Expert Speak: Raj Singh, Founder-Chairman, Antara Luxury River Cruises 

On January 13, 2023, Antara Luxury River Cruises set off on an ambitious voyage—the longest river journey in the world—which was flagged off by the Hon’ble Prime Minister of India, Shri Narendra Modi Ji. This was an epic 51-day affair, sailing from Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh to Dibrugarh in Assam, cruising gently on the Ganga and the Brahmaputra Rivers via the Sunderbans and Bangladesh. The cruise took in 27 smaller rivers, 5 states and 2 countries.

How did the idea of doing such a long cruise come to you?

For a large part of my career, I’ve worked very closely curating special interest travel. I’ve travelled the globe across continents, learnt about their cultures and how they showcase them too, taken many river cruises along the way. However, as I learned about India’s rich heritage and that of travel and trade which was deeply entrenched in its riverine network forming creative channels that fuelled the epic zeitgeist of artisans, and mavericks in architecture, politics, philosophy, literature, and science; this inspired me to showcase India’s heritage through the eyes of the rivers.  

Connecting two of our most ancient rivers, the Ganga and the Brahmaputra, has been in the pipeline for over five years—imagine the history, stories, culture, interesting sights and areas that can be touched only via the waters. Each experience has been personally vetted and designed by me for fellow enthusiastic travellers. The historical route has been finalized with the support, assistance and cooperation of the Governments of India and Bangladesh, which are working together to ensure seamless travel between the two countries. Might I add, that the journey is going to be made in a luxury boutique vessel, Antara Ganga Vilas, that is truly Made in India. Further, Ganga Vilas’ interiors are designed to make the most of the many connected and sometimes contradictory histories and experiences of many designers, artists, literates who visited India and the shores of the Ganga and Brahmaputra inspired by the eastern philosophy and way of life. Ganga Vilas is a celebration of post-independence Indian design innovation. It features elegant mid-century furniture, enhanced by Varanasi’s Gyasar textiles and contemporary meditative art.

How did it feel to have Hon’ble Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi Ji inaugurating the cruise?

It was an absolute honour and, more importantly, it shows the Government’s vision. They are making serious efforts to promote river cruise tourism. There is a lot of impetus on developing responsible river tourism in our country. In this particular stretch that Antara Ganga Vilas will journey, the Governments of India and Bangladesh have joined hands to overcome challenges and logistical issues that may arise for any journey that traverses the country’s waterways.

Government policies have played a pivotal role over the last 20 years to develop and establish river cruise infrastructure that can make the subcontinent one of the world leaders in trade. Facilitating development in the form of jetties, shore electrical connections, waste management systems, recycling protocols, and navigational channel management, are some, to name a few.

This is the world’s longest river cruise. What is some of your closest competition in terms of cruise duration?

There are other cruises but not one that journeys the two rivers and two countries, and in such a detailed manner.

Is this a one-off cruise or are there plans to offer it periodically?

We intend to do it on a regular basis.

Any logistical challenges you faced?

Many, many challenges, especially water conditions and maintenance of fairways and depth for navigation. However, the Government supported us where possible—in fact, the Government is identifying avenues to promote inland navigation and construction of suitable terminals across the Brahmaputra to develop the waterways infrastructure. In addition there are a number of other challenges we face while delivering to our guests the magic of a river cruise responsibly—we work very closely with the local communities that we touch upon and use resources as sustainably as is possible, conscientious of the ecosystems in the rivers and on land.

As a pioneer of river tourism in India, what do you feel the potential of the sector is?

River cruising has great opportunities where culture and community, and history, developed and thrived around its river systems. And in India, rivers have been a window into the country’s culture, religion, industry, birth, love, and even death! Rivers are the cradle of our society, they’ve been the foundation of our ancient civilizations. Imagine going down the history of our cultures and untouched nature through these ageless waters. Hence, the potential of river tourism in India is IMMENSE. But it needs to be done in the proper way. Each river has its own character, so you need to study it and build a ship suited for each state. It cannot be a volume game because of the size of the river, and each river system has a carrying capacity.