Meet Our Team
VYSHAKH NAIR
Outdoor leader
Ahem, Heylo Heylo. You are looking at what was once my dream: starting an adventure travel company.
I had quit my career in oil and gas to spent time in things that interests me more , in 2016.
These days I spent 80 % of my time on this adventure travel startup and 20% in feeding my general curiosity about tech startups , trading , philosophy , ethics and Russian.
I love ending up in places where I don’t speak their language, places that main stream media doesn’t cover and places that have a history. 😬
My travel bucket list is full of places I had read about . It might not make sense for 95% of the people to go to those places . But for me , it completes what I have read.
After leading trips all these years , I realised it was mostly about the people you travel with than the trip itself, that makes the trip extra ordinary. 🧡 . Let's together Create a space for whoever our trippers want to be on our trips. We want our trippers to feel free from all the assumptions , doubts and fear.
ALKA HARI
Outdoor leader
Besides being a fantastic fashion designer, mom to two cute dogs & babysitter to more 20+ houseplants she has now taken up the role of an outdoor leader with Team OJ.
She brings outrageously delicious cookies for trail food & keeps a beautiful smile even in the face of adversity.
Alka believes when you do something really well, own it. Enthusiasm is infectious and by getting excited about your genuine interests , you are giving way to inspire other people to do the same.
If you ask her question Mountain or the beach?
She would ask what about the jungle and the deserts ?
We would love to see Alka winning hearts by simply being herself . Go shower the same love that you all have given Vyshakh , Tasneem & Laxman. 🧡.
Pavitra R
Community manager
Apart from an over-thinker, I am a creator, literature student, writer and dancer. There is nothing more joyful for me than creating content that welcomes people to experience never-felt-before experiences.
When I am not surrounded by mountains or tied to materialistic duties , you can find me staring at the city-mountains from my window 🙂
NEHA KARNANI
Outdoor leader
Besides being a banker, a fitness freak, a full time adventure enthusiast, Neha not only loves to travel but it’s been her dream to take people to on different adventures.
Primarily working as an AVP, she always finds a way for her passion for authentic and raw travels. It’s in a way infectious how she’s often found exploring about the different cultures, making food with the local families or playing with the kids around. This is what sets her apart.
Be it a trek like KGL or dancing with the Nagas in Hornbill or surfing in Mulki or skiing in -10 degrees you will never find Neha low on energy. She is always in her element looking for new things to learn.
Neha says “it’s not always about the locations and destinations but also about the experiences we share and the people we meet along the way. This is what gives our trips and in turn life a different meaning.”
Shivam MIShrA
Experience lead
Shivam travelled with us in one of our kazakhstan trip and immediately vibed with the whole group. He took take care of each trippers and was inquisitive about knowing more about the local food, dance forms and history. Honestly he knew more than all of the group combined about the country when we left.
He helped us and kept taking up more responsibilities without even us asking him. One day we would be knocking all doors to wake all of us up and next day he would calling up everyone together for drinking.
As the trip got over, We just knew he had to be part of the OJ growth story. We didn't exactly had a role that fit him when he joined but we are coming up with new responsibilities that Shivam enjoys to tackle.
LAXMAN DEVADAS
Outdoor leader
They say don’t mix friendship and business. But we don’t know any other way to run this company . Laxman is friends with vyshakh since last 15 years and makes a perfect addition to the Team OJ.
Laxman is a water baby, could have lived very close to the water in his previous life. His mother would say , put him in any ocean, any river in the world and she isn’t worried at all.
Primarily working as a marketing head , Laxman has been leading private batches of OJ since January 2022 and from July 2022 , he decided to channel all his efforts working with team OJ.
He loves being outdoors more than anyone else in our team and is truly in his element when hiking in the mountains & swimming with the fishes.
So if you are looking for a mountain guide
to embrace your wild side , then with Laxman , you will have a hell of a ride.
Kinjal Doshi
Outdoor leader
A celebrity hairdresser , make up artist by profession, a mom to a rescue dog, COCO and she can geek out on dog behaviour and dog psychology.
Kinjal first hiked with us to Chandrashila , then Kashmir Great Lakes followed by 2 private batches for Andamans led by her . In her , I saw an unconditional friend, a thrill seeker but most importantly a good Human. Having seen in her in multiple scenarios: Hikes , parties, small groups and big groups , I noticed : she would be always be the same : her Jolly self.
She was saying the other day :
My travel bucket list is over flowing with place I want to see , things I want to experience and it was post 2021, post pandemic that I have made it my life’s mission to slowly try & tick things off that list. Which basically means I have become a travel addict now 😊 and I’m not complaining 😛
This puts us , in an apt space to give her a hand to see more of the world as part of Team OJ. We can’t wait for her to come up with amazing ideas / trips for Team OJ.
JUDSON SAMUEL
Operations lead
You would find Judson on most Sundays in the church, most Saturdays driving around people of his area for random things we will never imagine.
In the night, you will find him either finishing off all the most prominent tasks of Team OJ. Without him, you wouldn't find these beautifully designed website and itineraries.
If someone would want to know all the inner workings of how this brand works, they can just kidnap Judson ( Ofcourse along with his laptop)
Hello Folks,
One in the orange jacket was started in March 2018. We started by leading high altitude treks in India & Nepal . We loved the great outdoors to core and still do. In 2019, We thought: If we were to add 2-3 adventure activities to group trips, would people like that ?
That one thought has bought us here in 2023 where we function across the North India 🏔️, Bhutan , Kazakhstan 
, Kyrgyzstan 
, Vietnam 
, Egypt 
, Jordan 
, Morocco 
, and Japan 
.
In 2023 January, We introduced HVFC across few trips. HVFC stands for History, Volunterring, Food and culture. We are trying to bring these aspects to all our trips because if you go back home without doing any of these, Have you really been to that place ?
Our trips are for you ,
If you prefer places without network over places with 4g network during your trip
If you prefer catching the sunset , even if it means we might get our dinner 30 minutes late
If you don't mind going out for a walk at midnight to see the stars in freezing temperatures
If you are genuinely happy about motivating that one trekker at the back of the group who feels exhausted
If you prefer local cuisines over standard western food
If you are excited about teaching 1st-7th graders in the small village schools
If you are excited to meet new people, become part of their stories and vice versa
If you are concerned to see plastic waste in the mountains, or anywhere else than in a dust bin.
HVFC ( History, Volunteering, Food , culture )
Going to Ho Chi Minh city and not visiting the cu chi tunnels is a shame , or not spending a moment of silence in the Key monastery in Kaza would be sensationally stupid which is why whenever we are visiting a place, we ensure we incorporate a few stops to bask in the history of those early days
Be it donating school supplies to a local school in Meghalaya or teaching a language in another school near Rishikesh or cleaning a bit of the Spiti river to raise awareness about climate change , we want to inculcate the act of being selfless, we want to provide you an opportunity to come together with others to perform more eye opening experiences to support those in need.
When we are traveling across oceans or road tripping through rural regions, do you want to eat a burger, a salad or something you could have on any other day?
We encourage you to eat without fear, tear into the local stew, drink the sincerely offered Kahwa in a local glass and learn how to order breakfast in a country where you don’t know the language. We like stuff like that.
Do you know what it’s like to spend a day drinking and dancing with Angami tribes of Nagaland? Have you ever gone shopping for bread in a local market in Kazakhstan?
These are experiences we get only when we visit the place where it all originated from.
Made with ♥ in the mountains | © 2023
