Personal journey: Travelling for a healing touch
BENGALURU: Shubhendu Sharma had a clear plan drawn for 2021. The founder of the city-based firm Afforestt, which creates native forests, was set to launch wellness retreats on the Japanese concept of ‘Shinrin Yoku’ – where one taps forest’s healing powers. “But with the pandemic, there was no time like now to launch this,” says Sharma, who is organising a seven-day retreat with art and a body cleanse at Kuchaman Fort near Jaipur, from Aug. 3.
It is priced at `50,000 onwards, and will also feature Shilo Shiv Suleman and Varsha Gurjar looking after art-based healing and yoga, respectively. Suleman, who will conduct a self-portraiture session, says, “The act of painting yourself becomes a way of transitioning from who we’ve been told we are to who we want to be,” she says. Other activities include poetry, Sufi music, storytelling, and pottery. While participants will be screened for symptoms and travel history, masks or social distancing will not be insisted upon. “How long will we continue to be fearful? We have to move on,” says Sharma.