Aakash Malhotra | Creator Of The Month

Ex: How did you get started as a travel creator?
Aakash: The story began with first falling with the idea of travelling, travel bug bit me 2014 when I was selected for a reality show called Swiss Made Challenge and got an opportunity to travel to Switzerland for a month. I won the show! After winning the reality, show I won a trip to Switzerland again with my family to Switzerland and I happened to come back to Europe along with this trip. I did a backpack to 7 countries across Europe. That was where my idea of travel was further affirmed. Eventually, the idea of travelling was to work hard in the marketing job to save, travel and repeat. During this time I have explored almost 15+ countries and by 2016. I wanted to travel more and more and a job just became a limitation so I took a leap of faith and quit after quitting my job. The visited Thailand, Laos and Vietnam and during this time I became a freelancer digital marketeer which eventually turn into a full-time marketing company. By 2018, I realised that the digital era was coming in big time with social media influencers and that was a time Wander With Sky was born. The idea was very simple to showcase a Indian boy who is
travelling the world mind it a middle-class Indian boy and what started as a photo blog in 2018 today is a full-time content channel. This is how I became a travel cot in Creator.

Ex: You’ve visited some incredible destinations while pursuing your passion for travel. Can you share with us your top three favourite destinations and why?
Aakash: Iceland – The Northern Lights
Zanskar Valley, Ladakh – For the Rawness
North East India – Meghalaya, Sikkim and the other 5 sisters culturally and landscape wise fascinate me the most.

Ex: As an extreme athlete, you must have faced some unique challenges while travelling to different parts of the world. Can you tell us about some of the most challenging experiences you’ve had while pursuing your passion?
Aakash: One of the biggest challenge has been fighting my own mental limitations, and becoming a bird, haha I mean a skydiver. Being a skydiver is as extreme as it can go, jumping out of a plane requires a mindset and courage par any human. It takes years for people to be ready to take on such a sport, and for me this was one of the most challenging things I have done.

Ex: Social media has played a significant role in shaping the travel industry in recent years. As a travel creator, how do you use your platform to promote sustainable and responsible travel?
Aakash: I have always been an advocate for responsible travelling, and I use my channels to show people the reality of tourism and how they can reduce impact. This can be seen on my recent Spiti Trash Hill reel. I believe as travellers we should only leave our footsteps behind and take
the rest back for proper disposal.

Ex: You have an impressive following on social media. What do you think sets you apart from other travel creators, and how do you engage with your audience?
Aakash: I am REAL, I don’t showcase things just for views and likes, I just put my raw travel lifestyle out their which audience has really appreciated. I believe that I still have the same approach towards my followers as I had when I began, replying to each comment and DM, being a shoulder where I can and just be ME! PS – Yes, I sit and reply to 500+ comments a day.

Ex: As an extreme athlete, you must be constantly pushing yourself to your limits. How do you balance your desire for adventure with the need for safety and precaution?
Aakash: “PROFESSIONAL TRAINING”, I think the best way to learn any sport is to learn “responsibly”, thus I always go through trained and professional instructors and schools. Along with that when I put out content, I make sure I myself taking all precautions to showcase safety first.

Ex: You’ve worked with several brands and tourism boards over the years. Can you tell us about some of the most memorable collaborations and campaigns you’ve been a part of?
Aakash: My recent collab with “Visit Australia” has been one of the best, they understood my content style and made a custom itinerary according to my taste, that always makes content creation way better and easier. Recently, I did a video for Rado, as a raw adventure travel content creator it was a big deal integrating travel with luxury and was indeed one of my best works I have done.

Ex: Your Instagram feed is full of incredible action shots and stunning landscapes. Can you give us some insights into the process of creating such visually appealing content?
Aakash: I think, I am a PRO at capturing what my eyes see, confused? Eye see unique perspectives, depth and colors which isn’t what your camera lens will always capture. So, being able to imitate that emotion via my Lens is really important.

Ex: Travelling can be a life-changing experience for many people. How do you hope your travels and adventures inspire your followers to explore the world and try new things?
Aakash: I aspire to inspire 1 person a day since 2018, and that’s still my focus. What’s now added is ‘responsible’ travelling, making sure I talk loudly about travelling responsibly. As I explore unexplored terrains, I showcase the journey in the rawest form, which is the most important for my audience to understand.

Ex: Lastly, what advice would you give to someone who loves to travel and become a travel creator?
Aakash: Define your why, define if you want to “Travel to create?” Or “ Create cause you are travelling?” Cause traveling is demanding job, it requires you to stay on the road for long, and if you don’t love the idea of exploring you would not be able to keep up with the job. PS – It’s a long journey before you find success, so being self motivated is the most important skill.