I was suddenly woken up from my late night slumber by a buzz on my a mobile phone , yes you guessed it this is my friend Ashish’s phone I am currently using and it has a irritating tone that kind of slaps you out of bed to attention .” Chabra casting sir , need your audition ,you will play a doctors role more then ten days work shoot in Mumbai , the director wants to see you in full action , you mail the video to me when you finish .” He gave me clear instruction on the phone and urged that I obey . I was up and about and it was way passed the afternoon , on the phone to my blog team trying to get my book launched on amazon.com . Their was a air of excitement when I shot the video , if I get the part it would be fun , one needs to keep working , I am understanding this only now as I get older and wiser .This was my days casting call and a new hop I might get to act again .

The rest of the day went in getting my books published and contemplating on the new corona virus strand that has just caused havoc in UK. The service of the hotel staff is amazing I have been keeping rough dry long hair all the time , so a staff handed to a bag full of coconut hair oil to oil my hair with since they looked very dry .The stay at the Marriott has done wonders for my health although I have but on weight my skin glows and looks much younger then usual , I feel a sense of vitality and light headedness and the food keeps me fit and my mind ticking , not to mention my daily meditations .A laptop and a phone with some peace that’s all I want and that’s all I ever will want .

I have managed to dodge the virus so far and my end of year corona test was negative I am virus free for sure through a valid  test . Other’s seem to be ding from it around the globe . Then we have the mid night curfews that have been announced in Mumbai and all air traffic has been shut from Britain .For me it was an eventful year I got a new friend in Fixer , I did manage to hunt down a hair band to tie a pony tail with my hair .

Mumbai still keeps pulling me only if I can get some work and get going ..

I will be releasing my latest Novel on amazon.com and KDP Select titled “ The Shaming of Diya.” it is a Revenge porn Saga, where a stalker of famous erotica actress Diya, starts to circulate offensive naked video of hers on the internet and social media. The novel explores the dark space of internet, including hackers and the effectiveness of the police and the system to fight against this new phenomena how lovers and boy friends and girl friends shame each other through Revenge Porn on the internet .The phenomena of Panty grabbing  and cyber crime is explored in the story where the police catches the criminals and hackers plan out their exist from the judicial system. Tanuj the stalker has to spend time in a detention center to explain why he circulated his naked videos with the caption.” Apni Chute ke Daam Bata.” Shaming of Diya deals with public humiliation of a lady who is fighting back to save her honor. It is a first hand look into the cops and the police work of the Mumbai cops Hawaldar Damle, Inspector Salve and the dreaded Kasim .See the story end up in a court room drama as the Mirror News gets and releases the story to the Media . Will Kazi win the legal battle for Tanuj, read on to find out more about this exciting Novela.

I was just going through my youtube.com analytics a particular video on The Naga Baba’s of Kumbh ka Mela shot by me in Feb 2019 got a sudden surge of views on my network in the last few weeks , it’s views surged by 7000 views almost 181% more than any other video on my network . The subscriber base has also moved up by 50 odd subscribers in a very shot span of time . Now my Naga video shot almost two years back is getting me great views and a sudden surge of interest in my channel . People love the Torbaaz videos , so Bollywood always works.

Apart from that people like something unique that’s what the Kumbh video was la about as I get the blessings of two naked Naga’s in the middle of the Mela .The views came from suggested views so their but be links or tags for Kumbh Ka Mela or Naga’s that was getting traffic to this particular video . So the search engines were searching for this particular video and serving it up to people who tagged for them . Last month was more then 111 hrs or video viewing on my youtube.com channel and more then 8k views .

