Mt.Everest, Kathmandu et al

Early next morning we were supposed to catch a flight to have a glimpse of Mt. Everest. In Nepal it's called 'Sagarmatha'.As in Sanskrut and how the Himalayas were formed it seemed to be an apt name. When Indian plate moved towards the Chinese plate, the collision that occurred [millions of years ago], resulted in folding of the land that formed Himalayas. And it has already been proved that before the Himalayas were formed, the space was occupied by the sea. So peak arising from the sea, Sagarmatha. But in Nepalese it means 'Head of the Sky' and not at all what we derive !  I feel,  we should respect the Nepali sentiments and start calling it Sagarmatha and not after Mr. Everest, who has got nothing to do with it ! [ Of course the Chinese, as usual have a different say in the matter. But as per the international understanding Sagarmatha still lies within the political borders of Nepal so if it has to be called by any name, then it has to be Sagarmatha ! Another one. During recent earthquake in April 2015, Mt Everest has shifted towards Nepal side by 3 cms, so more so ! ]

The plane was propeller driven, smallish one, hardly having 14 o 16 seats thus everybody had window seat.

The Nepali air hostess was sweet little girl in her early 20s and word petite would have fitted her like glove on the hand.During the entire flight of one to one and half hours she was going to every passenger and explaining the mountain ranges with the peaks, seen from the window.

And the view was really awesome. Every body was allowed to have a peek in the cock pit for a short while. When my turn came I just could not fit in the cabin. If I would crouch there was not enough space, if I would kneel down or sit on my hunches  my head was hitting the ceiling. Not knowing what to do I some how manged to fit in with the help of co-pilot/navigator. He pushed my head down avoiding his gazettes to be damaged ! Both were smiling at my attempts to manage my almost 6 feet torso ! 

And there it was. Sagarmatha [ Mt Everest] just in front of me,in all it's glory.Early morning sun was giving  it yellowish golden glow that was difficult to describe and etch on the mind. But that was the only thing one could do as my video-graphing bombed due to awkward position. Nonetheless it was sight out of this world!

On the way return, we were served champagne on the house and that was feather in the cap !

Though according to expectations the plane did not encircle the peak so it was huge disappointment. But the reason told was equally plausible. The northern side of Mt. Everest is in the territory of China and if plane encircles the peak it would have been the breach of Chinese air space, so..... ! Understood !

The rest of the day was reserved for Kathmandu sight seeing. Misnomer of the first order, there  were no sights worth  my taste, and it turned out to be only temple tour ! Only redeeming feature was Durbar square, situated in old Kathmandu, Bhaktapur. Among-st all the temples surrounding it , it stands out for it's unique European architecture.Tall Romanesque pillars stand at the gate holding the entire structure on its strong edifice.[?].Unfortunately during the earthquake of April 2015, it came down leaving  only the relics of the old past.Even the mightiest are shown the dust by the quirk of fete !

Restoration of 'Gaddi Baithak' [ main palace]  and Hanuman Dhoka [ the old palace behind the main one] is in full swing with the help from abroad, mainly USA and China. Though it was open for visitors there was no point in going in the palace as 90% of the structures are destroyed and what you could see would be relics only !
All the adjoining temples and palaces too, now are in shambles except the palace of 'Kumari' Nepalis' Goddess incarnate!

Young nubile girl before she attains the puberty, is selected as 'Kumari', after rigorous selection process.She has to be from particular caste of Newaris, dominant sect of Nepali society. She is worshiped on all pujas especially , Navratri and Durga puja. As soon as she reaches menarche she ceases to be Kumari as it is believed that, goddess vacates her body then.It's not surprising in Nepal that she is worshiped by both, Hindus and low land Buddhists.But highlander Tibetan Buddhist refrain from doing so ! The exteriors as well as interiors of the palace are decorated with intricately carved out wooden panels. 'Kumari' with her family stays in the palace but appears for 'Darshan' only once in a day.

She sits in one of the ornate windows only for few hours for devotees but no one is allowed to photograph her. The way she dresses herself goes according to the old Nepali traditions, prominent being vermilion applied on her entire forehead in designated manner.  If she deviates from whatever she is marked for, she is removed from the throne, reasoning that her purity is lost !'Kumari' tradition is not restricted to Kathmandu alone but town of Patan too has its own Kumari.

I do not know what's the attitude but we Indians and Nepalese are mostly similar in our outlook towards our heritage. Entire square speaks volumes about the glory of bygone days, [forget about earth quake as such also], we do not respect what we had. Rather than isolating the entire area from daily mundane hubbub it swarms with people, vehicles, even four wheelers along with petty sellers on those dingy roads.

A simple walk was so tedious as road surface was uneven, covered with dust and at places where waste water flowed freely ,with sticky mud !

The next halt was at another Buddhist temple. It welcomed us with aroma  of sweetmeats in the making,pervading entire area.It augured my hunger so much that I went in search for the source. It turned out that the smell was emanating from the lamps offered to the deity by devotees. They had used pure ghee,[clarified butter] rather than normal wax or ordinary oil, so THE aroma ! 

If you go by the name, 'Swayambhunath', it appears to be a Hindu shrine devoted to Lord Shiva. At the same time again,as name suggests it implies that the deity is 'Self Sprung'. But though it's not a Hindu temple and is a Buddhist Stupa, it's revered by both the communities equally.And the Buddhist too accept the concept of 'Self Sprung' which is very common among-st the Hindus.

After climbing rather a steep hillock what comes to your eyes is astounding! The main stupa stands elegantly at the center of the complex with it's head having compassionate eyes of Buddha, peacefully looking over the valley of Kathmandu to offer solace to the troubled minds.Between the two eyes filled with wisdom and compassion is drawn number one in Devanagari script signifying the unity of entire universe



.As usual, the White skinned, do not know how to respect the sentiments of eastern mind, so call it 'Monkey Temple' as monkeys abound in the area! It's surrounded by many other temples, some Hindus' too !

