Children's Day!

Children’s day

It was 4^th of September, nearly ten years ago. Two brothers, aged 10 and 8, used to go for tuitions to a place which they could walk down in ten minutes.

They had to go to school in the morning and used to return around noon. After having lunch, they used to go for tuitions.

Parents were skeptical that there would be any enthusiasm left in them after lunch to even comprehend what the tuition teacher would teach.

However, they were surprisingly impressed with the zeal that the brothers showed in going for the tuitions. They had a spring in their step, enjoyed the learning and were very happy about that part of their otherwise mundane day.

The Plan

It was the eve of teacher’s day (celebrated on 5^th September every year) and the brothers returned home as usual after tuitions.

They used to retire for the day at 10 p.m. The routine was strictly adhered to. The father of the boys was in the United States of America. When he would call, both his children would be fast asleep. He used to talk to his wife, know every detail about them and then start his day in the US. He was a complete family man.

The night of 4^th September was different. It was nearly 12 at midnight and the mother was talking to the father in the US. While talking about the children, she said they were asleep. That is when she glanced towards their room and saw the lights being on.

At first, she suspected that the brothers were up to some mischief and told the father about it. The curious father wanted to know more so he asked the mother to check. He said he will call back in a few minutes.

The Sneak Peak

Mother decided to sneak peek into their room to understand why the lights were on. Various thoughts were running through her mind. Like any other mother, she started worrying if there was someone in her children’s room.

Mustering the courage required, she slowly opened the door. The boys did not realize that the mother was in their room. They were busy counting and recounting. While it was no big deal, the look of responsibility on their faces was similar to a man in-charge of counting at the elections.

Mother watched the children slowly but steadily counting the coins and notes they had accumulated into their piggy bank. Two poor little clay pigs lay broken on the side table.

Not being able to hold herself any further and imagining a million possibilities (mostly negative) as to why this money would be required, she asked her sons what they were up to.

The innocent looking brothers contributed very well to the pin-drop silence in the room. The elder one spoke first. He told his mother that they were counting how much pocket money they had. They said they wanted to gift a saree to their tuition teacher.

The Euphoric feeling

In a split second, the apprehensions of the mother gave way to a feeling of happiness and pride she had never experienced before. The euphoric feeling rushed all over her body and she just couldn’t hold back her tears. Her trance was broken by the rather loud sound (considering the time) of the phone ringing from the other room. The ring was from the US and it announced the victory of the father’s curiosity over his self-control.

The mother ran and picked it up and started talking to the father. He asked her the reason for the heavy voice and was worried if everything is alright.

That is when she narrated the entire story. The feeling of pride engulfed the father and he asked the mother to buy whatever the kids wanted as a gift for the teacher.

Giving the gift

The next day in the afternoon, the mother and the kids went to meet the teacher and give her the gift that the boys wanted to give her. It was, indeed, a very beautiful and expensive saree. It was too expensive to become a part of her wardrobe but the teacher accepted it as she could see the purity of thought and innocence in the children.

It was one of the best moments of her life.

Conclusion 

I asked her why some children would get so attached to her. She told me that a teacher has to adapt to the ways children can learn and not the other way round.

A good teacher understand the children, their strengths and weaknesses and then aligns her/him with the children to enable them to realize their true potential.

She says that most kids appreciate this little adjustment that a teacher makes and that is what brings them so close to a teacher.

I asked her, “How can you manage this with more than 50 kids on average in a school or college.”

She replied that teaching should be your passion. If it is, you will put in the effort to understand each child and adapt to the way she/he can learn.

The teacher in the story is my mother. Over the last three decades, she has taught hundreds of students, many of whom are doing very well in various walks of life. And, most of them still do come down to say “Hi”.

She runs a playschool as well now which is called “Bluebells Playschool” in Mansarovar, Navi Mumbai.

It is such teachers who would make every child’s life a joyous experience. They literally make their childrens’ day – every day, throughout the year.

A tribute to untold greatness!

For someone who came to Mumbai more than four decades back with nothing but a little amount of money (Rs. 18 as he puts it), “head start in life” would have been the most alien term.

With no place of his own to stay, not much knowledge of the local language or the national language, and no references, network or friend circle, life would have shouted aloud – “Give up and go back home”.

It takes steely resolve and immense will power to stay on and a lot of optimism to believe that tide will turn. But it does!

He did not have the option of going back as there was a family of siblings and aging parents who needed the financial aid to stay afloat.

He stayed for a while with a cousin brother and his family in Navi Mumbai while working two shifts in Mumbai (one in Mumbai CST and other in Tardeo). The shifts were from 9 to 5 and then 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. After this, travelling back to Navi Mumbai is unfathomable even today with much better transport systems available. So, doing it pre-1975 would have been nothing short of a nightmare.

But he managed - to stay afloat and worship his work. With 100 per cent dedication, determination and discipline, he focused on the work that came his way. He quickly got a house on rent and started staying independently.

If you are true to your work and respect it, your work will definitely respect you back. His work did respect him back and how!

He went on to educate himself on managing the stores, excise and supply chain division for chemical manufacturing companies. He put in 42 years of focused glorious service on display – a display which found immense admirers in his colleagues and great respect from his seniors and owners of the companies.

In the journey, he found a great companion in his wife. Both of them worked immensely hard to take care of their children and the extended families from their respective sides to the best extent they could.

The universe is kind to those that it doesn’t give options. The tide did turn and he bought his own house in Mumbai, gave the best possible education to his children though it was a very expensive one, and worked hard with razor sharp focus to make ends meet. His constant support system is his wife – who took immense care of the family and took tuitions to earn and contribute to the family income.

