Across 13 states and 6,000 kilometres, Nishmanya Bahadur embarked on a 15-day driving trip to showcase India’s Golden Quadrilateral – a network of highways connecting Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai and Kolkata — on February 12. The 26-year-old YouTuber from Mumbai is now on the last leg of his solo road trip, which he calls a tribute to the late former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee’s dream of uniting India through roads from North to South and West to East.
Sharing his experience of driving across the quadrilateral, Nishmanya said he was able to give people a glimpse into the country’s evolving road infrastructure through his ‘Atal Yatra’, which started from Mumbai’s Nariman Point. “The trip pays tribute to the vision of Atal Bihari Vajpayee ji, but also makes a point of letting people know that they could embark on solo road trips, a concept that has not yet taken off in our country and is overdue,” he said.
He added that his intention was also to highlight that while there are concerns among people about driving on long stretches, road conditions, road safety and the possibility of getting deals on food and shelter, it should be seen as an enjoyable chance to discover India’s beauty and culture. “People traditionally want to travel in groups. But I would like to tell them to come out of their comfort zone. If I could travel 6,000 km all on my own, anybody can undertake any sections of the quadrilateral, and the parts of India that you can explore are mind-blowing,” Nishmanya said.
THE MOTIVATION & EXPERIENCE
Driving a top-end Tata Harrier, he scheduled his trip from Mumbai, passing through Ahmedabad (Gujarat), Ajmer, New Delhi to Kanpur via Yamuna Expressway, followed by Bodh Gaya, entering into Kolkata, then Bhubaneshwar, Vishakhapatnam, Guntur, Chennai, Bengaluru, and back in Mumbai via Belagavi.
Speaking about what drove him to take up this challenge, Nishmanya said that he had two major motivations. One was to take up a major road trip across the country and build his YouTube channel where he is a travel host.
“I came upon the golden quadrilateral as Mumbai was my fixed point, and the project covered Delhi, Kolkata and Chennai, which suited my idea perfectly. The timing was also perfect for me as it has been 25 years since the Golden Quadrilateral project has come into existence. There could have been no better way than telling the world of India’s brilliant infrastructure than driving through it and recording the experience,” he said.
Nishmanya said that his experience was good, and in most parts of the country, the government has delivered what was promised. “Most roads were ready. There are some sections that are tough to navigate due to construction work. It was not completely smooth, but in most places, I saw that the roads, like four- and six-lane, were laid as promised. The sections around Jaipur and Delhi, a lot of roadworks happening there. Another notable area that tended to delay my drive was in Bihar, when I was driving between Varanasi and Bodh Gaya. That section had the most amount of roadworks with several diversions,” he said.
THE BEST PARTS
The best part of his drive, the moto enthusiast said, was when he travelled along Ahmedabad, the stretch between Bhubaneshwar and Guntur, the Yamuna expressway from Delhi to Agra, and the expressway between Agra and Lucknow.
“These stretches were seamless, and one can breeze through and enjoy the road trip,” he said.
Firming his mind that he wanted to cover around 500 km a day, Nishmanya would drive close to 12-14 hours daily to achieve his target. When asked whether the drive got monotonous, he agreed. “There were stretches that it got monotonous, and I began losing a little bit of focus. Stopping the vehicle, walking around, or listening to podcasts and audiobooks kept me engaged along the way,” he said.
Bahadur says his expedition seeks to emphasize the economic importance of infrastructure projects like the Golden Quadrilateral, its expansive network of highways that drive economic activities and promote regional development while bringing people of India a lot closer.
The driving expedition is slated to conclude in Mumbai on February 26.