'Boudhanath' again a Buddhist stupa is situated at the heart of Kathmandu's busy market area[ now] and you'll definitely miss it if not looked for keenly.It's one of the largest stupas in the world. The head of the stupa was damaged in the earthquake of 2015 but was renovated with the world help and now stands majestically on the Kathmandu skyline.Though larger than the Swayambhunath it too has the compassionate eyes of Lord Buddha depicted on the central tower.The perimeter is one of the longest in the world and is lined by shops, restaurants and few temples. It has highest number of Buddhist visitors in Kathmandu !

Last but not the least was temple of 'Pashupatinath' a Shiva shrine revered by the Hindus, from all over the world ! Considered to be one of the 12 auspicious Shiva shrines [Jyotirlinga] it's thronged by the Hindu devotees all year around.But when we went it being Diwali, the crowds were large, though not mammoth ! The shrine was specially decorated with ghee lamps in hundreds, signifying festival of lights ! The importance of Pashupatinath temple lies in the fact that it has Shivalinga which faces in four directions with zenith as the fifth, signifying 5 prime elements of the Hindu mythology..Unlike other Shiva shrines, the idol in Pashupatinath is always dressed in golden cloth. The temple stands on the banks of Bagmati river , locally revered as incarnation of Holy Ganges, and is built in pagoda fashion.As the photography is not allowed in the temple complex I had to do with the photograph of entrance only.

We were in the temple at around 6 to 7 PM and it was 'Aarati' time. Though born Hindu I am not devout Hindu by rituals so wanted to bypass the scene. But the sentry did not allow me, and pushed me in the melee. Short of suffocation by the strong crowds I dreaded Lower Parel stampede like situation and hurried through the devotees as fast as I could. No it was not to be so. The priest on the other side wanted me to pay my respect by banging my head, well almost, on the threshold. I politely refused and escaped the situation ! Though I offered my respect, gratitude, submission, whatever from afar !

At around the same time 'Bagmati' is worshiped as Holy Ganges on its banks.It's known as 'Ganga Aarati'.

It was sight worth a watch. 3 priests with different lamps,with multiple flames, offered their gratitude to the revered river from the ghats specially built for the same. The religious chants were soothing to the ears as they were low key and were sung in melodious tunes. There were many devotees dancing to the tune as if in trance. But that was normal sight in Nepal as Dancing and Merry making, are the hallmarks of Diwali celebrations in Nepal ! 

I don't really understand, though being born Hindu, how Hindu mind works. In such a pristine ambiance to watch few a corpse being cremeted, only few meters away was rather saddening !. But on the contrary it's considered to be extremely auspicious if your last rites are performed on the banks of 'Bagmati' with 'Pashupatinath' himself by your side when you climb the steps heavenwards ! Amen !

Nepal, surprises....well !

Disclaimer: The contents of this blog are the first-hand experiences on my part and are narrated not to insult or derogate anybody, but in case if somebody is hurt, it's inadvertently, and not intentionally and I am profoundly sorry at the outset for said in-appropriation on my part. 

I am not confirmed  'Nepalologist ' neither I am a profound traveller who is well informed than the Royal King of Nepal [ in this case] before stepping in an aeroplane. My slate was absolutely clean.

It so happened that my wife's cousin works at Pokhra Manipal Medical college as HOD and she invited us for the holidays in Nepal. She had drawn out the itinerary to the last T, so we were supposed to just go along. And I simply did it and enjoyed to the fullest !. As nothing was known beforehand, everything was a huge surprise of the greatest kind. 

Nepal: Full of surprises of both kind. My idea of going to Nepal was very simple. Just cut a ticket to Kathmandu, hop on a plane to Nepal, get down at Kathmandu and that's it, at least for Indian nationals. Not so any more. The sequence started from the T2 itself. So far [ till 1st Oct'17] you could travel to Nepal on your PAN/AAdhaar whatever, maybe even Driving license [? exaggerating, Maybe ] but now they insist on valid Passport. A girl next in the line was asked to go home to get the passport when the flight was just a few hours away. The immigration officer too appeared extra cautious. For the first time in my life, I was asked to remove my shoes. As the terrain was going to be hilly with long walks I was wearing heavy hunter shoes. The explanation,[ unasked for, you don't question man in uniform at the airport] given was, the soles of my shoes were big enough, he meant roomy, to store drugs or contraband. Me? drugs? contraband. Maybe over the years, I must have started looking like one good thug! It did not end there. Passport officer went through mine. from front to back, then from back to front 3 to 4 times searching for something. Maybe it was the last immigration stamp. At last, he got it, and as if finding out the hidden treasure he said; ' It means you travelled abroad last on so and so date!' Was there any other alternative than to say 'Yes'? I did. and he cleared me. Rest of my chums were cleared in a jiffy !
Royal Nepal Airlines, now only Nepal Airlines, after the political upheaval, was just adequate. The courteous, efficient, good looking staff which was warm too !. But the food was below Air travel standards. The rice served was so dry, that I had to pour water in it to make it gulp-able!



The first impression of Kathmandu was average, so-so, but over the days, it sank! I  am not going in to, 'Kantipur, it's the original name, the present name derived from Kashtha Mandap, that is Canopy made out of wood and all that blah blah but it does not fit to be THE capital city of any nation.

