Hello Couchsurfers,
Greetings and Namaste!

Myself Anant Kasodekar from Mumbai, India. I am an engineering student at IIT Bombay where I am working on developing technologies for a sustainable future. In my endeavours to promote sustainability, I have worked in domains like Electric vehicles, Clean Energy, Solar Power and Green Fuel technologies. Along with being a passionate engineer, I am an avid supporter of gender equality. Networking is my hobby and travelling is my newfound passion. I believe in the tenets of spirituality and mindfulness.

During my four years as an engineering student, I was a part of several student clubs and volunteering activities. Some of my achievements include:
• An audience with the Prime Minister, President and Vice President of the Republic of India
• Creating employment opportunities for over 13000 youth in rural India
• Convening Asia's largest entrepreneurship summit with over 1 lakh footfall
• Representing India as an Erasmus exchange student in Europe

I am of the opinion that travelling is one of the best ways to understand the complex nature of mother earth. With a curiosity to explore different cultures, I have travelled in 31 countries in 3 different continents on a shoestring budget. Throughout my travel experiences, I have always learnt something unique from every individual I came across.

My long term vision is to eliminate the boundaries between cultures and create this planet a better place to live for generations to come.😊

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

I was introduced to Couchsurfing by a friend of mine while I was in Belgium. Within minutes of exploring the community, I realised the vast synergies that I had with the vision and mission of Couchsurfing. Understanding different cultures while sharing more about my own Indian cultures was something that I have been doing since childhood. What better than Couchsurfing to further this hobby!

During my amazing experiences with the Couchsurfing community, I have acquired humongous knowledge on a variety of subjects including but not limited to Yoga, Innovation, Psychology, Finance, Entrepreneurship and ethnic immersion. Some of the adventures I had with fellow Couchsurfers are:
• Climbing the Eiffel Tower and cruising the Seine river in Paris, France.🤟
• Scaling the top of Europe at Jungfraujoch in Switzerland.😎
• Cooking Indian dishes (Biryani to be precise) for 25 guests in one go!😇
• Exploring 6 Italian cities with a budget of 120 euros😄.

To summarise, for me, Couchsurfing is not just a website but a closely-knit family of strangers who have the ability to transcend the geographical boundaries that keep us apart.

Interests

• movies
• reading
• public policy
• nature
• networking
• debate

Music, Movies, and Books

While I am a big fan of Bollywood Instrumentals, I also love Binge-watching Netflix.
Being an avid reader, I have finished over 200 books in the field of psychology, self help, Indian history and culture.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

Visit 4 countries (France, Belgium, Luxembourg and Netherlands) in 24 hours!

Teach, Learn, Share

I love interacting with fellow couchsurfers on topics like policy, innovation and sustainability. I also love cooking Indian cuisine for my hosts as well as guests. Maths being my core subject, I also helped a couchsurfer's son in acing his SATs😋.

Countries I’ve Visited

Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, India, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Luxembourg, Malaysia, Nepal, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Scotland, Singapore, Slovakia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, Vatican City State, Viet Nam

Countries I’ve Lived In

Belgium, India