On the eve of her 10th birthday, Mahima Sukhdev’s parents Vinati and Pavan posed a very important question to her: How would you like to celebrate? They had imagined a wide variety of coloured responses — think along the lines of a little girl’s greatest fantasies — and weren’t prepared for the ask to be a trip to Mumbai’s Borivali National Park.
“She had a deep love for nature since back then,” Vinati reminisces.
Though humoured by their daughter’s request, the couple went ahead and planned the nature trip. That day, Mahima’s friends returned home with beautiful return gifts — books that spoke of the birds and fauna at the national park. As Mahima grew older, her fascination for the outdoors only deepened. And whether it was nature trails, hikes, trips to safaris or afternoon picnics, her parents would always oblige.
Telling these stories gets Vinati chuckling. After all, she sees them as jigsaw pieces that played a role in fortifying the family’s tryst with nature. She says it was only a matter of time before Mahima’s passion rubbed off on her, her husband, and their daughter Ashima, and they grew as intrigued by nature.
Vinati, who is currently based in London, sees those years of innocence as the fabric that wove together the story of O’Land Plantation Stays — a 120-acre estate which she manages. Set in the heart of the Nilgiris, a geographic salient that is spread across Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Kerala, the stay is an ode to responsible tourism.
If you ever happen to be in Coonoor, here’s what we recommend: Get into the car, stock it up with provisions that will last you an hour, and then drive. Don’t let the unsealed roads daunt you. Look for company in the spectacular scenery instead. Keep driving until you spot a carpet of green. This will be your first indication of having arrived at the O’Land Plantation Stay. The place is a great draw for bids, who are attracted by the glorious view — a set of three cottages hugged by a verdant landscape.
And as Vinati and Pavan, the brains behind this oasis emphasise, it makes for a great relaxing stay.
A foray into green endeavours
If the land could talk, it would tell a compelling story. It would begin by sharing how it was conceived by a journalist (Vinati) — who was heading the fundraising arm of one of India’s largest education NGOs ‘Pratham’ till 2022 before she was selected for a fellowship at Stanford University — and an economist (Pavan) — who is at the helm of his startup GIST Impact, a platform focusing on environmental economics.
It would then regale you with stories about how the family set their sights on the concept of a green economy, all thanks to Mahima’s constant coaxing. The homestay has been privy to the family’s greatest moments — which include Pavan being awarded the ‘Tyler Prize for Environmental Achievement’ in 2020, and Vinati’s book ‘East or West: An NRI Mother’s Manual on How to Bring up Desi Children Overseas’ getting global acclaim.
And while the family may now be settled across the globe — Vinati lives in London, Pavan in Switzerland, Mahima in England, and Ashima in Seattle — a reverence for the environment ties them together. It lies at the heart of everything they undertake.
And, the O’Land Plantation is proof.
It was the stunning landscapes and the desire to not let them be infiltrated with irresponsible tourism that attracted the couple in 2007 when they set out to buy the land. “Pavan felt that if we purchased a crucial piece of territory, which is the elephant corridor, it could be preserved,” Vinati explains. Dotted with tea and pepper plantations at the time, the couple was responsible for adding to this lush vegetation with fruit trees, vegetable crops, cloves, coffee and other spices.
They were well aware that the economics of organic agriculture aren’t lucrative. The prices did not justify the efforts they were putting in. “But we saw this as our chance to make the authorities wake up and realise the difficulties that organic farmers are facing,” she adds.
In 2011, to sustain their efforts, the couple decided to venture into eco-tourism and started the homestay on the land.
Thrushes and bulbuls for neighbours
At the precipice of starting the eco-friendly stay, Vinati was keen that it be sustainable. “There was already a bungalow on the property called ‘Estate House’, which was built around 1851. We went on to build two more,” she says. She credits architect Chitra Vishwanath of Biome Environmental Solutions — a Bengaluru firm focusing on ecological architecture, for the ingenious construction, and installing solar panels on the land, and the biomass water heaters.
One of the bungalows ‘Pepper House’, she says, is built entirely of CSEB (compressed stabilised earth blocks). “We compressed soil from the property into these blocks instead of transporting bricks from far away areas to the site.” The other bungalow ‘Hornbill House’ is another sustainable rendition built with brick, stone and wood.
Don’t be fooled by the colonial setting of the bungalows. They have all the modern amenities to make your stay comfortable.
The couple rents out a total of seven rooms shared between the three buildings on the land.
The names of the bungalows, Vinati points out, are an ode to the flora and fauna that one can expect on their trip. Pepper House, for instance, is named after the lush plantations, while Hornbill House is an ode to the ‘vulnerable’ Great Indian Hornbill. The bird comes to nest on the property, along with Nilgiri laughingthrush, yellow-throated bulbul, pied thrush, Nilgiri wood pigeon, Malabar barbet, orange minivet, grey junglefowl, Rufous Babbler and other avian beauties.
When you aren’t being thrilled with birdsong, you will be paid visits by bison, langur, Malabar squirrels, and sloth bears. As Vinati explains, these rendezvous are a result of the strategic location of the land on the border of the sanctuaries. Through time, the land has come to nurture them as its own.
Where solitude plays the perfect host
Vinati maintains that while they encourage guests to relax and unwind in this lap of nature, the place isn’t without its own slice of adventure. The rising mountains cradle yawning valleys; a duo that makes for the perfect backdrop against which the tea gardens are set. “You can watch tea leaves being plucked and help out too,” says Vinati, adding that their tea-tasting sessions are an instant hit.
Prepare to have your sight, smell, taste, and touch delighted as you embark on an afternoon of tea tasting. Let the aroma of steeped tea leaves be your guide as you make your way through green, black, and white teas, and their flavours and essences to find the perfect one. Then raise a toast to the glorious view as you sip on it.
While at O’Land Plantation, Vinati encourages a visit to Sims Park – home to thousands of species of flora, Dolphin’s Nose — a hill that resembles its namesake, Lady Canning Seat — a viewpoint named after Countess Charlotte Canning, Rose Garden, Ooty Lake, Botanical Gardens, Tribal Museum, and an afternoon of golf at Wellington Gymkhana Club.
Then head back to the homestay for lunch, which has hearty accompaniments of lemon pickles, mango pickles, pomelo salad, and generous portions of jackfruit curries.
One of the region’s biggest flexes is the Nilgiri Mountain Railway started in 1899. As the train chugs through the rolling hills with waterfalls mischievously winking through the curtains of blue, make sure you drink the beauty of it all in. Afterall, as Vinati says, the place is a treasure trove to be savoured time and again. “Tourism can be responsible,” she reaffirms, and we cannot disagree. O’Land Plantation underscores sustainability in every corner.
As the blue streaks in the sky deepen to match the shade of the Nilgiri slopes, and clouds scurry home, Vinati seems proud of their creation. She reminisces how a passion for nature led them to start this, and everything that followed has been a step in that direction.
Book your stay here.
Edited by Pranita Bhat
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