Himanshu's Blog

Launching Riddhie's Website (riddhie.com)

2010-12-08T11:16:00.000+05:30

I guess I finally did something worthwhile and finished off at least one thing in time. For those who are yet unaware of my new endeavor, this is about Riddhie’s own blog website. It is available at riddhie.com.

I haven’t added much as yet but have a definite thought process around how I want this to shape up. I guess the content would automatically get added in due course of time. I am keeping her website with public settings as of now and would let our friends and family send in their wishes and comments. There however, exists a rider for the readers and hopefully people shall be sensitive and intelligent enough to adhere to the norms. There is a picture gallery added with 3 albums at present. I guess this too shall be build over time.

So, looking forward to your suggestions, comments and feedback on the website. You could drop me a mail or simply use the ‘Send Wishes’ link at the new website for the same.

Movie Maniac Unleashed

2009-10-28T11:45:00.002+05:30

October 28, 2009

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Of all things that I love to do, I guess the one that tops the list is to be a couch potato, put on a movie and be glued to the idiot box and soak myself in the streaming visuals of action, drama, buffoonery, horrro and at times classic tales of years gone by.

I guess, I would have already spent a substantial portion of my life watching movies and a reasonable fortune in procuring the Video Cassettes, VCDs and DVDs of Hindi movies across all genres and all ages.

I thought it was about time that I unleashed the movie maniac in me and vent out all the bollywood lava that has been accumulating over the years. To this end, I am attempting a new blog titled "Filum Chillum" available at the link HERE.

I aim to include reviews, plot synopsis and my opinion on the movies from yesteryears and the contemporary times and across all genres including commercial and parallel cinema, B-grade stuff and classics from the early era of Hindi fim making.

Please feel free to drop in your comments and any suggestions that you might have for helping me out with this notion of running another blog on Hindi movies.

Trip to Haridwar

2009-09-24T22:49:00.000+05:30

September 24, 2009

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It’s been more than a couple of weeks before I get this chance to make an entry on this blog – more like a travelogue now. Anyway, this post is about, well a not so recent trip to Haridwar. Now, Haridwar is a place that I would love to avoid and strike off my travel destinations forever because of all the pain that can be seen spilled all over the place. The irony is that I know I shall never be able to cut it off my travel plans owing to all the religious connotations the place carried with Hindu rituals and customs.

The actual reason for taking this trip was to fulfill a family commitment and an obligatory presence for one of the religious ceremonies in the family. However deep within I let myself believe that I was on another of my photo-walks and somehow the place did not appear as bad then.

We started off on the morning of August 15 at about 0530 from our place and boarded the Dehradun Shatabadi (Train No. 2017) from New Delhi Railway Station. The train leaves from platform 1A at about 0650 hrs and those wanting to board the same are advised to reach the Ajmeri Gate side of the railway station as it is the first platform from that end. We arrived at the other side of the station and for us, it meant walking all the way to cross all platforms in between (the distance would be less than a kilometer maybe, but if you are carrying your own luggage, you shall end up cursing the person who got you dropped at the wrong end).

The train crosses Ghaziabad, Meerut City, Muzaffarnagar before reaching Saharanpur where it takes a 20 minute halt and then passes Roorkee before it reaches Haridwar junction at about 1125 hrs. the journey is pretty comfortable as compared to traveling by road as the route is prone to run into long and painful traffic jams.

The train left us at Haridwar station 5 minutes later than its scheduled arrival time. It was raining when we arrived and thus began our woes. Usually one can find an auto who would leave you at the ghats for 50/-, the untimely downpour (or timely for them actually) gave the taxis and auto-rickshaws a golden opportunity to make a killing. We ended up paying 300/- for a distance of about 2 kms and that too after much haggling.

However, some time soon after the loot seemed justified as the single road connecting the railways station to the city and the ghats was totally packed. The cars could only move bumper to bumper and it took us about 100 minutes to traverse those 2 kms. (I know, I would have rather walked, but for the rain and the luggage). I was informed by the driver that this is now a regular feature in Haridwar on weekends. Probably people from around Delhi see it as a weekend getaway destination and pack their bags and drive out for a weekend dip in the Ganges. My word of advice - if you can, plan your trip on a weekday than a weekend.

Luckily for us the accommodation was booked in advance and we could check in easily. If you are looking to stay closer to the Ghats, do not expect 5 star facilities. Feel lucky if you can manage to get clean sheets and mattresses on the beds and a clean washroom. There might be no room service available and as in many cases, no restaurants or kitchens to order food from which means that you stay at one place and move out in the evenings to grab food elsewhere.

When it comes to the food, you would normally find deep fried puris and vegetables everywhere. There are no decent places to eat around ghats sans a few halwai shops where again you can dig into some puri-halwa-sabzi fare. However, if you can dare to walk a bit, there are a few above average places to dine around ‘Jagannath Dham’. Don’t bother asking for directions, just take a cycle – rickshaw from anywhere you are and tell the rickshaw puller to drop you ar ‘Jagannath Dham’. Apparently it is a huge and popular ashram and people living there know it pretty well as a landmark.

