Of People and Places

  A piece of the Bhopal sky with pretty leaf shapes that I couldn't resist painting. It's good to look up and find such beauty :)

 Trying to paint the delicate nature of Amaltas blossoms - they dangle upside down in bunches and add such a lovely vibe to any neighborhood they adorn. We are fortunate that the lanes outside our house are lined with many Amaltas trees. A beautiful name for a beautiful tree. A friend makes elegant earrings, pendants, bookmarks set in resin to immortalize favourite flowers and the memories they bring :)  and the ones she makes of Amaltas are among my favourites - here, take a look -  Amaltas bookmarks (Picture courtesy - Jwala Dadhich, guftgu phoolo ki) Amaltas earrings (Picture courtesy - Jwala Dadhich, guftgu phoolo ki)         Amaltas coaster/paperweight (Picture courtesy - Jwala Dadhich, guftgu phoolo ki) Visit Jwala's profile here   Follow on instagram - @guftguphooloki

  A doodle - Pink rain lily in Nandi hills Six years ago, when we went to Nandi Hills in May, we were charmed by the wild pink rain lilies that had sprung up in great patches across boulders, small rocks, in between trees and any patch of grass they could find.  They are called rain lilies because they often bloom after a thunderstorm. It's truly delightful when you chance on them unexpectedly. ( My personal favourite is the white one! Which one do you like?)

  Sunrise at Kaliyasot Dam, Bhopal. I tried to capture what it looked like from the top. A stream ran down a little to the right - with hazy houses in the distance. The sun was dipping into the small stream escaping from the dam, hidden among the trees. There is a loooong stairwell that leads to the top and if you step away far enough - there is this illusion that the stairs are continuing on the other side of the road, whereas in fact, that is the stream with the sun shining down it. I want to try out that visual too -  But that's reserved for another blogpost :)  What made going to Kaliyasot so much more enjoyable was catching up with friends in Bhopal after a long time! So nice to have a soul tribe, isn't it? 

A brook in Kathotiya forest, close to Bhopal. We catch a fantastic sunrise, have a packed breakfast of ( yes, you guessed it right!) poha and jalebi on the dry rocks near Kolar dam, the sweetish, slightly fishy whiff of algae giving it a different feel, spot many beautiful birds -  which my knowledgeable friend tells me are a hornbill, treepie ( I would say cutiepie),bee eater and Black Ibis. A family of wild boars tumble across the road from our bike. This is tiger country too. The last stretch that we visit is the most breathtaking of all. Wheat fields roll over the vast expanse and you get to see different shades of green with tiny shanties and homes that are too perfect for words! And in the backdrop , the mountains that are characteristic here, with sharp jagged edges, but flat tops. Thanks to my generous friends for including me in their plans :) It was really worth it. My only regret is that I missed the rock shelters and cave paintings famous in this area. ...

A lone boatman glides on his cool blue boat on the Madu River, Sri Lanka It had rained heavily in the morning so everything looked clean and fresh as we set out on the Madu river safari at  around 4 PM. The same river that was agitated by the relentless raindrops now sat serene and comfortable, waking up from an afternoon siesta. The Madu river or Maduganga is a lovely green. I rank it second in beauty ( first is Kali river in Dandeli .)   The river is surrounded by mangroves . A makeshift shack that sells tourists some snacks and fruits is balanced precariously on stilts in the middle of the water. A little girl waves at us from inside. On a fallen tree, we spot a monitor lizard, basking in the sun.

A part of the Bhojeshwar temple complex Just outside of Bhopal, there is a little known town called Bhojpur on the banks of river Betwa. My friend and I went on a visit on the way to Bhopal from Hoshangabad. We got down from the bus and took a shared auto to go to the Bhojeshwar temple, and a shared ride it was indeed! The driver was more than happy to accommodate more passengers so that  there were 10 of us, not to mention our suitcase and handbags, all in 1 auto! We were crammed together like sardines, in uncomfortable positions. When I first  caught sight of the Bhojeshwar temple, I was blown away! It is a sparse landscape that surrounds the temple, and the huge structure in contrast, really catches the eye.  It is an incomplete temple, with one of the largest Shiva lingas in the world. You could see it from a distance but if you were to go inside the structure, even if you were to crane your neck you would be able to see only the bottom of the large pedestal...

