Home made Kandeel
Friday, October 24, 2014
Sunday, October 19, 2014
Memories of Travel: Gujarat
19.10.14
My work takes me to Gujarat often. Till a couple of years back, I used to park myself in Baroda ( Vadodara ) during my entire visit to Gujarat. From here, Surat, Ahmedabad, Anand, Rajkot etc are all within striking distance. You can start early in the morning, finish your work in any of these locations and be back in Baroda for a good night's sleep. The connectivity by rail or road is also excellent. I also rate Baroda as the most liveable city in Gujarat, both weatherwise and peoplewise. My favourite haunt used to be Hotel Hilltop , within walking distance from the station and bus stand. It also used to be a very Value For Money hotel till the management changed a couple of years back.
On one such tour, I traveled early morning by train to Surat. It was Karnavati Exp , if I mistake not. The Narmada bridge at Bharuch used to be a nightmare for travel by road. Traffic jams could last anywhere from 3hrs upwards on a 2km stretch. Travel by bus was, therefore, ruled out. Mine was a last minute, unreserved travel for a journey expected to last less than 2 hrs. Last minute seats in this prime time train headed for Mumbai are not available for love or money.
I manoeuvred myself to a comfortable standing position and settled down for the journey. These blessed trains in Gujarat are a beehive of activity and swarm with hawkers selling umpteen items and foodstuff. Ladies' imitation jewellery, chai, dhokla, bhel, trinkets, keychains, wallets etc. etc. It is a veritable mini mobile bazaar with its own vibrant life. The crowd in the trains is also mostly happily middle class. From afar I could hear a vendor selling some food stuff. From his uniform he looked like a regular catering staff. To this day I can swear that he was shouting "cutless Sandesh !". Now I have heard of " Boneless chicken " but never came across " Cutless Sandesh ". My curiosity and appetite were completely whetted by the time this guy neared us. His " Cutless Sandesh" turned out to be " Cutlet Sandwich "
From the time I had woken up, I had only a cup of tea in the hurry to catch the train. Just when I was diving into my sandwich, an elderly gentleman sitting in an aisle seat behind me tugged at my sleeve and asked me to sit in his seat. I thought maybe he is going to the loo and giving me a break. After grabbing his seat, I started polishing off my sandwich at a leisurely pace, ordered a coffee, ran through it etc, but still there was no sight of this gentleman. I must have been at it for more than 20 mins.Out of curiosity, I asked the gent next to me if " uncle " had got down at any station gone by. Pat came the reply :" કાકા તો તમ્હારે પાછળજ છે "
I jumped out to vacate my seat apologetically and requested કાકા to take his seat."कोई बात नहीं ,बेटा। खड़ा रह के खाते नहीं। पिशाच भोजन कहलाता है। " I was taken aback by his simple belief and faith. He was not only following it, but at great inconvenience to himself, he was preventing others also from doing what he felt was wrong. Humbly, I greeted him with folded hands " જય શ્રી કૃષ્ણા " ..." જય શ્રી કૃષ્ણા " he greeted back!
My work takes me to Gujarat often. Till a couple of years back, I used to park myself in Baroda ( Vadodara ) during my entire visit to Gujarat. From here, Surat, Ahmedabad, Anand, Rajkot etc are all within striking distance. You can start early in the morning, finish your work in any of these locations and be back in Baroda for a good night's sleep. The connectivity by rail or road is also excellent. I also rate Baroda as the most liveable city in Gujarat, both weatherwise and peoplewise. My favourite haunt used to be Hotel Hilltop , within walking distance from the station and bus stand. It also used to be a very Value For Money hotel till the management changed a couple of years back.
On one such tour, I traveled early morning by train to Surat. It was Karnavati Exp , if I mistake not. The Narmada bridge at Bharuch used to be a nightmare for travel by road. Traffic jams could last anywhere from 3hrs upwards on a 2km stretch. Travel by bus was, therefore, ruled out. Mine was a last minute, unreserved travel for a journey expected to last less than 2 hrs. Last minute seats in this prime time train headed for Mumbai are not available for love or money.
I manoeuvred myself to a comfortable standing position and settled down for the journey. These blessed trains in Gujarat are a beehive of activity and swarm with hawkers selling umpteen items and foodstuff. Ladies' imitation jewellery, chai, dhokla, bhel, trinkets, keychains, wallets etc. etc. It is a veritable mini mobile bazaar with its own vibrant life. The crowd in the trains is also mostly happily middle class. From afar I could hear a vendor selling some food stuff. From his uniform he looked like a regular catering staff. To this day I can swear that he was shouting "cutless Sandesh !". Now I have heard of " Boneless chicken " but never came across " Cutless Sandesh ". My curiosity and appetite were completely whetted by the time this guy neared us. His " Cutless Sandesh" turned out to be " Cutlet Sandwich "
From the time I had woken up, I had only a cup of tea in the hurry to catch the train. Just when I was diving into my sandwich, an elderly gentleman sitting in an aisle seat behind me tugged at my sleeve and asked me to sit in his seat. I thought maybe he is going to the loo and giving me a break. After grabbing his seat, I started polishing off my sandwich at a leisurely pace, ordered a coffee, ran through it etc, but still there was no sight of this gentleman. I must have been at it for more than 20 mins.Out of curiosity, I asked the gent next to me if " uncle " had got down at any station gone by. Pat came the reply :" કાકા તો તમ્હારે પાછળજ છે "
I jumped out to vacate my seat apologetically and requested કાકા to take his seat."कोई बात नहीं ,बेटा। खड़ा रह के खाते नहीं। पिशाच भोजन कहलाता है। " I was taken aback by his simple belief and faith. He was not only following it, but at great inconvenience to himself, he was preventing others also from doing what he felt was wrong. Humbly, I greeted him with folded hands " જય શ્રી કૃષ્ણા " ..." જય શ્રી કૃષ્ણા " he greeted back!
