A Solo Indian Female Traveller and her Safety

A short piece for your mid-week read.

I moved back to Delhi in October 2018, so it’s been about five months now. I joined my gym in November and it’s really convenient because its just a kilometre away.  Even in Manchester (where I studied for a year) it was the same distance, and in fact walking 1-2kms one way wasn’t considered to be a big deal there. However, here, in my hometown where I belong, which is a hustling and cosmopolitan city, I cannot even think of walking to the gym. It’s pretty much out of question, because unfortunately there is no crime which does not exist here.

From not being able to go to the gym in the city which I call my home to walking in the streets of 10 different countries all alone. My family and friends checked up on me frequently and as mentioned in my previous posts, a lot of people asked me how and why am I doing this because its ‘unsafe’. Being an Indian and being a woman, there’s a natural instinct we have to be safe. We naturally take measures towards our safety, just instinctually, have you ever realised? From wearing clothes depending on where we’re going, the place we’re in, not going to certain areas, and so on.

Some measures I took were getting back to my hostel before it gets dark and going out in late evenings only when I’m in a group. Adding to that, I did hang out a lot with my hostel mates and that’s how I’d party and go out in the evenings. Another underrated tactic is just pretending to be confident, even if you’re not. Always be stern and upright and hold a confident body language, it makes you look less touristy and more familiar to the place 😉 So yes, simple and basic steps.

Gladly, I did not have a single negative or ‘unsafe’ experience. Most importantly, always rely on your intuition. Sometimes, your head may feel its okay but if your instinct is against it- follow your instinct. Remember, we humans used out ‘gut feeling’ for survival ages ago, and we unknowingly use it even now! 🙂