After a whirlwind trip to Pushkar in an extremely crowded local bus and being hoodwinked by a zealous auto rickshaw driver into a fool's errand to check a spot ( The deal, we came to know later, was to go on a camel ride for exorbitant rates. We refused....Ours was a shoestring budget - the kind of shoestring where you tie a knot and hang on for dear life!!), we were ready to go sightseeing in Ajmer. ( Do visit the Pushkar valley  - The route is breathtaking.) We visited the Ajmer Dargah at dusk.  The road to the Dargah is very crowded and filled with tourists, pilgrims, shop vendors and 'streetfood eaters'. Fairy lights twinkle overhead and  shine in children's festive clothes. The most unique shops are of the loban sellers -  I was astounded by the sheer variety of frankincense/ loban that are there. There were times when these shops looked more like a halwaii/ sweetshop   than those selling joss sticks and perfumed resins! I couldn't ma...

On the way back from Nashik to Pune by bus, we stopped at a wayside dhaba for tea. It was around four in the evening and a very beautiful windy day outside. I saw this unforgettable landscape - A goatherd in a red turban surrounded by the beautiful green of the countryside and the goats happily grazing near the trees. As the bus moved away, they almost disappeared until  I could see only a bright red speck in the distance with black dots hovering around it. 

On the road to Thirthahalli from Shimoga, the beautiful Tunga river meanders along, its green water rippling gently in the stillness. We stop a little way further from the Sakkarebayalu elephant camp to get a closer look at the trees that float in the calm waters.   On the other side are dark woods that tower over us – true children of the rainforests around Agumbe. There is a  path among these woods I want to explore, but we are short of time. It is dusk and all colors are merging into shades of violet, umber and grey.   There is a little light reflected in the small clearing at the end of the path and the dense trees that surround it make it look like a halo. And from this clearing comes a man in a bicycle. It is a charming picture and one I hope to be able to put down on paper some day. The tangle of roots from the swamp makes for interesting shapes. There is one that looks like it is raising its arms to the sky.   They may look spooky in the night. A...

I had heard so much about baobab trees and I finally had a chance to meet one at Mandu. Mandu or Mandav is an ancient fortress town in the Malwa region of Madhya Pradesh. It is a place after my own heart with ruins scattered all over the place making it a town of breathtaking beauty. Much more about Mandu later (I haven’t even begun!) Let’s go back to our baobab tree. Fields with yellow and green dot the path to the village and in the midst stand these curious trees.   They have massive trunks that store water. To me, they look like a cross between a bottle and an elephant – and I find their shape comforting.   These trees are native to Africa. I am curious to know how they got here! Apparently, they are among the most ancient trees on earth.  Locals sell the baobab tree seeds, they are called   Mandu ki imli. They taste like tamarind but have this incredible zing and saltiness. I liked it but not a good idea to eat too much of it (My cavities are tingling at...

The way to Nainital from Kathgodam. Uttarakhand welcomed me with her arms wide open, as the bus turned yet another hairpin bend. Her pines glistened in the winter sun and the small mountain streams twinkled at me like her two merry eyes.   Two places have filled me with infinite delight because of their tininess – Gokarna and Nainital.   I cannot describe what I felt when I finally reached the Tallital bus stand.The Naini lake stood there in majesty with the town all around her. From the cycle rickshaw that I sat in, I drank in all the beauty surrounding me. Truly you do not  know what sunlight means to you unless you are out on a winter’s day in the hills. And the sun is so caressing, it fills you with warmth. Picture if you can a tiny teardrop of water, surrounded by higgledy-piggledy houses amid tall trees. Add to that a gloriously clear baby blue sky with dreamy clouds. That is what I saw on the ropeway. It must be so beautiful to see it in the night....

On a recent trip to Maharashtra, I saw this kaka and kaki at the Pune Railway station. They must have been on their way to Pandharpur. I have seen devotees making their way to Pandharpur in hordes singing beautiful abhangs, taking their entire family with them. The Varkaris generally make this annual pilgrimage by foot.   Elders and little children walk too, and there is scarcely a break in the singing and music. There is something divine, whether you are a believer of god or not, in voices raised to a common tune, in exaltation of something outside the self. I would like to go with them once. In the month of Ashadh Ekadashi, trains in Maharashtra are filled with pilgrims on their way to Pandharpur. Maybe I will join them. Who knows, I may meet this old couple I saw at the Pune railway station.