As he retired yesterday, colleagues gave him a standing ovation, a note of appreciation (which bears strong testimony to his work ethics, professionalism and dependability) and lot of good wishes. A car was arranged to drop him home from work and it speaks volumes about what he meant to the company. Kudos to Dorf Ketal (his company) for this lovely gesture and for giving him the opportunities to show what he is made of!

Four decades from when he stepped into this magical city, life has now given up on throwing him more challenges. It is convinced that he can overcome them with a smile! It’s time for him to now live for himself and spend quality time with his wife and do the things that give him the most happiness. Maybe a few vacations like the one seen in the picture below (they are at a place called Chamarel in Mauritius which is famous for its seven colored earth as seen in the background)

The “he” is my father and I am very proud of him and my mother. They have shown the way on how to lead a great life and it is rather impossible to imitate. However, it is nothing short of heroic to have achieved a magnificent feat by consistently overcoming odds and moving ahead.

This is a tribute to him and the many millions (who travel with you in trains and buses in Mumbai) like him; who live a self-less life to ensure that life gives their children – a head start. Their stories, however, are more often than not, untold!

The Himalayan Diaries

And finally the day had arrived. Planning a holiday is a task in itself. But here we were, packing our bags and getting ready to board an early morning flight to Delhi.

Day 1:

With the Maharaja

The 7 a.m. Air India flight to Delhi was on time. The service was excellent. They served great food and landed on time. I wonder why Air India is so ridiculed. I have always had a good experience flying with them. After landing in Delhi, we had a car waiting to take us to Shimla.

In the capital

I was excited to see Delhi (whatever bits we could manage). I have never been to the capital. It is very different from Mumbai in every sense of the word. The buses, the roads, the metro, even the autos with their green color seemed so different.

On such trips, I make it a point to converse with the drivers. They would give you great insights into almost everything. The insights may not be validated but it is great fun to hear perspectives.

As he was driving along the outskirts of Delhi, he tried to deviate off our torchbearer (the GPS system) and took a different route. I questioned him and he said it was to avoid the congestion, dust and traffic created by the construction of a new metro which would run across the outskirts of the capital.

My question, however, also got the driver interested and he started to don various other hats, the first one being that of a political commentator. His name is Ajay (name changed) and he is a Haryanvi (belongs to the state of Haryana in India).

As he started talking, we were amused by the accent. Thanks to the Hindi cinema we devour, my wife and I had absolutely no problem in understanding his Haryanvi adulterated Hindi.

The new route consisted of dusty lanes, dumping grounds, and houses which were nothing more than brick edifices. Soon, he lost his way in a very shady looking area and I told him to take the route suggested by GPS. He asked me not to worry and somehow found a way to reach back to the road. It is then that the political commentator in him came to the fore and a certain Mr. Arvind Kejriwal had to bear the brunt of his agony. He said that they are doing so many things but he was not sure how it helped the people. I am not sure if Mr. Kejriwal was only an excuse to cover his mistake or if it is genuinely the ground reality. Some free ground level insights for the AAP, are you listening Mr. Kejriwal?

Along the countryside

Once we were back on the National highway, the drive was smooth and soon we were in a place called Karnal. The driver now became our guide with interesting snippets on each of these places. He said Karnal could be seen written on milestone structure (on the new green and white milestone structures along roads which indicate the distance to a certain destination) even in Delhi. The reason is that it was built by the British and was very significant in the scheme of things as per Ajay.

Battle of Panipat

“Aapne Panipat ka naam toh suna hi hoga sir,” (You might have heard about the Battle of Panipat, asked Ajay. This time, the student in me decided to express itself. Strangely, I was always good in this irritating subject called History and still remember some of those dates. I instantly told him about the first battle of Panipat and how Ibrahim Lodhi was defeated by Babar in 1526. I also told him this was the onset of the Mughal Empire in India in the true sense.

He was impressed. He told me, “Yahan pe teen ladaiyan hui thi sir”, (three battles were fought here). That is when I realised that the history student in me was not that good anymore. I told him I did not know who fought the second and third battles and asked him if he did. He also did not know about it and that marked the end of our discussion on Panipat.

On the way, he started showing me lots of colleges, fields cultivated with Bajra, wheat etc., huge tractor like machines that were used to cut the grains and so on.

Sumptuous Lunch

It was lunch time and we were quite hungry. The pro-active Ajay asked me if we would like to have breakfast. I made that lunch in my head and said yes. I told him to stop at any good place. He drove for another half an hour ignoring the beautiful looking dhabas (road-side eateries) along the way. I told him that I was fine with road-side dhaba and not really looking for a great place. He stopped finally at a very nice looking place and we stepped out for lunch.

Once we were in, we realised that the hotel offered only vegetarian food. Nonetheless, we decided to see what best we could order. The thali (assortment of delicacies) seemed interesting and so did other items. We were grossly mistaken about the quantity on offer and had a tough time eating it all.

However, everything from the vegetables to the dahi (curd) was very fresh. It tasted so different from what we buy and eat. We wondered how adulterated the foods that we consumed everyday may be.

We decided to leave such thoughts behind and enjoy the drive to Shimla.

The Sherlock Holmes

My wife told me that Ajay is a vegetarian and that is the reason why he stopped at a vegetarian restaurant. I told her we can’t be really sure about that.

