Sparsho ~ by Krishnendu Mukhopadhayay

Pujobarshikis to Benaglis is akin to the "Eid ka Chand" (moon during Eid), ushering in the Durga Puja with a great symbolic gesture. We bengalis start feeling that Pujo is round the corner, as soon as we get hold of the various pujobarshikis. Unlike every other year, this time I managed to get hold of the Desh pujo sankhya only by Nabami! Of late, it has become a general notion that these yearly installments, released right before the Puja, are no longer able to maintain the quality of the yesteryear. However, Desh came in the form of a pleasant surprise! Fresh story lines touching upon newer topics that went beyond the usual husband wife and family politics saga was a welcome change.

Out of all the novels, I liked Sparsho by Krishnendu Mukhopadhyay, the best! Here I would like to confess that stories revolving around World War II have always been among my most favorite ones. But I always had this qualm that we don't have much option around this topic in the Indian literature, less so in Bengali.

Krishnendu Mukhopadhyay

The story revolves around a WWII Royal Air force Pilot Hiranmay Haldar and young Zarina Ismail working in a corporate Law Firm. During the early 40s, a young boy (Hiranmay) from sub-urban Srirampur in Bengal eloped from his home to Ambala, stealing some money from his father's locker. His passion was to become a fighter jet pilot one day. The story progresses with how this boy grows up to become the fighter pilot he always wanted to be, fighting all odds, including racism in the Allied forces, bravely facing the Luftwaffes of the mighty Nazi Germany. During one of these operations, his Spitfire got hit by enemy bullets, forcing him to land in Nazi occupied Poland. He was taken in as a prisoner of war. The story is about how Hiranmay fled this camp, how he saved a Jewish girl Iliana Rozenberg in the process, and how young Zarina from the law firm helps the German Embassy fulfill the last wish of Iliana half e century later, which is very much related to Hiranmay and his self-centered extended family.

The story beautifully captures various human emotions - like father-daughter, camp inmates, envies and one-upmanship of an extended family in despair, holding on to their rich past. This is also a story about the Indians' involvement in WWII and their complex love-hate relation with Hitler's Germany.

All in all, it is one novel you should not give a miss!

Monsoon in Goa !!

After a long phase of discussions, plannings and deliberations, we finally decided the time for the Goa trip! We planned for the long weekend on the occasion of Ganesh Chaturthi. With our entire group on board, Goa in the monsoon became all the more tempting. By the time our plan took shape, the train tickets were already sold out. So, we took the option of taking a flight from Bangalore to Goa.

Goa can be broadly divided into North and South. North Goa is typically known for the lively crowd, the cafes, pubs and a variety of water sports. In short, it is the happening part of the state for which Goa is known. In contrast, South Goa is calm, quiet and scenic with its fair share of hills and sparsely occupied sea beaches. Given that we were going during monsoon when water sports would anyhow be not available and we had only 3 days in our hand, South Goa looked like the better option for our stay. We booked the Palolem Beach Resort. As the day for our trip approached, and the upcoming event kept on showing the Flight to Goa, you can well imagine our excitement!

Finally the fateful day arrived. We were divided into 2 groups. One group of 4 were to catch the 6:05 AM Air Asia flight. The other group of 7 were to catch the 6:30 AM Indigo flight. Accordingly, our friends started at 3:30 AM, picking us up en-route the airport. We reached Goa at around 7:45 AM. Rest of the group was waiting in the airport. By the time we collected our luggage and met them, the airport was almost empty as there were no more flights at around that time. This was our opportunity. Out came the tiffin carriers with aloo paratha and dam aloo. It was quite a sight, a group of 11 gorging on the breakfast. By that time, it was almost 8:30 AM. We finally came out of the airport and queued up for airport taxi. Our usual trips involve booking cars for the entire trip. However, this time we decided otherwise given the exorbitant prices being charged. By this way, we saved payment of daily driver bata of almost Rs.700 per day, for 2 cars. Also, we didn't find much option for bigger vehicles like Tempo Traveler or Swaraj Mazda in optimal cost. We took 2 cars at an average of Rs. 2000, for drop to our resort which was around 60 kms from airport down south. The road from airport to the south was nothing short of a beautiful hill station, with clouds touching the hill tops! We reached our resort on the Palolem beach at around 10:30. Even though the official check in time was 1 PM, we got our rooms immediately.

Palolem is one of the most southerly beaches of Goa. It is a natural bay surrounded by lofty boulders on either side. The clean beach and water makes it perfect for a swim or two. We had taken 5 AC rooms in the Palolem Beach Resort, which is right on the beach. rooms were of decent size, clean and tidy. The only problem was some insects coming in from outside, but given the greenery, this much was expected.

