Experimenting—A Beautiful Way to Live a Life

Have you ever watched Forrest Gump? I remember how it made me feel when I saw it in my first year of medical school. Tom Hanks shows how trying new things can lead to a fun and exciting life. This movie inspired me to make changes in my life, starting a journey that continued for years.

 

My story begins in 2010 when my parents surprised me with a simple Nokia phone that had a good camera. They gave it to me to celebrate my success in the All India Pre Medical Test. At that time, I didn’t know much about photography, but I really wanted to capture the world around me. As I continued my studies, my Nokia phone broke. After a failed repair, I dreamed of getting a new smartphone to explore photography and the Android Play Store, but my family couldn’t afford it.

I remember the little white lie I told my family when I borrowed money for ‘books’ during a visit home. On my way back to Mumbai, I found a mobile shop in Rewari and bought the cheapest Micromax smartphone. Its camera was surprisingly good, and I was thrilled to use Android. Soon after, I got another phone—a Lava model that, even though it was inexpensive, allowed me to dive deeper into photography.

 

I began to experiment with different styles of photography. One day, I would take pictures of bustling streets, and the next day, I would focus on capturing people's faces and emotions. I explored long exposure photography, which showed movement in beautiful ways. I also enjoyed black and white photography, the beauty of minimalism, and the creativity of abstract photos. Eventually, I became fascinated with astrophotography, drawn to the vast night sky. But landscape photography truly captured my heart, as I discovered the stunning views our planet has to offer.

 

Although I got a good camera and an iPhone much later, my early experiences with affordable smartphones allowed me to take countless photos. I often played around with my devices, changing software and using phone memory in creative ways so I could enjoy playing games. My curiosity led me to find lots of helpful information on forums like XDA Developers. I even remember calling a technician to clean my laptop but decided to learn how to do it myself, gaining skills through my experiences. My experiments were fueled by a desire to learn and discover new things.

 

Oddly enough, I never dreamed of becoming a doctor, even though I admired the importance of saving lives. As I continued my medical journey, I chose to try something new: trekking. Growing up in a flat area, the hills of Western ghats were a whole new world for me. I went on seven or eight treks with friends from college. I always took my tent, ready to camp under the stars, enjoying the freedom of exploring nature in India.

 

During my adventures, I found myself in unexpected situations, like when I discovered my roommate’s girlfriend was being unfaithful by looking at her social media. These moments added to my journey, reminding me that life is full of surprises. Technology has always fascinated me, allowing my childhood to be a time of exploration and learning.

 

After finishing my MD, I felt a strong urge to explore the mountains, which led me to the Chadar trek—an experience that changed my life. I made the brave choice to move to Himachal Pradesh for over a year, marking one of the biggest experiments of my life. Living among the tall mountains and breathing fresh air taught me lessons that people in cities might never know. Each breath felt fresh, and the joy of local food and friendly people made it feel like I was in paradise.

 

People told me there were few job opportunities in the mountains, but I wasn’t there for a career—I wanted to embrace life and make choices that felt right for me. Himachal Pradesh showed me how valuable travel is, not just as a way to see new places, but as a part of living fully. One adventure led to another, and every time I saw a mountain, I was tempted to explore its beauty on weekends. For me, this was a way of life—an ongoing journey of trying new things that turned ordinary moments into something special.

 

I also tried out herbal products from that state that were said to calm the mind. At a certain point in time, I made it a part of my daily routine after dinner. The natural “free falls” I experienced were simply amazing and something I deeply enjoyed. While I was experimenting in the mountains one year, I unexpectedly achieved some personal success as I managed to pass the first two parts of the FRCR exams while using that herbal product.

 

Oh, and I remember I bought a mountain bike (MTB) for 60,000 INR. Looking back, I find it amusing to think about my decision to purchase that bike. On my first ride, I cycled almost 40 km, going uphill and downhill back and forth. However, after two months of biking, I realized that the downhill rides were always painful for my left knee, and I couldn’t maintain the biking habit for long. So, I ended up selling the bike. Even though biking was a good experience, it made me aware of my lack of fitness, which pushed me to join a gym in hopes of building a stronger body.

