I call Editor-in-Chief of National Geographic Traveller India Shreevatsa Nevatia for an interview and he’s busy. When you’re leading the Indian edition of one of the best travel magazines out there, one that attracts the most readers (9.6 mln according to the 2017 media kit), it’s only to be expected.
Yet he graciously agrees to the interview and manages to sandwich it in the moments between closing an issue and leaving for a trip. Read on to know about everything from the planned changes in the magazine to what Shreevatsa doesn’t appreciate in an article pitch (hint travel writers!)
Here’s the interview –
You’ve done everything under the sun, from reporting from the field in Beirut to writing film reviews. What brought you to Nat Geo Traveller India?
Actually, it was a phone call. The NGTI management thought I would be a good fit for the editor’s role and it was an honour that they considered me for such a position.
I have always enjoyed reading the magazine. As a child, I would look at National Geographic and be wonderstruck at the amount this world has to offer. I have been a generalist and done different stories in different fields, but at some level, it has always involved travel.
Whether I was in Beirut or in Bihar, being out there always made me happiest. When I was at Mumbai Mirror I wrote travel stories and really enjoyed editing that section. So when this opportunity came up it seemed like a great one to take up with the reputation it has and all that it involves.
In the May issue, you said your intent was to carry on the best and most proficient editorial practices and intent. You will obviously add your own sensibilities and experience to this mix. Could you tell us about your editorial vision and the changes you’re making in content – both in the magazine and online?
It makes no sense to fix something that isn’t broken. My predecessors have done a great job – the magazine always had great content and good design. For the five years of its existence, it has always been a compelling read.
I have been trained differently as a journalist though and that is bound to come through. I have a different orientation, style, and vision. I feel that a lot of travel writing can be self-centric and involve navel-gazing.
To some degree, the writer should be a journalist and speak to locals. He/she should see what a place means to people that it is home to. I want the writing to be crisp and interesting. It shouldn’t just say this is what I saw, but should be more involved – it should give some sociological and cultural context. I would like the reflection of details to move away from clichés and have some psychological juice so to speak.
I have brought out four issues so far (June to September). We want to reflect every aspect of a journey that one might take because all of it matters. I’ve tried speaking to people and we now have a section called ‘Conversations’ where we do interviews. We are also writing a lot more about food – the June issue was very much about food.
In August, we looked at different resorts or hotels which make people feel comfortable about their place of stay. To me, it’s important that you like where you stay. Some people like the formal atmosphere of hotels and some don’t, but what matters is how you make them feel at home or give them that comfort.
The September issue is a prelude to winter and the most enchanting destinations to visit during the season. There’s Ghent in Belgium, a university town of ancient monuments and lively riverside pubs. Foodies should find delight in the multi-cultural culinary attractions of Malaysia’s George Town. Closer home, winter is a good time to navigate history in Ahmedabad’s old quarter or sample traditional cuisine in Dhaka. And for the ultimate escape, nothing can beat the sunny spirit of Jamaica.
Then, there’s the design aspect. The design now reflects a more contemporary and modern sensibility.
On the website, I find that a lot of the content that is reproduced from the magazine has been stellar. We are in the process of looking at how we can tweak the design and add some more content, so it’s a project in the making at the moment. In the next 2-3 months, the website will be much cleaner with changed fonts and incremental changes. You will see us evolve digitally.
Travel is not just about visiting popular sites any longer. For example, food has become a big part of the travel experience these days. What are the new trends you see in travel and which ones do you think are here to stay?
The one thing I can say is that now there is no set formula for travel. Each country is offering a variety of experiences. You could be someone who loves visiting cities or somebody who goes for walks around the countryside to discover parts not discovered, but the world is opening up much more.
If you even look at business travel for that matter, it’s no longer what it used to be and we had highlighted that in our July issue. Rather than looking at destinations, we looked at a traveler – why do we travel, what do we think about when we think of travel? For most people we spoke to, travel is no longer about a cursory exploration but it’s about digging their heels into a place and getting the most out of it.
Just think how Airbnb has changed the way we travel. Now you can live in someone’s home – something we couldn’t ever have imagined before. There are so many apps these days that you have everything you need to travel at your fingertips. With Uber, places are so much easier to navigate. You don’t need a guide – you have all the information and you’re free to discover a place on your own and in its entirety.
People pretty much anywhere in the world are now looking more for experiences. Earlier you would travel to iconic places and now the Indian traveler is looking for experiences and more importantly, not limiting themselves to a clichéd itinerary.
