A special note of thanks to Ritu Chandra and Sangeeta Saxena for providing me with an opportunity to be a part of this landmark event. Sincere apologies to members in Delhi like Sonu, Gaurav Kumar, Deepak, Naresh Khattar, Asad Kidwai to whom I didn’t give details about my plans of coming over there.
26th July, well it was bound to happen. I mean the rains. Last year it was in Mumbai this year it was to be Delhi. I was put up at Swami Narayan Mandir which is very near ISBT Kashmere Gate. Charges are pretty cheap 35 Rs for 24 hrs. The area is a low lying one though. Anyways there was nothing much eventful on that day.
When it was dawn break the next day I came out in the open and thought this was the same place which inspired some film maker to make a film on the city where the girl count had crossed 11,000 so as to produce a film with an apt name ‘Gyarah Hazaar Ladkiyaan’ way back in ’62.
I was short of cash so went to ICICI Bank ATM in Dariyaganj. After withdrawing the amount contacted Ritu who was glad that I was in Delhi. After that I called up Kamall and requested him to send a last minute message to the groups about my coming to Delhi and requesting for phone no’s of members there. After returning back I travelled by Metro to Vidhan Sabha. Not much in the Vidhan Sabha to write back but Metro experience was nice and I am prepared for it whenever it comes here in Mumbai. Later in the afternoon when I was back at the Mandir, Sonu called saying that We all can meet at JIMS institute at Nehru Place at around 4:30 PM. After getting the details as to where this place was I set out for the same. I t was past 5 and quarter when I reached there. Found Sonu waiting outside JIMS. Ritu was not there when we went inside the studios. Sangeeta Saxena was there and so were Imran, Sajid et all. Sonu was trying to rehearse what part he was playing while I was unaware of what I am going to do. When we were joined by Mr. Chaudhury, Khurana Saab, Indraneel Mukherjee and Ritu the actual script came into picture. Myself and Sonu were to deal with lighting and audio visual presentations resp. as I came to know latter. After cut shorting some songs the final script was ready by around 7:30 PM. After which I decided it was too late and returned back to my place of temporary occupancy. We had decided to meet the next day at 9 AM.
The next day morning I went to the same place again. After some writing work for the AV credits Sonu and myself decided to go to the Lotus temple which was nearby. Since I had seen only the Vidhan Sabha I readily agreed. When we were back we had little time to round up things and join Ritu for our testing place the Venue. I always thought that most of the times the party that handles the lighting also handles the sound system. But this myth was shattered by the events that followed. There was no co-ordination between these two parties. Hence there was delay in the event.
The details of the programme has been summed up so well by Deepak that I can’t find anything further to write about. I was really surprised that Naresh Khattar came up to the lights control room. I felt that I was giving others the impression that I was too busy with my work that I can’t find spare time to come down and meet members who were part of the audience.
For a first timer this was a good learning experience. I learnt to change the podium lights on and off from Mr. Ramesh who was actually doing all the hard work while I was instructing him where to change the lights. There was another person Khan (I forgot his first name) who also did the changing in Ramesh’s absence.
Thanks one and all for the support shown and hopefully many of us get an opportunity to be actively involved in such events.
Wednesday, December 27, 2006
Tuesday, December 26, 2006
A TREK TO VISAPUR FORT (MY FIRST TREK)
A visit to Visapur fort was overdue. When we finally decided on the day, there were in all four people, myself, Akshay, Amit and his brother Jeethendra. We were going to catch the Pandharpur Passenger which leaves at 11:45 P.M. from Kalyan. The train was late by some 10-15 minutes. Myself and Amit made ourselves comfortable on a berth while Akshay and Jeethendra had to stand all the way. We reached Lonavala by around 2:10 A.M. We enquired about the first train to Pune which was at 5' o clock. Purchasing ticket up to Malvali was of no use because from 2 to 5 it would have been more than the time limit allotted for travelling. We decided to catch some sleep while sitting on the railway bench. We caught the first train and got down at Malvali by 5:10 A.M.
Since we didn't get enough sleep we decided to rest at the platform itself. We all woke up well past 6. Had light snacks at a nearby hotel.
