If you are in the tourism industry, you are bound to travel around the world and collect/buy memorabilia from all over. Ravisankar, who heads Tourism India, a pioneering travel and tourism publication, and wife Rajani are two such souls. And the couple indeed gave a treat for ‘Curiocity’. They lay in heaps and heaps before us. Carry bags! And there seemed no end to it as Rajani came out with more and more bundles. And she stunned us saying, “I have given away at least ten times of this to friends and family!” Tourism India was launched 14 years ago, at a time when the state tourism industry was all about some 20-25 resorts and less than 10 houseboats. Ravi had launched it along with a friend and later on started running it on his own. Now the name Tourism India is one to reckon with in the industry.Once he was fully involved in the field, he got busy travelling across the country and outside. “The trips started in 1998. It was when Rajani started showing interest in collecting carry bags that I began bringing them in large numbers. Now, I travel at least once every month to take part in tourism fairs and other events and make it a point to bring back carry bags for her,” Ravi says. Which means, they form additional luggage on his return trip, on top of the other exciting stuff. “Since I will have to pay a huge amount for each extra kilo, I divide the luggage among those who travel with me!,” he says, breaking into laughter.The collection is absolutely interesting. Name any country, you are sure to find bag or bags from there. They are different from each other with respect to make, size, shape, colour etc. Above all, most of them come with many customised features that would leave you dumb-struck. An example being the bag from Greece which comes with wheels under it.“Earlier, we used to get only paper bags. Now, the paper quality has changed a lot. So too the add-on features,” he says, adding, “We still haven’t tapped into our potential in this field.”The couple has got a lot of friends who come asking for the bags. “They say these bags that speak of their exotic origins let them carry themselves in style’,” Rajani says. And she even takes the trouble to put zip on some of them so that she can gift it to someone. “Friends who know very well about the collection don’t hesitate to come here and ask when they need them. It is said, ‘The more you give, the more you get’. The saying is absolutely true, we have learnt,” the couple say. They also use some of these bags occasionally and have invited attention from others each time they carry them around. Ravisankar was a professional photographer, that too, one of the highest paid, when he switched over to publishing industry. And he takes pride in the fact that the photos he took were put to use when the Kerala tourism stepped on to the ‘God’s Own Country’ branding mode. He treasures one such carry bag which has got photographs taken by him printed on both sides. The treat given by the couple for ‘Curiocity’ didn’t end with the carry bags. Keychains, pens, coat pins, hand fans, hats and different sorts of memorabilia added to it. A seed from Botswana with art work done on it and items from Bali (one of them being a terrific hat), Malayisa, Dominican Republic, China, Bulgaria, Paris, Kenya, Costa Rica, Norway, New Zealand, Panama etc decorate the showcase at their residence. The colourful wooden figures from Nicaragua form an absolutely adorable part of the collection. “The latest addition is an ostrich egg, gifted by our staff, Theresa, who is from South Africa,” says Ravi.
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