My Funfilled Journey on #KurkureFamilyExpress, India's First Food Train.

There is something magical about train journeys. The lazy pace of the trains has fascinated renowned authors, filmmakers, photographers and common people over the years. In fact my best memories of  family bonding has been during my childhood days as we made the quintessential train journey to my hometown. Years passed and somewhere in the hyper connected world, these journeys stopped. Recently, when we got a chance to hop on to India's first food train #KurkureFamilyExpress the excitement set in as we looked forward to rediscover the magic.

Indian families have always connected over two things- Food & Travel. Remember playing board games, eating sumptuous delights packed by mom, alighting at random stations to eat some more? Oh, yes those are some fun memories. Somewhere in today's busy world, the family time has lost amidst mobile & television screens. On International Family Day, Kurkure -PepsiCo's snack brand decided to do something unique- flag off the first of its kind food train- #KurkureFamilyExpress. A special train commissioned by IRCTC welcomed 40 excited families and started its culinary journey from Delhi enroute to cover 14 Indian states....and we got to hop on this fun journey too. We are sure you want to know all about our fun experience.

The train decorated by art students, started from Delhi with families and celebrity anchors & food aficionados- Rocky & Mayur. RJ Anu Kapoor and TV celeb Kiku Sharda hopped on too to mingle with them...so cool.

We reached Panvel station in Mumbai and were thrilled at the sight!! Special welcoming artwork embellished the station and beats of dhol marked of something fun :) Once seated, we were handed over piping hot tea and a tray that held various Kurkure flavors...now that's how we like to start train journeys with loads & loads of food!!! The "Karare Peanut" pack deserves a special mention as we had way too many of it (no...we are not telling you the exact number :D)

A panel discussion with actor Boman Irani, director Meghana Gulzar, author Anuja Chauhan & PepsiCo Chairman D. Shivakumar touched upon changing family times in a socially active scenario.

We nodded as they spoke about sunkissed picnics & community food experiences sans digital penetration...how we would love to do such fun things again :) Next we engaged with D. Shivakumar in an interaction wanting to know more about the thought behind the initiative. He rightly pointed out that over the years the brand is all about bringing families closer over snacks & conversations...and what better way than to do it on a train!!!

The next day, we met a few more lucky families and spoke to them about their experiences on the ride. Here we were munching on Kurkure packs & talking to complete strangers and actually enjoying it!!! Next up was a fun activity- recipe contest. A team of 3 was formed and each participant picked just one ingredient (blindfolded) to create an unique recipe with Kurkure #ChilliChataka flavor.

Our team created "Hot Gossip Bowl" with sprouts, minced garlic, tomatoes and the judges- Rocky & Mayur loved it!!

We roamed through the train speaking to families, saw them play board games, share meals, make fun recipes with Kurkure...and we thought, someone had rightly said " In the end, its the ride that matters".

We culminated our journey with a big smile, remembering some fond moments from the train ride- picking our favorite Kurkure packs, sharing meals with the families on board, late night conversations with fellow bloggers and getting down on stations to stretch our legs. Family bonding over snacks & conversations has always been the core of brand Kurkure. Over the years the brand has celebrated many fun times with unique consumer engagements and #KurkureFamilyExpress was one fun-filled foodie ride.