Bihar’s Nomad Shubham Conquers the Globe: Youngest Indian and Asian Visits All 197 Countries at Just 24

Munger, Bihar / São Paulo, Brazil — March 4, 2026 — In a remarkable story of grit, passion, and boundless wanderlust, 24-year-old Shubham Kumar — better known to millions as Nomad Shubham — has become the youngest Indian and the youngest Asian to set foot in every one of the world’s 197 sovereign countries.

Born on December 2, 2002, in the small village of Makwa in Bihar’s Munger district, Shubham grew up in a modest rural household where his father worked as a government school teacher. From hitchhiking to school as a child to leaving formal education in his mid-teens, he chose the road less travelled — literally.

His decade-long journey, which began around age 16–17 in 2018 after an eye-opening trip to Leh-Ladakh, ended triumphantly when he landed in Brazil as country number 197 on or around March 1, 2026. In an emotional Instagram post, Shubham wrote: 

 “Today, country number 197 is done. And my last country is Brazil. From my first hitchhike to my last one. 10 years. 197 countries. I don’t know whether to smile, cry, or just stay silent and feel it.”

Shubham’s odyssey was anything but luxurious. He travelled almost exclusively on a shoestring budget — often surviving on just ₹500 a day in the early years — relying on hitchhiking, local buses, trains, overland border crossings, volunteering, and couchsurfing with strangers. He filled six Indian passports with stamps and visas, faced near-deportations (including a tense moment in Ecuador due to lack of blank pages), survived freezing temperatures of -71°C, was accused of being a spy in Gabon, and navigated protests in Mozambique — all while documenting raw, authentic stories of everyday life far beyond tourist hotspots.

Today, as a full-time travel vlogger, Nomad Shubham boasts over 3.2 million YouTube subscribers and more than 622,000 Instagram followers. His content, which began with simple videos explaining visas and budget hacks from a rural Bihar perspective, now inspires millions worldwide. Early funding came from refunding coaching fees and small personal savings; later, YouTube earnings sustained the journey without any corporate sponsorship or family wealth.

Former President Ram Nath Kovind has publicly praised his work, and Shubham has even taken his family on international trips — a dream he once thought impossible.

Travel experts describe visiting all 197 sovereign nations as one of the rarest feats in modern exploration, fraught with geopolitical hurdles, astronomical costs, and endless paperwork — especially on an Indian passport. Shubham’s achievement shatters stereotypes about who gets to see the world and proves that determination, smart planning, and a backpack can outweigh privilege.

Social media has erupted with pride and congratulations from across India and beyond. “From a Bihar village to every corner of the Earth — this is what dreams look like,” one viral comment read.

With the world now checked off his list, Nomad Shubham says the real journey continues — through deeper storytelling, cultural exchange, and inspiring the next generation of budget travellers to chase their own impossible dreams.

Shubham Kumar has not just visited 197 countries — he has shown the world that no border is too far when passion leads the way.