I am very well aware that Nepal is a poor country, but being used to affluent foreign travel, This foreign jaunt was a surprise, no, shock! In the suburbs of Kathmandu, there are still no roads, whatever dust-laden, stone pebbled path is used for traffic is/may be called as a road !
Though Nepal at present is Federal republic that has gone secular, Hinduism in public as well as in private life dominates beyond even Indian mind's expectations. We were in Kathmandu when Diwali was going on. It's the biggest festival in Nepal [ Known as Tihar] and is celebrated in full regalia. The entire city was decorated with Marigold flowers in the day time and illuminated lights in the night. The city is overfull with temples Hindu as well as Buddhist. The amalgamation of two religions in Nepal is so complete that at times it becomes difficult to separate them. Out of Swayabhunath Bodhnath and  Pashupatinath, the first two are Buddhist stupas while the last one is Shiva shrine! Surprisingly disciples of both the religions throng all the shrines to offer their services! 
Diwali tough celebrated in Nepal just like India, the references are different. It starts with the name,'Tihar', may be derived from Tyouhar in Hindi.1st day is dedicated to 'Crow.' Sweets are left on the rooftops for the crows to devour. It is thought that it prevents calamities. We reached Nepal on the second day of Diwali and it turned out to be a day for 'Dog Worship' or 'Kukur Puja'. We saw a few Dogs garlanded with flowers and red vermilion applied between the eyes, 'Tika'! They were fed goodies and all this is done to please the god of death 'Yam' as the dog is supposed to herald his arrival and is supposed to warn, being a good friend of the humans!  The third is the day for 'Cow' worship, they too are similarly worshipped. On the same day in the evening, there is 'Laxmi Pujan' just like Indian Hindus. The entire premises are lit with oil lamps,[now 'Chinese' electric bulb strings too],[ But sky lanterns were nowhere to be seen] decorated with Marigold flowers. In the same evening entire Nepal goes into singing and dancing spree where women too, do not lag behind. We came across many families, communities enjoying Diwali, where merrymaking was is full swing! One dance at the centre and others encircling him/her, clap to the rhythm all along! Forth is for the bulls while the fifth or the last one is a big, big event in Nepal. It's celebrated to honour the relationship between the brother and the sister, and is known as 'Bhai-tika'. Sister applies seven coloured 'Tika' on brother's forehead. Garland him with flower wreaths and, feeds the sweets  But unlike Indian Hindus, BOTH exchange the gifts and not only the sisters, who get the ones! All the shops are closed as it's a public holiday, so we were given the notice that 'Orders for the dinner would be taken only before seven' as everybody would be in rush to reach the homes. Conspicuous by their absence were firecrackers! Maybe not from the point of view of pollution but they're just not the part of Diwali in Nepal! 
Another custom of Nepali Hindus is very touching. While giving anything, not only money, even mundane things like water [mostly], keys, parcels or even grocery, they touch the Right hand, with the Left at the elbow, as if like, in 'Offering' and receive everything in the cup of both hands, as if receiving with dignity! I too started doing the same, when the occasion arose, it surprisingly is very pleasing!
Nepali Rupee is cheaper than the Indian one, and the first time in my 'Foreign' sojourn I enjoyed exchanging the money!
To Indian mind Nepalese means Gorkha [Gurkha in Mumbai parlance]   or chick looking girl in a red light area. Gorkha is neither a caste, not a tribe and definitely not a profession [ A Watchman without fail ]. The region/province that lies between Kathmandu and Pokhara is known as Gorkha and people coming from the area, as Gorkha,  means coming from the mountains or Pahadi areas. They may be Rais, Limbu, Gurung Chhetri Magar or others.
Girl trafficking in Southwest Nepal till a few years ago was rampant due to the custom of selling the young girls by their own relatives, parents at times, for social and religious reasons. Youth organizations in the area are fighting a hard battle and results are positive!
To be continued......

Vistadome, Shiroda, Goa etc

After working all the time continuously, without even Sundays, for almost 3 to 4 months a shot of fresh air was a must. My son too was at the end of his tenure at Chennai so it was a nice time and occasion for family time. His father in law suggested rather than going to oft-visited mundane places, read Goa, we will head to something similar but completely untouched by commercialism, his native place Shiroda. And Shiroda it was.

Unfortunately for the fast travellers, it's a bit way out. Neither Konkan railway nor any airport is nearby. The nearest railway station is Sawantwadi but fast trains don't normally take a halt there and Dabolim, Goa airport is well 3 to 4 hrs drive at peak hours. Railways recently [we were first to book for Dasara.] introduced a new concept at least for Indian railways, Vista-dome. The Jan Shatabdi express going to Madgaon has this chair car at the end of the train, even after guard's cabin, known as Vista-dome. 

The rear wall of the cabin is all open, as it is made of glass. It's really mind-boggling to see the rails running just behind you in a jiffy. Entering the tunnel might not be that watchable but when it is leaving the tunnel, the experience is just awesome. The outer walls too are covered with glass practically up to the ceiling , to give expanded panoramic views of the mother nature accompanying you all along.

The seats are extremely comfortable even for a long haul and can be rotated in 360 degrees to allow you to enjoy the beauties and bounties of mother nature from every angle or you can just chat away with near and dear ones facing each other.
The journey from Kudal, where we alighted, to Shiroda, was a longish one taking 90 minutes or so but was invigorating. Small villages passing by were spic and span clean and were laden with a lush green cover, not leaving even a small patch in barren brown. My Vyahi Nitin's [ my son's father in law] ancestral home in Shiroda was not the old dilapidated crumbling house but was newly built, practically a bungalow, with all the modern amenities especially commodes! [ I was too happy to hear the news ! ]  
Shiroda beach from his home was at a walk-able distance but not that near. It was perfect as Nitin had described. Goa-ish but sans the Goa's lusty crowds.