 

But let me tell you, gym workouts didn’t sit well with me. Repeating the same exercises felt pointless and dull. I knew it was good for my health and strength, but I really struggled to stay motivated.

 

Then, winter arrived, and suddenly my passion for astrophotography reached its peak. I spent countless nights glued to YouTube, watching tutorials on how to take stunning pictures of the night sky. I didn’t even have a telescope; all I had was a camera and a lens. Astrophotography involved a lot of technical skills, so my excitement grew. I did some pretty crazy things, like a trip to Sissu in Himachal Pradesh. I sat in the freezing cold—around -10 to -15 degrees Celsius—for four hours just to gather data on the Andromeda Galaxy.

 

During that time, I experimented with taking 1,000 images and learned about concepts like subtraction imaging and calibration, which oddly reminded me of techniques used in breast imaging. From capturing Andromeda to the Orion Nebula and even creating time-lapse star videos, I was completely absorbed in this new hobby.

 

After completing my MD, I found myself watching endless videos on FPV (First-Person View) drones—learning how to build and fly them. Unfortunately, I didn’t have much money then. But while I was in Himachal and earning a decent salary, I splurged a bit. I bought an FPV controller and raw parts to build my own drone. I even went to an electrician to learn how to solder the PCB plates.

 

After about four to five months of following Joshua Bardwell’s tutorials, I finally built my own FPV drone. Thanks to China and a company from Kerala that delivered the parts, I learned a lot through this process. It wasn’t all smooth sailing, though—I actually burned one flight controller because the soldering temperature I used was too high. But programming the drone with Betaflight was thrilling. I could hold the drone in my hand and see its movements on my laptop screen, which gave me a glimpse into how gyroscopic data functions in real-time.

 

A year later, I returned to Delhi to focus on my academic career and successfully passed the FRCR exams before joining a place in Gurgaon, where I spent a year with my family. During this time, I decided to experiment with bird photography, renting a lens and visiting a nearby bird sanctuary. It was such a memorable day filled with the sounds of birds in a foggy winter morning—just magical.

 

While in Himachal, I had also put reading books on my to-do list. However, I’ve never considered myself a patient reader. I used to think books were boring until in started reading. I started with a novel and eventually moved on to more serious topics. I've read three books so far, and I still want to read more, but since I have so much on my plate, I’m currently focusing more on my career. I plan to get back into reading soon.

 

In addition, I attempted to learn coding, specifically Python. The beginning was fun, but after a while, I lost interest. I think I’d be better off learning coding in a classroom setting. I also tried to learn the ukulele twice but didn’t succeed. All these new skills require a lot of patience, which I have a bit of, but not enough for everything.

 

Even my pursuit of a fellowship was an experiment in itself. I remember receiving an email about the ESOR fellowship application. On a whim, I checked it out. Since my CV looked strong from my time in MSK, I applied but unfortunately got rejected the first time. It was a tough blow, but then about 20 days later, I received another email. The applicant above me had dropped out, so they offered me the fellowship, and being a high-risk-taker, I gladly accepted. Though i had lot of challenges for applying a student visa but i wa able to manage it. Thanks to Lavish. 

 

Learning to swim in my 30s so I could become a certified scuba diver was another experiment, fueled by passion.

 While some of my experiments didn’t yield good outcomes—with failures along the way—many generated positive results and helped me develop various skills. In school, things were different; we focused mainly on academics and a bit of sport. I never really participated in any sport, which I regret. I tried cycling, but the mountains were tough on my knees.

 

Now, I’m experimenting with cooking, and I’ve come to realize it’s not as hard as I thought. It just takes 30 to 45 minutes of effort, and then a delicious meal is ready. Living in a country like the UK, where food options aren’t always appealing, I find it quite rewarding.

 

There are still many things that I want to try, but I understand that doing everything at once leads to nothing significant. So, I’ll keep experimenting, and I’ll keep learning—that’s how life grows and evolves.