So, we checked into a lesser known place opposite this much known ‘Jagannath Ashram’ and settled in. We decided to venture out to ‘Har ki Paudi’ – the bathing ghats at Haridwar for the holy dip into the Ganges around 4 the same day.

The place was swarming with people of all shapes, sizes and varying degrees of undressing. You could find huge uncles with bulging paunches and typical ‘petticoat’ aunties. There were boys and young men with and without wives who would squeal every time they took a dip and came out. There were older looking vicious men who were eyeing women whose wet clothes stuck to their sagging frames and then there were the regular paraphernalia of beggars of all ages and all sorts or disabilities wearing all shades of saffron and white - pretty much the regular stuff.

I went about on my shooting spree as soon as I landed foot on the ghats. The others who accompanied me left me pretty much on my own and got busy dipping their heads in the water which was a shade that I saw as a cross between green moss and earthy brown. Anyway, I walked around as much as I could and got couple of very interesting pictures.

We spent the rest of the day lazing around in the hotel room and walking around in the market. A larger part of the next day was absorbed in the religious ceremony for which we had come for.

Another anecdote worth mentioning here is the story of the stolen shoes. This might be of value to people visiting this place for the first time as well. Since it had been raining the day before, the streets and the roads were largely muddy and wet. I decided to abandon my slippers and be in my shoes for the day. Some odd errand during the ceremony wanted me to take off my shoes and stand aside for a while. I would have barely left for a few minutes and someone, by then had taken off with my shoes. What I was trying to avoid all the while was inevitable now. I walked barefoot all the while on those wet and slimy roads to a shop in the market to buy me another pair of footwear. (I am smiling as I key this in now. It did feel bad then).

We left the city soon after the holy service was complete. We were doing the return journey by road which gave us the leverage to make a pit stop at ‘Patanjali ashram’ run and managed by Yoga guru Baba Ramdev. The place is huge and has a large eating space and organic food joint. The lunch was a simple ‘Thali’ fare, moderately priced and easy on the palate. I can recommend it to people who relish trying out different foods.

As I mentioned earlier, the journey by road can be grueling and testing on your driving skills and patience. The single road was flanked by reckless drivers who would cut and turn as if they owned the road and long traffic jams at almost every time we crossed a city. The return journey took us about 8 hours and on the whole it was a relief being back.

The pictures are shared here.

There is another associated article on this trip which can be read here.

World Photo-walking Day & Me

2009-07-29T20:46:00.000+05:30

July 18, 2009

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So this was one photo-walk I was originally slated to miss (yeah, actually) because of pressing family commitments. However, somehow things just fell in place and I called up Abby (he is the guy who leads the effort from Delhi) and together we set off for Delhi. The venue was the heart of Delhi itself - India Gate and the walk over to Rajpath.

Despite starting well before time, we reached the venue a little late than the scheduled time of 1700 hrs. The rain Gods were still eluding Delhi and it was still pretty hot for the long walk we had committed ourselves to.

Of all things that I like about doing a shoot at India Gate is that no matter how repetitive the scenes and shots are, there is no dearth of subjects and every walk opens up fresh avenues for exploration and teaches you a little more about life.

There were the usual subjects - the vendors and the naked children in the water and the people who were clicking each other and the odd couples sitting under shady trees (looking even shadier) and then there were scenes from life which were new and unseen before.

I did not take too many pictures and the final set which gets to be listed publicly contains even a lesser number but there were a couple of shots which came by towards the end of the day which make me proud. The evening shaped up beautifully and though we were completely exhausted and dehydrated, the entire experience and of course the beautiful hues of the dusk made the entire effort worthwhile.

Click here for the pictures I shot.

Click here if you wish to read more on World Photo-walking Day.

New Story 'Giving Up' added to Tandonz.com

2009-03-02T14:52:00.001+05:30

It's been a while since I actually wrote something other than posts on my other blog 'Random Cerebrations'. However, this particular story took ages to shape up. I started this one on February 4, 2008 and it was only yesterday March 1, 2009 that I finally keyed in the last syllable on this.

Not that this story is out of the world or anything and I am not arguing it to be my best work till date, it's just that something or the other kept taking me away from the story time and again.

None the less, I am kind of pleased with the way it has turned out to be. This short story attempts to draw an analogy between smoking and having the first heart burn in a relationship and eventually trying to give up both.

You may want to read it for its queer view point, simple first person narrative (as usual) and depiction of some real world scenarios. (Those who have traveled by Haryana Roadways buses would agree)

Click Here to read on.

Travel Diary - Nainital

2009-01-15T19:36:00.000+05:30

If you are traveling from Delhi to Nainital, probably the best and the most comfortable way to travel is to take the overnight Ranikhet Express from Old Delhi Railway Station to reach Kathgodam, the nearest railway station to Nainital, which is what we did. However we got down at the Haldwani station which is about 6 kms before Kathgodam. This kind of saves about 25 - 30 mins. as the halt at Haldwani is usually a long one.

One can easily get a taxi from Haldwani station itself. You can negotiate anything between 300 - 400/- to have the taxi drop you at the Nainital Mall road. An extra tip of 20 - 50/- shall ensure that the Taxi stays with you till you look for a place to stay, that is if you have not made prior reservations.

