TRAVEL LITERATURE: HISTORY AND EVOLUTION OF GENRE

Abstract

The literary genre of travel writing continues to focus on a person's trip diaries or recordings. One can learn about many towns and nations from such tales, as well as distinct cultures, behavioural tendencies, and living situations. Writings on travel have been created since the beginning of time. India is a country with many different cultures, languages, and eating customs that continues to be a favoured trip destination for people living in India and outside. Numerous travel authors from Europe, China, and the Arab world, such as Jean Baptiste Tavernier, Ibn-e-Battuta, and Hiuen Tsang, have written extensively on their experiences visiting India. All of them have authored books about India, its people, and its culture. All of them have authored books about India, its people, and its culture. Because their accounts are based solely on what the tourists have seen or seen around them, they are not trustworthy from an informational standpoint. They don't give a true representation of India in their writings; instead, they give a fictitious one. The difficulties and societal ills that were common at the period have not been highlighted. Travel writings continue to be a legacy of colonial endeavour, as stated earlier. Travel writers from India are therefore required to share their thoughts on how the country and its inhabitants are perceived by the general public. I'll try to illustrate the development of Indian travel literature and current examples of this genre in this essay. While doing so, I'll also talk about the recent changes that have occurred in this genre.