I have been busy with my new one month subscription of Netflix and was engrossed binging on digital films and docudrama’s . One that caught my eyes was Bad Boy Billionaires . It traces the journey of three fallen Billionaires Vijay Mallya , Nirav Modi , and Subroto Sahara , The Sahara Sri . The documentary is detailed with a mix of old footage , media clip’s , interviews with real people and opinion makers it sticks to the need to get to the truth . It traces the private and business lives of three of Indian’s greatest Biggest Billionaires. Why they finally failed and from shining business stars became will full defaulters and finally looking at a life in jail. In Mallya’s case it was the collapse of his baby Kingfisher Airlines , Nirav Modi with his international brand of Dimond jewelry and Sahara Sri with the collapse of his chit fund company Sahara.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q0I_uL0mw0c

In all cases the stories point directly on the corruption in government sector banks and the loop holes in the financial markets , where loans where given with out collateral  , Letter of Credit given by state banks without keeping any money or collateral from the borrowers .Mallya borrowed from state banks , and Nirav Modi bribed official’s to get free public money .In both cases the businesses took of initially and did well both Mallya and Modi were hailed as visionaries  and rule breakers who would break business rules to expand their business empires and both went global . Both absconded to London which has become a safe haven for fallen billionaires , with easy access to the financial markets and expensive lawyers.

In Sahara’s case he began on a scooter and then by collecting Rs 10 and Rs 20 from migrant and farm workers he created Sahara Group initially paying good interest , by making them invest in his many schemes . He kept making his vision larger and larger till he had ten’s of millions of depositors . Again his down fall was dramatic , his battle with SEBI ended up being his doom as he spent two years in jail .His investment’s in real state did not let to his doom as he was unable to pay depositors their money.

From a creative execution point of view the visuals and the pace of the film was good and kept you engaged , it also gave a sort of message that extravagance doesn’t always win in the end in it is fostered corruption and finally the fall due to greed of it’s owners .The interviews look real and the background sound is amazing , you feel you are a part of their journey . Entertaining and Informative I would give it my recommendation a must watch for people who like fast paced realistic docudrama’s.

I was indeed very excited to shoot in Kirkistan for a Bollywood Film called TorBaaz , after a long time I got to act as an Afghan Cricket commentator who supervises a Cricket Match between two Afghan children  team who have been bought up in a Refugee camp .To steer them away from war and to stop them from going into militant training camp’s Sanjay Dutt who plays a retired army officer lures them towards cricket and trains the in the game , as if showing them a more productive path . He immediately come into conflict with the Afghan war lords who want to make their youth into fighters to fight the holy war as human bombs .The movie had a good story and the snow peaks of Kirkistan where great to shoot the cricket match sequence . But Sanju seems to have taken the movie lightly and was almost sleep walking in some of the scenes . The bomb blast sequence was good but their was less realism and very little raw energy in some of the cricket match scenes  .The movie had a message and some good intentions but feel flat at the execution , some of the parts of the film looked hurried .

I for one was disappointed with my scenes , as I went unnoticed In my blink and miss scenes , I was their during the bomb blast scenes with my beard and spectacles crying out through the mike , but that was it just two shoots here and their , apart from that the commentators voice was done as a VO over footage of the cricket match being actually played on the ground . it was as if the Cricket commentator had gone missing from the film .I was even more appalled when my name was missing from the credits of the film . Lucky for me I had shoot my own videos on the film shoot and that’s evidence enough of my work and my role in the film .

But over all I was disappointed , no money , no credit and finally no footage in the film .The commentator goes missing like in thin air .The film I presume will suffer from the same fate I would imagine , now playing on Netflix it will have a very short run I presume . Nargis Fakri looked good but she is looking very mature . All I got from the film was a week long un paid holiday to a land occupied by a mis breed of Mongols and Afghans .

Till then I leave you with my on the set videos  of the film Torbaaz , just to re live some old memories of a couple of year’s back .So if you see a fat man , with specs  and an Afghan beard , spare a thought for the poor guy it was me Anuj Tikku , and I swear I ran like hell during the bomb blast scenes and tried my best to get close to Sanju so that I could be in the frame with him but alas! I was only in two and that too very briefly . I would have to point at my face with a stick to make you see that the guy with the mike was actually me .

