At 33, she reached Everest Base Camp. Now she’s set her eyes on the Seven Summits quest

Rina Charaniya’s life sometimes sounds like a movie script. In October last year, she was on Carstensz Pyramid (Puncak Jaya), the highest peak in Oceania, when a torrential rain took over, soaking her gloves, and burning every muscle in her body as she clinged to the slick surface with everything she had got. As if the brutal conditions weren’t enough, she and her guide spent 15 relentless hours helping a fellow climber overcome her fear of heights—mid-storm. Most people would have been laser-focused on their own survival, but Charaniya? She wasn’t about to leave anyone behind. “That climb taught me something powerful: you don’t always have to be 100 per cent ready. Sometimes, you just have to show up, trust yourself, and take the leap,” says the singer turned mountaineer, who’s made it her mission to conquer all seven summits—Aconcagua in South America, Puncak Jaya in Oceania, Mount Elbrus in Europe, Mount Everest in Asia, Mount Vinson in Antarctica, Kilimanjaro in Africa and Denali in North America—in her midlife. So far, she’s checked off the first three, but she’s just getting started.

Charaniya’s journey to the mountains, though, didn’t start in adventure gear. It began in a small, nondescript village called Khapat, near the Gir forest in Gujarat. Born into a family of farm labourers, survival meant hustle. “Growing up, working on the farm, I didn’t ever imagine I’d ever take to climbing mountains,” she says. At 17, she moved to Junagadh and then Ahmedabad, chasing better prospects. She enrolled in interior and fashion design school but couldn’t afford the fees—especially with the responsibility of supporting her parents and funding her brother’s education. Enter fate: a friend’s father’s jewellery company became her first real job. In 2012, Mumbai called, and she answered.

With nothing but ambition, Charaniya dabbled in modelling and acting—only to realise she had to work on herself first. “I barely spoke Hindi or English properly. I was raw, and I knew it,” she admits. Singing seemed like a way in, and her big break came with a song, “Judaa,” for T-Series. But the industry wasn’t kind—her second track got stolen, and around the same time, her father was diagnosed with cancer. Then, in 2017, she met hair expert Florian Hurel and, she says, her life changed. The two married in 2020, post-lockdown, and she made a decision: music was no longer her path. Instead, she threw herself into building Florian’s luxury haircare brand and pro salons, handling everything from interiors to product packaging and even social media. “I don’t feel that connection with the industry anymore. This is where I belong now,” she says.

Funnily enough, Rii—as she is better known—wasn’t that kid scaling trees or obsessing over Everest documentaries. In fact mountaineering wasn’t even on her radar—until it was. Her first trek? Everest Base Camp at 33. And this with zero experience. “I had no clue how much it would change me. I wasn’t some seasoned climber, but the raw, unforgiving beauty of the mountains called to me. I didn’t wait years to prepare; I just dove in, ready to test my limits. I’ve always loved training at the gym and escaping into nature whenever I could, so I figured: why not take it further?” she says. 

As you’d imagine, it wasn’t easy. Day two hit her like a plot twist—she tore her ligament. “The pain was brutal, my ankle swelled up, and every step felt impossible. Logic screamed at me to turn back, but something inside me refused to quit,” she says. Rii pushed forward, knowing this was a moment she couldn’t let slip away. Making it to Base Camp felt like a win, but even then, she wasn’t done. By now, she had set her sights on Lobuche East (her target peak), only for the pain to finally pull the brakes before the summit. “I showed up, fought through, and found a strength I never knew I had. Lobuche is still on my list—I will be back,” she says, adding that instead of feeling defeated, she felt invincible.

Rii is part of a growing tribe of Indian mountaineers making history on the world’s tallest peaks—there is 17-year-old Kaamya Karthikeyan, who became the youngest female to conquer the Seven Summits last year, capping her record-breaking feat on Mt. Vinson in Antarctica and inspiring a new generation of adventurers. Equally remarkable is Arunima Sinha, the trailblazing mountaineer and former national volleyball player. As India’s first female amputee—and the world’s second—to scale Mount Everest, she went on to summit the highest peaks on every continent.

But mountains have a way of exposing the truth—Rii learnt this first-hand on Ojos del Salado, the highest volcano in the world. At 6,400 metres, she hit an unexpected wall: doubt. “For the first time, I actually felt old on a mountain,” says the 35-year-old. It wasn’t just the altitude messing with her—bad weather rolled in, her mind wavered, and for once, she chose to turn back. No drama, no breakdown, just a quiet truth: sometimes, the boldest move is knowing when to walk away. It was a lesson in humility, patience, and the understanding that not every summit needs to be conquered right now.

In 2023, Kilimanjaro, her first summit, brought a surreal moment of clarity. “I remember looking up and feeling so small yet so connected to everything around me. It was as if I had stepped out of my body, just floating in the universe, completely at peace.” That same eerie sense of déjà vu hit her on Carstensz Pyramid. “It felt like I had been there before, even though it was my first time rock climbing. Almost like the mountain already knew me.”

For all the highs, mountaineering isn’t without its dark moments. “I’ve had times where exhaustion, pain, and self-doubt made me question why I do this at all,” Rii admits. And it’s not just about physical strain—balancing expeditions with running a business alongside her husband often leaves her wondering if she’s training enough. But uncertainty is part of the process. “I love challenges. Every time I hit my breaking point, I walk away more certain of who I am and why I keep coming back.”

Spending weeks—sometimes months—on a mountain forces you to level up, fast. But for Rii, it’s her humble farming roots that keep her grounded. But let’s be real—mountains don’t care about your past. If you’re not prepped, they’ll humble you fast. Rii’s training is hardcore: strength workouts, endurance drills, altitude conditioning, and mental resilience training. Meditation, visualisation, and cold exposure? Non-negotiable. “It’s not just about being physically strong—you have to be ready to fight your own mind when the altitude hits, when exhaustion kicks in, when every step feels impossible.”

On most days, she doesn’t just train like a beast—she fuels like one too. “Mountains will chew you up if you’re not fuelling right,” she says. Her nutrition game is dialled in: protein-packed meals for strength, slow-burning carbs for endurance, and hydration on point. “I make sure my body is getting what it needs—lean proteins, good fats, complex carbs. And electrolytes? A lifesaver at high altitudes.” When she’s on an expedition, it’s all about efficiency. Freeze-dried meals, energy bars, nuts and dark chocolate keep her going. “Oxygen is low, your appetite tanks, and even chewing feels exhausting. But you can’t afford to slack on food—you burn thousands of calories a day.” Her go-to? A solid mix of warm soups, rice, lentils, and high-calorie snacks that don’t feel like a chore to eat. And caffeine? “Oh, 100 per cent. Coffee is non-negotiable.”

Up next? Aconcagua (6,961m) in Argentina—the highest peak outside the Himalayas and the next big test in her Seven Summits quest. “This one is all about endurance. It’s going to push me harder than ever, but after my run on Ojos del Salado I’m hyped to see how I handle the altitude,” she says. If she could rope up with any mountaineering legend? No contest—Reinhold Messner. “The way he redefined what’s possible in climbing? Unreal. The man’s a beast.”

For anyone dreaming of their own summit moment, Rii keeps it real: Start small—hit the trails, build endurance, and test yourself in different conditions. Strengthen your legs and core, and get used to carrying a pack. Do your homework—learn about gear, navigation, and safety. But most importantly? Just start. You don’t need to be an elite athlete to climb mountains; you just need grit, patience, and the guts to take that first step.