So here I am on the eve of our departure for Delhi where we will be launching the run with the kind support of a Reebok, the Indian Tourism Office in London and Intrepid Travel. From Delhi we will fly to Cochin to arrive on the morning of the 30th. It's a drive north to Kazaragod and a good nights sleep. Somewhere between 4.30 - 5am (mid night UK time) myself Rahul and Dez will awake from sleep with a feeling in our bellies marking the realisation that the wildest plans can actually come fruition. It will be a golden moment for all of us to remember for the rest of our lives.

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Heels on fire is a perfect example of how great ideas happen over cups of coffee, (though we came upon this over laughs at a dinner table). It all started with a conversation about a non-descript program shown on the national broadcaster 'Doordarshan' - Motorcycle Diaries, not to be confused with the superb film of the same name. Kruti, the "sniffer" for good ideas pounced upon this and in true gujju (Gujrati Community regarded as the wise merchants of India) fashion engineered a spin that was felt from India to the U.K. - a couple of days and the world wide web was watching us grow from an idea to a blogsite (www.heelsonfire.blogspot.com) and www.heelsonfire.org.

The idea of running from Kasargod to Kanyakumari might seem very insane, but initially the thought was to do a run from New Delhi to Kanyakumari - you can imagine the insane minds working on this. In between Pete sends us a link of the fatman walking; Why was he walking? To loose weight was the obvious response... so what was our reason? - Why was I in this insane plan? - First it was the idea which drove the madness, then it was Maria's stick figure interpretation of our run ( you can see it on the almost all our web pages) and now it's a sense of discovery, an opportunity to be the "man with the camera".
I like to think of Heels on Fire as a collaboration to initiate debate and conversation on a range of issues - and the run gives us the reason to discover roads less traveled, discover people from villages that do not even appear as dots on the state map. For me it’s more than a 600 km run, its meeting hundreds of exciting people over the 30 days.

Most of my work allows me the freedom to picture people in a random and leisurely pace - a pace that photographers would like, but few appreciate!! I like to meet the people I photograph, to chat with them and in a fraction of a second freeze time and the moment. My resume is a sum of all these fractions - a compression of time and my years of experience!! Heels on Fire is a challenge like I've never attempted before, "getting into" (well that's what i do) peoples' lives, connecting with them through the camera - and then loosing them to time and distance. The conflict will be evident

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My childhood was divided between London-England and Manali- North India were my parents ran a trekking holiday company. Having studied economics and social anthropology, my experience ranges from running a successful London restaurant (The Hoxton Apprentice) to being in a Civil Society Organisation engaged in urban regeneration in post-apartheid South Africa. I love sports and the way it can bring people together from all walks of life.

Coverage of the Trip
We will update the website regularly with the reports from the Heels of Fire team. We hope not only to tell the story of our adventure, but also to give rural Keralite voices access to a global audience.

Articles for Runners World, Men's Health, and The Guardian's G2 have been requested. A book of the journey will be published, and possibly a recipe book on Keralite food, and the Definitive Guide To Avoiding Rabid Dogs While Losing Weight And Getting A Suntan.

Running History
A veteran of zero marathons and with a grand total of 50kms training prior to this epic adventure, I am hoping to show that such a trip is accessible to even a running novice.

Favourite Run
To the shop at the end of the road to buy a pint of milk.

Why Do it?
Pete's enthusiasm is hugely infectious and the idea of exploring a beautiful part of India, where I spent many of the early years of my life, was an opportunity too good to turn down.

Sports, tourism and development are three areas very close to my heart and Heels on Fire combines all three. Since deciding to go, I have caught the running bug and am determined to run as much of the route as is possible.

The anthropologist in me would not be content if my writing did not incorporate some understanding of what it's actually like to run such a long distance, and in such difficult conditions.

Hopes and Ambitions for Kerala
I'm looking forward to the sharing the experience of running through Kerala with other members of the Heels on Fire crew. The places, smells, food and people we meet along the way. To travel though a place at such slow pace is a luxury to savour. I am sure the people I travel with, meet and those involved in Heels on Fire will play a big part in my life for years to come.

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What is tougher than running 600kms in Kerala??? Well to me it’s writing your own Bio .ten days in the run and here I am being threatened by Desmond to write it. Will take you straight to the night when I spoke to Desmond from Pune and he told me to visit the blog. It had just started and there was not much to it apart from the crazy plan. 2 weeks later I was sitting with Dez and Farah didi discussing the run and being briefed about it. It was march 25th.

It’s not everyday that you come across such opportunities and I was in it from the word go. The idea of traveling through Kerala for a month (my first trip to gods own country) and the chance to beef-up (thats having beef fry for breakfast, lunch and dinner) was too much to resist.

I saw Heels on Fire grow from a small little idea to a reality all in one month (April). Slowly but steadily things fell into place- sponsorships and supporters. Finally the D- day- 30th April I got to meet Rahul and Stevie for the first time and we were all set to leave.

Initially I had a very different perspective of Heels on Fire-I'll go to Kerala and film the run, learn about the state, the culture and other such things- but in the last ten days a lot has happened that's changed my perspective towards a lot of things in life. For instance how we all take a lot of things for granted, the opportunities that we let go off. The people we've met so far were all happy and content with life despite their struggles. I can just go on and on but guess will put it in the other section. Heels on Fire now means a lot more than it earlier did. Its a trip that’s permanently etched in my memory bank- to remember for life and am sure that I'll go back to Delhi as a much more mature person

Guess have written enough and will be spared the agony of having to write about myself.

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