As is the case with any wife, she also wanted to prove herself right and wanted some conclusive evidence to prove her pointJ.  The song playing in the car was from the latest Salman Khan blockbuster, Bajrangi Bhaijaan. As soon as a song ended, a new one was about to play and we both knew that it would portray chicken as a cure for a child’s insatiable hunger. My wife told me that Ajay would change this song as he is a vegetarian. I gave her my customary sarcastic smirk.

And to my utter disbelief, Ajay did change the song and played the next one. My wife is a huge Sherlock Holmes fan and I complemented her on her Sherlock like analysis to prove her point.   

The Siesta

The cumulative effect of having gotten up very early to board the flight and the extravagant lunch ushered us into a siesta. I couldn’t sleep much though and woke up to sights of lush green fields on either sides of the road.

The 5-star car

Ajay’s car had all the facilities that you could fit into Tata Zesto. The interiors were superb, he had a GPS enabled phone, and he had chargers for any phone on earth. He also ensured that he wore a driver’s jacket and matched the colour of his trousers to the interiors of the car. He was near perfect.

The afternoon sun was burning down on us and he realized that we might be feeling the heat despite the AC. That is when he said, “chipku laga lo sir khidki pe” (Stick a black-screen like object on the window). He has 4-5 of these screens and we could stick it to the glass of the car to ensure the car remained cool despite the burning sun. I must admit I was pretty impressed.

Pinjore gardens

On the way to Shimla, Ajay stopped at Pinjore gardens and told us that we should go inside. We did and as we entered we saw a railway engine. Ajay told us this was the first engine to be made in India by the British. I could neither agree nor deny so I just nodded my head.

As we walked inside, there were some neatly maintained gardens. I began clicking some pictures and looked at the tall trees around. I saw a colony of bats (I don’t know if that’s what it is called) but there were hundreds of them on the trees.

I also got an interesting pic of a squirrel just when it got a nut in its hand. 

I thought there was nothing much and was wondering why Ajay had bought us here. That’s when he told us that we hadn’t seen the main part; the so called Pinjore gardens. It is a descending terrace type garden (seven terraces laid out in descending order).

It’s said that the present day structure was built by Mughal emperor Aurangzeb’s trusted lieutenant Fidai Khan. However, historically, it is said that the Pandavas (of the famous epic Mahabharata) came here after their 12 years of exile and stayed here.

The drive to Shimla

We started our drive along the hills to Shimla. The roads were steep and curvy and went round and round. The view alongside was breath-taking and the temperature began to drop all along. 

We managed to click some pictures from within the moving car. 

After nearly two hours, we finally reached the hotel. We checked in, had our dinner and were off to sleep as we were dead tired. 

Day 2:

Off to Kufri

We had our breakfast in the hotel and were awaiting our 5-star car. I was just exploring the hotel premises. That is when I saw an instruction (or should I call it a threat) from the hotel administration to anyone who would park the car in their premises. I found it hilarious. Check this picture and see if you do.

Soon after, we began the journey uphill to Kufri. Ajay told us that it would be about 10 kilometres.

Along the way, he stopped the vehicle at a point and showed us what he called the Green Valley. The green valley was full of pine trees and it was as picturesque as it could get. We clicked some pictures here before proceeding to Kufri.

We reached a point beyond which cars wouldn’t go and we had to ride a horse to the top of the hill. We got on to a horse and it took around 20 minutes to reach the so called top of the hill.

There were various attractions there. It includes a telescopic view of some historical sites, an apple garden, a haunted house and a local temple, as well as some adventure sports. Only the telescopic view caught our interest.

We paid for the ticket and were assigned a person who started showing various places through the lens. It started with a Fagu peak top Durga Maa (Indian Deity) temple. Then, he moved the telescope in another direction to show a Maa Shera Wali (another Indian Deity) temple. Beaming with trivia on it, he said Indian Cinema’s iconic superstar Amitabh Bachchan had shot there for the movie Mard. Then, he showed us the Sheetla Mata temple – Shimla gets its name from Sheetla Mata.

He showed a few more temples and hot water springs. Then, he showed us a narrow road at a distant peak and said it was the Indo-China border. (I am not too sure if it is indeed but I was not in a mood to question further).

Lastly, he showed Patiala’s King Bhupinder Singh palace. Legend says he had 365 queens (wonder how he managed) and all of them stayed in that lavish palace. Our man further added that it’s the same palace which is shown in the blockbuster movie 3 Idiots as Rancho’s (Aamir Khan’s) house.

We then began our ride downhill on the horse. There were nearly 500 horses going to and fro. There were horses approaching us as we went down. Many a times, I thought the horses would collide or my legs would touch another horse. However, I was amazed at the precision with which these animals manage to make way for each other. It’s a feat and I wondered if human beings could learn this art and practice it in crowded local trains in Mumbai.

I was told these horses were managed directly by the government of Himachal Pradesh. If that is correct, I would urge the government to take good care of these horses and nurture them well. They are enabling the state to earn excellent revenue and hence deserve all the good care that the state can afford.

Moving on, we were back to where Ajay had dropped us. He asked us to visit a Mata Rani (another Indian goddess) temple which we did. It was nice and peaceful.

Mall Road

The next place of visit was scheduled to be Mall Road in Shimla. Ajay drove us to a spot from where vehicles wouldn’t go up so we had to take a lift. I saw the lift and the structure and thought it would take us only half way up the hill. However, like all others, we bought a ticket and got into the lift. We had a sardarji (followers of the religion Sikhism with hair tied neatly in a turban) and his wife and kid with us in the lift. As soon as we reached up, I saw a board that suggested that we had to walk towards a second lift. I was then able to appreciate the idea that since it is a hill they couldn’t have built a lift that would go the entire way so they had two lifts.

