Sukriti Roy and her friend Yashi Malviya were in the same training course. They both were working as trainees with The Hindustan Times. That’s when their chemistry clicked, and they both realised the common purpose of their dreams.
It was by a strange chance Sukriti and Yashi found a direction to their dreams. They were working as research journalists for BBC’s ‘Ganges with Sue Perkins’. While researching and coordinating for the team coming from London, they both extensively explored Bihar, beyond Banaras and Bodh Gaya. That is when they realised what they really needed to do.
Sukriti says, “While travelling for the assignment, we realised that Bihar too had a lot to offer for different travellers. It had become notorious and was never on any traveller’s bucket list. I need to change this. Bihar is a beautiful state with many attractions.”
Sukriti says that many domestic and international travellers come to Banaras and Bodh Gaya. But beyond these destinations, there are many other monuments and waterfalls that people should explore.
This was the beginning of Bihar Bytes. The two friends quit their assignment with BBC and started working on their pet dream. Sukriti says, “I want to spread awareness, among travellers as well as locals. For instance, we recently completed a trip with a group to the Valmiki Tiger Reserve. So, we while we are building a team, we continue to guide people who want to come to Bihar. We tell them the best places for exploration and accommodation, according to their preferred inclinations.”
Bihar Bytes does not only promote travel through Bihar, it tries to urge people to explore off beaten destination on a budget trip.
Sukriti says, “I would read in travel magazines that Bihar is not a safe destination for women. The articles would say that Bihar has bad roads and does not have conducive conditions for travellers. But when Yashi and I travelled for work, we did not find it so. That’s why we decided to highlight the truth about travelling in Bihar.”
The duo recently completed a month-long trip, exploring and documenting various interesting sites in Bihar. Their travels have attracted some attention, and now they are receiving few queries about Bihar Bytes. She says, “We don’t want to bring a drastic or dramatic change. We just want to change the perception about Bihar, and we know this will happen gradually.”
Sukriti and Yashi prove what it is to love your home state, and why we need to think again before we strike Bihar off our list.