 
Miles and miles of beach without a single tourist. Hey, we were not tourists, we were the sons of the soil visiting the native place !! The entire beach was to our disposal, a feat might have been unheard on Goa beaches. The ones seen in the photograph are local fishermen out for the catch, I mean returning from the fishing. And what a catch! It was sheer excitement on seeing so many different types of fishes in one go. There were plenty, really plenty. Right from usual Mac-reals to Sword fishes, Eels, Smaller varieties of shark, very big pron, crabs, shrimp, pomphrets and so many other we never had seen before, say cuttlefish, the one seen below. It belongs to squid family and is normally found in Mediterranean and North Baltic seas, some times around South Africa. Konkan coast is a rare habitat for them.

Saket and Neha participated in the auction for their sale and won it against the local fisher-woman. We got really a bargain. We paid only Rs 400 for 8 medium-sized pomphrets, each of that size easily costs more than Rs 200 in Mumbai!

Another prize catch, not money wise but for us, was the stingray, the famous 'Sting Ray' which can kill you by its piercing sting. Notable casualty all croc lovers know was Late Mr Steve Irwin.
The fisherman who caught them was adept, of course, and within no time he removed sharp stings from all of them. Contrary to my understanding the sting is at the base of its tail and not at the end. Except very few of the catch I was was told that all of them were edible! The small ones with green colour were wasted because they eat other fish, that was the explanation given for not eating them, Respect?

If we don't do anything foolish, we are not Benurwars. Many sea snakes were caught in the net inadvertently while fishing. We could not watch them struggling for life in that deadly net. As such nobody eats them, because they are poisonous, so we requested the main fisherman who was handling the show to release them.

And after the lesson, how to throw them back in the sea, was learnt, Shubha and myself ventured to throw them back in the seawater. It could have been deadly, really deadly. God knows why I did it, but I did it and got a reprimand from everybody including the fisher-folk!
As we were staying at home it was a treat almost every day. Though I am not a vouched fish lover, the spread used to be so varied that I could never resist.
Lately, Konkan coast, especially on the southern side, is becoming popular for Dolphin watching. We too did go. But though we could see them from far it was not as expected. The reason being, these dolphins are in their natural habitats, not like pet ones, and do not like to venture near humanity so run away from loud sounds. The motors of the speed boats definitely make much noise and we had to contend with their distant view.
Goa I saw this time was different from we normally see, but about that in the next blog.

Ganeshotsav. Time to rethink

In my home there is a tradition of bringing Ganapati to worship, for ages together ,[ precisely for more then 100 may be 125 years]. In olden days, some great, great ancestor, brought the image and  we  started performing his pooja ,piously every year.The rituals have definitely changed, so have the other things  but as the sentiments are firmly etched, they are mostly the same.

Entire Ganesh Puja ,that the priest renders, has evolved, [gone from bad to worse] considerably over the past few years, may be decades. Especially in Cities.Young generation does not understand Sanskrut', it's literally alpha beta kappa for them So when the priest recites 'स्नानार्थंम उदकम समर्पयामि' every half baked pious feels , 'He has done a great job'. which in fact if said in any vernac language, will lose its entire pious religious fervor. It means 'Offer, water to the God for bath !' This is just a tip of the ice berg. On every psalm [ Shlok] rendered in that peculiar tone, the disciple gets the divine feeling[ but mundane ]  In fact all these simple verses in Sanskrut are nothing but as if instructions given to a KG pupil to recite, 1.Pour water, 2.Anoint the Idol with perfume, 3.Decorate with flowers, 4.Present more that 80 types of tree twigs  5. Offer cloth to wear....oh so many things !
The Ganesh Pooja if has to be performed in most traditional way, then all the recitals and rituals those are mandatory, must be stuck to. They should be performed with utmost precision as told by the priest but it is losing the  very essence of the festival. 1st casualty on the altar is duration.Totally engulfed by the 'vittesse' of the city life, it's done in a jiffy.  On the said day as the priests are in huge demand [ which we have created ] they would hardly cover, not more than 5 houses,if done with precision.And at times they are through it as if they are being chased by the most ferocious tiger. So alternative is to resort to electronic media, our new era gadget, 'The Sound System.' And thus the first casualty is the Essence !

The entire festival which Lok. Tilak started, around 1 and 1/2 century ago was totally different than the way it is celebraed today. . It was not as if, the Ganapati was not worshiped in the yester years ,but it was restricted to the households and was individualistic.So no social interaction on the mass scale.  So the step one was, 'To erect a common platform for people to fight against British.'  He made the common people to come out in such a large numbers, that the British rule felt feel the pressure, in the long run. There were many different reasons to give it a "Public Platform ".  Take Patriotism  for example.It was cultivated to ingrain cleverly, 'The need for freedom' in the common man on the street ! To inculcate the patriotic ferver, many groups comprising both boys and girls were formed those filled the roads,up the to brim with overflowing enthusiasm. Girls wore petticoat and blouse and Boys in traditional dhoti with Puneri Pagadi, and Sherwani shirt. All the Marathi's from different castes and creed came forward as volunteers for the entire procession with innumerable ballads of bravery and patriotic songs playing on their lips.They performed on the stage in groups called as Me'le' .They staged skits, with messages for social reforms, religion and health.  Podium was  erected specifically  to reach out to the people in large numbers,for the mass education and to flair up the hatred against the British empire.The ultimate and the most important goal was to unite different people and societies,to form a cohesive Indian society that would resist the British as one united front  ! Over the years, say Today, it has changed so drastically, that  if some one from that era, lands in the present,will definitely get the shock of his life ! Maybe, he would lose the marbles too ! Today's Festival is full with corruption and has become money laundering kiosk, with big players, 'La King makers', on the board belonging to the political party that does not go beyond the interests of Baramati! Thus making the entire festival, carcass of old glory, of good values, talents, political acumen and sheer wisdom ! 