We started towards the fort at 6:45 A.M. After crossing the expressway through the suspension bridge we turned left and passed through what looked like a village running all around the hill. The hill that was visible from the station was covering the mountain we had to climb. We passed through many a dry waterfall paths until we came across one which was flowing. It seemed unlikely that it was going to rain that day. We got somewhat lost in the middle and when we reached at the top, there was lot of sunshine. A wonderfully sculptured Hanuman welcomed us just as we reached the fort's entrance. It was around 9:15 A.M. when we reached Visapur fort. There was some water source at the top so Jeethendra decided to wash himself clean. Myself and others decided it was better that we don't take a bath.. There was not much of breeze and we decided to rest for a while. We filled up our water bottles and moved towards the left side of the fort which had been left unexplored by Amit and his brother when they had visited the fort last time. We walked towards the other end till we reached what looked like a watch tower. We had our breakfast there which comprised of a delicious Pulav and Chivda. Later we went to the top of the watch tower and had a pleasant view of the landscape below. We then returned back to the fort entrance and moved towards the other side.
There was an ancient Shiv Mandir nearby probably built during Shivaji's reign . There was nobody except a herd of buffaloes who were rather surprised to see us. That was evident from the staring that they gave us. One of them even wanted to have a closer look of us but we foiled that opportunity by running away. Although we had no place to run since we had reached the cliff. We were of the idea that the fort was connected to the other fort Lohgad. But we realized that we had to descend down the cliff. Amit and Jeethendra decided to get down using the path followed by the waterfalls. Akshay sprained his ankle, which later turned out to be hairline fracture. We got down at around 3:30 P.M. We cancelled our visits to Lohgad and Baje Caves. We had our lunch inside a small patched enclosure. We returned to Malavali station by around 4:30 PM. Since our train was at 4:50 PM we had some light snacks and tea. We caught the train at around 4:50 PM. Got down at Lonavala. We were supposed to catch Udyan Express which arrived at around 5:30 PM. We reached Kalyan by 7 PM. So that was how we undertook a trek to Visapur fort.
Here's a link to the rest of the photos: http://picasaweb.google.com/n.ramaswamy/Visapur
Monday, December 11, 2006
A TRIP TO KOCHI
I was in my native place, Thrissur last month. I decided to give Iqbal bhai, an acquaintance of mine who stayed in Kochi a visit.
There are many options to reach Kochi from where i reside in my native place. I selected the one which would make me reach Kochi in the least time and with minimum expenses. So by around 7: 35 a.m. I caught a bus that took me to Urakom centre. From there I took another bus to Kodungaloor. I reached Kodungaloor by 8:20 a.m. Then I took a bus to Ernakulam Boat Jetty by 8:45 a.m. Reached Menaka Jetty by 10:00 a.m. As Iqbal bhai was staying in Fort Kochi it took me some 45 minutes more to reach the place.
I had never met Iqbal bhai, but knew that he was 55 years old from the email communications we had. I contacted him on reaching Fort Kochi. Iqbal bhai came and took me around the place. I had a close look at the Chinese fishing nets. In fact I even pulled the rope which acted like lever so as to haul the catch.
Iqbal bhai briefed me about Kochi's history. Although I was aware that Kochi was a natural harbour I came to know some new facts about Kochi through Iqbal Bhai. Iqbal bhai later informed me that the fishermen generated some income from tourists by calling out to them and showing them how they caught the fishes and getting some money in return. Later we strolled along the beach. Iqbal bhai made me listen to his friend, Rafique's voice over his cellphone. Rafique was singing a Mehdi Hassan non film song.
