Almost died, but survived to tell the tale

With no street lights on the forest roads, our small car's headlight had the most crucial job to keep us on track as we started driving from Suntikopa to Bylakuppe at 5 AM on 18th March 2022.

It was the first time that the monasteries at Bylakuppe would open up for the Losar festival after nearly two years of being closed due to Covid 19.

Bylakuppe is the home to many Tibetans living in exile in India. Located in Karnataka, right next to Mysore, it is a place is easily recognisable as one can see prayers flags all over tall trees while driving through the highway.

While living in Coorg, I got acquainted with a fellow animal rescuer by the name Rinchen who was a Tibetan living in Bylakuppe. When I asked him about Tibet, he seemed absolutely clueless, he was born in India and Tibet was simply a cause more than a place to him.

For me, Bylakuppe was Tibet.

It did not look like India at all. The people, the architecture and the food made it feel like it could be Tibet. Only it was in the plains and not the mountains.

When he told me that Losar festival begins early in the morning and that I should definitely come to see it, I knew I had to go. Well living in a forest, cut off from civilisation can sometimes get monotonous for someone who has moved there from Delhi, a place with a population of 16.8 million people. This was a chance to finally be amongst lots of people.

Tibetans from around the world would be traveling to Bylakuppe to experience the New Year (Losar).

To make it to the festival so early, all I had to do was wake up at 3. AM, shower and get ready, have breakfast, walk and feed my four dogs and then drive on forest roads for some 30 kms to get there. The problem: it is highly unsafe to be out while it is dark in Coorg.

You see, Coorg is no ordinary place, it is a forest somewhere in the eco-sensitive regions of the Western Ghats of India. It is full of wild animals, as big as elephants, as violent as a Bisons, and as sneaky as snakes. On top of that, the mist in Coorg is insane, the visibility on the road would make it very dangerous to drive.

But 'dil hai ki manta nahi' (the heart wants what it wants). And I really wanted to go see Losar!

Saumya and I got up early, did our morning chores, locked the house, and got ready to go. It was so dark and scary—30 km of driving on the bad roads of Coorg in pitch-dark conditions.

Two girls from Delhi doing some crazy shit again. We could see snakes and rabbits crossing the road many times, we were amazed at how our normal roads has been taken over by the animals at night. We only hoped and prayed that we didn't come across a herd of elephants that night. Somewhere along the way, we picked up our friend Avinash, a local from Coorg who was always willing and enthusiastic to be part of our shenanigans.

Saumya drove very slowly making past the misty forest roads until we finally made it to Bylakuppe.

We could finally feel the energy of the place, it was so powerful, words cannot describe that feeling. We felt more alive than ever, having survived those scary hours on the highway. It was time to finally immerse ourselves in a spiritual celebration.