Ex: Tell us about a change you’ve seen in the digital blogging space since you started out your journey? How has this space evolved?
Manu: When I started blogging back in 2014, there were lesser bloggers and fewer blogging communities. In recent times, social media has played a good role in maintaining the reach. Apart from being consistent and having good content, one needs to have a good follower base as well.
Ex: Can you give us an insight into social media platforms that only an Influencer can know?
Manu: Making posts on trending topics, creating posts that have a probability of going viral, and posts that contain any unique information which is not available anywhere else, also work effectively.
Ex: If you were stranded on an island, what are the 3 gadgets you’d take along?
Manu: Camera, as I love photography, a sports watch as it is a perfect and useful gadget to accompany any travel plan and, of course, a First Aid Kit.
A technology you wished you’d invented?
Manu: I always thought of making a device through which one can easily call or message someone without any network.
Ex: What’s been your favourite encounter with a fan so far? (DMs included!)
Manu: I usually get an appreciation for my blogs and photos. My favorite one so far is when a woman got inspired by one of my trek blogs. She contacted me on Instagram to appreciate me and she got so inspired that she took her first solo trip after getting motivated from my blogs
Ex: Social Media is known to expose vulnerabilities, with influencers being at the epicenter. How do you deal with the dark side that comes with the medium?
Manu: Everything in this world has its pros and cons and so has Social Media. I always try to play safely in most of the scenarios. I use social media for the purpose it is meant to be, viz, to connect with the world and share my travel insights.
Ex: Social media trolling is seeing an upward rise. Do you think this only increases with the popularity of an Influencer? How does one tackle this situation?
Manu: No, I believe the popularity of any influencer doesn’t have anything to do with the increase in trolling. For me, the best way to tackle these situations is by ignoring them.
Ex: What does success mean to you?
Manu:For me, it means doing something that makes me happy, something that I am passionate about and something that I enjoy doing all day.
Ex: The first destination you want to travel to post-pandemic & why?
Manu: I would probably be going on Gaumukh Tapovan Trek in Uttarakhand, which is an excellent high altitude trek and known for its magnificent views of snowclad Himalayan peaks and massive Gaumukh glacier (Source of river Ganges).
Ex: What are the difficulties that you face when you’re on a solo trip?
Manu: If something goes wrong or any unfortunate thing happens, there should be someone along with you so that you feel confident at that moment. Facing that situation alone makes solo traveling a bit scary. Apart from this, solo traveling is sometimes more expensive than group travel, as you cannot share things, be it a room or a taxi.
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