The year 2020 would no doubt go down as the year of the COVID 19 Pandemic, that was the one story that dominated the media and kept us all locked in doors, all working from home with masks on our faces. The Pandemic changed our lives like no other thing, with countries loosing hundred’s and thousands of people to the dreaded virus. I for one did not get the virus as I spent most of the time in my hotel room in Mumbai. I managed to finish two books Nineteen and Shaming of Diya in the meantime, spent idle hours with Ashish chit chatting about spirituality and cinema. Had an occasional meeting in the lobby, discussed scripts and tried to sell my book content. With technology again all this was possible and with a phone and a laptop life was very comfortable for a writer, as it is most time is spent locked indoors typing away visualizing one scene or the other.

Time with Granny and Dehra Doon was well spent as I would meet her for a few weeks here and there, my roots in the city still remain firm and intact with friends all over the place. I managed to sell my book Yes sir I killed my Dad and launched my audio books and paperback versions as well . That way I felt I made some progress in my author and blogging journey .

Managed to put on weight due to lack of activity and very healthy food at the hotel. I do look forward to the India vs Australia Cricket series. It has kept me busy this month. I also track with joy the rise of the sensex no doubt spurred by the news of a vaccine coming out soon in the market. Will that see an end to the shabby lives that we currently live, how long will humanity have to stay under fear and under lock downs. With job looses and business collapses the economy was reeling under severe pressure due to COVID and even know the fundamentals show no sign of giving any good news. So if you are healthy and still living through the virus, best of luck you have lived through a very bizzar’e year which bought the world to an halt and has killed more then 1.7 million people so far.

This year of uncertainty and acute social changes most people would like to forget. We would like to put the year behind us and wish for this sickness to end and go away some way. People can only hope for a better year and good fortune after what we all have been though. The two positives to come out where Technology and Bio Technology both these helped humanity find solutions through the Pandemic, with the internet exploding with the new trend of work from home, and with Vaccine trial on the way we have been able to fight through human progress through science, medicine and technology. A tip for the stock markets invest money in Pharma, Tech and Logistical Company stock, we are on the beginning of a bull run which would go on till the next year, their could be good money to be made here.

Elections went on during the Pandemic with a change of guard in US, they have a new President Biden lead the Democrat win for the White House, yes Trump lost the elections. The Pandemic was the end of him and his handling of it was what got him kicked out of office in a very close ballot.

My Partnership with Ashish is yet to result in a sale but it is nonetheless a good friendship to keep. My Film Torbaaz got released on NetFlix and is steaming live on it. The year comes to an end, and times still fly’s away. Till then lets hope that 2021 brings with it winds of change, hope and take away all our pains and deepest fears.

Enjoy audiobooks narrated by Anuj Tikku, now hear the books of this bestselling amazon.com author on audiobooks selling on I tunes and audible.com, you can become a member with audible.com and listen to these fantastic books through audible.com application on your mobile phone and tablets .Here books come to live, loose yourself into the many characters of this enchanting author. Out Of Africa audiobook is already a bestseller and 32^nd in Travel Africa category.

Enjoy Madness of The Monk and the Crime Thriller Yes sir I killed my Dad, just plug in the microphone and close your eyes let the narrative take you inside the story meet the place were imagination and reality blur as one .Listen to the author as he transports you into his travel stories as if you were seeing things unfold in front of you. Buy these high quality audiobooks, through your member points or through your credit card. Download on device to enjoy as and when you please all at the highest 4K and MP3 quality. You can also buy these audiobooks through my travel blog www.tikkustravelthon.in. We cover categories across genre from Travel, Food and Drinks, Thriller, Erotica, Poetry, Short Stories, Mystery, Self Help and even Religion and spirituality.

I am happy to announce that the following seven books of mine are now available as Paperback through KDP Select and amazon.com. The Titles can be bought directly from amazon.com and from Anuj Tikku author page, the paperback will be shipped to you directly in a few days itself on your door step. The Titles are Nineteen, Blogging for Gold, Kumbh Travelouge, Out Of Africa , Don’t be content with your Content, Survival.

