New Delhi, December 1975. It was love at first sight when a Swedish hippy called Lotta von Schedvin sat down to be sketched by an Indian street artist, Pradyumna Kumar Mahanandia, known to everyone as PK. In the 10 minutes it took PK to complete her portrait, everything clicked into place for the pair. They were swept headlong in a whirlwind romance, and PK took Lotta to his village in the east of India to meet his family. But soon after, the time came for Lotta to pack up her VW campervan and head back home with her friends.
Heart-stricken PK promised to follow, but a plane ticket to Sweden was an impossible dream. Determined not to lose the love of his life, PK bought a secondhand Raleigh bike, and with $80 sewn into the waistband of his trousers, set off to cycle 6,000 miles to Lotta. He knew the sun set in the west, so that was the direction he took. His plan was to follow the hippy trail, cycling through India, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Iran and Turkey, crossing Europe, finally arriving in Sweden.