We started walking towards the second lift with our ticket in hand. The Sardarji’s kid walking in front of us was in awe of the cool breeze that was flowing across. In a moment of excitement, he threw the ticket away and was mesmerized to see the way it flew in the air. He called out to his father and expressed his excitement. Little did he realise that the ticket may have to be shown at the next lift.

I thought the Sardarji would be angry and give him a piece of his mind. But I loved his calm. He was laughing with the kid while also letting him know that the ticket may be required at the next lift. 

Good parenting, I must say!

We got into the second lift and reached up. We walked along mall road for a while. The line of shops on both sides and the cool breeze made the bright afternoon walk a pleasant one. We had lunch (this time we ordered less but it still was much more than we could eat).

Then, as we walked along, we saw the Gaiety theatre. It was designed by British architect Henry Irwin and was the first British style theatre in India (as per the people who were guiding us along gaiety).

The theatre is a magnificent structure and it gave me immense pleasure to click the pictures below.

We then moved further uphill to see structures such as Christ Church. It is a very well built structure that stood out on the mall road and could be seen from even the farthest point downhill. The view from scandal point down the valley is also breath-taking.

We then went to a shop to buy the famous Shimla shawls and stoles.

Then, we headed back to the hotel and that marked the end of day 2. Ajay told us that we would have to leave by 8 a.m. the next morning so as to reach Manali (a 250 km drive) before sunset. 

Day 3:

The drive to Manali   

We started at 8 in the morning as decided. We began navigating one hill after the other and were going at good speed. I was enjoying the view and trying to click whatever pictures I could in the moving automobile.

After about an hour from when we started, we reached a place where all the vehicles had queued up. The traffic has come to a standstill. As the roads along the hills are very narrow, all the vehicles going uphill, including ours, queued up on one side. There was no vehicle coming from the other direction. After a few minutes, we got out of the car and I saw some people coming on a cycle. I asked them what the matter was and I got to know that it was an accident. A truck had collided with a bus. I asked the gentleman how much time it would take to clear off. He said the police had arrived and it should not take more than half an hour.

He was accurate in his assessment. In about half an hour, the vehicles started to move and so did ours. There were some policemen standing along the way and one of them asked Ajay to stop his car. 

They asked him if he could give a lift to a gentleman (may be related to the policeman) and drop him at some place along the way.

Ajay told him with a poker face that Sir (that’s me) is from the embassy and we do not have permission to take other people along. The policeman did not utter a word and allowed the car to pass.

I asked Ajay how he could lie so effortlessly and what would have happened if the policeman asked me details about my job. He said that he was confident the policeman wouldn’t. I asked him the reason. He said that the policeman wouldn’t ask much as he feared that would irk the embassy guy and he would complain to higher authorities. I was, once again, impressed by this guy’s skill at finding a way out of such tricky situations.

As we moved along, Ajay stopped along the road at a dhaba (road side eatery) and we had breakfast. Ajay wouldn’t eat along with us as a practice. My wife and I ordered some light breakfast and tea. I started exploring the ambience. There was nothing much that caught my attention but for a board on the wall. It was a three step instruction manual (if I may call it that) on how to behave while one is at this dhaba. I found it quite amusing.

Marriages are made in heaven

As we continued our drive towards Manali, I was busy looking at the view along the way. After some time, Ajay got bored of the silence and started talking. He started asking me about my job, Mumbai and so on. Then, I asked him about his family. He told me about his parents and the fact that his older sister is also married. Then, before I could ask something, he asked me to guess his age. I told him that he appeared to be around 26. He smiled and said that he is just 23.

That’s when I asked him if he was married. I couldn’t see the expression on his face as I was at the rear seat but he said that he would be getting married in November of this year. His voice gave away his shyness. I decided to not prod further. However, Ajay started narrating the story of his marriage.

He said that the girl is from Delhi and he is from Haryana. Getting interested in the story with nothing much to do but wile away my time in the car, I asked him if it is a love marriage. Ajay smirked as if such a thing did not exist.

He said that in their samaj (community), marriages don’t happen that way. He said that the parents go and see the girl and if they like the girl, the marriage is finalized. I asked him if the girl is from his village. He said it cannot happen that way. They have a concept of matching gotra (meaning clan or descendants from an unbroken male clan) and people in his village would normally have the same gotra hence they couldn’t get married. He said the nearest villages are around 20 Kms away.

So, I asked him to tell me about the alliance. He said his first cousin stays in Delhi and her husband’s family brought the alliance. He said his parents went to Delhi to meet the girl , liked her and finalized the alliance.

I asked him if he did not want to see the girl. He said the girl’s father had insisted that he should come to Delhi but his father wouldn’t allow. His father wanted it to happen the traditional way.

So, I asked this 23 year old gentleman if he would get married to a girl he hasn’t seen or talked to. He said that is the way it happens in their village and will continue to happen. I asked him if he was fine with such an arrangement and did not want to talk to her at least once.

He said he was completely fine. I believe he was smothering his desire to meet or talk to her with a huge cloud called “fate” to which he had decided to resign. I asked him if he has at least seen her picture. He said he had asked his parents to click a picture and get it for him but they forgot.

I enquired if he would see the girl for the first time on the day of his marriage. He said yes and remained silent for some time. I was lost in my thought, wondering how such things could happen in the age of Facebook, Whatsapp and Tinder. If we ever sought a testimonial to the adage “marriages are made in heaven”, this story would be the most appropriate fit.

