HYDERABAD: In the present Covid era, work-from-home has become a norm to reckon with. But some adrenaline junkies can’t settle for the dull lifestyle that comes with it. Here are thirty-one-year-old M Aravindh and his cousin Ambalavanan, 26, who are taking their work outside the house and on the road. Aravindh is cruising on his stealth black Royal Enfield Classic 500 with Ambalavanan to Ladakh from Dharmapuri in Tamil Nadu, but without taking a break from work.
The two brothers work at IT companies in Bengaluru -- Aravindh works for Microland and Ambalavanan is an employee of DXC Technology. After planning the trip for six months, the brothers started their mammoth journey on Saturday. They crossed Attibele Toll Plaza and Nelamangala Toll on Saturday while passing through Bengaluru and they stayed the night at a petrol bunk in Tumkur.
They reached Hyderabad on Monday, parked their bike near Hussainsagar to log in to work, before getting ready to hit the road again. Both brothers work afternoon shifts. Aravindh logs in at 3 pm and works till 12.30 pm, while Ambalavanan works from 12 pm to 9.30 pm. The first two nights, they found the nearest petrol bunk, took the permission of the latter’s management and set up their tent to steal a four-hour sleep.
After waking up, they begin riding at 6-7 am and stop at noon to start working from their laptops. Aravindh, an avid biker and vlogger, runs a YouTube channel, ‘Royal Roads 500’, where he often demonstrates economical ways to travel. “People usually spend a lot of money to go to a trip to Ladakh, close to Rs 70,000. My idea is to show that it is possible to travel on a budget. For this trip, we would mostly spend on petrol, food and budget hotels,” he says. The duo has taken a 10-day leave for their trip to Ladakh, whereas people usually take 30-40 days of holiday. “I would have not even taken leave but because the internet connection is poor in the Himalayas, I had to take those holidays,” says Aravindh.
Profession plus passion is what drove Amabalavan to this trip. “I had always dreamt of visiting Ladakh but could not afford to take 30 days off. We all talk about work-life balance; I too wanted to pursue my passion of travelling without affecting my career. Therefore, this idea made sense to me,” he says. Aravindh and his brother plan to reach Delhi by August 1, where his wife Ramya, cousins Elakiya Priya and Bala will arrive by flight. Royal Enfield has provided Aravindh and his wife with riding pants, jacket, helmet and gloves. The bike company will also provide the family with two Royal Enfield Himalayans for their Ladakh trip, once they arrive in Delhi.
Additionally, sports goods retailer Decathlon has provided the brothers with a tent, a portable chair and a bag. Apart from this, audio output device maker Sena has given them a pair of bluetooth headsets each, which the brothers use to coordinate with each other while riding. Well, who says we can’t mix business and pleasure!