The first copy of the paperback was sold and the title was Blogging for Gold the self help book for Bloggers.

Before discussing the scope of river rafting in Himachal, first of all we will need to understand certain terms as used in this sport before going into the details of what white water river rafting is. As the glacial or rain fed rivers flow from their point of origin down the slopes of the mountains, they transgress varying depths all along their route. These Mountain Rivers invariably have hidden rocks that obstruct their flow causing rapids and foamy waters which are referred to as white water also the famous places of Himachal, and the process of navigating through these rough waters is called white water river rafting.

Sprint: Conducted in the head to head or the individual format, in this the contestants are required to complete the course adopting the best possible route.

Slalom: A set course that has to be followed by the contestants, that leads them through a set of pre determined obstacles, around which they are expected to navigate while completing the course.

The one and only objective of this high adrenaline sport is to navigate downstream over extreme rapids using an inflatable or an inflated raft. A challenging and a risky sport it requires an immense amount of dedicated team effort, and is very popular around the world as an outdoor recreational sport. These races are held essentially on the natural river courses that pass through rapids or other under water crest and troughs. In all these races the numbers of participants vary between 2 to 8 per raft, regardless of the type of the race. The set objective of the race is the successful completion of the course in the least possible time.

The popularization of river rafting, as early as in 1950’s, if not earlier, lead to the formation of an International Rafting Federation. This apex organization was later responsible for stipulating all the rules and regulations that govern this sport all over the world. World River Rafting Championships are conducted under the aegis of this federation under the various categories, as stipulated, both, for men and women.

Next, let’s try and understand the difficulty levels, as determined, for river rafting. The difficulty levels are determined on the basis of the presence of rapids, evolved, owing to sudden troughs and crests and also because of the rocks, small or large, lurking in the waters.

Grading system for rapids                                                      

Grading or the levels of difficulty and danger are determined as per the international scale from I to VI on a progressive basis. The factors according to which the levels are decided are remoteness, size and type of waves, nature of river (whether there exist continuous rapids or there are calms between successive rapids)and water temperature, geographical terrain etc. while the overall grading is dependent on the hardest or the toughest rapid on the concerned river.
Class I: Comprising of small waves/ripples, and fast flowing water.

Class II: Comfortable

Class III: Marginally difficult/uncomfortable

Class IV: Very difficult

Class V: This class is considered to be extremely difficult and will need to be carried out by an experienced team and under experienced guidance, as it could result in the loss of limb or life

Class VI: Not negotiable and life threatening or suicidal.

Classes I to III require you to poses basic to mediocre swimming skills, whereas reasonably to very good white water rafting skills are required for classes IV to VI. 

Although being risky, and at times leading to fatalities, this sport can also be an extremely enjoyable, safe and an exciting soft adventure sport under proper professional guidance and your adherence to the safety tips, as advised by your instructor.The right training and use of the appropriate equipment while following the laid down international safety norms, also result in ensuring this sport to be an outdoor pleasure sport. More over the popularity of this sport can also be attributed to the fact that even non swimmers, without any prior experience, can go river rafting, not only that but also the fact that just a 15 minute instruction can enable you to enjoy this amazing and challenging sport.

Rafting – Indian scenario                         

The rivers emanating from the mighty Himalayas, be they the glacial or the rain fed rivers, their compatibility for rafting is determined after making the descents along their course of flow. With this in view river exploration came of age in India, after the local river runners had logged optimum experience qualifying them to join river rafting expeditions, coupled with the first descents of the Sutlej from the Rampur to Tattapani section, Teesta in Sikkim and West Bengal, and the Sarda in the Kumaon Himalayas in 1985, 1986 and 1987 respectively. Although many things in India are yet to be explored, the ones already chartered are basically just the proverbial “tip of the ice berg”. According to Peter Knowles, Chairman of the British Canoe Union Expeditions committee, the scope for first descents of rivers in India is immense, when compared to any other Himalayan country. The rivers in the northeastern and the southern states of India too have a tremendous scope for river exploration. 