The noise, if at all, allowed, must be restricted only to 'Arati and while rendering some Religious psalms, [with fervour, for only recital purpose]. It would be really good and also to a certain extent, understandable and pardonable if played with due understanding. God too would have loved, these lyrical soul-stirring renditions in a soft melodious tone. Alas.......! Addition of the instruments, most glaringly creating the worst cacophony, with some obscene songs having "below the belt double en-tenders'', [meaning,], is just horrible and unpardonable! The entire scenario has become absolutely obscene and lewd! It is abhorring and annoying.to every right-thinking citizen. And THE god? Does he reside in that idol where his [so called ] disciples beat the drums in the unending ear-splitting marathon which may deafen everybody or is it, that the GOD himself is deaf and unless you shout, it does not reach him or he can not hear any sound below the decibels of the beating of drums! Where is that soothing solace, that one gets from within which makes one experience oneness with him? 
And to cap the gaudy and vulgar display of wealth every idol is being embellished with gold in tonnes. It's as if, there is a competition between idols at different places, 'Who is the richest one ?' And would the disciples lag behind? These idols are getting Gold in kilos in a donation! A young social worker from Beed whom I know is fighting a losing battle to raise money for the orphanage he is running for destitute children, especially daughters of the farmers who have committed suicide. Where do these Gold hearted disciples vanish when it comes to donating the money to these 'Really' needy ones?
Perhaps our priorities are going haywire. With the dawn of the 21st century, the society which should have embraced Science with open arms is perhaps going backwards and has started taking pride in an obsolete concept that is God and it's paraphernalia 'Religion.' In Indian context 'Caste' taking the crown!

Dunkirk ,The Screen speaks

When we were in our junior college, the war movies was a genre that was very popular but at the same time was an art form to reckon with. May be WW II was not far behind in the history and the memories of the sufferings, valour, bravery humankind were fresh, so there were plenty, who tackled War from different angles. There was much realistic  'The Longest Day' to take cap along with, out and out potboiler like 'The Guns of Navarone'. Battle of Bulge, Where Eagles Dare, Stalag 17, Von Ryan's Express, so many that depicted Allies to be the superheroes, nonetheless were very entertaining,1st criterion for any performing art but were 'Good Cinema' at the same time. Only one where the Germans were shown to be having the upper hand, 'The One that got away' too was a movie worth to watch for. All-time classic' The Sound of Music' too had the war in the background. What could be more poignant and heart touching, showing the kinder facade of Humankind than, 'The Schindler's List' which too was a war film with a difference, a huge humane difference!
Many of the above, were filmed in 70 mm format which was a novelty then. Stereophonic sound was there but the introduction of the 6 tracks, changed the entire tune of the sound system. To have the larger than life projection of the War, with its devastating armoury, sky-piercing warplanes, bulldozing tanks and ear-splitting explosions with an endless number of firing rounds, the format was not a gimmick, but it was an integral part of the movie to put life in the two-dimensional war on the screen! So it was a necessity! The train whistle of 'Where Eagle Dare' coming from a distant station still reverberates in my ears or the memory of ducking my head on ear-splitting whirling noise of planes as if hovering over you, of 'The Battle of Bulge' makes me chuckle even now!

And then came the IMAX! You don't watch it from outside, you are part of it! When we watched it for the first time in Sydney, at Darling Harbor way back in the 90s, it then screened documentary type of films only, for special effects! Helicopter ride on the screen gave me instant severe vertigo, that got relieved only by man-oeuvre they had shown at the outset. You have to bury your head in your knees, but it did not help my elderly relative here in Mumbai at Imax Dome and felt better only when he induced vomiting!  
What better format could be for a film like 'Dunkirk' which is a quality war movie, than IMAX! The screen just speaks! And the director knows it, so it hardly has any dialogues. There is hardly any story for those who go for plots and subplots, with heroes, villains and vamps. It's a true story narrated almost in a linear fashion, few losses of human touches and it would have become a documentary on the big screen. But the director has his fingers firmly on the pulse of the genre, intertwines it with so many humane touches that some times you cringe in your seat by being a silent spectator to the endless human suffering, inflicted by other human beings! There is dedication, sense of belonging to the nation, longing for the home, patriotism, [a word much maligned in today's India], camaraderie, 
The great 'Dunkirk Evacuation' was both for Britain,'Colossal military Disaster' as described by Mr Churchill himself, at the same time bondage of the common man on the street for the boys fighting on the front for their society, their country. On returning from the battlefields without any triumph on the hands, the boys are feeling down, naturally, but they get hero's welcome. When said,'But we only survived', answered aptly by the blind elder,  'That's enough !'  
Around 300,000 privets were evacuated over 10 days, which again Mr Churchill described as 'Miracle of deliverance !' It happened in 1940, Germans were winning and the war had almost come on the doors of the UK and this setback! Americans were not in the picture and the UK was struggling hard to keep herself afloat. The despair, the palpable defeat on the anvil everything comes so vividly that at times you forget that it's a film!
The Imax screen just sizzles, not with oomph but with flames, torture, agony, anguish and the defeat. Endless blue waters of the English channel makes you so small because of the vastness of the screen and yes you become part of it! The seats shiver with the bomb blast and endless rut-rut of firings make you wonder 'How they might have endured ?'
It made me think. WW II was on the doorstep of every European. There was not a single household that did not have a loss on the battlefields. People suffered for 6 years, yet they endured with head held high and came brightly out of it, not only survived but prospered over a half-decade by sheer hard work.
If God forbid, it must not happen, but if there again is, a full-fledged war against China, not Pakistan, how would we behave? As Indians!

