A Gift from my chaddi buddy!

Monkey a new member in my house

Nib Painting: Krishna

Nib Painting: Flower Pot

Trivia: Indian Express Newspaper

Indian Express was launched by an ayurvedic doctor and congressman Varadarajulla Naidu on Sep 1932. When the paper faced financial difficulties Goenka took over as the publisher. The first issue carried 7 advertisements on the front page.

Nib Painting: Peacocks

Nib Painting: House I-II

Mussoorie

My trip to Mussoorie happened by chance. A friend of mine wanted to attend her school reunion. She studied in a boarding school in Mussoorie. She asked me to accompany her since she had no one to accompany her. I was reluctant to go at first but later seeing her plight, I decided to go with her.

We took a local bus to go to Dehradun which is a drive of 8 hours. We reached Dehradun at midnight. My friend was hesitant to take any private vehicle so late in the night to Mussoorie so we opted to stay in a hotel. As a consequence, we missed the school reunion.

Next day morning we took a sharing car to Mussoorie. Reached there and checked in a hotel, freshened up and headed towards the school. My friend met her school friends and took some pics with them. Her friends were leaving the same day so she was a bit sad. While we decided to stay that day, we went to do shopping in the Tibet market. For the first time we took a trolley ride. I was thrilled by the ride. We also met some of her other classmates. They took us for site seeing. Next day, we came home, in her friend’s car. The entire trip was sponsored by my friend. Thanks to her I travelled to Mussoorie.

Mathura and Vrindavan

Last year, I along with a friend went to Mathura and Vrindavan. This was sort of my mother’s plan. Since I was in Delhi, my mother asked me to go to Mathura and Vrindavan, the birth place of Lord Krishna. Actually, a lot of her friends had made a trip to these places and so she was keen to see the place. But she does not like to travel. So I was to have the pleasure of these holy places. Having said that I want to say that I watched the Krishna serial and I was therefore equally delighted to go to the places where Lord Krishna was born and played.

Took a train to Mathura station which is approximately 4 hours journey from Nizzamudin station. We then took a local bus to reach Mathura. We visited the palace of King Kansa where Krishna’s real mother and father was jailed and where Lord Krishna was born. Then we headed to Vrindavan the place where Lord Krishna lived with his mother Yashoda and spend his childhood. This place was exotic and resembled the sets which was constructed for the serial Krishna. Every spot had a story. The tree where Lord Krishna sat after stealing the clothes of Gopis. Jamuna river where he danced on snake Kali. Everything was being played out in front of my eyes. Then we moved to the monkey garden. Monkey garden is where monkeys play to glory. I and my friend were  stalked by these monkeys. We were scared to death. However we managed to scare them off and find our way out. It is said that these monkey are not be seen or found at night. Nobody knows where they vanish. In the day time, these monkeys steal stuffs from people’s hand, especially glasses. We even spotted a monkey trying to take away the glasses from an old man’s hand. But the lucky old man, pulled it quick before the monkey could get away with it. Later a monkey pulled a plastic bag from a man’s hand. Unfortunately it had clothes in it and not food. We had good number of lassi and bought chains as souvenirs for friends and families.

NIB Painting:Krishna

PCR NEWS CHANNEL

White Beauty:Taj Mahal

Having stayed in Delhi, it would have been foolish to not go to Agra and see the Taj Mahal. I went to Agra with my friends. We took an auto from Noida to Nizzammudin station. Looked for trains going to Agra and booked the tickets. Reached Agra and took an auto to see the Taj Mahal, the pride of India. While I and another friend were Indians and charged only Rs.8 as an entry fee, my third friend was a foreigner and charged a whopping amount of Rs.700. Precisely, why, he was bugged.

We reached around 5pm which was too late to be there. They wind up and close the door as soon as the sun sets which is around 6pm. So we had to rush things. This was the first time for three of us. We were simply mesmerized by the beauty of this master piece. It was white as milk and magnificent. I fell in love as soon as I set my eyes on it and so did my friends. We wanted to capture our experience on our video camera but sadly, it was restricted. We had to therefore be content with our mobile cameras. This was my idea to visit Agra and see the Taj Mahal before our course ends. My friends thanked me for this trip. I would like to thank them for being such a good company.

Ganga by the way

Ganga or Ganges is the most sacred among all the rivers in India. It is said that when the water from Ganga is bottled, it does not putrefy. I had the good luck to see the river Ganga in Rishikesh and Haridwar. Both the places, the color of Ganga varied but not its purity. I bottled the water and brought it home. It’s the same since then, pure. What we also discovered is that the Ganga water evaporates when kept open while it is not the same when other water is kept open.