Saturday, October 18, 2014
Memories of travel
19.10.14
In the mid eighties, my work used to take me often to Jabalpur. Jabalpur, the city of marble. Like Kankrauli and Makrana in Rajasthan. People here are just short of building compound walls in marble.
The hotel where I used to stay had a palatial lobby impressively laid out in marble. Jabalpur is a major railway junction, seat of the High Court, and major defence establishments. Quite a hub for Ordnance factories. This business is what used to take me to Jabalpur.
On one of these trips, I remember hiring an elderly rickshaw chacha. Must have been in his early fifties. A couple of younger rickshawwallahs taunted me at my choice. " बाबूजी, खमारिया श्याम तक पहुँच जाओगे " they said.
As is my habit, I started striking a conversation with my companion for the journey. I wondered aloud why a city of this size and hustle bustle did not have auto rickshaws yet. Jabalpur is your typical central India town/city. Law and order here is so so. The rickshaw chacha told me matter of factly " दो तीन आये थे। हमारे leader लोगोने जला डाले। "
On the way to Khamaria, one has to cross a railway bridge. The approach road to this bridge is quite steep on both sides. Although we had started out quite early in the morning from the hotel and there was still a nip in the air, our chacha had started to work out a mild sweat by the time we reached the bridge. By reflex , I jumped off the rickshaw to reduce his load. Chacha was taken by surprise and brought it to a full stop. "काहे उतर गये ,बाबूजी ? नाराज़ हो का ?" Poor guy was mopping his face of the sweat already. I explained to him that I will walk alongside till he crosses the bridge. Not a problem. Guy choked and almost broke into tears. " का बताएं ,साब। इस चढ़ाई पर तीन तीन बैठते हैं और कहते हैं जल्दी करो ,जल्दी करो। सुनना पड़ता है ,पैसा जो देते हैं। " How can anyone be so insensitive to a fellow human being?
When we reached our destination, I gave him the agreed fare and a small tip. Chacha broke into a grin and said " अगली बार आएंगे , बाबूजी , तो हमारे साथ ही चलिएगा। मैं वहीं होटल के बाहर खड़ा रहता हूँ "
I was back in Jabalpur after six months or so. Same hotel, same destination. Wanted to go with the same chacha. But he was not in sight. So asked the other youngsters. " यहाँ पर एक चाचा थे ? कहाँ गये ? आज आये नहीं क्या ?" One of the brats replied " अच्छा वो बुड्ढा ? वो तो मर गया " Again matter of factly.
"कहाँ जायेंगे ,साब ? खमरिया ?" Back to business. This time I did not get down at the bridge. "पैसे जो दे रहा था। "
In the mid eighties, my work used to take me often to Jabalpur. Jabalpur, the city of marble. Like Kankrauli and Makrana in Rajasthan. People here are just short of building compound walls in marble.
The hotel where I used to stay had a palatial lobby impressively laid out in marble. Jabalpur is a major railway junction, seat of the High Court, and major defence establishments. Quite a hub for Ordnance factories. This business is what used to take me to Jabalpur.
Like in most locations, Ordnance Factories in Jabalpur are huge estates far away from the main town. One of these was in Khamaria . In the blessed old days, the only mode of local transport available was a cycle rickshaw. The journey from the hotel to the Ordnance factories would take a leisurely 45 mins or so.
On one of these trips, I remember hiring an elderly rickshaw chacha. Must have been in his early fifties. A couple of younger rickshawwallahs taunted me at my choice. " बाबूजी, खमारिया श्याम तक पहुँच जाओगे " they said.
