There are some events and experiences that change the course of your life forever. The Azad Bharat Rail Yatra in 1997 was one such moving event for me. Luckily I maintained a day-to-day diary of the activities and emotions that I experienced during this 23 day journey. Reading this diary 10 years later fills me with nostalgia. India is just one country but travelling its length and breadth in a short period of time, at a young age, absorbing the sights and smells of the countries varied destinations, brought along with it mixed emotions of respect, concern, awe and most of all deep pride.

An article appeared in the Times of India in Nov 1997 that said "If you are a worker or a leader, if you have a cultural and adventurous bent of mind, if you have a civic sense and a feeling of community, if you are a good communicator then we are looking for you". As soon as I had read the article, I knew they were looking for me. I knew that this is exactly the kind of experience that I was looking for. Without any hesitation I rushed in my application to be a participant on the 1997 Yatra and before I knew it I was preparing for a journey of a lifetime!

As I go through the pages of my diary and see the photographs I can mentally relive the Yatra that began on Christmas Eve in Mumbai in 1997. I clearly remember the excitement and high energy levels as 150 youngsters from around the world assembled from around the country for the welcome orientation in Mumbai. I remember meeting Shashank, brain parent of the program, for the first time. I remember watching the Bharat-Bala Productions Vande Mataram Video on a giant screen. I had goose bumps as A.R. Rahman’s Vande Mataram echoed through the IIT-Powai auditorium and I remember eagerly waiting our departure to discover India, little realizing that I was going to discover myself as in the process.

The train became our home away from home. Food as provided on board via a special pantry car, special bath-rooms had been created with the added luxury of hot baths. Any compartment resembled an average teenager’s room- Jackets, dupattas, books, cassettes strewn all over, posters heralding messages of population control, environment protection and such adorning the walls and an atmosphere inside the train that was always warm and vibrant, with chatter and laughter among strangers who had now become family.  A chair car attached to the train became our assembly hall. A typical day on the train started at 6AM with the wake-up call of ‘Maa Tujhe Salaam’ on the train’s intercom, shower, breakfast and morning discussion before we arrived at our destination for the day.

From understanding the Gandhian way of life at Sabarmati Ashram in Ahmedabad to staring at the Taj Mahal in Agra, from then the solitude of the Golden Temple in Amritsar, to rural Tilonia and then the disciplined life of Ralegaon Siddhi, from the serenity of Bodh Gaya to the story of Tatanagar, from the sound of Hari Prasad Chaurasia’s flute to the graceful movements of Manipuri dancers, the days went by quickly. New people& new experiences& local food& and a whole new world every day! Visiting the Eastern Naval command in Vizag and then the National Defense Academy in Pune, I can’t begin to summarize the impact and overwhelming fascination that each experience brought with it.  

As Kiran Bedi rightly said during the journey " Decide if you want to become an asset or a liability to your nation. If a majority of us become assets, then we are on our way to becoming a great nation". I believe that the yatra was made for me. 10 years later the bonds are still strong. The friends I made on the Yatra continue to be my closest ones over time and distance. It is like we have been bound forever by a spiritual experience, like we understand each other without having to say much. The Yatra has been more than just a train journey to me, it has shaped my thoughts, defined my purpose and directed the course for my future.

As the core team works hard towards repeating history and making the Yatra of 2007 (Jagriti Yatra) a reality, I wanted to pause and remember all the reasons why we are so committed to making the train journey happen again. In Kennedy’s words "Ask not what your nation can do for you, but ask what you can do for your nation".  Vande Mataram.

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