Dilli Memoirs

My wish to visit Delhi came true with my post graduation course. So this was not limited to just a visit, instead it turned out to be a one year stay. I had all the time to see Delhi at my leisure time. So I made a list of places, I wish to see and stuck it on my cupboard.

I do not remember which place did I go first. But randomly, I went to Sarojni Nagar with my pg mate and had fun purchasing stuffs and drinking lassi and shikinji. Then I went to Humayun Tomb with my classmates. It almost seemed like a replica of  Taj mahal. I had a good time at the India Gate where I went to see the Prime Minister hoisting flag on the eve of Republic Day. Dili Haat is yet another exotic place, where you find food and goods of every state in India. I ate fried momos of manipur and fruit beer.

As part of filming a documentary on Delhi , I visited Janpat a shopping paradise. Then Old fort which was a delight. Jantar Mantar where one can see the time machine used in olden days.Paharganj is one stop place for tourists for hotels and shopping. I simply loved the accessories available.

Chandni Chowk is one of the oldest places in Delhi. Even though congested it still retains its historical character. It begins from Red fort and ends at Fatehpuri Masjid. In between is the shopping street where one can find all kind of goods. I even had the time to go hog some parathas in Parathewale gali.

Just before, the day I had my tickets booked to Mumbai, I went to Qutub Minar. I was bowled by its architecture.It’s Spectacular!

Last Chance

“There are 3 types of travelers in the world. One that travels while on a business tour, the other with first-aid box and a map, while the third traveler is the one who packs the bag with a tooth brush and paste.” said a friend.

Traveling to me is discovering. My trip to a tapri is as enriching as to a forest. I seek ‘novelty’ factor. Very rarely, a place have already visited excites me. But this journey was different. May be because I was going with the flow …

My first trip to Rishikesh

Went on a bus to Rishikesh, 5 hours of bumpy ride. Must have reached at around 6am. Once there I saw the Ganga flowing green and pure for the first time in my life. I was mesmerized by its sheer purity. As I walked on the streets of Rishikesh, sun welcomed me with its rays.

I knew very little about this place hence my eyes were rejoicing the sanctity of this place.  Slowly, the city unwrapped itself. People and animals made their way. Animals and humans co existed peacefully.

‘Sab Milega’ the two words that pull tourists in hefty numbers, day in day out. Yoga class, Hindi speaking class, cooking class, music class you name it and get it. Restaurants some fancy others not so, try and serve the tourists with pancakes, fruit salad to nutella etc.

My friend wanted to buy some ganja that is grass a form of drug which is readily made available to tourists by the sadhu babas. They also serve you bhang which is an elixir of cannabis. Liquor is prohibited including non-vegetarian food. Though, tourists serve the sadhu babas with liquor to please them when required. Ask the sadhu babas if it’s appropriate to intake drugs? Pat comes the reply, “Lord Shiva consumed ganja.”

Another, service they are secretly offering to tourists is sex. Bizzare as it may sound you will find some tourists even living in a tent on the streets of Rishikesh.

There are number of small restaurants, we chose to go to the German bakery. Had some cakes and banana milkshake.

Second trip to Rishikesh

It was the festival of colours Holi and I and my friends decided to get together and head to Rishikesh the previous night itself. We took a local bus from Noida to Kashmiri Gate. All along the way, we played holi with colours. Passengers were baffled seeing colours all over our face. We tried to take the cheapest bus to Rishikesh. But we could not find one, so we opted a bus going to Haridwar at Rs139. Once reached Haridwar, we were fortunate to have got a lift in a car from another co-passenger in the bus we commuted.

We started our day with a hot cup of tea and headed to Last Chance, a cottage near the Beatles Ashram.  One of my friends took me to the Beatles Ashram. Maharishi Mahesh Yogi’s Ashram is popularly known as Beatles ashram after the renowned music band Beatles stayed in the ashram. The ashram is one of the factors that pull tourists to Rishikesh to huge numbers. We paid a nominal price to enter the ashram. There are several domes with attached bathrooms. The ashram is at present in ruins with no maintenance at all.

The 6:45 pm Ganga aarti is a must see. Students from Parmarth Ashram recite songs for half hour paying homage to the river Ganga and Shiva.

Later in the evening we headed to Freedom Café a small pub which serves mix of Indian and other countries cuisines.

