My recent visits to the beach have been rather fulfilling, owing to my new found passion, Surfing. My perception of it was altered by my very first experience of a wipeout. I wondered why riding a wave was so exhilarating and recently discovered the answer. It is not simply the adrenaline rush brought on by the ability to maneuver an element of nature so gracefully, but how the entire process represents the way of life. You begin by paddling out over the waves, which to me represent the daily struggles we all encounter. After surmounting the persistent attack of the oncoming waves that seem to never end, you reach the idle waters. Here, as I gaze into the horizon anticipating the perfect wave, floating on a beautiful long yellow board, I see the sky reflecting off the ocean and this moment is truly fulfilling. The memory serves as a reminder of how liberating the world truly is, as long as we look in the right places.

As one patiently awaits the perfect drop (the point at which a wave tips over and generates the maximum velocity), you begin to identify certain patterns like the wind and the location. Driven by the human tendency to predict you start reading the signs. This notion attributes to our real life ability to decipher various complexities and identify opportunities and trends in life as we seek out success. As you begin adapting your new found skill set, you are forced to reckon with failure in the form of a wipeout. There are several ways one can be a victim to the wave and through constant trial and failure you try to decode the formula for success. You need to work on your core strength, your balance, your timing and most importantly be patient. After having understood these basic principles all you got to do is paddle real hard as the wave approaches and when the time is right pop up on your feet real quick and hopefully you will have caught your first wave. In this moment it is up to you to be gnarly and try carving (quick turns) or just be a simpleton like me and ride the wave as far out as you can. This moment of triumph is well worth all the effort and hard work (the board wax happens to chafe nipples raw).

It would not be an exaggeration to say that harnessing a wave’s natural energy to travel at fast speeds is unparalleled by any other vehicle. It brought me immense joy to understand this first hand.

I was introduced to the surfing culture in Goa, by the Vaayu crew. I chanced upon them as a friend was helping them set up the very first surf shop in India. Being an outsider to the entire scene I wasn’t sure of what to expect. I was stoked to have discovered their DIY world, where they created almost everything they could think of themselves. I was surrounded by a group of young, diverse individuals who had come together to create this tribe, that did everything from setting up the place, cleaning up the beach, surfing all as one unit. This tribe is the brain child of Rahul Malaney and Jill Ferguson, a truly inspiring duo. Being welcomed into their home last month, I was introduced to concepts of Conscious Capitalism and their plans to acknowledge Emotional and Spiritual Intelligence in their work place. Through our conversations I learnt their various aspirations of being a sustainable business model that adds value to the environment. Running their art residency program is Miles Toland, a visionary artist from New Mexico. Besides sharing the pain of chaffed nipples and avocado-coconut smoothies Miles and I shared some great thoughts over semi-frozen bananas and peanut butter. Jill and Rahul’s open door policy for drifters allowed me to meet another social entrepreneur, Poorna Bodh. A young gun lawyer from Bangalore, who has dedicated himself to creating awareness about skateboarding in India, through his initiative Holystoked. Poorna was attempting to raise funds to expand a half pipe they have built in a random dude’s backyard. Helping him in this endeavor I spent a day, filming under privileged kids owning the ramp, eating Veg Thalis and enjoying my KINGS beer.

Experiencing these people, help rejuvenate my belief in The Third Eye project. We have slowly overcoming the obstacle of adapting our services to the realities of the India television industry and creating solutions to use its vast outreach to carry forward social messaging of utmost importance to help create awareness among our people. We seem to have paddled over the waves and now we patiently wait to ride our waves of change.