As is my habit, I started striking a conversation with my companion for the journey. I wondered aloud why a city of this size and hustle bustle did not have auto rickshaws yet. Jabalpur is your typical central India town/city. Law and order here is so so. The rickshaw chacha told me matter of factly " दो तीन आये थे। हमारे leader लोगोने जला डाले। "
On the way to Khamaria, one has to cross a railway bridge. The approach road to this bridge is quite steep on both sides. Although we had started out quite early in the morning from the hotel and there was still a nip in the air, our chacha had started to work out a mild sweat by the time we reached the bridge. By reflex , I jumped off the rickshaw to reduce his load. Chacha was taken by surprise and brought it to a full stop. "काहे उतर गये ,बाबूजी ? नाराज़ हो का ?" Poor guy was mopping his face of the sweat already. I explained to him that I will walk alongside till he crosses the bridge. Not a problem. Guy choked and almost broke into tears. " का बताएं ,साब। इस चढ़ाई पर तीन तीन बैठते हैं और कहते हैं जल्दी करो ,जल्दी करो। सुनना पड़ता है ,पैसा जो देते हैं। " How can anyone be so insensitive to a fellow human being?
When we reached our destination, I gave him the agreed fare and a small tip. Chacha broke into a grin and said " अगली बार आएंगे , बाबूजी , तो हमारे साथ ही चलिएगा। मैं वहीं होटल के बाहर खड़ा रहता हूँ "
I was back in Jabalpur after six months or so. Same hotel, same destination. Wanted to go with the same chacha. But he was not in sight. So asked the other youngsters. " यहाँ पर एक चाचा थे ? कहाँ गये ? आज आये नहीं क्या ?" One of the brats replied " अच्छा वो बुड्ढा ? वो तो मर गया " Again matter of factly.
"कहाँ जायेंगे ,साब ? खमरिया ?" Back to business. This time I did not get down at the bridge. "पैसे जो दे रहा था। "
The world of columnists
20.2.13
The world would be such a duller place without our columnists. We are blessed with two such. Both ladies, both initialed SD. If your upbringing has been anywhere near Goa, it is usual to grow up with quite a few D's around you: D'Souza, D'Cruz, DaCunha etc. We also have international gems like De Beers, D'Adamas etc. The D in all these is the equivalent of kar in Tendulkar, Vengsarkar, Gavaskar etc. or wala as in Batliwala, Tadiwala and son on and so forth.
Let us move on to SD Sr. first. She has no pretenses of activism. Her credo is simple : Entertainment, Entertainment, Entertainment. The writings can be quite risque and can often pass on as entry level porn. Lets call her Scuba De. De what? De nothing. De by itself. Scuba De has torpedoed many a guy and gal in her columns. Sometimes she herself gets torpedoed when she passes by someone like Sonam Kapoor. But such instances are rarer than meteorites falling over the Urals. Scuba De is also blessed with a face that is photogenic on par with Madhubala and our own Chitrangadha. The kind of face that looks glam even without lipstick.
SD Jr is quite a different cuppa. Let us come to the D' part first. We must give every phenomenon a name first. Like in most sarkari kagaz, we will start with the surname first. How about D'LOL? LOL happens to be a favourite snub, expression of delight, accessory, embellishment, pause for thought, whatever. I keep wondering whether suchnsuch D'LOL has a special key on the keayboard for this LOL thing. Something like Enter button with right click! I tell you, it can be more common than ", "and ". "if you follow this phenomenon. This lady is not about Entertainment. She is into much more serious stuff. Active activism, social justice etc. There are two types of citizens in her lexicon.Either you are an activist or else you are a shampoo salesman. Such radical stuff, I tell you. She is also a champion of democracy and democratic values. Her fora are very democratic. You are entitled to your opinions as long as it tallies with hers. If you are undemocratic enough to differ, you run the risk of being bounced. With a terse reminder in no uncertain terms that "Right To Admission is Reserved" You know, like in one of those classy restaurants or clubs you gawk from far? The current flavour of the season is Padmashree v/s Saharashree. This demon slayer is to be found wherever demons are slayed. Be it Jeejeebhoy Towers, SEBI or even as far as NY. I estimate her market share in demon slaying is 94%+
Why am I writing this and running the risk of earning wrath? Maybe I should stick to the safe anonymity of nomme de plume to vent out my plumonia. If I carry on like this, even the nomme de plume very soon will turn into nomme the guerre. So, let me sign off!
2909 Garib Rath
24.3.10
This is a VFM train on the Mum Del circuit. Left Pune early morn, finished my work in the Western suburbs and caught this train at 1730 from Borivali. Couldnt manage a berth so adventurously booked chair car. The AC is quite comfortable and surprisingly the chair car seats are much more comfortable than the Garib Raths plying on Konkan Railway. The speeds notched up by this train is comparable to Rajdhani. It makes it to Surat from Bvi in 2 1/2 hrs and Vadodara in 4 hrs.
The only irritating thing is the bright lights in chair car are not switched out throughout the night.
This is a VFM train on the Mum Del circuit. Left Pune early morn, finished my work in the Western suburbs and caught this train at 1730 from Borivali. Couldnt manage a berth so adventurously booked chair car. The AC is quite comfortable and surprisingly the chair car seats are much more comfortable than the Garib Raths plying on Konkan Railway. The speeds notched up by this train is comparable to Rajdhani. It makes it to Surat from Bvi in 2 1/2 hrs and Vadodara in 4 hrs.
The only irritating thing is the bright lights in chair car are not switched out throughout the night.
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