In Pursuit of Peace

When a whole world of ancient art forms, untouched wilderness, and royal heritage unfolded on her maiden trip to eastern Odisha, writer Sushmita Srivastav found more than the solace she sought

- Sushmita Srivastav

YOU HAVE NO CLUE HOW lucky we are to have found these,” Debjit smiles at me as I cautiously handpick the last of the delicate wild mushrooms from the muddy swamp that stretches before me. Called bali chhatu in the local language, these tiny, long-stemmed sand mushrooms, I am told, are endemic to the jungles of Odisha and survive only for a day, if and when they manage to grow after an extended period of heavy rains. And here I am—kneeling in the mud, collecting clusters of them from the foot of one of the tall teak trees that surround us. Once done, I hand over my share to Debjit, who then wraps them all in a huge teak leaf and carefully places it inside his bag.

Soft rays of sun filter through the leaves before kissing my skin, a little centipede crawls by, and a pin-striped tit babbler sings long, monotonous series of hollow pings somewhere close. I certainly feel lucky. For what are the Chances that one moment, I'm frantically typing terms like 'spiritual sojourn' and 'cultural experiences' in the search bar of the Postcard Travel Club's website (postcard.travel), and the next, I'm far from home—at peace—on a guided jungle walk deep inside the Kapilash Elephant Sanctuary in the Dalijoda Forest Ranges of eastern Odisha?

Founded by Amit Jaipuria in 2020, Postcard Travel Club is a community-first, narrative-driven platform that connects conscious luxury travellers with mindful boutique properties. My desperate attempt to find some quietude from daily life's chaos has led me to Kila Dalijoda (kiladalijoda.com), a 2,000-year-old heritage palace property tucked away in the remote village of Mangarajpur in Choudwar district, close to the twin cities of Cuttack and Bhubaneswar.

SIMPLE JOYS, SIMPLER LIFE