A night of Magic weaved in Ghazals.... Jagjit Singh Live in Concert

Saturday 5th of June 2010 provided me with a chance to experience the Ghazal Maestro in person. The show was first planned for 3rd April and i had to miss it for personal reasons. Then it was postponed to somewhere in june and we jumped to the opportunity. Tickets were booked for the nearest row to the screen. Finally the evening arrived and we dressed in kurta's and pajama's left for the auditorium. It was 19:16 hrs when his arrival was announced, instantly i had goose bumps and my heart started beating faster. After introduction of the  band, he started with "Kiya hai pyar jise humne zindagi ki tarah". It instantly struck the cord and every one was engulfed in the mesmerising world of Ghazals. It was a hot evening and also the auditorium AC wasn't working fine. This irritated him a bit and it came up with the next song, "Tumne badle humse gin gin ke liye".  Continously for 2 hrs he sang the most famous ghazals, one after the other.

As if the singing wasn't enough, his band too was equally talented. There was atleast one jugalbandi between either the tabla and flute or between the tabla and sitar in every ghazal. After a break of 15 minutes, he again started for another 2 hrs. Every ghazal struck a cord in everyones heart and sound of wah wah could be heard from everywhere. Ghazals like "tumko dekha to ye khayal aya" and "hoton se chhu lo tum" were sung by the audience itself and he just came in with his variations which thrilled all. One more thing that was the highlight of the night, that was the ghungroo sound he made.

The evening ended with the farmaish of punjabi songs and he pleased everyone with, "Saare pind ch pwade paye", "chulle agg na ghade de vich paani" and boliyan. 

All in all it was an experience of a lifetime.

Getting Hitched....

It had been a fun filled, strange, loving, sad, exciting and complicated journey from the day in summers of 2005 when I first heard of Bhavna to 14^th April 2010 till we exchanged rings and made our relationship formal. I wont go on telling the story on how we met, who proposed whom, how things worked out and all. All these answers are capable of a story in itself, which I’ll leave for some time else. This one will start from the day when I called my mom and told her that Bhavna’s parents have accepted us. She was in a sense of shock for the whole 3 minutes 24 seconds we talked. Words had seized to flow and she was just listening, hmmm was the word she knew out of the whole dictionary and she was knocking her head in approval and disbelief. By the time I disconnected the call, it was clear that we had her approval and she would take care of Dad (who had already said yes). Before I called her, Raman (my younger brother) had set the stage and it helped her take the blows. In the coming weeks Raman worked all the time convincing her that inter caste marriage was not such a bad thing.

Bhavna had talked to her dad while leaving Delhi on one of her official trips and he had been very supporting in accepting it and even asked for my dad’s number to talk to him. He sounded anxious, very anxious, its good but frightening too. The next few days went by in making plans on how to go along with things. We wanted to fix everything in one stretch of holidays as i had to travel from Bangalore to Patiala. I had previously planned a Himachal trip with friends, so thought of clubbing both. In the meantime her dad had called up my parents one evening. The talk went smooth apart from the fact that nothing got finalised. My parents didn't want to initiate things and her dad didn't. He asked about my background and date of birth and stuff. We both were in a dilemma on what to do now. Things didn't seem hopeful and there wasn't much we could do. The only factor that made us hopeful was that my mom had asked me to buy a ring of Bhavna's size and choice. Apart from waiting, there wasn't anything we could do, and so we started waiting.

Meanwhile we both thought and thought over the way we should decide and carry on with the meeting stuff. One which sounded good to both of us was that i'll cal my parents to Delhi on 2nd April and will meet Bhavna's parents on the same day and finalize the dates for the initial celebrations. well it didn't work out, so what was planned was that i'll meet Bhavna's parents on 2nd April for lunch and then they'll visit my place on Sunday, 4th April and the future coarse will be decided there. We had canceled the Himachal trip after Bhaskar dropped out. I felt having two weeks at hand would be of immense help.

Now the preparation began, right from choosing the clothes to wear, what to take and how to talk, all instructions and best practices were transferred to make it a flawless meeting. The much awaited day came, 2nd April 2010, 09:00 am i left from Nandi's place in Gurgaon to meet Bhavna in CP from where we could leave for her house. We collected some pastries from CP and some flowers from her colony market and headed for my future in laws house. 

