The lame (real) reason behind everything I do

The truth, plain and simple

I want to come clean before this year gets over.

I have thought long and hard about this - Why do I do what I do?

Why am I here in Kerala learning Kalaripayattu?

Why do I want to learn things like surfing, pottery, and mountaineering next?

Sure, they’re my curiosities. They bring me joy. But there’s an underlying reason, and it’s not as deep as I thought it would be.

I just like being cool. Doing cool things.

That’s it.

It’s kind of been my motivation for a lot of things, even since my school days.

Playing volleyball in school? Felt cool.
Moving out for college? Super cool.
Being a traveller and freelancer? Feels badass—even when the finances don’t always match the vibe.

For a long time, though, I felt that wasn’t enough reason. I kept digging for something profound to attach my choices to. And in that process, Piqued Pilgrim was born.

The philosophy behind it—of letting curiosity and joy guide life—has been my answer to that search. It’s not untrue. In fact, it’s helped me give structure and direction to my journey and my storytelling. But if I peel back another layer, the truth is this:

I just want to feel cool and badass.

For years, I thought that wasn’t “good enough” to admit out loud. I thought motivations needed to be complex or profound to justify the choices I made. But this year has been all about shedding layers, and this is another one I’m ready to let go of.

Because I’m starting to believe that life and motivations don’t have to be profound to be meaningful. They just need to make sense to you. They just need to bring you happiness.

This realization has been freeing. It’s allowed me to embrace the simplicity of my motivations. It’s also taught me that Piqued Pilgrim—with its big, beautiful ideas of curiosity and joy—isn’t about projecting profundity. It’s about celebrating the things that feel meaningful to me, no matter how “lame” or simple they might seem.

Now, it doesn’t feel so hard to call myself an artist, a writer, or even a storyteller. Because I no longer feel like I need to share something intense or life-changing to be worthy of those titles.

If it brings me joy, if it feels true to who I am—that’s enough.

And honestly, isn’t that what life is about? Finding the little things that light you up, owning them unapologetically, and letting them shape your story.

So here I am, embracing my not-so-deep reason for doing what I do, proudly chasing what feels cool, and letting curiosity and joy lead the way. It’s messy, it’s simple, it’s “lame”—and it’s mine.

And that’s more than enough.

Have you ever felt the pressure to have a profound reason or direction for what you do? How would life be if you let go of that pressure?

Who knows, the answer to this might make 2025 a better and more fulfilling year for you!

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Little Joys

“Joy is always around if only we pause to acknowledge it.”

With life's burdens and big ambitions, it's easy to overlook our everyday joys. These are my small joys from the last week -

• I learned a new skill in sticks in Kalaripayattu.

• I ordered myself a Christmas gift and a New Year gift.

• I booked tickets for my next adventure.

• Realised that I had lost an inch or so and my clothes fit me better now!

• Had an amazing plate of food as I was writing this newsletter.

  

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What's Up With Piqued Pilgrim?

For the first time ever, I hit my target of publishing 4 blog posts a month! With Substack and my blog, I’m starting to fall in love with long-form writing all over again.

The most recent blog I published is about the struggles of travelling with painful periods. I wrote it while I was on my period, so if it reads like a rant—that’s because it was a rant.

Now that I think about it, even the piece I shared on Instagram was a little bit of a rant - ‘The shittest thing about travelling.’ Wow, I think I had a rough week.