Adventures on the road
Manisha Gangahar

All the World’s a Spittoon
by Samit Sawhny. Penguin Books. Pages 270. Rs 260.

WHILE the title of the book is a curious one, its sub-title — "travels back to India" — gives an indication of its subject matter. The book is a travelogue penned by Samit Sawhney who decided to return to his home country but decided not to be one of the many passengers who boarded a plane from London and in a day’s time were able to smell the soil of their motherland. Samit wanted to break the monotony of his mechanical life in London by returning to India but he wanted his return journey to be different and adventurous. He decided to travel to India only by road and drafted out a rudimentary route beginning with Scandinavia. The book, divided into six sections, each narrating his experiences in a particular country — the countries of Scandinavia, Russia, Mongolia, China, Tibet and Nepal — is a fairly informative guide for fervent travellers. The occasional couplets that are interspersed in the text not only add to the style of the narrative but also give the essence of the account that follows.

Travelling does not mean merely crossing lands and covering distances; rather it is a journey through the social milieu of those lands and territories. The traveler is acquainted with unfamiliar civilisations and their cultures, is introduced to an altogether new world. The people and their habits, their ethnicity and rituals are all a treat for the voyager who is enriched by the experience. The history of the land, the contemporary accomplishments of the state and the diversity and vitality of the people, are all there to be discovered by the visitor and these images remain etched in the visitor’s mind forever.

Samit’s narrative is undoubtedly colourful but becomes dull and unexciting at points. The detailed information on routes and itineraries is interesting but the incidents and anecdotes the writer narrates are not well knit and are unable to convey any deeper meaning. However, there are some very interesting episodes. The writer remarks of a nightclub in Moscow, called Hungry Duck, which was so unlike anything he had ever seen, "No matter which way I cut it, this place made little sense". Apart from the historic importance of cities like St. Petersburg, Moscow and Murmansk, no traveller would like to be deprived of the experience of travelling by the Trans-Siberian Railway. It is supposed to be the longest continuous rail line in the world, but what makes the ride even more interesting is the interaction with the natives as well as the tourists, the view of the land passing by, especially the scenic Lake Baikal region. The writer shares many observations that he made during the Trans-Siberian journey: was on this journey that I really began to notice the different ethnicities on board`85Oral hygiene is found wanting in this part of the world, and both young and old sport twenty-four-carat smiles`85Whereas the others appeared to be optimistic about the future, happy to have their own countries or a greater degree of autonomy for their republics, the Russians were, to a man, downbeat. They seemed to carry considerable baggage from their ‘glorious’ past, and were uniformly despondent about having lost their place in the sun" and finally concluding that "Siberia was not so foreign after all".

Mongolia appears to be quite an inviting destination. Mongolia is the only one of the ancient nomad states to retain features of its original nomadic society. The history and culture of this civilisation istold through herdsmen's long songs, verses and melodies related to herding horses, fencing sheep and other activities, melodious and eloquent verses incorporating proverbs, tales and epics. Samit enjoys the play with words and so does the reader but what is even more fascinating is the minute details about Mongolian tradition of welcoming even strangers into the house and providing them with all possible comfort. The entertaining account of the "black market" of Ulaan Baatar, a must-visit on the tourist’s list, is noteworthy for the very reason that the supposed-to-be illegal market and the practice of pick pocketing has transformed into more of a tradition associated with the place. Furthermore, the tales from China and Tibet are as captivating as the previous ones with a good peep into the cultural and social life carried out in these places. Whether it is the Great Wall or the Terracotta Army or even the Chinese cuisines, the writer is highly impressed by them. The travel is also embedded with a spiritual touch through the aura of Dalai Lama’s Tibet and its rich heritage. The book concludes with Nepal as the last transit and the stopover instigates a discussion about India and ‘Indianness’. While many revelations are made, the writer comes up with a very convenient theory on which the country stands united: "A concept, an attitude and a state of being: Chalta hai". It is hard to agree to this "unifying theory", for one cannot essentialize something as diverse and varied a country as India with such triviality.

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