Tourister

When I ventured out to see the world two and a half decades ago, the craze had not caught on. The reach was not beyond Matheran or Mahabaleshwar. A bit better off visited Mysore Bangalore with Ooty thrown in as icing on the cake and for the elite-st one Kashmir was the ultimate. Now any Tatya, Dattu, and Haribhau, [maybe Tom Dick and Harry, their counterparts in English ], worth his salt, is on the first foreign bound plane when enough cash jingles in his pocket. 
Indian Rupee had much weight-age then, a dollar for thirty, but they used to come hardly by. Credit cards issued in India were accepted only in Nepal and Bhutan, and they doled out peanuts under the garb of FTA aka foreign travel allowance, maximum $250 per person for man on the street. Travellers' cheques were the order of the day. Netas and bureaucrats enjoyed even then at the cost of poor Janata!  Internet was years away, proper and elaborate information hardly came by so the total dependence was on books like 'Lonely Planet' or alike. Hotel bookings were done by prepaid letters only available at Dadar post office. And I had managed everything to the last detail. But the travel agent turned out to be a sweet-tongued cheater. Till the date of the flight, he did not get us visas for Austria. And that was a huge setback. All the hotel bookings done, went down the drain as we had to postpone our journey only by a day. Luckily enough we got the hold of  home address of the charge the affairs of Austrian Consulate in Mumbai. We just stormed into her home very late in the night. She was a Maharashtrian lady named Ms Shinde who after hearing our predicament immediately stamped our visas at her residence in Bandra at unearthly hours of 10 PM. In those days every country had a separate visa, no combined Shenzhen visa then like today. And we could fly a day later.
Indian back-packers was a rare tribe in those days, and even now! We Indians just don't go for the adventure and so the orchestrated conducted tours by dime a dozen travel operators on the board go jam-packed. 'Get in the bus, get down from the bus, enjoy the site seeing, [ as if they tell you at the gun point] get in the bus, have Indian meal [ and be happy, and that's a plus point ]' and say we did Europe! And likewise in the next vacation, they 'Do' Malaysia, Singapore, Australia or any damn country on the planet. It's like signing the muster. We 'DID' it! I have heard people boasting about 'Eating Puran Poli on the Eiffel Tower' or 'Playing Dandia on Jungfrau'. If you go to Paris and do not enjoy a glass of French wine or French Cuisine at the roadside cafe or go to Switzerland and do not taste Swiss Fondue, why the hell venture out. Be happy in your two-bedroom hall tenement eating your Puran Poli or Dhoklo with stretched legs on the sofa cum bed !. 
There is another tribe of tourist-ers who studies the country to visit in so much of depth, so well in advance, that by the time they step on the plane, they are experts on ' the entire Lineage of Royal family of France, right from  Henry the 1st to Louise the XVI th.' or' How much cu-secs of water flows down the Niagara in a minute'. I have seen one of such tourist-er arguing with the travel guide because he quoted few cu-secs less ! One guide on Rajasthan route was grumbling once, about Bengali batch.' They come with books in their hands and cross us at every minute detail. "Mansingh was in 1700 AD and not 1750 AD or Udaypur palace has 1199 windows and not 1200 as you mentioned !" He ended the sentence saying ' Gujrati lot is much better, in 1st 5 minutes I tell them the places serving good food and they are happy! Don't ask any further questions. That's it !'
Me as a tourist-er? 'If it's Tuesday, it must be Belgium' type of conducted tour managed by a tour operator, not better than the herd of directionless sheep, is definitely not my cup of tea! I always travel with a clean slate. Equipped with minimum required information and a very loose plan, I set out and I long for the surprises of the unexpected. It is so phenomenal that it can not be expressed in words. I just enjoy the moment! I am not lusty to get to know every nuance of the place, because I, very well know that it's not possible for me to visit every nook and corner of the world. So if I visit Brazil I am going to miss on Antarctica or if I travel on 'THE' Orient Express I would  definitely be missing ' The Trans Siberian Train ride.'
To be frank, in the end, it's a global village, David from Budapest is not much different from Liu from Shanghai or lush green Konkan is no less than vistas in New Zealand. Ultimately beauty lies in the eyes of the beholder! And the peace comes from within, what remains are few beautiful memories and as it is aptly said, " A traveller sees more than he can remember and remembers more than he has seen."

What's missing ?

"Why are you prancing all over the place like a beheaded hen?"

            'I am not finding what I want.'

"What's it?"

            ' I can not describe for sure but I am definitely missing since morning.'

"If you don't know what you want, how anybody can help you to find it. Tax your brain and try to remember"

            ' I am totally blank'

"Okay, let me help you. Try to remember whatever you did since morning, after you got up, in chronological order, so you may recollect what you are looking for."

            'Yes... then I got up at the usual time, around 8.00, lazed in the bed for some time as there are no deadlines now. At 8.30 went to the gym' maybe reluctantly as bowels had not moved...'

"That's usual for you, nothing new. Next" 

           'Gym was not crowded. Usual few. Felt better after seeing many usual and fresh young faces. Few hi, hellos. There was this young boy, was trying to be Salman Khan in 2 days. Told him to go slow. He countered, 

'But uncle you are doing everything'

 'So?'

.' No offence uncle but...Just curious, how old are you ?'

 '64 going on 65' 

' My gosh. you don't look a day older than in your fifties.'

'If you want to reach my age just don't overdo. You don't want to be professional bodybuilder, do you?'

' I am studying for Architect.'

'So do the only thing that suits your body'

'Finished 10 items by 10 AM. Was feeling extremely fresh. Came home Had eggs and bournvita, no starving.'