With breakfast already done, we just took 15 mins to freshen up, and then jumped right into the sea. It was time for high tide, and the waves were pretty big. We thoroughly enjoyed in the sea for couple of hours.

We came out of the sea, albeit reluctantly, at around 1 o'clock. By that time we were really hungry. We headed towards the Dropadi restaurant, next to our resort. As we all know, food prices in Goa is over-hyped. It is even more so in the South Goa, as the options are comparatively on the lesser side. We went for sizzlers, which just tasted like chilli chicken in a sizzler platter. But I really liked the chocolate shake! We were a hungry lot, with all the travelling and swimming, and gorged on the food once it arrived. That made a post lunch walk necessary. The weather was also perfect for a long walk down the beach. We walked all the way to the end of one side of the Palolem beach. During that time, our friends went in search of cars for rent. After considerable bargaining, 2 Ertigas were booked for Rs.3200 each, for a trip to the popular beaches in the south of Goa. We planned to start at 4 PM after taking a much needed break for an hour.

Day 1 Trip

It started raining by the time we started our sight-seeing, but luck was somewhat on our side that day. It was mostly raining while we were in the car, going from one place to the next, but stopped whenever we were getting off! Our first stop was Cavelossim Beach. We pit-stopped at a beautiful unnamed location on our way. It was a bridge on a river surrounded by mountains, with people fishing. After some photo-ops, we continued our journey. 

There were hardly 3-4 persons in the Cavelossim beach, apart from our group. The other beaches down south, like Betalbatim, Miramar, etc. were also similar in nature. If calm, idyllic, serene hill clad beaches are your thing, South Goa is the place to be.

Finally we reached the Colva beach. Colva is the most happening beach in this part. It is a very popular tourist destination known for its food, pubs and water sports. A small river-let runs along the beach, emptying itself into the sea. It has 2 small bridges across it at the entrance of the beach to enable people to cross and reach the beach.

That finished our sight-seeing for the day, and we headed straight for Martin's corner. Martin's is one of the most popular restaurants in Goa, with a frequent celebrity footfall, famous for its authentic Goan delicacy. Being the foodies that we are, we had decided about going to this place even before we reached Goa! I went for fish steak along with Sangria. Loved the food as well as the ambiance. There was live Karaoke with guests pitching in with Abba or Richard Marx songs. With the perfect ending to our first day in Goa, we headed back to our resort, and called it a day.

Day 2

Day 2, after having complementary breakfast in our resort, we embarked upon our journey to North Goa. We had bargained with the same car drivers for this day's trip, under the condition that they will drop us back to the airport next day, as part of a package. Today's package was Rs.4500 per car. our first stop was at the Basilica of Bom Jesus, or Borea Jezuchi Bajilika. This is a UNESCO World heritage Site. The Basilica holds the mortal remains of St. Francis Xavier. The church is located in Old Goa, which was the capital of Goa in the early days of Portuguese rule. Unlike the day before, the weather was playing spoilsport this day, and it was pouring cats and dogs. Not that it deterred us in any manner! Even though it was off-season, there was quite a sizable amount of crowd. 

Next stop was Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception Church located in Panjim. The colonial Portuguese Baroque style church was first built in 1541 as a chapel on a hill side, overlooking the city of Panjim. It was eventually replaced by a larger church in the 1600s as part of Portuguese Goa's religious expansion.

We decided to have our lunch in Panjim itself, before heading to our next destination. This time, all of us went for the quintessential Goan Fish Thali, restaurant - Casa Bhonsle. Apart from the usual prawns and mackerels, the thali had an item comprising of clams (ঝিনুক). After our initial reluctance, we went for it after a slight nudge from the waiter. We were in for a nice surprise! It was really very tasty, closer to prawn in taste. But you have to  be used to eating fishes, or else it might be a little strong for your taste buds. All in all we loved the dish, and it was our cheapest meal in Goa by far, per plate costing only Rs.150.

After a satisfactory lunch, we headed towards Aguada Fort and lighthouse. It is a well-preserved 17th century Portuguese fort on Sinquerim beach, overlooking the Arabian sea. The fort was constructed in 1612 to guard against the Dutch and the Marathas. The old portuguese fort stands on the beach south of Candolim, at the shore of Mandovi river. A freshwater spring within the fort provided water supply to the ships that used to stop by. This is how the fort got its name: Aguada, meaning water.

Our final destination for the day was the famed Baga beach. It is one of the most popular beaches in all of Goa, with its cafes and pubs and restaurants, along with the maximum assortments of water sports (which were on hold for monsoon). this beach made us a little nostalgic, reminiscing the places visited during the earlier stays. The lively ambiance of the beach never fails to energize you. Passing by the Brittos, and other famed places, we went for a short evening walk in the beach. A tasty coolfie later, we were back in our car, returning to our resort.

