The diary of the van Tomars
Mera naam Priya hai aur mai van me rehti hu (My name is Priya and I live in a van).” Every video by Priya Sharma, an Indian-origin Australian travel influencer, begins with the phrase as she and her partner journey across Australia in their home on wheels. But did you know, there is an Indian version of this unique lifestyle?
Meet Ajay Tomar, a 62-year-old retired person from Greater Noida, and his wife Sunita Tomar, 58, who have transformed their Ford EcoSport into a “chalta firrta ghar” (a mobile home). They use it to travel across India, experiencing the beauty of the country at their own pace.
Post-retirement mobility
“I worked with the department of food and civil supplies, and thanks to the perks of the job, we often used the leave travel concession (LTC) to explore various places. However, these trips were often rushed, and we felt as if we have never truly experienced the places we visited. That’s why, after my retirement, we decided to travel in our car, on our terms, and truly savour every moment,” he says.
After Ajay retired in January 2022, their plans hit a snag when Sunita developed a severe spinal condition, confining her to bed rest for a month. However, this setback became an opportunity for Sunita to delve into her dream of travelling in their car. She spent her time researching and watching videos of other vloggers, especially those who were undertaking similar journeys in India. One such inspiration was Kapil Sharma, a travel vlogger from Ajmer, known as ‘Ghumkkad Bugz’ on social media.
Making a campervan
“I used to watch videos of influencers abroad who were living this life, but it was Kapil Sharma’s videos that struck a chord with us because he was doing this in India,” she says. Encouraged by what they saw, Ajay began customising their car the very next day.
“The most important thing while travelling is to have your own kitchen,” points out Ajay, and this became their first modification. He converted the car trunk into a functional kitchen. The design focused on having all the essentials without compromising on space or convenience.
Many of their vlogs feature the couple cooking or making tea in their car kitchen. Sunita pulls out a drawer from the trunk that doubles as a stove, while she arranges the plates for their meal on a foldable table.
Their second customisation focused on the bed. “Travelling at our own pace means we can stop anytime and rest, so the bed was a key part of our campervan,” Ajay explains. Initially, they had pull-down beds created on top of the car seats, but this design lacked headspace and storage underneath. To address this, he redesigned the beds. He made the car seats detachable and replaced them with storage boxes. Additionally, he lowered the bed’s height to allow headspace for the time when someone sits on the bed.
Home on wheels
“It took me about four to five days to complete this customisation. We made these bed modifications after a test trip to Rajasthan at the end of February 2022, to see what works and what doesn’t,” he says. Next, they explored Uttarakhand and started making videos to share their adventures with their children. “When we told our kids about our plans, they were very supportive. They would watch our videos and offer suggestions to improve our shooting,” the couple adds.
However, it was not until April 2023 that they uploaded their first vlog on their YouTube channel called Ghoomna Firnaa, which now has 4.3K subscribers. Their journey of travel and documentation took off when they visited Chittorgarh in August that year; the video they shot there explained the history of the place and garnered over 40K views. In October, they fulfilled a dream by camping with Ghumakkad Bugz, their favourite travel vlogger, in Dharmshala. “We were fans of his, and now we were camping with him and his family, it was a dream come true,” says Sunita.
Their 24-day-long trip to Maharashtra this January marked a turning point. They actively started uploading videos on Instagram, and one of their reels documenting their journey to Maharashtra went viral and got over 200K views.
This led to their channel getting monetised, which now has 106K followers, and is managed by the couple. Ajay primarily shoots and edits the videos, while Sunita handles scripting and content. Their itinerary is based on their bucket list and major destination goals, with careful consideration of the best routes and input from fellow travellers.
Always prepared
Up next, the couple are going to Ladakh in May, with special preparations for the high altitudes.
“An oxygen cylinder, enough drinking water, and adequate rest are a must,” they emphasise. Always prepared, they even carry their own toilet camp.
But why choose to stay in a campervan over a hotel in the first place? Sunita has the answer. “When you are in a hotel, your interaction is limited. You go sightseeing and come back. But in our campervan, every time we pull out our kitchen drawer to make tea, people gather around us. Sometimes we share a cup of tea and sometimes we share life experiences. This kind of interaction is what keeps us going.”