We later visited an art cafe which had paintings by amateur artists and a cafe that served dishes in a very nature-friendly way, using earthen pots etc. Then we met Ivan D'Costa, who lives in a more than 200 year old house. He had received an award for his contribution to the Anglo-Indian community. The furniture at his residence was very antique. He recalled how his father had served the Imperial Bank, which later became the State Bank Of India as we know now, till 1931. We took his leave and continued our journey through the Anglo-Indian settlements. Most of the houses were constructed in a typical Dutch style. We also visited St. Francis church. It was one of the earliest churches built by foreigners. Vasco Da Gama's remains were kept for some time in this church before being sent to his birthplace. I never had been inside a church. I had only seen how it was in movies. We walked in circles after coming out of the church and were soon walking the promenade, which was unlike the one in Mumbai. One could find couples huddled, very much reminiscent of the sightings in Mumbai. We had lunch at Krishna Cafe and were walking towards what was an unknown destination for me. We met Naushad, organiser of many a musical events in Kochi. He wanted to organise an event on Sachin. Dev. Burman. He wasn't getting much support. Iqbal bhai ensured him that he would help him in whatever way possible. After taking leave of Naushad we made our way to Azad's hair-cutting saloon. I had no idea what surprise was in store for me. As it turned out, Azad was a part-time singer too. He sung some Mohammed Rafi numbers like "Kal Raat Zindagi Se", "Hum Bekhudi Mein Tum Ko" & "Kabhi Khud Pe Kabhi Haalath Pe". There was nowhere the Malayali accent in his pronounciations. Iqbal bhai mentioned that this was the pecularity of singers from Mattamcherry. Iqbal bhai had mentioned that H. Mehboob, a singer who used to sing for films in early 50's for Thikkurishi, Satyan etc was also from Mattamcherry. I also came to know from Iqbal bhai that renowned singer Yesudas, belongs to this place. Likewise many musicians and singers,including Music Directors like M K Arjunan and Jery Amal Dev. M K Arjunan is the legendary one.
Azad's shop is located in Gujarathi Road. Iqbal bhai mentioned that one could find many communities like Gujarathi, Marwari,Kutchi and Maharashtrians staying in Fort Kochi.In fact he remarked that an event called Bharat Fest was conducted three times here by the Department of Culture, Government of Kerala and one time by Corporation of Cochin, whereupon 16 linguistic communities of Mattancherry-FortCochin (West Cochin)area participated with their Music,Dramas and Folk items.
For all the four programmes Iqbal bhai was the General Convenor. Maharashtrians, Gujratis, Kutch, Urdu, Bengali, Marwaari (Rajastanis), Anglo Indians, Tamil , Telugu, Kannada, Tulu, Konkani etc were some of the linguistic groups.
Moreover, for each linguist group, there were different sub-latern groups or religious groups. For example, Kutchi Muslim,Kutchi Jains, Kutchi Hindus, Konkani Brahmins, Vysyas, Saraswats, Sonaars, Kudumbis etc etc.This had added up to uphold the Unity of the people of this historic place.
After having tea we made our way towards Iqbal bhai's house. Iqbal bhai had uploaded songs from the film 'Rattan' at e-snips and was showing me his earlier uploads. I was impressed by his collection of Talat Mahmood And Mohammed Rafi songs. Our talk veered to a singer who never got his due, viz, Manna Dey. We listened to his songs such as "Aaj Mile Mann Ke Meet", "Chham Chham Baaje Re", "Hato Kaahe Ko", etc. It was around 6 in the evening when I bade Iqbal bhai good bye.
As I was used to night life in Mumbai, I was of the opinion that I would easily get bus to my home. But I was wrong. I had to take a rickshaw home upon reaching Thrissur. And since it was night time, the rickshaw charge was doubled. En route the rickshaw driver saw another fellow rickshaw driver waving towards him. He stopped the rickshaw for a while but was off in a jiffy. He later explained that the driver was bleeding from the throat. I reached home by 12 A.M. What a Day !
There are many options to reach Kochi from where i reside in my native place. I selected the one which would make me reach Kochi in the least time and with minimum expenses. So by around 7: 35 a.m. I caught a bus that took me to Urakom centre. From there I took another bus to Kodungaloor. I reached Kodungaloor by 8:20 a.m. Then I took a bus to Ernakulam Boat Jetty by 8:45 a.m. Reached Menaka Jetty by 10:00 a.m. As Iqbal bhai was staying in Fort Kochi it took me some 45 minutes more to reach the place.
I had never met Iqbal bhai, but knew that he was 55 years old from the email communications we had. I contacted him on reaching Fort Kochi. Iqbal bhai came and took me around the place. I had a close look at the Chinese fishing nets. In fact I even pulled the rope which acted like lever so as to haul the catch.
