that we will together take this noun of Gujarati lexicon to our global fraternity and audience and hopefully, by 2020 it should become the Word of the Year (WOTY), doing proud to every Indian.

And now, let's welcome 2011 and say 'cheers' to every 'Rakhdoo'- raising the toast to quintessential and undying spirit of travelling, scribbled and stored, deeply and darkly, in the genetic code of the mankind!