All work and no play makes Jill a dull girl! Having established that whilst working in office, why not pack a bag and unravel an unexplored destination in an all women trip, come 2017? And to put together these instant thoughts of the perfect destination to go, how to reach, where to stay, etc. reach out to Soul Purpose, an experiential travel company run by women, for destinations often off the beaten track, with a mix of adventure, culture and connect with local communities.

“The idea behind each Soul Purpose trip is to travel to offbeat destinations, explore lesser known areas and add an extra dimension to the holiday by understanding and bonding closely with the local culture. Each trip is built around activities like trekking, rafting, diving, wildlife safaris, food and culture trails”, says Soul Purpose Founder Vidya Deshpande.

Excerpts from an exclusive interaction with Vidya Deshpande of Soul Purpose:

Background of Promoter

For more than 25 years I worked in a newsroom: the adrenalin rush that you get with breaking news, the head rush of seeing your story going as the lead story in the newspaper to working behind the scenes in a TV newsroom. Travelling to meet people, interviewing celebrities was all in a day’s work. I am now a travel and food writer for newspapers and magazines like Lonely Planet, Economic Times, New Indian Express to name a few. I also took to running at the age of 49 and ran my first half marathon last year. Now, running has become an addiction and almost every weekend is spent participating in a running event.

I put all of my skills together to co-create a travel company that thrives on crafting special experiences for women.

The initial period- the challenges & the ecstasy of quick wins!

We set off the blocks pretty quickly. The company was set up in December 2012 and our first trip was in Feb 2013. The first trip will always be memorable. We were a group of 11 and had a fun time bird watching in Bharatpur.

The journey so far!

Soul Purpose has done over 25 all women trips and over 200 women have travelled with us. Soul Purpose has done trips from Ladakh to Tranquebar, Kohima to Kutch. and Sri Lanka & Jordan.

Strategic Alliances & Partnerships

We work with boutique hotels and agents across the world.

The future, as you see, 3 years from now in terms of scope & scale of your business enterprise

Three years from now, we hope to become the top brand in women’s travel, offering a bouquet of services.

Key moments of reckoning in business life

Moving to a business from a job was a big step for me into the unknown. I relied on strong belief in my self in pursuing my dreams.