Old but Gold: Senior Citizen Couple Embarks on Journey across India

Too old to motorbike? This Indian couple doesn’t think so. After retirement, people would typically think to finally settle down. But to 61-year old Dilip Chauhan and 58-year old Pooja Chauhan, it is just a new beginning.

(Image taken from The Hindu)

 

With Pooja riding pillion on a classic 350 cc Royal Enfield motorcycle, the couple left on an all-India motorcycle expedition spanning 150 days. Their journey started on the 21st of September last year and they have since covered places like North India, Nepal and just recently, Visakhapatnam, a city in India.

 

A Spanner in the Works:

 

A month after they had departed for their expedition, the Chauhans met with an accident on the Yamuna Express Highway. Dilip suffered a fracture on his collarbone while his wife Pooja had a hairline fracture in the ribcage. The couple took almost 4 months to recover, aided by their passion and resolution to complete the journey.  “It was my wife who took the lead and said that we had to finish the journey of our dreams,” Dilip said.

 

 

Highlights of their Journey:

 

In their expedition so far, the couple has been exposed to many trials and tribulations. But they also got to experience the beautiful and diverse Indian culture which greatly touched their hearts. The people they stayed with treated the senior citizen couple as family members, as they celebrated different festivals together.

 

“We celebrated Dasea with a wonderful hospitality of a Muslim family in Srinagar and Diwali with a friendly Nepali family in Dharamshala. These experiences reinforced our faith in humanity and are so contrasting to the preconceived ideas we shared about regions and communities. Travelling through the roads gives you this unique liberty of experience that nothing else does!” Pooja exclaimed in an interview with The Hindu.

 

 

Their Mission to Inspire:

 

“We all support them and pray that they can complete the journey safely,” their daughter said. The couple had undertaken this journey to “tell young people that life continues after retirement,” and their positive attitude in life as well as towards this expedition tells us as much.

 

A member of ‘We Royal Riders’ said that it was indeed heartening to see how “retirement has failed to deter them from taking bigger challenges in life.”

 

“This is our way of celebrating life and be one with nature,” the Chaunans said with a smile.