My audience is someone interested in modern travel. It isn’t someone calling a tour operator but people who are doing their own research and experiencing the world on their own terms. I imagine an audience that simply learns from an experience another person has had. We want to tell our readers that there are journeys that have been taken and you might want to try these.
What has been your most interesting travel experience so far and why?
There are lots of places I can talk about, but there are two places I would like to talk about – Benares and Beirut. I’m not religious, in fact, I am agnostic, but there is something in the spirit of Benares that draws me. It’s interesting to meet someone new; To see what it’s like to breathe chaos; To think about it philosophically and from a cultural perspective.
I went to Beirut in 2006 to cover war – South Beirut was being bombed by Israel and it was chaotic. What stood out to me was people. I didn’t know the language and I didn’t know them, but the locals were so warm and hospitable. I remember the food they offered and their hospitality. The place helped me grow as a journalist and as a person – I saw devastation juxtaposed with so much natural beauty. It made the war seem so unnecessary, so redundant.
What do you look for in a place you travel to?
I am always on the hunt for novel experiences, for something I can’t do back home. It could be food, art, or theatre. I try to connect with someone before beginning my journey to help me decide what to do there. I like soaking in the culture whether it’s popular or high-brow, whether it’s fine dining or street food. The idea is to access a place through its culture.
The NGTI site says you’re ‘interested in ‘immersive travel experiences and destinations that are accessible to most people. Our stories have a strong personal element, which we’d like to hear about in the pitch sent to us.’ Is there anything that puts you off in a pitch?
I don’t appreciate a badly written pitch – one that doesn’t tell the story in an interesting manner or has grammatical errors or just meanders. One needs to remember that what is interesting to you/us might not be interesting to a larger audience.
My ambition or intent is to offer something that appeals to as many people as possible. The benefit that all travel magazines have is that we don’t cater to one type of person – we can’t stereotype a traveler or a reader on the basis of age, gender, caste etc.
My audience is someone interested in modern travel. It isn’t someone calling a tour operator but people who are doing their own research and experiencing the world on their own terms. I imagine an audience that simply learns from an experience another person has had. We want to tell our readers that there are journeys that have been taken and you might want to try these.
Benjamin Franklin said ‘Either write something worth reading or do something worth writing’. Do you have any tips to offer travel writers to make their articles more engaging or interesting?
It’s very important to write about places in context. So include cultural nuances – show me how the locals live, what is their society like etc. If you’re writing about a monument give some historical context – don’t tell me there was a wall made of glass, tell me why. The reference could also be cinematic, say it looked like it was taken from a Bond movie. In essence, the writing should be evocative rather than reflective.
Are there any books that have influenced you as a writer and could you recommend some interesting reads to this blog’s readers?
Good literature always helps. I’ve learned a lot about travel from books like the ‘The Art of Travel’ by Alain de Botton, ‘What am I doing here’ by Bruce Chatwin, ‘An Area of Darkness’ by V.S. Naipaul, and ‘The Dharma Bums’ by Jack Kerouac.
Other writers whose works I like are Edna O’Brien, Pico Iyer, Edmund White, and Simon Winchester. In fact, in the July ’17 issue, we carried an interview with Simon Winchester which looked at his impressions and memories of Oxford.
Read the interview with Simon Winchester here
The September issue is a prelude to winter and the most enchanting destinations to visit during the season. There’s Ghent in Belgium, a university town of ancient monuments and lively riverside pubs. Foodies should find delight in the multi-cultural culinary attractions of Malaysia’s George Town. Closer home, winter is a good time to navigate history in Ahmedabad’s old quarter or sample traditional cuisine in Dhaka. And for the ultimate escape, nothing can beat the sunny spirit of Jamaica.
ABOUT SHREEVATSA
Shreevatsa brings to National Geographic Traveller India or NGTI as the travel magazine is often referred to, a perspective gained from a wide repertoire of writing. Born and brought up in Kolkata, Shreevatsa Nevatia completed a BA (Hons) in English with Media Studies (2002-2005) after which he has written for print and digital platforms like Film Companion, DailyO, Open, and The Hindu Business Line.
He has been in the employ of Hindustan Times, Outlook, and Mumbai Mirror before getting a call from ACK Media, a company under which the National Geographic brands operate in India. As a cub reporter at HT, he has reported from the field at Afghanistan and a Red Cross Camp in Beirut – experiences that revealed to him the warmth of human hearts in lands ravaged by war and the futility of the latter.