I was greeted by her Ma and elder sister, so i gave the pastries to her and flowers to her mom. Things seemed chilled out as her dad was not at home, i relaxed for the time with just the legs shaking (it happens to me when i am tensed). We had lunch together and then had to go to the jeweler to pick her ring, her dad was to meet us there only. She and Sapna (her elder sister) by now had left no stone unturned in terrorizing me about their dad. I was literally shivering on the thought of meeting him in person, the only good thing was that we were meeting at a public place. I went through my lunch thinking of how to approach him to leave a good first impression. The lunch served was my favourite, starting from rajma, aloo methi and ending with ras malai. I was already loving my mother-in-law. 

The time came to meet her dad. The first shake of hand said it all, i felt like shaking hands with my dad. He was just like him, quite yet caring, his eyes spoke everything. We took the ring, chose one for me, ordered and went back home. I was exulted to meet him and knew he will like me. It was all good at home as we sat and talked for some time, met Naveen (Sapna's husband) and after another cup of tea, we took their leave. I felt the fort was conquered.

I went home, content to meet her parents and a hope that when they come to Patiala on 4th April, everything will turn out good. I reached my dads office by late afternoon on 3rd April. He was not the usual, something was missing. I felt bad but then i knew he will be happy once he meets her and her parents. Sunday came with a wonderful morning. I went to receive her parents  in Patiala to guide them to our house. Her dad and Mom were accompanied by her maternal uncle. They were greeted at home by Daddy and all three chachaji's. They all started talking about family and stuff and how to proceed with the preparations and the customs and all. The talk seemed good as every where there were smiling faces and loud laughs in between. They asked to do a rokka, at first dad was a little adamant, but finally everything settled and within five minutes our relationship took a turn with stamping from both parents. The sagai was decided for the coming Sunday, 11th April and ring ceremony on Wednesday 14th April. It was a great sense of relief. Everyone had lunch and then her parent left for Delhi. Everyone at my place talked about how good everyone was, my dad looked the most content. He really liked Bhavna's dad and that was a big thing for us. The evening was celebrated with a treat from my side to my chachaji's and some emotional talk. The day came to an end with an everlasting smile on my face, the contentment of our secured future. 

The occasions celebration is left for another part of the story.

The best part of my life

I was asked repeatedly not to post this. With logic and with threat. I even surrendered saying i wont do it, but..........
Knowing someone feels so much for u..... takes u to the top of the world, giving u strength to do anything to make that person happy......
Sorry.....

Somebody asked me, what love is?
I said, ur name.

Somebody asked me, what it feels like?
I said, the way i feel when you call my name.

Somebody asked me, What it smells like?
I said, the way those flowers sent by you do.

Somebody asked me, What it looks like?
I said, The way that smile of yours.

Lodhi ayi lodhi

Lodhi ayi lodhi
De maye reowdi
Agg tu baal de
Tilan da thaal de

Hathan vicho Thand nu
Man chon ghamand nu
Agg vich saad de
Dhuein tarah khilaar de

Sundar mundriye gaa ke
Man nu parcha ke
Dukha nu bhula de
Chain daa saan le

Rall ke mill ke
Laukan naal ghul ke
Khushyian nu khol de
Hanjua nu roll de

Lodhi ayi lodhi
De maye reowdi
Agg tu baal de
Tilan da thaal de

Table ke Paudhe

Qudrat ke kareeb rehne ki chah me
Maine apne table pe do paudhe lagaye.
Ek pattedar aur doosra kantila cactus
Pata nahi kyu, par wo kantila cactus
mujhe zyada pyara tha
use khoob pyar se rakha maine

aur doosre ko ek kaune me rakhkar bool gaya
jab wo udaas hoke murjha jata, to mai paani daalke
use jataata ke mai hu uske sath
wo bhi jaise meri baat maan leta aur
phir se khushi me lehraane lagta
banaawti the mera pyar uske liye
ye mujhe lagta tha kayi baar
magar wo tha ke andha yakin karta tha mujhpar

wahin doosri aur wo kantedaar cactus
jaise kabhi khush he nahi hota tha mujhse
mai use roz sinchta, paani deta,
har lamha dhyan rakhta uska

jab bhi subha mai daftar aata,
to use murjhaya paata
par meri himmat na haarti
aur mai lagataar use khush karne ki koshish karta

fir ek din 3 dino ki chutti hui
mai jab wapis lauta to dono paudhon ko murjhaya paya
kuch ghoont paani ke apne sautele bête ko de
mai jaa pahuncha cactus ke paas.
Uski naraazgi se lag raha tha ke
Aaj nahi maanega wo.
Murjhaya to hua he tha, sath me gusse me neela pad gaya tha.
Mujhe samajh me nahi aya kya karun,
Kuch paani dala aur intezar kiya
Mujhe nahi pata tha ke wo intezar mujhe
Us se hamesha ke liye juda kar dega
Kayi dino tak uska neela rang nahi gaya
Aur ek din wo kala ho ke gir gaya
Mai samajh gaya ke maine use kho diya
Itna chaha use aur kuch na kar sakaa
Uski sulgi hui jade ab bhi us gamle me padi hain
Meri himmat nahi hoti use ukhaad fainkne ki
Kahi na kahin dil me umeed hai
Ke ek din phootegi jad aur kopal nikal ayegi
Firse wo apne patte failayage mere liye.

