He is a traveller and loves to click with his camera. And he has clubbed the two in an effort to give a boost to local economies and make a difference. Photographer, columnist, writer, blogger and now a devoted traveller, Ajay Jain believes that if his stories and images can bring more travellers to the impoverished, but traveller-friendly places, then it would be his contribution to the society.
Born and raised in Delhi, Ajay went to St. Columba’s School. Right through, he confesses, he had been interested in doing something different and creative. But when it came to career choices, the early 90s didn’t offer much beyond the conventional and he followed many others to the IT industry.
“The options at that time were limited. Creative opportunities finally came my way in Delhi College of Engineering, where I was appointed editor of the college magazine and got involved with the cultural society,” says Ajay.
But his heart was not there in the monotonous world of coding and decoding and he set up his own sports management firm in 1997. He adds, “I introduced sports like pool, bowling and darts to this country, holding national championships and taking teams to world championships.”
It was when he was pursuing journalism (yes, he always wanted a career in journalism, but family pressures forced him to take the more ‘secure and stable’ path) from Cardiff University in the UK, that this hobbyist photographer honed skills to take photography seriously. And soon he was creating “shot” stories. His subjects could be shoppers on a street, children in a village, monks in a monastery, or even silent bells. He also did landscapes and a bit of wildlife before the travel bug bit him. An absolute roadie, he would go where his four wheels took him.
“In June 2007, while I was on a drive to the high altitude, cold desert region of Lahaul Spiti in Himachal Pradesh. Standing on the beautiful Kunzum Pass, I decided this is what I want to do: travel the whole country by road. And hence the name of my blog ‘Kunzum’ which has now evolved into a full online travel magazine, a publishing label and the Kunzum Travel Café in the Hauz Khas village,” reveals Ajay.
When he travels, he looks for stories in the form of interactions of people. And he shares these in the form of pictorial travelogues. He says, “It all comes naturally and easily to me. When I am exploring for my stories, my mind is working on multiple angles. And it happens because I love my job.”
Ajay has also put together three books — Postcards from Ladakh, a pictorial travelogue on Ladakh, Let’s Connect: Using LinkedIn to Get Ahead at Work, a management book and his first travel book, Peep Peep Don’t Sleep, which is a collection of funny road signs and advertisements.
Though he initially blogged about youth issues through a newspaper and blog by the name of The Campus Paper, now his sole focus is on travel. “It is like a case of social entrepreneurship. I try to send the message across that we all need to work towards conserving our environment, heritage and social structures. And it is possible to strike a balance without compromising on development,” he concludes.