"And then you headed for your clinic"

'Yeah, there were few patients,2 new 4 old, one showed me my prescription written for him 30 years back. Felt nice'

"I know, then you used to write in longhand. And your handwriting was not at all fit for a doctor, absolutely beautiful."

'Took round, some mundane, some genuine, tried to keep calm with senseless queries. Was partly successful. Happens'

"Then ?"

'Came home. Had quick lunch. Not happy with eating any more.It is just a done thing! Still bothered about missing thing. Put the thought aside, and took unfinished painting on the stand. Whatever was there was looking good but still required some finesse. Mixed few colours, applied in straight strokes, a bit of more mixing and the outlook changed remarkably. I was so happy with my self, did not know this could come out of me. Really from where does it come, I really wonder'

"Don't be over modest doesn't suit you. You are arrogant of the 1st order."

'Did not know how time passed. At 4.30 PM, remembered it's Tuesday and there is Spiderman running in the multiplex at the mall, in the Imax. Somehow reached in time. The new boy seemed okay. I liked Andrew Garfield better. Oh, story ... nothing new. It's an adaptation of a comic book you know. I go for Imax and special effects. Simply eye-catching, wonderful.'

"Why do you put so many eggs in one basket, I feel you stretch yourself too far. But did you get the thing what you were looking for since the morning? "

'Heck no. So I went for swimming at 7.PM. Had few lapses.'

"How many?"

'Usual 20.'

"You..."

' By the time it was clinic time. Grabbed some grub, drove to Vikroli. The road was crowded as usual. Cursed as usual. But reached in time. Few were waiting. One had come from Kalyan and other from Mumbra, beyond Kalwa. Answered their queries, prescribed a few medicines. The 3rd one was psychosomatic lady from nearby. Tried hard not to get involved, but for physician psychosomatic patients test their nerves. Not overtly psychic so could not be handed over to Psychiatrist, nor minor enough to be ignored. Mostly but the key to cure is in patient's hand which she/he does not want to use, willingly at times, at times unknowingly. But the problem persists. Managed somehow. Drove home tired at 11.PM'

"And saw 2 episodes of serials you normally see with me, as you normally do with a cup of ice cream"

'Yes'

"Then what's the hitch? what's it that you are missing?'

Went blank again for a moment and then it suddenly struck me, as if from out of the blues, or as the natural outcome of the thought process that had gone into it so far!

'I have lost my goal. The goal of life. I go through everything and that is keeping me occupied no doubt, but it seems as if  I am going through it just as a ritual, there seems to be no goal. Adventure in the living is missing massively and don't think at this age I would venture to seek it. I am afraid if it gives me a sense of 'Deja Vu ?'!

From the arena. With love to Rafa

Let me confess at the outset that I have never held tennis racquet in my lifetime. The confidence is given to me by these gladiators from the arena. I now can return even the burning cannonball with the racquet alone.

Read Mr Parth's article on Federer on Facebook and was awed to no extent. Every word he used fits so aptly to Federer's persona and the play that hardly anything is left behind. But yes major chunk is still not dealt with. His opponents! Federer is Federer because of his opponents.

My heart really goes out to Rafael Nadal, once an infant terrible! Graduated into tennis at a very tender age by his paternal uncle is an athlete to the last 'T'. Actually, he was equally eloquent in football too. But studies, as reprimanded by his father, football and tennis was too much for a boy in his early teens and so out went the football and tennis became the life. Maybe it would be pertinent to put it here that Nadal had defeated Roger Federer when he was just seventeen and grand slam titleholder, at Roland Garros at the age of 19.  

What makes you a winner on the tennis court is your ability to chase the ball running cross-court from one end to other in seconds and the presence of mind where to place the ball exactly noting the opponent's position. Though short height- ed as compared to Federer or Djokovic, Rafa with his well built muscular torso, makes you feel the task so easy that when he falters you chuckle and say' What! Rubbish !' He takes you with him on the court with his play and you don't, rather can't remain the silent spectator.   

If Roger is the 'Man' of tennis, I would label Rafa as Boy-man of the tennis. Those tiny eyes sparkling with vigour laced with zest to win makes him boy next door, you want to cuddle. Maybe more, in my case, because he is younger to my son only by two months!

4th round is not round to lose. You come all the way from two down to 5th set and hold the front for more than 1 hour and 30 minutes, requires a lot of stamina, spirit and last but not the least 'True Grit'. Maybe it was not his day. Muller immediately got knocked out in next round, had it been otherwise ....

The lad played tennis in most adverse physical conditions many times. In 2014 when he lost Australian Open to Wawrinka his palms were raw with ulcers and he had to serve only after having the spray of anaesthetic pain killer every time. Even then he did not let Wawrinka win in straight sets. Roger had rather easy this time. I missed Rafa sourly!  

I wonder how many of our high earning celebrities know of charity? They are most of the time bothered about getting taxes exempted for their gifted Ferrari s or trying to grab the land from the government under one pretext or other to start some sort of so-called academy. Rafa runs charitable institutions here in India at two places, how many of you know ?. One education foundation along with Tennis academy at Anantpur in Andhra Pradesh and one In Chennai.

If Roger can do it at 35 Rafa is way still younger. He can do it!

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                

Festival Of Tennis

May be Federer's winning  Wimbledon today, will bring an end to yet another festival of celebration called tennis.

I was very young when I was introduced to Tennis way back in the sixties when Deccan Gymkhana in Pune had held All India Tennis tourney. My Mama had passed on his season ticket to me as he was busy elsewhere. The era was pre-open and only non-professional players were allowed to participate, mostly, including in 'Grand Slam'. Not a very popular game in those days vis a vis Cricket and was restricted to army personnel or bureaucrats who had come to spend their retired life in placid Pune of those times. 