The astute entrepreneur

I thought Ajay was someone who would resign to fate and take life as it comes. But as our tete-a-tete continued, I asked him about what he plans to do next. That is when I saw a village bumpkin (my perception) metamorphose into an astute entrepreneur.

He said he drove someone else’s car for two years and then decided to buy his own car. Now, he plans to buy a few more cars and manage his business. He also told me how he plans to get more business and earn much more than now.

I was impressed and I asked him how the family earns a living currently. He said they have farms which they have rented out. I asked why he doesn’t do farming himself. He said that many a times, plants are infested with some disease or the other, just before harvest, leading to huge losses. He said they wanted to mitigate this risk.

I was quite impressed with the thought process of the youth of India- youth like Ajay, even if they were from small towns.  The spirit of entrepreneurship is positively spreading over India and it is a great sign for our country.

The blue green distraction

I could see a blue green coloured water body which was good enough to distract me from the interesting conversation. As the car moved, I could also see a dam across this blue green coloured river. I got to know from Ajay that it was the Beas river. I was struggling to click more pictures as I had never seen a water body like this in my life. Ajay told me he would stop the car at a point from where a lot of pictures could be taken.

As we stopped at the said point, I clicked a lot of pictures. The view was absolutely mesmerizing as can be seen below:

Indicators and insights

Working in an IT services firm, I have seen business intelligence and analytics becoming buzzwords in the last few years. The patterns that give some predictive insights and knowledge have always fascinated me.

As we drove further, we could see the Beas river flowing besides us. Ajay told me that it is raining in Manali. I asked him how he could say that and he said it was because the water was dark. He said if it was snowing, the water would have been clear. Though it is not exactly business intelligence, I was fascinated with the insight. It may just be a normal thing for localites to know.

The long tunnel

When we were about 50 kms from Manali, we took a diversion into a long tunnel. The tunnel was about three kilometres long and it was supposed to cut short the distance to Manali by a long way.

I also got to know that another tunnel was being built to further cut this distance. We continued our drive along the beautiful Beas, only to stop at a factory which has an outlet where jackets and shawls were sold.

While my wife shopped for shawls, I wandered across the road outside the shop. There were a few youngsters river rafting along the Beas. We just stood there watching the Beas flow along. The serenity and calm it offered at that point was in sharp contrast to the rough flow it had when we saw it in its dark black avatar.

Coning the cops

As we moved further, we passed through a town which was a bit crowded. We could see a lot of policemen. Ajay quickly removed the detachable music system he had in his car and gave it to me.

He told me to keep it as the vehicle approached the policeman. He told me that if the policeman asked something, just utter a few lines in English. He said he had heard me talking on the phone and knew I could manage to speak a line or two fluently.

I was wondering why but said I would go with his plan. After we passed the police scrutiny, I asked him why he wanted me to speak in English.

In chaste Haryanvi style Hindi, he told me, “Sir, woh police waale kehte hai ki music system bhi tourist gaadi mein allowed nahi hai. Phir unko 100 dene padenge. Aap English mein bologe do baat toh woh sunnke hi pagal ho jaayenge.” (Sir, the policemen just wants to ask for money citing weird reasons like music system in cars not being allowed. We would have to unnecessarily give Rs. 100 but if you speak in English, they won’t understand anything and go berserk)

I asked him how my English speaking ability helps in such a situation. He said that as they won’t understand what I say in English, they would ask him. He would then tell them that I work in a reputed position in the embassy and if I complain, they would be in deep shit!

While we laughed at his Haryanvi description of overcoming corrupt cops, we were surprised by his street-smartness.

We further drove to the hotel but the GPS guided us to a wrong hotel with a similar name. With some assistance from locals, we managed to find the road to the hotel. The road was a kuccha (not tarred) road and along a slope. We finally reached the hotel premises and I was having second thoughts about the hotel after having so much trouble finding it.

However, as I checked into the hotel, we were surprised to see the facility being nothing less than the very best. The view outside the hotel was breath-taking. I could see the Beas river gushing across and snow clad mountain peaks as I looked up. There were mountains all around and birds flying across.

The panoramic view was so enthralling that if I were a painter, I would have loved to put my brush to the canvas to capture it. Unfortunately, I am not so I decided to use the camera and capture a few stills.

Awesome hospitality

While the view was great to say the least, the people at the hotel and the services were absolutely wonderful. They took great care of the guests and we felt really pampered. They served awesome dinner in the evening – cooked everything we asked for with a smile on their face and served it with great warmth and passion.

We were so impressed with the hotel in every sense that I think it is definitely worth a mention. If you plan to visit Manali, I would recommend Hotel Prini Palace a million times. Hats off to the management! 

Day 4

This was by far the most relaxed day we had. We were in the hotel till 10 a.m. I was busy writing this blog in the morning while having a cup of tea.

At 10, we had our breakfast and stepped out. Ajay was waiting for us and he drove us to the Hidimbi Devi temple. For the uninitiated, Hidimbi is the wife of Bhima (one of the five Pandavas).

The temple houses chariots, a small statue and footprints. The pagoda type wooden temple with intricately carved wooden doors and a wooden shikhara is believed to be over 500 years old. It is said that the carver of the artwork at this temple had his hands cut off after completion of his work so that he can never again produce such beautiful work anywhere else. It is also situated in a deodar forest. (The entire paragraph is courtesy Wikipedia; you may read more if you are interested).

We clicked some pictures and walked upwards. The deodar trees with snow clad mountains as the backdrop was a sight in itself.

