(April 9, 2024) “I live between India and Yorkshire. Two completely different worlds. My heart lies in India, which I’ve specialised in as a destination expert since 1998, my family lives in Yorkshire, I juggle the two,” mentions entrepreneur, consultant, author and public speaker Philippa Kaye. The British national fell in love with India during her first visit and has since explored its vast expanse, including Delhi/NCR, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, Uttar Pradesh, Ladakh, Karnataka, Goa, Assam, West Bengal, Gujarat, Odisha, and Chhattisgarh.
As a destination consultant, Philippa has been facilitating travel to India since the past two decades, and has spearheaded the establishment of Indian divisions for multiple UK-based travel companies like Selective Asia, Unforgettable Travel and Experience Travel Group. Philippa has also lent her expertise to various hotels and Indian DMCs (Destination Management Companies). “My fervour lies in spotlighting ‘A different India,’ venturing beyond the conventional tourist destinations,” she tells Global Indian.
Phillipa Kaye
A gifted writer and author, she has penned a novel, Escape to India. “It is partly my story though I’ve never disclosed which are fact and which are fiction,” she remarks. Moreover, her website Memsahib in India encapsulates her varied experiences in India. That’s not all. She has also contributed to columns in prestigious publications such as The Times of India and Mint.
Rich experiences
In the course of two-and-half decades of her association with India, she has enriched her life and developed lasting relationships.
“I have ridden priceless Marwari horses, been invited to royal weddings, been threatened by the local mafia, trekked mountains, rafted white water, been wined and dined by Maharajas, slept out under the stars, driven vintage cars, got caught up in Holi and ended up with hair dyed a permanent shade of green,” she remarks. “Best of all, I have got to know its people and discovered that in India, anything is possible,” the entrepreneur and author mentions.
Philippa Kaye with ladies in Rajasthan
Promoting India through ‘Indian Experiences’
Motivated by love for the diversity and richness of the country, Philippa founded Indian Experiences, a consultancy firm in the realm of the Indian travel trade. The firm helps travel companies to showcase the real India helping them discover more offbeat destinations. It promotes experiences beyond normal sightseeing in mainstream destinations and helps to tailor the services to client demographics.
“We represent experienced providers and specialist, regional and niche travel companies in India with a focus on ethical and sustainable travel,” adds Philippa.
Indian Experiences particularly focuses on empowering women and rural population and actively promotes small companies who are specialists in their fields. The firm believes in the ethos of sustainable tourism. In the process, it creates memorable and sustainable travel experiences by crafting unique itineraries for tourists with the goal of making them return for more such Indian experiences.
Philippa Kaye with ladies in Ladakh
“Indian Experiences is now in the process of rebuilding itself post Covid” remarks Philippa. Before the pandemic, the firm had an office in India but now it’s working through associate offices. It has also forayed into tourism in Nepal and Sri Lanka.
India from a British eye
Philippa describes her experiences in her beloved country as “frustrating, illogical, often hilarious, humbling, surreal, but never, ever dull.”
The most challenging part for her is dealing with the bureaucracy. “It is always a challenge, particularly with setting up a business and bank account and also, as I learnt to my detriment, being able to find a good CA who you can trust,” she tells. “Things take longer over here and in business discussions, there’s a lot more nuance than we use in the UK.”
It all started when…
Philippa visited India for the first time in 1998 and explored Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka as a part of a six-week recce project for her job – which was for a travel company. After completing her task, she returned to the UK, prepared the brochure and launched the India campaign for the company.
Till date, Kerala and Tamil Nadu hold a special place in her heart – the states that she has visited multiple times since her maiden trip. A strong advocate of meaningful human connections, she still prefers to travel these states with the same driver who she had hired on her first trip to South India.
Philippa Kaye with her dad in India
Philippa is happily single but has a loving family staying in the UK. “My brother, sister-in-law, nephews and nieces have all been to India. I also brought my dad over for his first trip when he was 80,” she shares with joy.
Escape to India
Her love for the country led her to write the novel – Escape to India – based on a true story about living in the jungles of central India, and running a safari lodge in Kanha National Park in Madhya Pradesh.
For Philippa and the protagonist in the book, life in India is ‘extraordinary and exhausting, fascinating and unfathomable but always thought provoking’. “Simple daily tasks that we from first world countries take for granted, can become expeditions in India. The most mundane activity can cause endless causes for frustration or amusement. Life in India has tested me, more than occasionally, but amused me endlessly, perhaps that’s just me,” mentions the author.
Philippa Kaye
She is in the process of writing three guidebooks on an alternative India. “I am on the lookout for a publisher,” she says.
Giving back
Philippa’s consultancy has supported various NGOs in the country by working with them and encouraging tourists to visit the place. It also offers them free marketing and social media strategies to improve their visibility.
The selection of travel partners by Philippa’s firm has always been based on their dedication to supporting local communities. While she is in the process of rebuilding the reach of Indian Experiences, the ethos of sustainable tourism and giving back to the community is not being compromised. “I am focusing on steering it in the right direction,” she signs off.
Philippa Kaye in Rajasthan
Dr Praapti Jayaswal[/caption]
Avlokita Tiwari[/caption]
Tehzoon Karmalawala[/caption]
Sudha Varghese[/caption]
Sudha Varghese with students of Prerna school[/caption]
Sudha interacting with ladies of the Musahar community[/caption]
APJ Abdul Kalam presenting the Padma Shri Award (2006) to Sister Sudha Varghese in New Delhi on March 20, 2006[/caption]
Sudha with Amitabh Bachchan on the show Kaun Banega Crorepati[/caption]
Mindy Kaling and Sandra Bullock in a still from Ocean's 8[/caption]
Philippa is a superstar in my experience … and we share a love of the “off-the-beaten-path” India.
What a fantastic write up for you. I know your heart is in India but us Yorkshire folk love your witty but caring attitude too!! Keep being authentic PK love shaz & biglugs!
Going through the unique presentation of the Britisher Philippa Kaye, we realise how little we know ,as an native of our mother land INDIA of our own country! Amrita Priya has presented the life of Ms. Kaye and her activities of two decades and more (in a county which was once an alien place) very closely, and gave us a ring side view which certainly spread the potentiality of INDIAN TOURISM. And probably, before Ms. KAYE, nobody, not even any INDIAN, made such elaborate and sincere effort to promote tourism that INDIA deserves.
Its something like ‘Valley cheese of Switzerland is admired out side the valley’.