Iqbal bhai briefed me about Kochi's history. Although I was aware that Kochi was a natural harbour I came to know some new facts about Kochi through Iqbal Bhai. Iqbal bhai later informed me that the fishermen generated some income from tourists by calling out to them and showing them how they caught the fishes and getting some money in return. Later we strolled along the beach. Iqbal bhai made me listen to his friend, Rafique's voice over his cellphone. Rafique was singing a Mehdi Hassan non film song.
We later visited an art cafe which had paintings by amateur artists and a cafe that served dishes in a very nature-friendly way, using earthen pots etc. Then we met Ivan D'Costa, who lives in a more than 200 year old house. He had received an award for his contribution to the Anglo-Indian community. The furniture at his residence was very antique. He recalled how his father had served the Imperial Bank, which later became the State Bank Of India as we know now, till 1931. We took his leave and continued our journey through the Anglo-Indian settlements. Most of the houses were constructed in a typical Dutch style. We also visited St. Francis church. It was one of the earliest churches built by foreigners. Vasco Da Gama's remains were kept for some time in this church before being sent to his birthplace. I never had been inside a church. I had only seen how it was in movies. We walked in circles after coming out of the church and were soon walking the promenade, which was unlike the one in Mumbai. One could find couples huddled, very much reminiscent of the sightings in Mumbai. We had lunch at Krishna Cafe and were walking towards what was an unknown destination for me. We met Naushad, organiser of many a musical events in Kochi. He wanted to organise an event on Sachin. Dev. Burman. He wasn't getting much support. Iqbal bhai ensured him that he would help him in whatever way possible. After taking leave of Naushad we made our way to Azad's hair-cutting saloon. I had no idea what surprise was in store for me. As it turned out, Azad was a part-time singer too. He sung some Mohammed Rafi numbers like "Kal Raat Zindagi Se", "Hum Bekhudi Mein Tum Ko" & "Kabhi Khud Pe Kabhi Haalath Pe". There was nowhere the Malayali accent in his pronounciations. Iqbal bhai mentioned that this was the pecularity of singers from Mattamcherry. Iqbal bhai had mentioned that H. Mehboob, a singer who used to sing for films in early 50's for Thikkurishi, Satyan etc was also from Mattamcherry. I also came to know from Iqbal bhai that renowned singer Yesudas, belongs to this place. Likewise many musicians and singers,including Music Directors like M K Arjunan and Jery Amal Dev. M K Arjunan is the legendary one.
Azad's shop is located in Gujarathi Road. Iqbal bhai mentioned that one could find many communities like Gujarathi, Marwari,Kutchi and Maharashtrians staying in Fort Kochi.In fact he remarked that an event called Bharat Fest was conducted three times here by the Department of Culture, Government of Kerala and one time by Corporation of Cochin, whereupon 16 linguistic communities of Mattancherry-FortCochin (West Cochin)area participated with their Music,Dramas and Folk items.
For all the four programmes Iqbal bhai was the General Convenor. Maharashtrians, Gujratis, Kutch, Urdu, Bengali, Marwaari (Rajastanis), Anglo Indians, Tamil , Telugu, Kannada, Tulu, Konkani etc were some of the linguistic groups.
Moreover, for each linguist group, there were different sub-latern groups or religious groups. For example, Kutchi Muslim,Kutchi Jains, Kutchi Hindus, Konkani Brahmins, Vysyas, Saraswats, Sonaars, Kudumbis etc etc.This had added up to uphold the Unity of the people of this historic place.
After having tea we made our way towards Iqbal bhai's house. Iqbal bhai had uploaded songs from the film 'Rattan' at e-snips and was showing me his earlier uploads. I was impressed by his collection of Talat Mahmood And Mohammed Rafi songs. Our talk veered to a singer who never got his due, viz, Manna Dey. We listened to his songs such as "Aaj Mile Mann Ke Meet", "Chham Chham Baaje Re", "Hato Kaahe Ko", etc. It was around 6 in the evening when I bade Iqbal bhai good bye.
As I was used to night life in Mumbai, I was of the opinion that I would easily get bus to my home. But I was wrong. I had to take a rickshaw home upon reaching Thrissur. And since it was night time, the rickshaw charge was doubled. En route the rickshaw driver saw another fellow rickshaw driver waving towards him. He stopped the rickshaw for a while but was off in a jiffy. He later explained that the driver was bleeding from the throat. I reached home by 12 A.M. What a Day !
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