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About Kushal Bhardwaj

Hi! I am Kushal Bhardwaj, a scuba diving and travel enthusiast since the past 10 years!

Thank you for stopping by. This website is my spot in the virtual world to write about my passion for scuba diving and travelling as well as the adventures and memories I have had through it. I hope they inspire you to do the same!

That’s me!

How I began my travels…

As I begin to decipher my life’s journey, I realise it has encompassed 3 phases till now.

The first phase is the one from birth to pre-MBA. I was born in Bengaluru, but grew up in a hot oven of a city called Ahmedabad, in western India, known for its food, culture and fun-loving people. Travelling was part and parcel of life with my family, but I discovered the thrill of travelling solo only during my early 20s.

I have been travelling since the age of 6, but discovered it during my early 20s.

The pursuit of further education took me back to Bengaluru. Studying engineering was an eventful time in my life and I enriched it during the semester breaks, by traveling to rural and coastal Karnataka and North Goa. The variety of locations, scenery, culture, food and people excited me and those trips still give me goose bumps! 

Eventually, the dream of attaching a MBA tag to my CV took priority. I loved this new development in my life – it transformed me from a caterpillar in a cocoon to a butterfly waiting to take off!

It was during my MBA journey, that I started and maintained a small blog to share my experiences and keep my family clued in to what I was upto.

This heralded the second phase of my life – MBA to pre-scuba diving.

During this transformation process, my sister gifted me a Nikon D90 DSLR – which began the onset During this time, my family gifted me a camera (Nikon d90 DSLR), to support my traveling passion by framing and clicking shots that piqued my interest. I also attended a photography workshop by Mr. Anand Sharan, who taught and helped me to hone my skills. And then, since 2009, I have been photographing birds, wildlife and nature. Eventually, a Nikon 200-500mm lens was added to my arsenal to dig deep into wildlife and bird photography and to get those superb close up shots!

A yawning tiger, Ranthambore, India
Ashy Prinia, Thol, Gujarat, India
Hills in Meghalaya, India

After a stint of 2 years at Tata Consultancy Services, the bugle call from my hometown was loud and clear. I bid adieu to Bengaluru in 2010, and returned to Ahmedabad and started learning the ropes in the family business of logistics. I did not stop traveling though; my trusted camera and I have travelled to Kolkata, Belgaum, Pune, Mumbai, Jaisalmer, Udaipur, Delhi, Agra, Goa, Hyderabad and interiors of Gujarat.

However, I felt something could be added to my list of passions.

A wonderful and meaningful episode on scuba diving on NatGeo spurred my interest. After good research and interacting with many people, in 2013, I said “now or never”! Clothes stuffed into the rucksack, tickets booked, and the trip began to the shrine of scuba diving in India – Havelock, the Andaman Islands.

Those 10 days at Havelock were the longest holiday I have taken as a single person. I have to admit I was a bit terrified during the journey from Ahmedabad to Havelock, and my folks at home were even more so! But guess what! At the ocean, it took me about 15-odd minutes to go under, and when I did, there was no turning back! The memory of my first dive is so fresh, it feels like it just happened yesterday!

Thus began the third phase, with scuba diving taking a priority in my life. I wanted to share what I saw, with my family and friends and hence ventured into underwater photography.  Over the course of 7 years and 150+ dives, I took photos and videos of wonderful underwater creatures – macro, small, big and manta-size! The logo of my website (designed by Samara Dutt) shows exactly what I feel when I have packed my bags, travelling and when I am diving – these two passions are truly part of my heartbeats. 

Juvenile Frogfish, Apo & Dauin, Philippines
Juveline Razorfish, Komodo, Indonesia

Slowly and steadily, I was asked by many to share my experiences. Talking and sharing about them, suddenly didn’t seem enough. I realised that I missed my blog, and what it entailed – writing, sharing, engaging with people, inspiring others. And since now I had so much to show and tell, my own personal website made so much sense!

My journey may seem conventional to you, but this is why I believe I am a maverick – the name of the website is a testimonial to my travelling and diving days, checking in to awesome and memorable experiences, in true maverick style. 

This is Maverick checking in, join me as I explore this wonderful planet of ours! 

[On a side note – if you would like to learn scuba diving in India, please do visit https://diveindia.com for more details. they are India’s 2nd oldest dive centre, love what they do with undying passion and their commitment to beginners is unbeatable.]

[On a further side note – if you liked the logo of my website and wanted to know more about the designs and designer please do visit https://www.samaradutt.com for more details. An absolutely amazing graphic designer, a wonderful professional to work with and amazing results!]