I spent some time hitting the streets of Mumbai’s artsy Kala Ghoda district to report this neighborhood spotlight for WSJ Magazine’s February 2015 issue.
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Recent Work
If you only read one article I’ve written, please let it be this one. My second feature in this weekend’s New York Times is on a subject very dear to my heart.
I was a guest contributor to the popular New York Times Frugal Traveler column, and for my first frugal outing, I hit the road from Cape Town along quirky Route 62.
The über-luxury private-jet magazine unveils a complete redesign this month, and I’m excited to be a part of the new issue with my feature on three itineraries from Cape Town….
In the January/February issue of Virtuoso Life, you’ll find a feature I wrote on the otherworldly terrain of Cappadocia, Turkey. Read it here.
I’m back on the New York Times 52 Places to Go list this year — while I didn’t manage to score the number one spot, the way I did last year with Cape Town, this year I had three picks: Durban, Oman, and Tanzania.
My writeup on Istanbul — which is in the midst of a major hotel boom — is on T+L’s list of 50 places to go in 2015. Read it here.
Wondering where to go this year? Check out my Travel + Leisure roundup of the coolest new attractions across the globe.
British Airways has a magazine called The Club, geared toward its Executive Club members, and they asked me to do a piece on reasons to extend a Cape Town business trip into a long weekend, from markets to hikes to restaurants.
Awards & Books
Awards
- Lowell Thomas Travel Journalism Awards, 2021: Honorable mention for the Grand Award, Travel Journalist of the Year
- South Asian Journalists Association, 2021: Outstanding Arts and Culture Reporting for “Zanzibar in the Rain,” New York Times
- Lowell Thomas Travel Journalism Awards, 2020: Bronze in Short Work on Travel for “Raise the Roof,” Condé Nast Traveler
- South Asian Journalists Association, 2019: Outstanding Arts, Culture, and Lifestyle Reporting about South Asia for “Force of Nature,” Surface magazine
- Lowell Thomas Travel Journalism Awards, 2018: Gold award in US/Canada Travel for “A Muslim American’s Homecoming: Cowboys, Country Music, Chapatis,” New York Times
- Lowell Thomas Travel Journalism Awards, 2018: Bronze in Service-Oriented Consumer Work for “My Town,” Virtuoso Life
- Lowell Thomas Travel Journalism Awards, 2017: Gold in Culinary-Related Travel for “Eating Bunny Chow in Durban,” Saveur
- South Asian Journalists Association, 2017: Outstanding Arts and Culture Reporting for “Eating Bunny Chow in Durban,” Saveur
- North American Travel Journalists Association Awards, 2016: Two Silver awards in Destination Travel and Adventure Travel for “7 Days, 1500 Miles in Namibia,” New York Times
- Lowell Thomas Travel Journalism Awards, 2016: Gold in Foreign Travel for “7 Days, 1500 Miles in Namibia,” New York Times
- Lowell Thomas Travel Journalism Awards, 2015: Gold in Personal Comment for “Returning to Hyderabad, Once a Land of Princes and Palaces,” New York Times
- Solas Awards for Best Travel Writing, 2013: Silver in Most Unforgettable Character for “Spitting Distance in Jodhpur,” Wall Street Journal
Books
- New York Times Cultured Traveler: Contributed a feature on Bosnia & Herzegovina to this upcoming anthology
- Best American Travel Writing 2021: “City of Saints” from Travel + Leisure was selected for the 2021 edition of this anthology, edited by Padma Lakshmi and Jason Wilson
- New York Times 36 Hours World: 150 Cities from Abu Dhabi to Zurich: Contributed 36 Hours guides to Johannesburg and Mumbai for this anthology
- My Life Abroad: A Selection of Expat Stories: Contributed to this compilation of expat stories from around the globe, recounting my experience as an American in South Africa, in the chapter “From New York City to Cape Town.”
- The Places We’ve Been: Field Reports from Travelers Under 35: Contributed my essay “When Coconuts Attack” to this travel anthology.