India is fast emerging as the next river – running destination in the world. More over the fact that most or in fact all the rivers in India being easily accessible and no permits required for river running except on the “inner line” or the areas close to international borders, river rafting is well on its way to becoming the most popular adventure sport in the country. Owing to the commercialization this sport in India we see that there, currently, are more than 50 commercial outfitters in India, who organize such rafting trips that range from 2 hour trips to conducting various multiple day expeditions. 

Presently this sport has mainly been concentrated along the Ganges in the Rishikesh – Devprayag section. The other rivers of the area, like the Alaknanda, Mandakini and the Bhagirathi too are on the tourist map and are being considered for such adventure sport activities including Kayaking. Various other rivers in Uttarakhand like the Ramganga, Bhilangna, Yamina etc. have all been surveyed and found appropriate for conduction of rafting and other related water sports. River network in Jammu & Kashmir, and Ladakh region too have tremendous potential for this sport. Talking of adventure sports in Himachal Pradesh, this state happens to be a year round river – running destination. Although most of the river down south are yet to be explored regarding the possibility for the conduction of river – running, a few sections of the river Kaveri have been found compatible for this sport.

White Water Rafting in Himachal Pradesh

The melting snows, blooming flora and fauna signal the coming of spring in the Hiamalayas, a sign of ushering in of the season for river rafting in Himachal Pradesh. Therivers emanating from the upper Himalayan Ranges, being untamed as they are, are considered to be among the top White River Rafting circuits in the world and are known to offer a thrilling experience in this sport. The Chennab, Ravi, Sutlej and the mighty Beas, in Lahaul, Chamba, Shimla and Kullu respectively, constitute the four river rafting circuits and the best places for river rafting in Himachal Pradesh. The downstream flow of these rovers is entirely different as compared to other rivers, as stretches along these rivers become most fearsome as they foam up, lashing heavily against the underwater rocks, enroute, while swirling up along the banks as they rise and fall.

The Sutlej (Shimla)White Water rafting circuit:

Image source – Ramon Bucard

The Sutlej, flowing through here, is considered to be one among the most challenging river rafting routes, when considering river raftng in Shimla in Himachal Pradesh. The stretches along which river rafting is possible covers the Tattapani stretch, it gets its name owing to the presence of hot water Sulphur springs and lies at a motorable distance of about 50 Kms from Shimla.

In all there are three different stretches, along the Sutlej, demarcated according to the difficulty levels. The first one being a 3 Kms stretch at a small village Sunni, on the banks of this river. Incidentally this also happens to be the easiest one of all and also entertaining the non- swimmers.

The next stretch goes up to Chabba, about 12 Kms offering medium difficulty level, while being more exciting than the previous one at Sunni. The rapids flowing through this stretch are Grade II and it takes roughly one and a half hours to reach Tattapani.

The starting point for the most popular rafting expedition begins at Pandowa. The first stretch in this area extends up to Pandowa from Luhri, making it a total stretch of about 20 Kms. However the untrained or the beginners are asked to stop short at Patakhra, as it is from this point onwards that the rapids turn rather rough and scaling up to  grade VI rapids here on for the remaining stretch of the course.

Pandowa to Tattapani, accounts for another stretch along the Sutlej circuit, stretching up to a length of 25 Kms, constituting of grade III and Iv rapids along its course, while the final stretch downstream measures 30 Kms from Pandowa to Kadhai Ka Fer.

White Water rafting circuit – Ravi and Saal, in Chamba

Image source – Brad Pearson

The Chamba district of Himachal Pradesh, too, is now, increasingly, being developed and considered for the introduction of river rafting in Chamba, along the mighty Ravi and Saal that flow through it.Generally the monsoon months are considered to be the ideal period for river rafting in Chamba, making the period from June to October most favourable for all kinds of water sports including river rafting.