There are plenty of decent hotel right on the Mall road facing the Naini lake and after having looked into nearly half a dozen places, we finally settled into one which was towards the lower end of the lake. Interestingly the two ends of the lake are referred to by different names, while the end of the lake where Naina Devi Temple is situated is referred as 'Mallital', the other opposite end is known as 'Tallital'.

Boating in the Lake

As soon as we had our morning tea, we stepped out into the bright sun. For a day in the last week of December, the sunshine was abundant and it was all bright and sunny for most part of the day. We heralded the day with a nice long ride in the boat and nearly spanned the entire lake. The boat rides are cheap and one only needs to shell about 150/- for an hour for a paddle boat. This includes the rent of the life jackets that are provided. However, I am not sure about the quality of the material used therein and won't vouch for their life saving capabilities either.

After we had our fill of the lake we sat down for some breakfast. There are plenty of places to sit and have a meal by the lake and the view is not too bad either.

Himalaya Darshan

Our next destination was the Himalaya Darshan. There is a ropeway trolley available to the point and the tickets are available for a round trip at about 120/- a head. The ropeway does tend to give you a bird's eye view of the entire lake and is something that one would enjoy. However we were a tad disappointed by the view that was on offer at the final Himalaya Darshan point. For one, it had become cloudy suddenly and the light had fallen considerably, secondly, the view itself was not something to write home about. There is however a small amusement park kind of a thing right at the view point. If you have little children along with you, this might be a better place to spend a few minutes than the point itself.

We decided to stroll the market place and the Mall road for rest of the day or whatever was left of it. Candles of all shapes, sizes and fragrances is one thing that the markets are full of. Some of these are pretty good and make excellent souvenirs and gifts for friends back home.

Day 2 Local Sight Seeing

We walked down to Nanda Devi Temple next day morning. This temple was destroyed during the Landslip of 1880, and was later rebuilt. It is located on the lake's northern shore. The temple is not very big otherwise but it made a useful pretext to be out early morning to catch the glorious morning view of the lake.

Later in the day , we caught hold of a local taxi and took a guided tour of all the possible places to visit. This is one of the safest approach if you want to cover maximum places in minimum time. Chances are that you might end up paying a little extra but it is worth what you can save in time, if you are on a short weekend trip.

Cave Gardens & Golu Dev Temple

Cave Gardens is an interesting place to visit and worth its ticket money. This is a set of caves that have been unearthed and opened for public. The other views on offer namely Khurpa Lake view, Mango View, Lover's Point, Bara Patthar to name a few are just mediocre points with little or no variation and would not interest someone who is a regular mountaineer or frequents Indian hill stations. We added another temple to our plan. This one was called Golu Dev temple, who happens to be a local deity. An interesting aspect of this temple was the number of bells of all possible sizes that were hung in the courtyard. The local lore counts them to be over a million and we could at least see about 50,000 in place.

SatTal & BhimTal

We carried on our journey to the nearby lakes and again enjoyed boating at a place called SatTal Literally meaning seven lakes. It is a group of small lakes nested together, about 23 kms from Nainital at an altitude of 1370 meters. There are no decent places to eat around and one can only see local dhabas in the vicinty so one is advised to not leave Nainital without adequate food.

Bhimtal was the next and the final stop on our way to KathGodam from where we had to catch the same train back to Delhi. Bhimtal is about 22 kms from Nainital, and is nested in a beautiful pristine valley. This lake is the largest around Nainital. We did not spend much time here and kept going to be in time for our train.

Catch all the pictures HERE.

Trip to Agra & Fatehpur Sikri

2009-01-14T19:46:00.001+05:30

This was my third trip to the Taj Mahal and really the first trip to Agra. Confusing, hmmm.. it is so because on the previous two occasions I had conveniently opted to skip everything else which the city had to offer except the Taj. However, this time around, I made it a point that the trip was planned in such a fashion that we did not leave any monument out of our schedule.

We started from Gurgaon on December 20 at about 0800 hrs. and drove down to the city of the Taj making only one pit stop along the way. This happened to be a McDonald's joint on the highway near Mathura. This is one of the better places to take a break if you are driving down on your own. The place is built on what can be said as a huge area going by the standards of Delhi and Gurgaon and gives you ample space to stretch your legs (you can take a short jog from the parking to the gate if you wanted).

First Stop - Sikandara

Having driven all the way sans the pit stop talked about above, we headed straight for the Akbar's tomb in Sikandara. Emperor Akbar started the construction of this tomb himself, which was later completed by his son Jahangir. This beautiful tomb is a grand affair built in the Indo-Saracenic style with a variety of exquisite carvings and designs covering it.

The tomb stands in the center of a vast garden, which is enclosed by high walls on all sides. in the middles of each enclosing wall is a monumental gateway. The whole garden is divided into four equal quarters on the conventional charbhag plan. Each quarter is separated by a high terrace or raised path with a narrow shallow water channel running at the center. Each terrace has in the center, a tank with fountains.

