Riding Solo To The Top Of The World

Riding Solo... is a film about filmmaker Gaurav Jani's solo motorcycle journey from Mumbai to one of the remotest places in the world, the Changthang Plateau in Ladakh, bordering China. As a one-man film unit, he astonishes you, filming the landscape he passes by and the people he interacts with, capturing moments of beauty, pain, love, hardship, self doubt and spiritual triumphs.
Credits
- Director : Gaurav Jani
- Producer : Dirt Track Productions
- Executive Producer : P. T. Giridhar Rao
- Project Co-ordinator : Rajiv B. Menon
- Editor : Sankalp Meshram
- Music : Ved Nair
- Mixing Engineer : Dwarak Warrier
Awards
- Jury Award at Vatavaran Nature and Wildlife Film Festival.
- Audience Award at Independent South Asian Film Festival in Seattle, USA
- Nominated for Best International Documentary Award at the Bollywood and Beyond Film Festival - Germany
- Best Non-Feature Film at the 53rd National Film Awards, India 2006
The film leads the viewer from revelation to revelation, giving us an opportunity to come to love and know the 'Changpas' and their unique lifestyle. - Technical Award for Sound Design - Dwarak Warrier at the Indian Documentary Producers’ Association (2006).
A delightful documentary with simple but good sound of consistent quality, with the sound track adding to the film tremendously. - Technical Award for Editing - Sankalp Meshram at the Indian Documentary Producers’ Association (2006).
The film kept the viewers' interest alive for 94 mins in a feat of sleek editing. - Documentary - Gaurav Jani at the Indian Documentary Producers’ Association (2006).
A true celebration of the documentary, this solo adventure translates into a film that is an experience both personal and universal. - Audience Award for Best Documentary at the Kathmandu International Mountain Film Festival (2006)
- Nominated for Best International Documentary at the Calgary International Film Festival (2006)
- Recipient of Golden Conch for Best Documentary at the Mumbai International Film Festival (2006)
- Recipient of National Critics Award at the Mumbai International Film Festival (2006)
- Recipient of Best Documentary Award (Biography Category) at the Signs Film Festival, Kerala (2006)
Satellite maps of Changthang plateau
To give you an idea of the terrain and the overall region, we have put together a video showing a bird's eye view of the whole journey of Riding Solo... The video has been put together by combining individual frames - 25 for each second - from multiple camera angles.
Satellite Maps designed by : Vinod Panicker
Courtesy: NASA
"The film takes the world on a trip that has never been taken before" - Miles Davis, Moto-journalist and author: Motorcycle Yoga
"Riding solo to the top of the world is a marvelous ethnographic rarely seen in recent years." - Shyam Benegal, Film maker
"You're not going to see too many films with the heart, inspiration and jaw-dropping gutsiness as this one. Riding Solo... is, for filmmaker and audience, an unforgettable journey." - Richard P, Film Critic
"Riding Solo.. is a magical film, artfully combining ancient culture, magnificent topography and motorcycle adventure." - Brian Rathjen, Publisher: Backroads Motorcycle Tour Magazine
"Judicious mix of adventure and ethnographic detail." - Critics Jury, Mumbai International Film Festival
"Beautiful and unexpected. More than a solo road adventure amidst immense and starkly scenic landscapes, it was a cultural education. And to learn how Gaurav filmed entirely by himself really demonstrates his skill, patience and determination." - Jared Zaugg, Co-Founder: Legend of the Motorcycle, Concours d'Elegance
"More than another motorcycle adventure; it's the story of a life-altering experience." - Rick K, Editor: webBikeWorld.com
"A true celebration of the documentary, this solo adventure translates into a film that is an experience both personal and universal." - Award Jury, Indian Documentary Producers Association
"World travel enthusiasts, distance riding pioneers and motorcycle loners would appreciate this film simply for the ruggedness and grassroots approach to this trip." - Mandy Langston, BMW Owners Magazine
"A poem about the traveling life. For someone who feels that call to adventure, it's much more. In such a person this film could plant a deeper seed." - Steve Werner, Easyriders Magazine
"With "Riding Solo..." a new form (of film making) emerges which should encourage young filmmakers to explore the world around them. A road movie, which transforms a trekking adventure into a poem, revealing the mysteries of a gentle mindscape." - Award Jury Mumbai International Film Festival
"Riding Solo... is one of those films that starts out as one thing, then slowly becomes something wholly unexpected and ultimately, very moving." - Kate Edwards, Friction Zone Magazine
"Sheer spirit of adventure with a compassion that enhances the viewer's perception." - Award Jury, Signs Film Festival
"An excellent example of what can be achieved by one determined person and a good idea. Gaurav's work is not only great to watch, but forms as important anthropological record of a way of life that may soon be gone." - Robert Render Harrison, Indie Slate Magazine