P-commerce (Pilgrimage commerce)

The best feature of such tourist attractions and pilgrimages is that there is an instant business opportunity attached to it. I would love to call it P-commerce. People were selling everything from key chains to weight loss medicines. There were people renting traditional Himachal costumes with a photo opportunity for thirty rupees. Some were inscribing/ painting names on key chains and selling it for forty rupees.

People were also selling a photo opportunity with a Yak (a long haired animal which looks a bit like the cow or the ox, though a bit bigger). I wondered what was so interesting about this event. I decided to look at one.

A pretty looking lady (probably just married) sat on the Yak and gave a lovely smile. The person who managed the P-commerce with Yak as his main inventory started up-selling. He said to the lady that she should wear a hat. She instantly agreed. Then he told her to hold a gun and pose again – this time with the gun and the hat on her.

The Yak looked completely uninterested in the proceeding as if the weight on its back were negligible. Going by their expressions, the husband was in exactly the same state of mind as the Yak.

Another amusement was holding a rabbit by the ear. Again, I saw two college going students clicking selfies with the rabbit. I was wondering why the girls enjoyed this so much but the p-commerce guy was making good money from this as well. As we stepped out, everything one could imagine was sold in the vicinity.

The Folk Museum

We sneaked out through the market and went to the Folk Museum. The museum had a fantastic display of the culture of Himachal Pradesh. I think pictures will speak better than my words here

The Buddhist Monastery

Our next stop was a Buddhist monastery. We went inside and offered our prayers. As we went around the temple, there were a series of cylindrical bells which had to be rotated in clockwise direction. Each bell had mantras stored in it and if we rotated the bell once, it was equivalent to chanting the mantra.

It was the first time I did something like this and the experience was awesome. We came out of the temple and browsed some P-commerce avenues. At one place, I found a jacket which had Rs. 100 written on it. I thought it would be great to get that for Rs. 100 as even if it did not sustain much, Rs. 100 was worth a risk!

I went to the avenue and asked the shopkeeper for the jacket. He said it costs Rs. 500. I told him that a price tag of Rs. 100 is what I can see on it. The shopkeeper said in a matter-of-factly tone that it was just to attract an audience.

I left the shop quietly as I had nothing to counter his nonchalance.  As we walked out, I got a call from Ajay that one of the tyres of his car was punctured. He said he will be back in half an hour.

So, we wandered aimlessly across the mall road in Manali. There were lines of shops on either side. We browsed through them and it was time for lunch. We had a quick bite and by the time we were done, Ajay was back. We went back to the hotel and that was pretty much the end of day 4.

As it was extremely cold in Manali, we decided that we would skip going into the snow clad peak and instead decided to see the Wagah border, the golden temple and Jallianwala bagh.

Ajay told us that if we wanted this plan to work, we would have to leave the hotel by 5 a.m. the next day.

Day 5

The longest car ride

We started at 4.50 a.m. and gave Ajay a 10 minute head start. We had to cover around 400 Kms to reach Atari (the border town) and it was not going to be easy. But Ajay was determined.

We took only two breaks – one for tea at 6 a.m. and another for brunch at 10 a.m. By the time we reached somewhere close to Atari, Ajay almost crashed. He asked us for a 10 minute tea break after which we proceeded to see the parade.

Covering nearly 400 Kms was perhaps the longest car ride of my life but it was exciting as we drove across mountains, well cultivated fields, small townships and national highways.

The zenith of patriotism

Once we reached the border till where our car could go, we started walking towards the border. We reached the gate and it was awesome to see the Indian flag alongside the Pakistan flag. Then, we saw the parade. The experience is surreal. The Indian soldiers marched towards the gate and so did the Pakistani soldiers from their end. The Indian soldiers seemed to have so much passion that they looked to have had an extra dose of glucose. I have never seen such energy levels and the whole ambiance was like a cricket match.

The chants of “Bharat Mata ki Jai” (Hail mother India) were on and the entire audience was repeating it in unison.

The ritual continued for some time and then the gates opened and then the Pakistani and Indian soldiers marched alongside.

(Some pictures)

The Flag Retreat Ceremony

At the end, one of the soldiers from India climbed up to conduct the flag retreat ceremony. The retreat ceremony has been the traditionally followed practice at sunset. The flag is then hoisted back at sunrise.

I have never felt so much patriotism in the air around me. As the unprecedented rush of patriotism began to ease a bit, we started walking back towards India.

Patriotism Commerce

As we were walking back to the car, I saw P-Commerce raise its innovative head. There were people selling DVDs of the 1997 Hindi Cinema Blockbuster titled “Border”. The film depicts a part of the 1971 war when 120 Indian soldiers defended their post all night against a full blown Pakistani regiment.

I think most Indians would have already seen the movie at least once. It did not make business sense to me to sell it there. However, I am sure if they are selling it there, people might be buying it as well. I was tempted to change my self-defined P-commerce to patriotism commerce because I did not see any other reason compelling enough for people to buy that DVD.

As we drove back, Ajay said that he did not like Gandhiji’s statue there. I asked him why. He said it should have been Bhagat Singh’s statue. He went to the extent of saying that Bhagat Singh was killed only because Gandhi did not want to save him.

I wondered why he would say that and tried to pick his brain. He was of the opinion that Gandhi did this so that he could have hundred more Bhagat Singhs and their martyrdom would give rise to over thousands.   

Whether its politics or Indian history or sports – the conspiracy side of things doesn’t interest me much so I stopped delving into it further.