One can approach the monument from the Southern gate only. Ticket counter is located to the left of this gate. The ticket itself is nominally priced at 20/- a head for an Indian National. Although there is only one entrance in use today there exist four red sandstone gates which lead to the mausoleum complex. The decoration on the gateways is strikingly bold, with large mosaic patterns set into it. The gateway's four minarets rising from the corners are particularly striking. Built of red sandstone, the minarets are inlaid with white marble polygonal patterns; the pleasing Proportions & Profuse surface ornamentation makes the gateways very impressive.

Destination - Taj Mahal

From Sikandara we made a dash towards the Taj. It was disheartening to see lack of able direction maps on road to a world heritage site and one of the seven wonders of the world and we nearly got lost twice. Well, I say nearly because it is difficult to get lost in India as you possibly can not find a place where you don't find at least 50 people around. But this is where the problem begins, often people (good Samaritans as they are) would tell you directions differently and you could be lost in a mesh of cross roads. (Well, we Indians are not in habit of either carrying or reading maps, so let us not begin on that point).

Anyway, so we reached Taj and because of the recent happening in Mumbai we were face to face with a queue that ran miles. To that point, let me just draw your attention to the fact that the nearest car parking for the Taj is about a kilometer and a half away and you either take a primitive horse cart or a battery operated vehicle. (The tanga shall cost you about 100/- lumpsome and the electric cars about 10/- a head). The ticket prices for Taj vary for Indian Nationals and Foreigners (30/- and 550/- respectively, Oh yeah, we fleece them good).

I shall not get into the details of the history on Taj (everyone knows that, I suppose, if you don't just click here then). It took us about 45 minutes just to make it through the door. People planning to take this trip are cautioned not to carry any eatable on them (even candies and gum are not allowed). You are not allowed to switch on your mobiles once inside and for a person visiting it for the first time, you are advised to negotiate well on the rates that a person claiming to be a tour guide would ask you. However, it is recommended that you do hire one, as these people usually have fine yarns to share. (Probable negotiable price 100/-).

The day was kind of hazy so I would not boast much about the pics I took, yet the beauty of Taj should be seen to be believed. It mesmerizes you like no other structure would and you would be tempted to just stand and marvel at the mere sight of it.

By the time we came out of the place, it was dark and it kind of became imperative that we found ourselves a shelter for the night and rest our feet for the day. There are plenty of options around that would suit pockets of all sizes and finding a place is not very difficult.

However it is good to be cautious of touts and local guides. We ran into one such a person who stalked us for nearly 2 miles, talking about prices and places to stay on and on. I am kind of disappointed that we did not run him under our car. Anyway, the point is to be better safe than sorry. Period.

The Market & 'Panchi Petha Store'

The Sadar Bazaar is one of the better markets in Agra and it is not a bad idea to explore the market. We raided the market after checking into one of the hotels (negotiations can lead you to get about 50% discount. Don't settle on the price that the manager across the hotel reception quotes you at all). It is advised that you hunt for a 'Panchi Petha Store' right in the heart of the market and treat yourself to some 'Paan Petha' if you have a sweet tooth. You would have trouble picking out the sweetmeat for you as they don't offer you a taste bite but then if you happen to be a glutton like me, you would buy a box of each possible variety (just as I did) I guess, a visit to any city is incomplete without a little display of gluttony for the local food.

Day 2, The Agra Fort

We started our day a bit early and reached Agra Fort. The structure is not very different from the forts in Jaipur or Delhi but it is worth a visit. The 'Sheesh Mahal' or the palace of Noor Jahan boasts of well maintained lawns and glistening marble. Akbar had built this grand military structure in 1565, which occupies the very center of the city of Agra. In fact, after the Taj Mahal the Agra Fort is the second most popular tourist site in Agra. Even though this 20 meter high fort was mainly constructed for military purposes, Shah Jahan converted a part of it into a comfortable palace during his reign. The Amar Singh Gate is the only entrance to the Agra Fort, which also offers a magnificent view of the Taj Mahal across the Yamuna River.

The day was a typical December offering, cold and little misty but it somehow was very pleasant to walk down the royal corridors. I was able to click a few real nice pictures with shadows and mist playing.

Itmad-Ud-Daulah

The next stop from the Agra Fort was Itmad-ud-Daulah which is the tomb of Mirza Ghyas Beg, a persian who had obtained service in Akbar Court. The Marvel tomb was made by Emperor Jehangir's Queen, Noorjahan, for his father Mirza Ghyas Beg during 1622-1628 A.D. The Craftmanship at Itmad-ud-Daulah foreshadows that of the Taj Mahal. It was here that. "Pietra Dura"-the inlay work on marble-so characteristic of the Taj-was first used.

The place has a serene air about it and it was one of the better places to visit in Agra. I would seriously recommend to any person traveling to this part of the country.

Chini Ka Roza

Next on our list was the 'Chini ka Roza'. This tomb is dedicated to Allama Afzel Khal Mullah Shukrullah of Shiraz, who was a Persian poet-scholar and later the Prime Minister of Shah Jahan. Built in 1635 AD, this tomb derives its name from the tiles or chini that were used to decorate its wall and ceilings. However, this is much a neglected structure now and the dilapidated walls really do not invite many a visitors now. Give it a miss if you are running short of time and you wouldn't miss anything. Trust me on this.

