Beyond Borders: Sri Lankan author Shehan Karunatilaka on how travel reveals the self

Thiruvananthapuram, Oct 18 Travel, it seems, is as much about discovering oneself as it is about exploring the world -- a sentiment that resonated at the opening session of 'Yaanam 2025', India's first travel literature festival, organised by the Kerala Tourism Department.

Booker Prize-winning Sri Lankan author Shehan Karunatilaka, in conversation with Malayalam writer K.R. Meera and journalist Pallavi Aiyar, reflected on how travel writing stretches beyond destinations to reveal the author's inner landscape.

"Travel writing can be political, deeply personal, or even whimsical. More often than not, it shows who the writer is, rather than where they are," Karunatilaka said, sharing anecdotes from his own journey.

Moderated by festival curator Sabin Iqbal, the session set the tone for a festival that promises to traverse continents, cultures, and consciousness.

Karunatilaka spoke of his fascination with writers like A.A. Gill, whose sharp critiques of places he visits reveal both wit and audacity.

On his own work, he observed that stepping away from Sri Lanka allowed him a clearer vision, saying: "I became obsessed with my country only when I was outside it, more than when I was living there."

K.R. Meera, recounting her travels in Kazakhstan, noted the striking parallels between distant cultures.

"Some shamanic practices there mirrored rituals in Kerala. It made me think about humanity's shared origins," she said.

For Meera, travel is inseparable from creativity; her acclaimed novel 'Aarachar' emerged from journeys through Calcutta, and all her stories, she said, begin on the road.

Pallavi Aiyar echoed the universality of human experiences.

"From Japan to Europe, people share similar daily concerns like traffic, food, routines," she said.

Travel, she added, is a process of self-revelation, saying: "Venturing abroad taught me what it means to be Indian."

Yet, she drew distinctions in travel experiences, noting that fleeing conflict as a refugee is profoundly different from backpacking through Europe.

The three-day festival, which began on Friday evening in Varkala, will host around 50 speakers from India and abroad, blending personal stories with reflections on identity, culture, and the art of observation.

As the participants journeyed through distant lands and inner landscapes alike, Yaanam emerged not just as a festival of places, but of people, their histories, stories, and the threads that connect us all.

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