She Left Delhi and Changed a Himalayan Village | Malika Virdi

Malika Virdi has spent years building something quite unusual in the Himalayas. A homestay village – Sarmoli! As Founder & CEO of Himalayan Ark, Malika joins us to talk about how this community-led model came together, how local families became part of it, and what it has meant for the people of Sarmoli. Here, travellers stay with local rural families, eat sitting beside the chulha in their mud kitchens, walk the forests with people who actually live there, and get to know the mountains through them. In 2023, Sarmoli’s work received national recognition when it won Gold in the Government of India’s Best Tourism Village Competition. Watch our conversation with Malika Virdi about the Sarmoli homestay model, the challenges of making it work, its people, and a very different way of experiencing the Himalayas. #TheUnknownIndia #MalikaVirdi #Sarmoli #HimalayanArk #Munsiyari #Uttarakhand #Himalayas