Celeb Travelogue: Roadie Raghu Ram Fears Adventure Sports

Disclaimer: No pencils were thrown at me during this interview

Remarkably honest, extremely well-mannered, vastly logical, exceptionally sweet and a tad shy! You wouldn’t, in your wildest dreams, guess that it is the Rudest Man On Indian Television I am talking about. Yes, you heard it right – Raghu Ram, as I discovered, is a man full of contraries. My dread of interviewing Raghu, who is infamous for slamming tables and terrorizing the contestants on his cult TV shows, was long gone by the end of the 60 minutes I chatted with him. Did you know Raghu Ram fears adventure sports? Ladies and Gentlemen! For the first time ever, here’s presenting the other side of the bold and bald guy, who happens to be the brain behind MTV successes like Roadies and Splitsvilla… BG: Roadies has completed 10 years. How has it evolved over the years? Raghu: Roadies is a reality entertainment show with travel as a background theme. It’s about human behavior and emotions, and the drama that comes out of interactions people have under extreme situations. Although over the years the drama element has become a little more prominent, the show is still about travel. Travel gives colour to each season and episode. Our tasks are inspired by the culture, sports, food and specialty of the place we are in. BG: How do you choose destinations to feature in Roadies? Raghu: It depends on where we guys want to go! That’s one but we also apply a method to it. We sit down with a map of India and the world and choose our destination points. Of course, there is a Kashmir to Kanyakumari kind of logic applied. The journey needs to have a starting point and an appropriate ending point. We try not to make the Roadies travel more than 200 to 250 kilometres a day because we like to travel slow. So in this stretch, there has to be a good pit-stop such that we are able to get something interesting out of that place. BG: You intimidate so many, name one adventure sport that gives you the jitters? Raghu: I don’t know why people get scared of me. Frankly, it is me who is afraid of almost anything remotely connected to adventure. The reason I try out the tasks we include in Roadies is not because I enjoy them. I just want to make sure that the tasks are executable, safe and not too difficult. Honestly, adventure sports freak me out. BG: So what is it that gives you an adrenaline rush? Raghu: Testing human behaviour, creating a dilemma and delving into human psyche – these give me a kick. I also like interacting with kids because the responses I get are so raw and honest. That powers me up! BG: Why do you always stress on youngsters travelling and reading more? Raghu: In my life, I have come across many people who are close minded, aggressive and hypocrites. And every time I have figured that they are so because they have not travelled. Not having been exposed to different cultures, they just live in a cocoon believing their culture to be the best. Reading and travelling are the two things that open one’s mind. BG: You campaigned and even sang (for free!) in support of AAP. Do you think more celebs should come forward and support political parties they believe in? Raghu: I think they should but I know they won’t. However, I would never hesitate from standing up for causes I believe in. All these years, I had been saying that the youth in our country is not active. Now when the youth is standing up, it will be so uncool if I don’t support them. I like to remain true to my words. BG: You have written an autobiography – Rearview: My Roadies Journey. What inspired you to write one and what do you want the reader to take away from it? Raghu: Writing a book was always top on my To -Do list. Over the last 10 years, a lot has been said about me by the press, by the youngsters, by the grown-ups and even by political parties. But I never responded to them. This book tells my side of the story. What people take from it is totally up to them. BG: Does Raghu like staying in the lap of luxury or is he one who likes camping in the wilderness? Raghu: I was always big on camping. But growing older, I need to have little luxuries like having a bathroom. Moreover, a hotel for me is just a place to crash and get some sleep. It’s a blur of hotels for me every time I travel. Not a big deal. BG: Your favourite unplanned trip? Raghu: Bhangarh! We were shooting in Jaipur once and next day was a holiday. At 8 in the night we decided that early next morning we would head to this haunted village called Bhangarh. Rannvijay, myself and some of our colleagues went biking without catching any sleep the whole night. The fun of it was that I hadn’t ridden a bike before. On a highway at 120 kilometre per hour, we encountered a hailstorm, a dust storm and even rain. Nature’s wrath was let loose. I couldn’t open my palms for 3 days after that as I was clutching the handlebars too tight. Nevertheless, it was one adventurous, fun, unplanned trip that I will always cherish. BG: What’s the one thing that makes you cranky when travelling? Raghu: I have tried different cuisines but for me nothing rocks better than India food. So, yes I am cranky when I don’t get dal, sabzi and roti. I just love eating at dhabas as they give me the local flavor I crave for! BG: Have you ever swapped your identity with Rajiv at an airport? Raghu: I have quite a few times. Once I was to flying from Mumbai to Delhi and had to escort a friend’s 5-year-old daughter. Now, this little girl was more comfortable with Rajiv since she is friends with his son. So I had to make her believe that I was Rajiv. Firstly – I was very uncomfortable as I was taking the responsibility of a kid. Secondly – at the airport people kept calling me Raghu and I had to tell them that I’m Rajiv. Quite a situation that was! Raghu on Fire:

• Raghu’s travel mantra – Go to a place you have never been to before!
• Raghu is scared of – Strangers
• Your equation with Rajiv & Rannvijay – There is never a dull moment when we are together
• Ideal travel partner – My wife, Sugandha. She is fearless and adventurous, unlike me.
• Your most embarrassing moment while on a trip – I have a poor sense of direction and I lose my way more often than not. Then I have to call up people to rescue me. I am so embarrassed about it!
• If you were to produce another show, what would it be? I’m already working on my next show that’s based on making your parents proud.
• 3 most dangerous places you have visited – The Outback in Australia, Death Valley in California and Leh
• Travel Tip – Don’t be stuck up on luxury. Stay in budget places and eat budget food to get a better local flavour.
• Travel Quote You Live By – The world is a book and those who do not travel read only one page.
• Most exotic place in India – Jaisalmer

And what a co-incidence! I am heading off to the beautiful Jaisalmer tomorrow evening with my team for a weekend getaway. So while I camp under the stars, why don’t you tell me which celebrity would you like me to feature next in the Celeb Travelogue series? All pics courtesy Raghu Ram.