Fatehpur Sikri

We took to Fatehpur Sikri on our way back. The road to the place was a nightmare to drive on. There was much construction work going on and the road from Agra (or maybe the one we took) passed through some very crowded and gut churning rough lanes.

The city of Fatehpur Sikri was built by Emperor Akbar during 1571 to 1585 AD. Akbar had originally planned this city as his capital, but an acute shortage of water forced him to abandon the city after 12 years. There are some fine monuments within this area like the Diwan-i-Am, Diwan-i-Khas, Panch Mahal, tomb of Saint Sheikh Salim Chishti and of course the Buland Darwaza.

The Buland Darwaza or the 'high door' is a grand gateway constructed at Fatehpur Sikri to commemorate Akbar's victory over the king of Khandesh (Gujrat) in 1573. Standing 175 feet tall, the Buland Darwaza is one of the most visible monuments of Fatehpur Sikri. It is built in red sandstone with intricate decorations in white marble. Calligraphic inscriptions from the Quran on its front and pillars and chattris at the top makes the Buland Darwaza a truly impressive sight.

However, the stair case to the structure was thronged by people from all walks of life. There were umpteen beggars, people with their goats (no kidding, yeah), street urchins and all possible variety of animals which throng any Indian pavement (cows, dogs, buffaloes etc.). I was in particular disappointed at the condition of the gate. To the ceiling of this mammoth structure, you could actually see huge bee-hives. The people inside would coax you to buy a sheet for the grave of 'Saleem Chishty', do it if you don't want to look out of place, but then as ever, do bargain a bit to get the right deal.

The courtyard inside houses some fine monuments but as the case was, we could not really spend much time inside.

On our way back we made a stop again at the McDonald's on the Mathura highway and then later dropped in for a few minutes at the ISKCON temple in Vrindavan, which is about a 6 kms detour from the highway.

Catch the pictures on my picasa album or click here for all the action. Enjoy.

New Blog - Random Cerebrations Launched

2008-11-07T10:00:00.001+05:30

November 6, 2008

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For some time now, I had been looking for a place to put in my random thoughts somewhere since this blog of mine had turned into a news update journal for my web-site http://tandonz.com/

Very often I am clouded by stochastic cerebrations that keep knocking on the doors of my mind and which more often get lost in the prosaic monotony of everyday life. I guess, launching a new blog was just a matter of time and this finally happened yesterday and quite happily I made a couple of entries in the same too. The new blog, 'Random Cerebrations' is just an attempt to open the door to all my vague abstractions and give them a space to exist by putting them in text.

I don't know if it makes much sense but I guess I shall still do it for a while to see if I can actually see some head or tail coming out of my abstractions and if they can eventually be cast into some format, some article, essay or a story that can entice and persuade some one to read through it all.

So, those who wish to follow my Random Cerebrations, do check back from time to time or subscribe to this and get all the news on the updates, a I really intend to write a lot in the next few days.

Random Cerebrations is available at the following link (and from the link list in the right pane): http://tandonz.blogspot.com/

Enjoy !!

PS: Those who wish to read on some more structured material, can continue checking out my web-site: http://tandonz.com/

vibeTandonz - the tandonz.com SMS Channel

2008-10-16T10:37:00.001+05:30

October 15, 2008

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An SMS channel for the tandonz.com is now available to all its readers and users. You can now keep yourself abreast with all updates being made to the blog and the web site.

You can subscribe / unsubscribe to this service for FREE using your Google account online or from your mobile. The process is fairly simple and is described below.

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You'll receive a confirmation message and the last message posted on the channel to confirm your subscription.

Step 2: Reply ACCEPT to accept to terms of service. You shall be asked to accept the terms of service. Simply SMS 'ACCEPT' to the confirmation message and you are all set to receive the updates to the site.

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Step 3: Accepting the terms of service. On the next screen that follows, check on the 'I agree to Terms of Service' check box and enter in the verification code that you received on the mobile and click on Finish Setup button.

Step 4: Final Confirmation. Once the verification code is entered, the Yes button to subscribe to the vibeTandonz channel would become active. Click 'Yes' and enjoy updates made to the site and the blog.

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Photowalking at Haridwar and Rishikesh

2008-10-10T11:32:00.001+05:30

October 7, 2008

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So this was actually a leisure trip which got turned to a photowalk, considering the abundance of subjects around. On the morning of October 2nd, we started off from Sonipat at about 5 in the morning and barring a few hiccups (bribing traffic officers at a signal for jumping the light) reached Haridwar at about 1030 in the morning via road which is roughly a distance of 220 kms if you take the Samalakha - Shamli route from Sonipat.

The 'Ghats' were crowded as we anticipated owing to the long weekend ahead. However since it wasn't really a festival season at the Ganges, we could manage checking into a hotel nearby the Ghats (Har Ki Pauri) without much difficulty. The rooms and hotels around the Ghats are fairly OK and quite reasonable too. The city however is just as I remembered it from previous years, crowded and teeming with beggars and rickshaws and filthy streets. The saddening part is that though one can run into people from the Ganga Trust urging you to donate to the trust and services after every 5 meters and there is a donation box fixed to the ground at an equal distance, but no matter how hard one tried you can not see any garbage bins planted anywhere so I guess it is but natural that the sides of the roads are filthy.

