I cant seem to scroll through my feed without seeing someone interviewing the latest hero of a nation that seems to desperately needs heroes to keep it’s hopes alive. Mundhe, the name that is now all over the feeds. Whether Mundhe is able to carry his crusade without being clipped by the powerful lobbies remains […]
It has taken three days to get here. A day of driving across the road that is the spine of Karnataka to take a break at Hubli. After the soulful Amboli, the mango orchards and the cashew nut farms were…
The Amboli morning is sparkling. A slight chill lingers. The breakfast is some neer dosas with a green coconut chutney. This is Konkan stuff all the way. It is the beginning of my Konkan Road trip. Amboli is the start,…
I have never been particularly fond of dogs. I don’t dislike them, but then I don’t love them either. However watching them and writing about them is fair game. This watching game can be fun. It’s always fun; all you…
Indian Travel : A User’s Guide to being a traveller and not a tourist How many times have you planned a trip, arrived at your destination, stepped into your hotel room, and felt that slow, sinking feeling that you have…
The Konkan trip begins at Amboli Had to take a break. The long-cherished plan to drive around the Konkan coast finally clicks. The unpretentious western coast, where nature is at its serene best, beckons. Leaving the dust and frenzy of…
Weekend Travel in India Congratulations, India. We have done it. We have decided that the act of sitting at home, on one’s own couch is something only the unfortunate and the utterly unimaginative do. Where are all the others? Well,…
Discover the mystical Peralassery Subramanya Temple near Kannur, Kerala—where ancient folklore of Lord Rama’s bangle, snake worship with egg offerings, and a breathtaking North Indian-style stepwell come together in the heart of Malabar.
On a cold winter evening in Pune during the 1990s, I watched Ustad Zakir Hussain and Pandit Shiv Kumar Sharma create musical magic at the Sawai Gandharva Festival. The next morning, an unexpected encounter with the maestro at Pune airport left me with a memory that has outlived the performance itself—a quiet tribute to one of India's greatest musicians.
Music and Memory Some memories stay with you. A few of them get hazy due to the inexorable march of time and age. Then there are some, that stay with one in all the original clarity. This is about one of mine that stayed. It is a summertime, 45 years ago, when our father took […]