Monisha Rajesh

Monisha Rajesh is a British journalist and travel writer whose books celebrate the romance, adventure, and transformative power of train travel. Born in Norfolk in 1982 to Indian parents, she attended King Edward VI High School for Girls in Birmingham, studied French at the University of Leeds, and earned a postgraduate diploma in magazine journalism from City University London. She has written for The Guardian, The Times, The New York Times, and Time. Her debut book Around India in 80 Trains chronicles a four-month journey across India by rail, using eighty train journeys to reach the furthest points of the Indian network. The book was selected by The Independent as one of the top ten books on India and established her as a fresh, engaging voice in travel writing. Her second book, Around the World in 80 Trains, won the 2020 National Geographic Traveller Book of the Year and was shortlisted for the Stanford Dolman Travel Book of the Year. Her most recent book, Moonlight Express, about the resurgence of European sleeper trains, was shortlisted for the 2026 Edward Stanford Travel Book of the Year. Rajesh's audiobooks and books offer listeners and readers vivid, intelligent travel writing that goes beyond tourism to explore how journeys by rail connect us to landscapes, cultures, and each other.