However, I guess all such ideas and notions are put to rest the moment one steps into the river and has a dip. It is advised that one leaves his personal and precious belongings back at his lodgings while going in for a dip. Though there are Pandits sitting in rough shacks on the ghats who would be willing to watch over your stuff while you bathe in lieu of your consent for them performing their services (Pooja done and madatory Dakshina given). Also you should be clear about how and where are you going to change your wet clothes. If you are not too uncomfortable about changing your inner wear in open public view, you should not have any hassles.The changing room provided by the Ganga trust are better not explored. It is for the same reason we were bent on taking a room near the Ghats itself. You come out of the water, wrap a towel around you and then simply walk over to your place of stay and change your clothes there in peace.

The next day I woke up early and went to the Ghats specifically to capture the sun rise, however, it went cloudy and the sun didn't really come out in its full glory. But then I could manage capturing the morning Aarti on the Ghats and clicked quite a few interesting shots.

Our next stop from Haridwar was Rishikesh. A small township about 20 kms from Haridwar and made famous for its twin bridges (Laxman Jhoola and Ram Jhoola), Chotiwala restaurants and camping and rafting sites .

About 40 kms from Rishikesh is another famous temple of Lord Shiva. The place is called Neelkanth, the name originating from the mythological tale of 'Sagar Manthan' (Churning of the Sea) and Shiva drinking the poison coming out of it and in turn getting his throat blue due to effects of the poison. The route to this temple is simply amazing due to the natural beauty around and even if you are not too religious I suggest that you take this trip maybe just to enjoy the journey. The temple none the less is mesmerizing and tranquil as well.

Overall I would rate the trip at about 7 on a scale of 1 to 10 in terms of its utility to de-stress myself and get away from the humdrum of routine life and I am sure had it not been for all the pictures that I shot it would have been a disaster.

You can catch all the pics at my Picasa gallery by clicking HERE

Photowalk to National Zoological Park, Delhi

2008-09-11T09:59:00.000+05:30

September 7, 2008.

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It had been a while since the last photowalk and I was craving to have another walk. Kept pestering Abby (refer photowalking.info to know about the group) to organize something since last week. It finally materialized on September 7 (Sunday), the time set for noon.

The group met at the gates of the venue (National Zoological Park) almost on time (which was a bit of a surprise for me). It wasn't very hot but the sun was out and very bright for overall comfort.

Getting to the Venue: For those who are not aware the NZP (National Zoological Park) is the Delhi Zoo and situated inside the boundary walls of Old Fort and is on the same road as Pragati Maidan so commuting to the venue is not difficult. The parking unlike other places in Delhi wasn't as much of a pain. Those who wish to commute by public transport can take a Metro to Tilak Bridge Station and find an auto or bus from outside the station. Another thing to note is that NZP is shut on Fridays. The tickets are nominal Rs. 10/- for an adult and Rs. 5/- for a child over 12 years. No baggage or food item is allowed inside and there is a cloak room available right at the gate which charges 1/- per bag deposited. (Ab mat poochnaa ki aaj kal 1/- mein kyaa aata hai)

Animals of all Kind: When in zoo, you expect to see various species of birds and animals. One is definitely not disappointed on that front as you can find all animals from your child's alphabet book. (Yeah from L for "Loin" to Z for Zebra)

But of course there is no dearth of people who bring their 'animal' instincts out in a public place. I mean I have no clue as to what this guy was doing putting his head in the garbage bin. :)

It was equally funny to see his friends group around and cheer him up for taking this picture.

Some crappy ideas find their right place maybe !!

Other Trivia: The walk inside the zoo is a long one. There are maps put on boards at reasonable points and a track painted with arrows in yellow to ensure that you finish the entire trip in 2 hours flat without missing on much.

For people who have difficulty walking battery operated vehicles ply all along the path with a fare of Rs 35/- for an adult. These are pretty decent considering that the engine is practically silent.

Though you are not allowed to carry food inside there are a couple of vendors present who sell water, cold drinks and ice-creams. We did not find people litter around much and there were ample dustbins available.

Overall the photo-walk went fine. I would not rate it as the best of all as the light was just too bright and the point and shoot camera that I was carrying does falter with bright highlights.

You can catch all the pictures HERE

chunmun99@yahooo.com

2008-07-18T11:21:00.000+05:30

chunmun99@yahoo.com
July 17, 2008
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A simple straight forward story with a light romantic theme and with a slightly quirky end. The characters are pretty straightforward and some of you readers out there may find them easier to relate to.

Tale of a couple very much in love and bonded by exchange of emails, I did the story again in first person narration (I think it has become default with me) with a similar story telling format. The only difference this time being thinking through some practical situations and inserting email bodies into the story.