Stands had hardly any patrons so I, in my early teens had a chance to mingle with stalwarts of yesteryears freely, but hardly imbued in their greatness then. Pioneer of Indian Tennis Ramanathan Krishnan was hardly a celebrity in today's parlance, looked every inch middle class South Indian clerk heading for his office in Meenambukkam! Jayadip Mukharjee had an aura around him of sophistication but the cake was taken away by Premjit Lall who was tall handsome and not dark to boost! Nirupama Vasant, who later married Son of Late Vinoo Mankad, Ashok Mankad was an Oomph girl on the courts. Youngsters used to line up on the stands to have look at her heaving bosoms! Her opponent again was some south Indian Amma, maybe some Ms Laxmi Narayanan or Menon I forget the name, naturally, but what I remember is, as The rule of tie-breaker was not formulated yet [Came much later ] and the difference of two was the order of the day, so in some match, it had gone to 70-71! And they had continued the game in the morning with overnight rest!

Indian Tennis never shone despite players like Mr Krishnan or Mr Premjit Lall, maybe we lacked the infrastructure and it remained the play of the elites requiring lots of funds. Amritraj brothers were show-offs and they showed their true colours by joining Hollywood in the end. Ramanathan Krishnan's son Mr Ramesh tried valiantly but always remained as 'Yet to shining star! '

Tennis in the Indian context came into existence only when Mr Leander Paes entered the arena and of course was glamorised by Ms Sania Mirza, no doubts! They brought glories to Indian shores even on the International platform but mostly in Doubles and Mixed doubles. There is yet not a single tennis star on the Indian horizon who could see either Mr Federer or Rafa in the eyes!
That brings us to the starlit milky way of Tennis!

Diaries of a filmy buff

India is passionate about two things where the situation could be, do or die. Cricket and Movies. Politics may come as poor third, as it goes, 'Politics is the last resort for the scoundrels', law fearing so abiding, most, do not dare to cross the path. Their discussions remain restricted only to the coffee table.

But cricket is a religion and film going is a ritual. So we are holding the 1st rank in the world cricket, amongst 5 countries[ only]  which play and are the highest producer of movies only next to the population!

I was indoctrinated in the cult by my own mother. Herself a connoisseur of good things in life, she was an avid reader and a film buff to the core. Her mother, my grandma, too did not lag behind too much as far as the movies went because she could not read! 

It so happened once, that my two elder brothers were having school holiday and I was not, as we were in different schools. After the short recess both descended upon my school to take me to a movie as asked by my mother. I don't remember what excuse did they give to the class teacher but in next 10 minutes we were in a cinema hall where it was screening ' Do Aakhen Barah Haath' An immortal classic by V Shantaram. Apparently, my mother was of opinion that few good things in life can not be taught in schools, which you have to learn in open day today school, the world! And the bug took over me!

My brothers still laugh, almost falling out of their chairs about my shouting for the queen/heroine on the screen to run faster to save the life of her husband! It was 'Chandrasena' made in Madras, now Chennai, in the late fifties. Or was it 'Chandralekha?' I was only seven or eight then but the traits showed. How the magic of moving figures on the screen was going to shape up my life in future! And then the journey began!

In younger years my mother took us to the classics by late Raja Paranjape, in Marathi and by Bimal Roy, V. Shantaram and other stalwarts in Hindi. There is no point in listing them as they are innumerable.

My 1st adult movie, I did not go for, clandestinely. It was 'Gold-finger', first  James Bond movie [ ?, Maybe Dr No was the first in the series] immortalized by Sean Connery,[ Next best Bond was Pierce Brosnan, in between and afterwards, they were just filling the gaps]. My father took me. I may be, around 16 and was in the 1st year of college. Though much taller for my age, so had to wear full pants, but the face was devoid of any signs of adulthood. So the age showed. Doorkeeper refused to allow me in. Naturally. My father questioned but he was 'law-abiding Puneri' so did not budge. Neither did my father. The company, my father's friend was there too, barged into the manager's office. My father argued," If I don't have any objection for my son watching this film who are you to object? Good censorship starts at home and this is it. I want my son to watch this movie, I am with him !" The manager though was not aghast, he too was used to Puneri encounters, murmured something but in the end, I came back victorious. I did see 'Gold-Finger' in 'Pune' when I was not adult and that too with my father!

The deluge continued. Along with two of my dearest friends, in one summer vacation, I saw 40 movies! That was practically, movie a day. Whenever the one who, now is settled in Canada comes to India we reminisce the past, chuckle and head for the cinema hall nearby!

Not that I only went for junk like Waris, Main Sundar Hoon and so many others, but went for classy intuc movies also. Mr P. Nair, the then curator of Film Archives Pune, introduced me to the world-class cinema in the halls of film Institute. Remember watching many like, Bicycle Thief, Wages of Fear, Casa Blanca and others in so many different languages from India and abroad, along with him, who practically conducted ' Movie appreciating classes 'pre and post projection. Megha Dhake Tara, Chemmin, Shejari , oh so many classics I was lucky to get chance to watch. He is no more and many of his collection fell prey to the fire that engulfed Jayakar bungalow which housed the Film Archives, one of its kind in the entire world!

In the journey, you come across good ones as well as bad ones. It was mandatory for me to watch 'Bahubali 2'  as I had already committed the sin of watching 'Bahubali 1'. In Hindu philosophy, you have to pay for the sins you had committed in last birth in the running birth. I paid the price. Paid in hefty ticket fees and bought a headache. Not simple, it lasted for me for three days.  

But that's a small price to pay if you are a filmy buff. And I am and I am not ashamed of it!