As a kid, I used to sit for hours with my grandfather’s late brother’s photo albums.
He had this habit — he would click photos, get them printed, and put them in albums. Proper albums, with plastic-covered pages. As a kid I used to sit with those for hours. Admiring how a shot was taken. Recognising family members I barely knew.
Looking at old pictures made me understand that moments matter. And that someone has to care enough to save them.
I think that’s where the seed was planted.
Table of Contents
The First Camera I Ever Held
I got serious about photography during my college days. But the very first time I went somewhere with a camera was in 2018 — Bir Billing, with a college friend.
It wasn’t my camera. It was my cousin’s DSLR.
I took a few shots. Nothing remarkable. But when I came back home and looked at them on a screen — I loved it.
That same period I started writing about my experiences, built my blog, and chose the name Crossroadadventure.
The desire to create and capture moments had found a direction.
A Solo Trip — Kashmir, 2019
After college ended I made a decision — I was going somewhere alone.
I booked a bus to Kashmir. The departure was in the evening on the same day India was playing New Zealand in World Cup semi-final cricket match. I’m a hardcore cricket lover. Leaving the match in between was a genuinely difficult decision.
But I went.
In Kashmir I went to Aru Valley, Pahalgam. It was the period of the Amarnath Yatra and somewhere in the middle of the night, the police stopped our shared taxi on the way to Srinagar. I slept in the car. But reached comfortably the next morning.
I came back with a bunch of photos. which I clicked on my cousin’s camera.
That trip confirmed something — photography and solo travel were going to be part of my life in a serious way.
And then,
the next year, COVID happened.
The Contest That Changed Something
In April 2021, I came across a MakeMyTrip contest for Unseen India. The brief was simple — submit a photo of a location that is genuinely unseen. Actually unseen, in the truest sense.
My mind immediately went to a photo I had taken in Aru Valley, Pahalgam and had submitted it.
That same month, I bought my first own camera — a Fujifilm X-T3 — from savings while working from home during the lockdown period.
After a few days, I left for Delhi to Jodhpur to explore. New camera, long stay, working remotely, explore mode was on.
Jodhpur was incredible.
When I came back, one of the mornings, I received an Instagram DM.
My photo from Aru Valley had been selected as one of the winners of the MakeMyTrip Travel Ambassador contest. Among thousands — possibly lakhs — of entries.
I was stunned.
Five people won. I was one of them. I received a gift voucher redeemable for flights, stays, and holiday packages across India.
It was the best birthday gift I’ve ever received.
National Geographic — One Month Later
The very next month, in May 2021, I came across a contest by National Geographic Traveller India. They wanted people to share a musical journey experience in the comments.
I wrote my answer. But, I didn’t think much about it.
In the next few days, I received a DM.
My answer had been selected. They wanted a piece of content — a paragraph and a photo — to be featured on their blog on the article dedicated to world music day.
I sent them a paragraph and a photo I had taken at Mandore Garden in Jodhpur.
It got published.
Back-to-back achievements within a matter of months. MakeMyTrip winner. National Geographic published. Both happening in the same short window of time.
The NatGeo Traveller India website is no longer operational, but I took a screenshot.
The lesson I took from that period was simple — it happened because I was showing up, not only looking but grabbing the opportunity instantly and doing the work.
Light and Life Academy
After COVID eased, my confidence to pursue photography and filmmaking seriously had never been higher.
I applied to Light and Life Academy in Lovedale, Ooty — one of India’s most respected institutions for photography and filmmaking.
My grandparents broke their fixed deposit to support me. I don’t take that lightly. I never will.
I spent close to 10 months in Ooty, studying, shooting, learning what it means to follow a creative profession.
Through all of it, I stopped blogging for some time. Because the efforts doesn’t seem paying back instantly at least for blog.
After I returned to Delhi I started blogging again. Crossroadadventure kept going. Life experiences and visuals — I kept sharing as they happened.
Where the Journey Stands
I haven’t made it big in my life.
I want to say that clearly — because this story is about taking the road taken, the journey chosen.
The hunger that made me leave a cricket match to board a bus to Kashmir in 2019 is still there. The same hunger that made me submit a photo to a contest and somehow end up on National Geographic — that hasn’t changed either.
I still apply for competitions. I still wake up early to go out with a camera. I still come back home and sit with the images for a long time, polishing them to present the best version.
The journey in photography is long. Most of it is invisible — the early mornings, the missed shots, the trips that didn’t produce a single frame worth keeping. But also the ones that did.
Crossroadadventure is almost eight years old. More than two hundred blog posts written. Thousands of readers every month. Lakhs of photos clicked. Plenty of videos made. And I am still going.
Hey Vansh
Nice to see uour journey to success.
Yes the old photograph in an Album used to be a treasure to keep unlike now a days it’s caged in our mobiles.
I m happy to see that you have achieved so many awards and appreciation from renowned publication and Travel platform
Keep uour good work going
Good Luvk
Hi Sir,
Thank you very much for reading it. The journey cycle goes up and down, though have to keep faith and belief in the progress.
Thank you once again for passing by 😇