A subtle, light weight, easy on mind story with a romantic backdrop.
Read it HERE

PS: yahooo.com is spelled deliberately with a triple 'o' to avoid any confusion with any real existing chunmun99

Yashodhara Waits

2008-07-10T16:34:00.000+05:30

Yashodhara waits
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July 10, 2008

'Yashodhara waits' came up to me as an odd thought while I was reading about Buddhism and Buddha's life and teachings. Almost all the available documentation stated clearly that he walked out of his palace in the middle of the night, leaving his son Rahul and his wife Yashodhara behind and took to austerity, before attaining Nirvana and arriving at his approach of 'middle path'.

And almost all available documentation mentioned 'Yashodhara' only once and that is when prince Siddhartha left her and went on to become 'Shakyamuni' or 'Shakya Buddha'. Just led me to think what happened to Yashodhara then? There might be some Buddhist text avaiable that would bring facts to the fore, but as an author I took the liberty to think from Yashodhara's point of view and thus 'Yashodhara waits' was born.

I have churned out this short story from Yashodhara's point of view and have tried to imagine her emotions and feelings. What if, she never could forgive her husband for leaving her desolate without a word (she was human too) and if her soul is still restless and haunts the place where prince Siddhartha left her?

I have tried to be different with this work of fiction and have deliberately opted to be a little melodramatic and use heavier words (I guess, the plot demanded it). However, I retain my style of single line story plots and first person narration.

Read on the story HERE & share your comments.

PS: This is a work of fiction and I am not liable to answer anybody who feels that his religious sentiments have been hurt (I am just playing safe, I know, not many people read my blog otherwise too)

Neem Baba

2008-06-27T17:10:00.000+05:30

Neem Baba

June 27, 2008

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Neem Baba is a short story which I started somewhere around last week of January this year and left it half way and moved onto other subjects. I had somehow completely forgotten all about it till I found it lying in some odd nested folder on my computer.

I took it up today and somehow the ideas just flowed in. It is a simple short story and an easy read with simple subject much like my other works. The character sketches are pretty straight forward and the narration is the way I like it, in first person.

I consider this as a better piece of my writings for this story is largely a figment of my vivid imagination and is mostly fictious and draws little or almost nothing from life or personal experiences.

Read it for simple metaphors and sublime emotions. I have deliberately not dwelled too much on the invisible emotional bond created between the child and the 'Neem Baba' for I really feel that this is the way most of the things work in normal course of life.

Read the story: HERE

An Evening at Qutub

2008-06-26T12:40:00.000+05:30

Second Photowalk at Qutub
June 8, 2008
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Well I know, its been some time since I wrote into my journal, I guess its been quite uneventful couple of weeks, with respect to anything creative that I did (except downloading loads of music and cataloging and burning disks out of the same).

Anyway, so a photowalk was scheduled for June 8, 2008, venue was Qutub (which made it our second walk to Qutub) and the idea was to capture shades of evening with Qutub as the backdrop. I must admit that the idea definitely looked good on paper, how it turned out to be overall is a different story.

We did lose some steam on reaching the venue. To begin with, we were met by a long queue at the ticket counter. Incidentally (and this is for the benefit of the readers as well) Qutub opens up for general public in the evenings from 7:00 p.m to 08:30 p.m. It is advised that you reach a little before time since the parking space, though free, is limited and un-manned.

As soon as you reach the place it becomes evident that there is little thinking involved in the adopted process of admission too. As mentioned earlier the time for entry is 1900 hrs. however, the ticket window does not open until 5 - 10 minutes past 7 p.m. which implies that the time one can actually make an entry is further delayed. A better idea, as most of the readers and people who have had the Qutub's evening experience would agree would be to open the ticket counter a little earlier and allow people to wait at the gate (which is a much larger area) than to be cramped up in huddles and queues at the little courtyard infront of the ticket counter.

And as evident in most such places, you also need to deal with the street smart characters who remain oblivious to the people in the queue and sneak their wrist in the tiny slot at the counter and grab the tickets and shamelessly spit their 'gutkhas' literaaly on the dustbin rather than inside them.

Somehow we managed to get the tickets and moved to the entrance where a 'polite' constable of the Delhi Police wanted to know if we were carrying Video Cameras. Apparently, while you can take a normal still camera (even if it is digital) without any restriction inside the monument, there is a small charge on carrying a movie camera. However, how they categorize and classify a digital camera capable of shooting videos (which all the models allow) from a handy cam beats me. So, we all vouched that we had still cameras and walked in.

It was a nice cool summer evening and we could manage some decent shots in the evening. It was disappointing to know that the portion which remained open in the evening was only a third of what is open for public in the daytime. This considerably restricted the kind of shots that we could take.

Also the overall lighting and illumination of the monument was a let down. The place was poorly lit to allow only a few decent shots. In fact as we grouped together for a snap of the photowalkers for the blog, another 'polite' guard informed us that though you could sit and could keep your bags and camera and other equipment on the ground, it was prohibited to place a tripod inside the monument.
The evening descended sooner than we expected and after a few blind shots in the dark and some deliberate 'shadowy' captures we called it a day. I guess the best moments on the walk were when the group huddled around the two graves near the iron pillar and chatted for a while.