Destination Amritsar

We were in Amritsar by 7 p.m. and wanted to visit the Golden temple. I asked Ajay to retire for the day because he had driven around 400 Kms. We went to our hotel room, changed and then came down to check if the Golden temple was nearby.

And, we were told that it was just a five minute walk from the place. So, we walked to the Golden temple.

The feeling of “pious”

We reached close to the Golden temple compound.  I bought the holy cloth to place on my head.

We walked into the temple and saw some magnificent white structures. I was wondering where the golden temple, that I had seen so many pictures of, is.  We walked to the shoe stand where footwear of the visitors/ pilgrims was kept safe.

They were not charging a single penny for it. It is excellent and so unlike the P-commerce we had encountered earlier. If they wanted to earn for this service (and I am sure people would happily pay), the golden temple would have earned a lot of money. Kudos to the Golden temple administration for giving excellent service at no cost.

We then had to wash our hands and walk across a small area so that our feet could be washed. As I walked a bit more, I was stunned to see the Golden edifice with water all around. The Golden temple is a sight in itself and we walked around the temple for quite a while. We actually sat there, like many others, for about half an hour.

The water all around golden temple reflects its lustre and we could see that while sitting on the sides. The temple has entrances on all the four sides. This is to enable people from all directions and religions to enter the Golden temple. There are no restrictions and most visitors are not even followers of Sikhism. It is wonderful to have an “open-for-all religions” place.

While there is no ticket to enter the Golden temple (unlike many other places we visited in the week), the value of the visit is priceless. There is something great about the Golden temple. The feeling of “pious” and “calm” is unbelievable. You can literally feel what these words mean. You have to visit the Golden temple at least once in your lifetime. I just felt like sitting there for a long time.

However, life has to go on and so we roamed a bit across Amritsar, ate our dinner and were back at the hotel. 

Day 6:

The Golden Temple again

We were told that the Golden temple ought to be seen both at night and during the day. We decided we would do that.

After breakfast, we decided to walk again to the Golden temple. The cycle rickshaws and vehicles in the city make it very crowded. The concept of brakes is alien and no one really stops. I almost collided with a cycle rickshaw at least twice.

We negotiated the traffic and stepped into the Golden temple. Even in the light of the sun, the temple had not lost its sheen one bit. We walked around and went inside the temple.

The grandeur and opulence is unmatched. The administration has organized it so well that queues always keep moving and we were inside the Golden edifice within minutes. We visited the three floors and it gave a great sense of calm.

We stepped out and once again looked at the magnificent structure before heading out.

Just outside the Golden temple, P-commerce was at its very best. People were selling a trip to the Wagah border, some were selling trips to the market at Amritsar and many such things. But what caught my attention was a red structure with Silver plated alphabets which could be read from a distance. Without much strain to the eye, I could read it as “Jallianwala Bagh”.

Jallianwala Bagh – a tribute to the martyrs

I was wondering how this name came about? I did not have to search long. It is said that the person who maintained the wasteland (bagh) was of the case – Jalli. So, Jallianwala Bagh means the land maintained and managed by a Jalli.

As we got into Jallianwala Bagh, we first saw the passage through which General Dyer marched his troops into the garden to write one of the most inhuman chapters in the history of mankind.

The people had gathered there to protest against the Rowlatt Act passed in 1919. The act allowed certain political cases to be tried without juries and permitted internment of suspects without trial. (Source: Britannica.com)

According to Ajay, they were waiting to see Mahatma Gandhi and Jawaharlal Nehru, who were going to come and address the crowd.

However, fate had other plans. General Dyer marched his troops in and fired 1650 rounds at the gathered crowd without any intimation. The massacre saw many people lose their lives and it ignited the passion to ensure freedom for India.

We saw the “Martyr’s well” next. Many people had jumped into the well during the onslaught to save their lives and around 120 dead bodies were recovered from this well.

We also saw a wall which has bullet marks from 13^th April 1919. Unlike the Golden temple, this place made us morose. Even today, the air seems to have a lot of sadness lingering around I believe.

We soon saw a garden also which had plants cut in the shape of men holding their guns. It was very creatively done and worth a watch

At the centre of Jallianwalabagh is the memorial for the martyrs. It is a beautiful structure and many people were clicking picture with it.

There is also a gallery inside Jallianwala Bagh which has paper cutting and pictures from the pre-independence era. It has photos of Martyrs of the massacre and so on. There is also a piece by Mahatma Gandhi on Jallianwala Bagh massacre.

I couldn’t click a picture as it was not allowed. The essence of what he said is that this incident will augment the efforts to freedom and we couldn’t let the loss of lives go waste. That’s great.

He also said that thought people ran helter skelter, if they had stood and taken the bullets on their chest, they would have been immortal in history or something to that effect. I think the statement doesn’t make any sense especially when bullets are coming your way from all possible directions. 

Further, the last line of the statement talked about blood being of Hindus, Muslims, and Sanatanists etc. and said the incident should augment the need for Hindu Muslim unity.

While a lot has changed since 1919, I realized from these views that politics has remained pretty much the same. The only constant is change, they say. I think we should add politics to that list.

Back on the road

We were back to our hotel at 11 a.m. Ajay said we should leave to reach Chandigarh before sunset.

We were on the road by 11. 30 a.m. There was some tension in Jalandar which is on the way from Chandigarh to Amritsar. We decided to thus, take a different route.

The first exit was blocked and so was another one we tried. Our saviour, as on many other occasions, was the GPS and Google Maps. Ajay asked for Mehta road and we found a way from Mehta road to reach Hoshiarpur on the outskirts.

