Farmer set out on India's Republic Day - which also happens to be Australia's national day, January 26 - with hundreds of supporters at the starting line.
Former Western Sydney MP and ultra-marathon record holder Pat Farmer is running 4,600 kilometres from the southern Indian port of Kanyakumari north to Kashmir.
He says it's a challenge he's excited to embrace.
"I love the feeling of freedom when I get out to various parts of the world and see things through my own eyes that a lot of people only imagine."
Pat Farmer says he is aiming to raise $100,000 for the education of girls in India, where fewer than 65 per cent of girls can read.
"If they can't read or write then often all the family is put back and I always say if you educate the girl you educate the nation."
Mr Farmer is hoping to complete the 4,600-kilometre run in about 60 days.
Starting from the southern-most point of India, he'll run along the west coast, towards Mumbai.
Covering about 80 kilometres a day, he'll pass through Delhi, ending at the foothills of the Himalayan Mountains.
Living and training in Sydney, he's no stranger to traffic.
But even with his varied fitness regime, Mr Farmer says physical preparation isn't everything.
"The rest of that comes down to experience and life experience and the way you accept problems happening on the road."
In 2011 Mr Farmer ran a nine-month marathon from the North Pole to the South Pole, and in 2014 he undertook a peace run from Lebanon to Israel.
He's hoping this journey will help strengthen ties between India and Australia.
"I want to show Australians that there is more to India than curry and cricket."
Mr Farmer is expected to finish the sea-to-summit marathon by the end of March.
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