Overall, it was more of an enjoyable walk than a fruitful photo-walk. Check out the pictures from this photo-walk as taken by Himanshu, Vidhi and Puneet, here. (These are consolidated into one album)

Photowalk at Lodhi Garden

2008-04-09T14:56:00.000+05:30

Photowalk at Lodhi Garden

April 6, 2008

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The photowalk on April 6 was my first visit to Lodhi Gardens and I must say the visit was worth all the effort to reach from Gurgaon in bright sun. Not only are the gardens well maintained, the place was quite neat and clean considering the large crowd that was present.

There is a tomb and a mosque from the Mughal period, some nice flower beds and spots to get cosy (check pics and you shall know) all inside a periphery that can be simply put as 'huge'.

By the time we finished clicking pictures it was sunset and it was beautiful with lot of birds chirping(there are plenty of birds I must say) and sun painting the stone structures a nice golden.

This photowalk yielded some nice shots.

Check them out here.

The Wait

2008-03-19T11:36:00.000+05:30

The Wait
March 19, 2008
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'The wait' would come to its readers as a very simple and plain story with characters and ideas that they would be able to identify with. Probably all young and married women a decade and a half ago might have experienced the wait themeselves.

The cerebrations of the central character in my short story are purely what I could think of from a woman's perspective. You may or may not choose to identify with them but definitely from the standpoint of an avid reader that I myself am, this short story is worth a read and it sure won't take much time to finish too.

Here is the direct link: THE WAIT.
I shall look forward to your feedback and comments.

Appraisal Blues

2008-02-29T15:40:00.000+05:30

Appraisal Blues - New Video Mix
Feb. 29, 2008

Latest of my video mixes, this one is a dig at peanut job appraisals. With snips from the movie "Naram-Garam" I guess the clip says it all.

I did some basic editing, cut some shots, changed the sequence and added elementary effects and ofcourse opening and ending slides. Enjoy the 2 minute video for its simplicity and super expressions from Utpal Dutt and Amol Palekar.

Watch it HERE

Photowalk at Mehrauli Archaeological Gardens

2008-02-19T17:41:00.001+05:30

Photowalking at Mehrauli Archaeological Gardens
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The walk was scheduled for Sunday, February 17, 2008 at 1000 hrs. It wasn't very cold in the morning and we set off from Gurgaon on bike with our cameras and essential supplies (extra battery packs, a water bottle and some grub). We found the place easily. It is actually right on main road right after Andheria Mod bus stop.

More significant monuments and ruins inside the park are Balban's tomb & Jamali Kamali Mosque and though these monuments ASI protected, there is no proper parking or any guide available. But one can get around well as the place has ample pillars indicating directions and maps. The park is otherwise huge and one can tire out easily. A larger portion of the park is in bad state however, the area around Balban's tomb and Jamali Kamali mosque is better maintained. The park has some pretty neat lawns near a structure called 'Metcalf's Umbrella'.

Cricket could be declared India's national religion, there were people with cricket bats and wickets right on the lawns near the mosque and tombs which was disheartening to see, considering that the monuments are a national treasure.

We went exploring through the overgrown part of the park towards the pavillions and 'baolis' and discovered some graves and a mosque pretty much in shambles. Interestingly Abby (Abhishek the photo walk group moderator) and I found a goat who perhaps took a liking to us and followed us awhile.

All in all, the walk though exhausting was fun.
You can enjoy the pictures at the following link:
http://picasaweb.google.co.uk/tandon.himanshu/PhotowalkMehrauliArchaeologicalGarden

Yours Forever

2008-02-07T18:13:00.000+05:30

Yours Forever
Feb. 07, 2008
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Yours forever comes as a very simple and straight work of fiction with a single line plot, much as my other works. For a change the attempt is to build a story with a happy ending.

Narrated again in the first person, the story attempts to catch you with its little twist bordering on romance and humor. Not a literary masterpiece of any sort, you may find the read interesting for its light content though.

Read on: http://www.tandonz.com/levels/abstractions/between/forever.html

Ivory Dreams

2008-02-04T15:24:00.000+05:30

Ivory Dreams
Jan 29, 2008
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This is a short story which dwells on the border lines of lust and love. What seems like a poignant liasion transforms to half remorse as the characters unravel.

A fair beauty as a fellow passenger ignites some fire and runs through the dreams of some one sitting across the seat in a train only to leave half torn thoughts and what I see as partial guilt as the fantasy dilutes away in broad sunlight.

Read on for some basic human emotions.
http://www.tandonz.com/levels/abstractions/between/ivory.html

Till Death Do Us..

2008-01-29T12:58:00.000+05:30

Till Death Do Us Part
Jan 28, 2007

"Till Death .." is an attempt to think about void which is created when some one who is dear passes away..
The story is set, as most of my works, in the first person and is done in simple plain words, easy on the reader.

One of my shorter stories in the lot, read it for the embedded subtle shades of romance.

Link: http://www.tandonz.com/levels/abstractions/between/till.html

About The Blog

2008-01-29T12:55:00.000+05:30

This is a journal about activities and hobbies that I pursue and my abstractions that I pen down at odd intervals. There are a couple of poems and a few short stories that I have written till date which are showcased on my website: http://www.tandonz.com/.

I am beginnning this with one of my latest works. Maybe I shall go back in time some day and put columns about my previous works too. Well for now, this is what it is.

Enjoy.