Along the way, we stopped at a dhaba for a quick lunch. The dhaba was named Fauji dhaba (Fauji means soldier). And to my surprise, the person making the dishes and serving food was wearing a military trouser and T-shirt. I liked the idea when I saw it through the perpetual marketing/ branding lens that I wear.

After we drove a bit more, suddenly the roads started growing wider. I asked Ajay about it and he said we are approaching the capital city of Punjab, Haryana and the Union territory of Chandigarh.

The Haryana tales

Ajay wore Haryana proudly up his sleeve and would compare almost anything to what they would 

have done at Haryana. He said that the protests in Haryana wouldn’t last for more than two hours. If they don’t come to terms, the police start beating people and everything gets sorted. I laughed at his solution to protests.

I asked him more about his place and he said they were all devotees of Lord Hanuman. He said he is a Jatt and is a vegetarian. I told him I know Jatts who eat non-vegetarian food. He replied that it is fine but any Hindu who eats non-veg food is going against his dharm (certain set of behaviours you need to adhere to as part of the group).

Ajay had strong opinions. He said things like protests and satsangs (a spiritual discourse or a sacred gathering) is a complete waste of time. He believed people should work hard and earn a living. It was nice to hear that from a 23-year old.

I asked him how education in his village was. He said he knew to read and write English and had done a course in ITI. He said that some of his classmates have joined the Army. They had a playground in the village and they have to prove their running prowess to get into the Army according to him.

I asked him which the major cities in Haryana are. Ambala, Sonepat, Panipat, Karnal, Panchkula, Kurukshetra – pat came the reply. Then, he added that Haryana holds its significance in history because of the Mahabharata as well. He said that the battle of Mahabharata was fought at Kurukshetra. He asked me, “Sir, do you know what is so special about Kuruskshetra”? I told him I did not. Beaming with the fact that he was about to impart some great knowledge, he told me, “ Kurukshetra mein kisiko kisipe daya nahi aati sir” (meaning no one has any mercy at Kurukshetra). 

He told me that was the reason the Pandavas were able to kill the Kauravas (their cousins) was because Kurukshetra is the land of no mercy.

Confident Women driving two wheelers

In Punjab, I saw a lot of women of all ages driving two wheelers swiftly and with great confidence. They were negotiating the traffic so smartly that it was a sight to watch. I told my wife I have never seen so many women in Mumbai on two wheelers. I have also not seen so much confidence on their faces.

My wife put her “Sherlock Holmes” cap on, I believe, to dig out some logical reason for this. She said it is because travelling in public transport may not be that safe for women and also the fact, that they do not have local trains and such modes of commute.  

Entry to Chandigarh

We continued driving towards Chandigarh. For the first time in a week, I could see wide roads, huge malls etc. as we were driving. It is truly a planned city. Ajay told me that this place is very rich. He added that the number of BMWs and Mercedes that you see here would be more than in Delhi.

We finally reached the hotel and checked in. I watched India defeat South Africa while having dinner and we were off to sleep.

Day 7:

We had breakfast and checked out of the hotel. We started driving around the city and it is so well planned that it reminds me of the place I stay – Nerul , Navi Mumbai.

Every sector has a plan of the sector at the entry point and the roads are wide and clean. The buildings are neatly laid and there are gardens and wide open spaces all over.

The ‘Rock’ing last few hours

Soon, we were at the rock garden. Legend has it that the entire place is carved out of rocks gathered from the destruction during the days of partition. It was carved by Nek Chand. Everything in the garden, which includes sculptures of people, animals, objects, trees etc. are carved out of rocks, bangles, twigs and broken tiles. The creative excellence is awe inspiring.

There are three phases to the garden. There is a waterfall inside which is self-sustainable and uses rain water only. We spent almost two hours appreciating the grandeur and clicking pictures.

Nek Chand has been awarded the Padmashree for this great work.

The new name for Sauce

There is a café in the garden and as we were tired walking in the sun, we asked for a bottle of water. Just besides me was a lady (a foreigner) who ordered for a Samosa. The guy who was serving asked her if he could put “chana curry” on top of it. The lady did not understand and asked what chana meant. The cashier confidently said, “Chana madam, and said to the person serving, “Abe daal de chana”.

While she did not get her answer, the person accompanying her, again a foreigner, confidently told her that it is sauce. Within minutes, the Samosa with Chana topping arrived. Her expression suggested that it was her maiden experience with such a sauce. However, she did not make a fuss about it and went to a table nearby with what was served to her.

“There is nothing much to show in Chandigarh”, said Ajay. We just drove around the place and saw a few more gardens but it was time to board the flight. I asked Ajay to drop us to the airport.

We sat at the airport for a while and proceeded to check in. It’s back to Mumbai and back to business. However, this has been one of the most exciting weeks of my life and I did get a few things off my bucket list.

For those who want to know – Seeing a snow clad peak, being in Delhi (I know that sounds weird), doing an extensive road trip across unknown terrain, going beyond the Vindhyas, and visiting the Golden temple etc.

Acknowledgements

There are some people I need to thank for making this vacation so seamless and relaxing:

• 1    Dinakar Menon and his team at Bonton Holidays Ltd. for arranging everything so well
• 2      Maneesh Sivadas for lending me a very good camera and enabling us to capture the memories for life
• 3.       Vineet Pillai for giving me his jacket which saved me at sub-zero temperature and my mother for finding this jacket from his closet. (which is quite a challenge J)
• 4      Last but not the least, my wife Deepa Kannarath, for packing for the long trip so immaculately, for being game for a hectic road trip and for being the guest editor (if I may say so) for this blog.