 

 

 

My birthday in Haridwar

Hari Ki Pauri is the place where I celebrated my birthday last year. Why? I was getting a year older, I did not wanted to celebrate birthday in the usual fashion. Strange as it may sound, I fear aging. May be you too, may be all us do but I believe that by not celebrating birthdays I can stop aging. After all aging is all about numbers.There is a child in me that does not want to grow ever. So I decided celebrate this special day of my life with river Ganga and Shiva. What a combination! I prayed silently to the two for a life full of blessings. I hope they remember.

I left my room by 7 o’ clock in the morning instead of 5:30 am, my pre- set time for the journey. I took the bus to Haridwar from Noida. It took me around 4 hours to reach Haridwar. Once I reached I was clueless, I did not know where to go. This was my first solo trip. I had never been to Haridwar and knew nothing about the places to visit. For some minutes I looked around the bus stop, figuring out if I was actually in Haridwar. I even thought of checking with someone if I was in the right place. But I did not do that.

Instead I went to one of the rickshawala and asked him what were the places to see here. He named many places which I could barely grasp. Then he named Har Ki Pauri which sounded familiar. I was told about the aarti in Hari Ki Pauri which was a must to see and be there. So decided to go to Hari Ki Pauri.

The place was so beautiful I was touched by its divine atmosphere. I bought a Kada  and 2 braclets. I bought a can to take some Ganga water back home. Then I went and sat on the bank of  the river Gang and filled the can with water. At 5:45pm the aarti commenced. The sight was spectacular. I lit the diya tokri and let it flow in the Ganga.

I had a hot tea after the aarti and headed back to Noida.

Mystery of Desire

‘The Bhagavad Gita’ says that one needs to detach oneself from desires and that desires are roadblocks in life.

But how do one quit having desires? Is it not the essence of life?

It is true that a desire gives birth to another and likewise it goes on. Thereby making oneself unhappy and dissatisfied.

We are often told that one needs to set a goal in life. It is very important to have a goal to lead a life. But is it so? Does having these goals make one happy? Does one attain peace?

No. The reason according to me is that when we set a goal we also set up obstacles. These obstacles hinder in achieving those goals set. Desire also make us unsatisfied even if life is offering good things. We crave for things others have. Competition give us sleepless nights. In the bargain to achieve the goal set, we fail to attain peace.

It is therefore necessary to set a Journey. Journey which is long lasting and fulfilling. Journey which never ends and gives immense peace to oneself and others.

OPEN!

OPEN the latest entrant in the magazine’s sphere covers current affairs and features on a weekly basis. It includes voices of some prominent journalists such as CP Surendra, Hartosh Singh Bal, Manu Joseph and Sandipan Deb. Regular columns are a mix of National, International, Business, Sports and  Arts & Culture stories .

The online version openthemagazine.com includes short documentary, video and photo gallery apart from the content in print. Unlike other magazine’s portal , OPEN chooses to be different. This establishes that the publisher is keen in leveraging the benefits of an online presence of its magazine.

Girls into the Wilds

Today traveling is no more a male’s domain. Girls and Women too, find venturing into the wilds adventures.

But how many times, has it happened that you had to cancel a trip only because you did not have a male partner to accompany you?

Even today in India traveling alone for women is not considered safe. Solving this problem are adventures woman’s group which take girls/women to places of their choice.

• http://www.womentravelclub.in
• http://www.girlsonthegoclub.com
• http://www.wowsumitra.com
• http://www.womenonclouds.com

Book Delivery in 24 Hours

Have you ever wished for a library which delivered books like pizza?

This is now a  reality with Librarywala.com promising to deliver books at your doorstep.

This facility is available in Mumbai, Pune and Bangalore. Registration is done after the user pays a nominal price for the service. Once registered, the users can select the desired books and within, 24 hours the book is delivered at your doorstep.

Happy Reading on Librarywala!

Yuva back on stands!

Yuva, once a Re. 1 weekly newspaper is back on the stands in an all new avatar. Yuva is now a bi weekly magazine and costs Rs.30.

It has all that youth needs to read – Relationship, Book, Beauty, Films, Health, Music, Sports, Travel, Music, Career, Sex etc. These are written by experts.

Apart from the big story the magazine covers ‘Politician Checklist’ where it profiles a young politician. ‘Snapshot’ features real people with real style quotient. ‘Young Turks’ features young entrepreneur. News maker features the person who is in the news.

It could be the much needed magazine catering to youth. It can surely give stiff competition to its competitors which aren’t many except for Jam magazine. Also, unlike Jam which is available in Mumbai and Delhi only Yuva has all India circulation. It is published by India Book House.

One can also read some of its stories online at www.zoneyuva.com

Yuva is a complete package, An All Rounder!