Find your Everest

Sauraj Jhingan and Samir Patham on their Mount Everest expedition

On May 29, 1953, Edmund Hillary and Sherpa Tenzing Norgay became the first to reach the summit of Mount Everest, the highest mountain above sea level on planet Earth. Since then, many have attempted to climb it, though not everyone has succeeded in reaching the summit. Tomorrow, on May 29, what will mark the 67th anniversary of Hillary and Norgay's feat, summiteers Sauraj Jhingan and Samir Patham will recount their own experiences in a webinar of how they finally conquered Everest on their third attempt in 2018.

The online session titled Resilience is being organised as part of the e-concert series We Care and proceeds from it will go towards actor Rajshri Deshpande's Nabhangan Foundation for the welfare of farmers and daily wage workers in remote areas of Marathwada, as well as sex workers, migrant workers and health professionals. To attend the session, participants have to donate Rs300 or more to the fundraiser while students can pay Rs150.

Edmund Hilary and Tenzing Norgay

On a call from Pune, Patham and Jhingan tell us that they have always been passionate about mountains but gave it their full focus once they quit corporate jobs to start the mountaineering company Adventure Pulse in 2011. Reaching Everest was always the goal. They made their first attempt in 2015 but had to witness the ravages of the Nepal earthquake. "Instead of coming back home, we decided to aid in the rescue efforts. So, this one-hour webinar is also a way of ensuring we do our bit.

Although we will be narrating our experiences, learnings and failures, we shall correlate it with the challenges people are experiencing during this lockdown. For instance, in 2017, when we tried to climb the mountain again, we were stuck in a snow storm only 800 metres from the summit. Each member stayed in a 6x4 ft tent without Netflix," Patham quips.

Talking about the misconceptions regarding Everest expeditions, he adds that people think it is easy; one needs to keep in mind that it is costly (an individual would need to shell out at least R30 lakh), and requires physical fitness and extensive mountaineering experience. The duo also states that they now channel their inspiring story into corporate team-building programmes. With the virtual world being the only way to cope right now, Jhingan is optimistic: "In times of failure, families tell you things like, 'It's not meant to be.' But then you remember that the mountains are not going anywhere. And that is true even today."

On May 29, 7 pm to 8 pm
Log on to Zoom app (to attend); https://bit.ly/2X0dm4b (to donate)
Cost Rs 300; Rs 150 (students)

Also check out

. Two short films as part of National Geographic's official showcase how human ambition has no limit. While Beyond Everest is a profile of Tine Mena, the first woman from Northeast India to summit Mount Everest, another docu short is centred on Nepalese mountaineer Apa Sherpa who holds 13 world records.
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. The Ascent of Everest is a book by John Hunt, who led Hillary and Norgay's expedition. Here, he discusses the planning and preparations for it.
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