The state government and the tourism department are preparing to popularize this sport in the region by holding a river rafting carnival along the identified stretches in the Ravi flowing through the region. This carnival is intended to be split up into three categories, those of Sprint, Salalom, and marathon rafting.

White Water rafting circuit – Chandrabhaga (Chenab), in Lahaul & Spiti

Image source – Angga indratama

The September of 2011 is the landmark date in Lahaul and Spiti, as this is when this district was opened for water sports in the region. Gateway to Lahaul and Spiti, Koksar, is the point of initiation of river rafting in this region. A stretch of 90 Kms. from here up to Tandi, the point of confluence of the rivers Chandra and Bhaga, forming the Chandrabhaga (Chenab), entering through the Pattan Valley, is the one identified for river rafting in Lahaul & Spiti in Himachal Pradesh.

An alternative route for river rafting in Lahaul and Spiti is from Darcha to Udaipur, roughly a 70 Kms stretch along the Keylong – Leh route.

White Water rafting circuit – Beas, in Kullu

Image source – gettyimages

Another, most popular, river rafting circuit offering unlimited fun is the Beas river circuit in Kullu. Also termed as river rafting in Manali, the season here starts in the month of April and goes on till the end of June, just before the onset of the monsoons in this region.

The starting point on this circuit is Pirdi which is just 4 Kms ahead of Kullu. From Pirdi starts the 14 Kms stretch comprising of grade II and III rapids which are suitable enough even for the novices. Since Pirdi is roughly 45 Kms from Manali it is advised that a night halt be made at Kullu before proceeding further downstream.

The river Beas, being largely popular among the Kayaking community, with its grade V rapids upstream off Manali grade IV through Manali and grade III downstream off Manali town, it offers immense scope for river rafting, too, in the region.

Before you book himachal tour packages with a rafting tripor an expedition river rafting in Himachal Pradesh, please ensure that you go through all the safety procedure as per the safety guide provided for with every company. Wish you a happy and an enjoyable rafting experience.

Author Bio

Rahul Arora has one year of experience in Digital Marketing. He’s currently working as a Digital Marketing Executive at Indian Travel Store. He loves to explore new terrains in a different corner of the world, or out in the city freezing urban scenarios in his camera.

Now that I have started producing and selling my audiobooks on acx.com I have parented a lot as a narrator and voice artist for my own books. I have understood that I can also ask for auditions from other voice over artists from the acx.com community who can voice my books, I don’t need to be the narrator all the time. I can upload my audition script with the style of narration I want, in what language I want it in, and give a brief description about the tone of the narrator and what he/she should try to capture when narrating my books. There are options that I need to click on to establish what exactly I want from the person who voices my books.

The audition script can be uploaded In a PDF format for the producer to send me narration samples so that I can then select the right voice for my audiobook narration. This is all done through acx.com with my audition inquiry posted on their wall. Once that is done Tehri is a royalty structure where I can share 20% of my 40% royalty revenue from my Global sale of audiobooks with the producer who puts the production cost upfront.

When I did the narration myself my cost for per hour VO recorded and correctly uploaded is about Rs 1500 per hour which I put from my pocket. This cost upfront along with the cost of the new narrator is borne by the co-producer who selects my project at acx.com and executes it with my supervision. In return he shares my 40% royalty revenue, I get only 20% now for all audiobook Global sale. I have already executed this for my audiobook The Kumbh Travelogue 2019 and hope to ex cute some more projects as I go along just to see which one is more profitable. I would assume having a different narrator would spice the books up as I will get more variety of tone and style of narrations and voices.

There will be more variety and I will be able to execute character-based audio plays as well as I get a pool of many types of character voices, as well as I, go along. This will improve the quality and engagement value of my book and really get the imagination going. More voices more engaging the content and all this with acx.com expert help, no running around for me hiring studio’s reaching on time getting behind the sound eng. guys. The only thing is to be patient as the project will take time to be executed and be ready to part with 20% of your Royalty revenue.