Mera sautela har subha mere paani dete he
Uchal jaata hai khushi me aur lehra ke
Maano mujhse keh raha ho
Mujhe lagao us gamle me aur utna pyar do
Mae tumhara har zakhm bhar doonga
Fir tumhe kabhi udaas nahi paunga
Bas ek baar mujhe sautele se apna bane ke dekho.

Trip to Madikeri aka Coorg, Kodagu....

25th December was a holiday and we had nowhere to celebrate, so we opted to visit a nearby hill station for the 3day weekend. Plans chalked out, options kept open with modes of travel (Bike or Car) and everyone informed. Being Christmas and another holiday the next week, some had gone to their hometowns. There were eight ready to leave Bangalore so we booked a cab and a Home stay in Coorg.

Kodagu (Coorg) is a district in South Karnataka along the eastern slopes of the Western Ghats with its capital at Madikeri. Located at around 900 m altitude it is a beautiful hill station filled with Coffee plantation.

The home stay owner (Pramila Aunty) had warned us about the chilling weather in Coorg so we in turn advised all to carry woolens and even an extra blanket. On some research, we found that according to Pramila aunty, chilly weather is at 20 °C. Wanting to have some fun, we did not carry any woolens and did not advice anyone against carrying some. Some of our experienced colleagues had told us that it would take around 8 hrs to drive the 256 km journey. This made us to start early morning at 0400 hrs. Everyone left the place with heavy sleepy eyes. On the way we had a cup of tea each with a temple’s hymns in the background, a perfect start to the trip. On crossing Mysore, we stopped for some more tea and then went along. All the sight seeing near Madikeri are far away so we planned covering some of the place on the way and save some time.

The first stop was at Nyingmapa Tibetan Monastery & Golden Temple near Kushalnagar. A lot of gold is used in the making of the temple. At the back of the temple is an immense 60 ft statue of Buddha along with slightly smaller (58 ft) statues of Guru Padmasambhava and Buddha Amitayus. The two sidewalls are covered with paintings with deities and Buddha in different forms of life. The paintings depict the deities in both calm and wrathful form using different type of clothes and ornaments. The calm deities wearing white clothes and precious stone ornaments, whereas the wrathful ones wearing skins of living beings and ornaments of bones. There is a beautiful garden outside the temple and a school for the monks. The periphery of the temple is lined with rotating cylinders with text engraved on them. It is said that if you rotate the cylinder once, you can absorb the whole text. Well then I believe Bhaskar and Tanmay would have become learned in Buddhism. Inside the temple there was a replica of the Palyul Monastery in Tibet. We left the temple for some breakfast. There was a small Tibetan shopping centre just outside the temple. We were looking for some Tibetan food but had to rely only on south Indian dosa and Idly Wada.

After breakfast we left for another place on our way to Madikeri. The next stop was at Nisargadhama. It’s a small island (around 65 acres) formed by splitting of Cauvery River in two streams. The forest department has developed the area, with a hanging bridge, a small deer park, Elephant safari and some tree top shelters. There are also some cottages in the forest for tourists. There is a meager entry fee to visit the area and a little fee for the elephant ride. It was lunch time, we had a little in Madikeri town and then headed for our home stay.

