Mica student quits job for mountaineering

AHMEDABAD: After working for a digital marketing agency for a year, Mica alumnus Abhijeet Singh realized it was mountaineering that gave him a 'kick'.
He realized that a 9 to 6 desk job wasn't his cup of tea. Singh, who was recently on a climbing expedition to Pangarchulla (15,675ft) in Uttarakhand, said: "After Mica, I worked for a digital marketing agency for a year, and that's when I realized that it wasn't what I'd want to keep doing for the rest of my life."
"I'd always loved traveling and photography, and I realized that I loved being in the mountains.So after quitting my job, I took a three-month road trip through Kashmir, Zanskar and Ladakh. And while I swam across Dal lake, studied Buddhism in various monasteries in remote Zanskar and taught little children in Chang Thang region of Ladakh, I realized I can't ever work on a desk again. Meanwhile, in the same trip, I undertook and shot a couple of treks and expeditions and that's when I decided to make adventure sports my a profession." Singh, 30, is generally accompanied by his friend Akshat Jain, whom he met at advanced mountaineering course at HMI Darjeeling.
Who funds these expeditions? "Most of these expeditions are self-funded. However, for special projects, we get sponsors on board and we also have Indian Mountaineering Foundation (IMF) helping us with top-grade climbing equipment," he said.
On his future plans, he said: "In any extreme adventure sport, to share the experiences, to share the stories of expeditions in remote places, and to get the most telling pictures, you have to be in the middle of the adventure, you have to learn the sport and be good at it.That's why I decided to combine my passion in climbing and photography, and headed out to be a pioneer in the field of extreme climbing sports photography. And so I shall keep climbing more challenging mountains and ice-routes in the Himalayas, while trying and capturing the experiences and stories so that others can live the adventure through my work."
Singh forms a team of two to three people for these expeditions. Generally, no two expeditions have the same team. "The members are skilled, trained and experienced mountaineers with whom either I have done my mountaineering courses or have climbed with earlier. But having said that, mutual trust and compatibility is actually always the deciding factor. The idea is to keep the team tight and small and climb light and climb fast."
Expeditions undertaken so far
Stok Kangri (20,187ft), Ladakh, Aug 2013. Solo Summit
Kedarkantha (12,500ft), Sankri, Uttarakhand, March 2014. Summitted with Jessica Goldkind, a Chilean friend.
Shetidhar (17,820ft), near Solang valley, Himachal Pradesh, June 2014. Summited with Lionel, a French friend.
Kang Yatse (21,000ft), Ladakh, Aug 2014. Summit attempt. Fell in a hidden crevasse near the summit. Self rescue out of the crevasse. Other two members Aditya and Lionel made it to the summit.
Pangarchula (15,675ft), Uttarakhand, May 2015. Summit attempt.
Notable treks undertaken so far
Kashmir Great Lakes trek, Sonamarg, Kashmir, June 2013
Nag Tibba trek, Mussoorie, Uttarakhand, Feb 2014
Roopkund trek, Lohajung, Uttarakhand, May 2014
Goeche La trek, West sikkim, October 2014.
Kuari Pass trek, Auli, Uttarakhand, April 2015.