The search was another project in itself. There was no address to the place and Pramila aunty was persistent on the fact that the whole of Madikeri knows her. Very boastfully she asked us to follow a road and then ask any passerby about her and they’ll take us to her home stay. Well this was not to be and to top it there was no signal on the way. At one place we were happy that there won’t be any disturbance and on the other hand we didn’t have any way of communicating to the well-known Pramila aunty. This time there was another thought that wanted me to have a telephone signal. It seemed like now I found solace not in switching off the phone, but waiting for a call. At a curve of the road a phone beeped and we found a weak signal. This time we asked our driver to call her and take directions in Kannada. The driver seemed quite intelligent as he grasped it in one go and we left for our 2 nights abode. The moment we diverted from the main road into a coffee estate, every one wowed out. The place looked mesmerizing. There was no noise at all, only the serenity of countryside. Pramila aunty was waiting for us at the entrance. The house was a single story house with 3 bedrooms, a hall, a dining area, a kitchen and a courtyard filled with all varieties of fruits and flowers. We had a chance of tasting a Passion fruit (Fashion fruit for Praphulla), though it was sour than anything. We had freshly plucked Sapodilla aka Sapota, Zapota, Cheeku etc etc. It was so juicy that water droplets sprinkled out as we separated. It wasn’t anything new for me but still having a fresh fruit after around 5 years of staying away from home was a real delight. After dumping our luggage we left for a small walk along the coffee estate. It was a beautiful picturesque experience. There was almost no sound apart from our footsteps and occasional laughter we shared over a joke. We returned to the home stay and started to plan for the evening. Aunty had agreed upon a small campfire in the courtyard and we thought of chattering over some drinks and fire.

We left for Madikeri for our supplies. It was supposed to be Saket sirs treat for a recent award he got. We collected vodka, juice, and cold drinks and when we were about to leave, it started raining like anything. The first drops straight away washed the campfire plan. So we went back and arranged the Sofa’s for our whole night party. Food was prepared and we asked aunty to sleep, as we’d have it rather late. Pegs started and so did the chattering. A lot of things happened that night; some news came out, some old coffins dug, some old secrets brought into light. The night went by and next day was welcomed with a wonderful morning.

Clear sky and birds chirping around was what we saw and heard in the morning. A lot was planned and re-planned for the day as everything was far away. We started by leaving for Abby falls. Being Saturday and a three-day weekend, every place was crowded. It seemed like every one had come to Coorg only. We stopped at the falls and had some kinoow, a fruit primarily found in Northern part of the country is somewhat like an orange, but a little on the sour side. Had a glass full of buttermilk before we headed for a walk to the falls. It was the best we had in recent years. It was a small walk through a personal coffee estate. The falls were not so mesmerizing but were good enough for a peek. There was no place to go in water so we were content with just seeing and capturing them in our cameras. Our next stop was planned for Tal-Cauvery, the starting point of river Cauvery (The Ganges of South). It has a huge religious significance and without doubt we knew it would be crowded like hell. On the way we changed our plan and instead headed to Kakkabe. It was supposed to have a bird sanctuary, so photography enthusiasts like Saket sir (including me) preferred going there. The climate had suddenly changed from humid near our home stay to a cool breeze along this area. There were some very beautiful home stays on the way. A free advice: Please stay somewhere in the Kakkabe area if you ever happen to visit Coorg. After driving for around 2 hrs we reached kakkabe. There was no sign of a bird sanctuary but there was supposed to be an old palace, one preserved by the Archeological department of India. On reaching our eyes were searching for some grand architecture, but instead we found a double story house. It was nowhere near the palaces we had seen ever before. Nalknad Palace was built in 1792 inside dense forests at the foothills of Karnataka’s highest peak. It served as a last refuge to the king before he surrendered to the British. The House comprised of many dark rooms and secret passages. After a little wandering around we left for Madikeri, to witness some musical fountain show.

We reached Madikeri by 06 in the evening. The show takes place in a small garden in the Madikeri fort. From the edge of the park we can have a view of the sunset. It’s a deep valley and overlooks a series of Mountains. Though we missed the sunset but thoroughly enjoyed the beauty of the valley. The musical fountain was a joke in itself, with just a small fountain running in the centre and some music playing in the background. We thought of not wasting time and instead left for our home stay. The weather seemed clear now, a small campfire was made and we gathered around it humming and singing songs. It started to drizzle and we left for the indoor. The night went by in compositions and poetry. Finally we retired long after midnight.

The morning marked the last day of our stay. We left the home stay bidding adieu to aunty and promising to come back again. On our way we thought of visiting Dubare elephant camp. This camp serves as a training ground for elephants used in the Mysore festival on the eve of Dassehra. To reach the camp you have to cross the river, on foot or by boat, the choice is yours. We preferred walking over the slippery rocks. Shoes in hand we headed towards the camp. With some falls and near misses we reached the camp. Though the display of elephants was over yet we enjoyed treading through the area. On returning back we had some fun bathing in the river. Marking an end to the trip we changed and started for the drive back to Bangalore. We reached Bangalore by midnight after completing yet another place of visit.

Though the place wasn’t that great but we enjoyed as a group…. As always

For pics of the trip, visit http://picasaweb.google.com/devilish102/TripToMadikeriCoorg#