We thought of having dinner in our resort itself. Dinner was an assorted affair. I went for another of the traditional Goan cuisine - chicken vindaloo, which turned out to be tasty. However, the feedback for continental food and pasta was not so good. While having dinner, we noticed a continuous procession of Lord Ganesha idols coming up for immersion into the sea. We rushed back to the sea to witness this unique experience, as we Bengali folks are used to witnessing idol immersion in the rivers only. There were no less than 30-40 idols that were immersed that night, accompanied by firecrackers. The idols were being taken deep into the sea in total darkness for immersion. It was scary to see, even though there was a good presence of guards. 

After this unexpectedly pleasant experience, we gathered back in our room for an adda session, in accompaniment of traditional Goan sweet Bebinca! It is a type of pudding having 7 layers. The ingredients include plain flour, sugar, ghee, egg yolk and coconut milk. After a solid session of chitchat past midnight (the fun of having a big group), we called it a day.

Day 3

Next morning, while having breakfast in our resort, we observed that the beach was being cleaned post the immersions, disposing off the leftover flowers and other Puja items from the beach. After breakfast, we headed towards the Butterfly Beach. This beach is usually visited by boat. But boating was not advisable during this time of the year, given the heavy rain lashing over the coastal state. We decided to go there by foot. However, we were warned that we should return before the high tide submerges the beach on the way to that beach, or there is a chance of being stranded. On our way, we saw the fishermen returning with catch of the day. There were some huge prawns and crabs in there, along with other fishes!

It was a long walk in the beach, with non-stop rain for company. There was already a little water in-road into the beach. It appeared to be shallow, but turned out to be knee-deep. A beautiful scenery was waiting for us on the other side. It was a hilly stretch, strewn with boulders and it looked really pretty. You won't feel like leaving that place. But after spending some time, and taking the mandatory pictures, we headed back before the water becomes too high. We found that within the short span of time, the water reached up to waist from knee-deep that it was. It was a little scary as the sand was also moving underneath. But we crossed it, safe and sound, and headed back to our rooms. 

It was our last day of stay, and we were supposed to vacate all the rooms but 2, by 11 AM. Our return flight was scheduled for 5:05 PM departure. All of us were returning in the same Air Asia flight. We had requested for airport drop at 2 PM. This time the rate we got was Rs.1800 per car. After moving our luggage to the 2 designated rooms, the guys went for one more round of swim and we headed for the mandated shopping! 

By 1 PM we were all ready, and started for the final lunch of our stay in Goa. This time we chose an Italian cafe. The Italian name was somewhat misnomer, as it very much served Indian food. We thought of having a light lunch this time around, as we had taxed our stomach a lot over the last couple of days. So, basically we started with rice and dal. But then, we being the Bongs, we ended up ordering fish finger, prawn rava fry and squid rings for starters, and then King fish as well as Pomphret fry as part of the main course. Our order became so extensive that the cafe took a long time to serve them all. As a result we were 30 mins late to start for the airport, even after gobbling up the food in flat 15 mins. After a final view of the sea, we headed towards the airport with a heavy heart and a promise to return soon, to this magical place !!


Travel Tips:

• Best time to travel to Goa - mid-November to mid-February. But August monsoon has its own charm.
• Place to stay - If you have at least 4 days in hand, it is advisable to break up your stay in North (say, Baga) and South (say, Colva/Palolem), to get the taste of the fun-side as well as the quieter side of Goa.
• Water sports are not available during monsoon season - June - September.
• Transport - After a lot of research, we concluded that hiring a car for the entire stay can be very costly, unless you want to self-drive. Hiring cars daily for sight-seeing is an optimal way of budgeting. Break-up as per our experience**:

          ~ Airport pickup/drop - Rs.1800

          ~ South Goa trip (from South) covering the main beaches - Rs.3200

          ~ North Goa trip (from South) covering Old Goa churches, main beaches, Aguada fort (we also had Chapora fort in our list, but had to skip it for the sake of time) - Rs.4500

          ~ Self-driven car/day - Rs.1500

• Food - Best place to experiment with all kinds of sea food, but food is going to be the biggest cost in the trip. North Goa is relatively cheaper as compared to South given the availability of numerous places to eat. 
• You can do some research like us prior to your visit, for the best places to eat, as they are usually spread out throughout the state, and you might have to plan your sight-seeing accordingly (as food is one of the most important, if not the most important, part of Goa! :P)

**  These are all off-season prices, and they are bound to shoot up during the tourist season.

Hampi - তুঙ্গভদ্রার তীরে (Tungabhadrar Teere) - Part I

It was our independence day, 15th August '2013. The preparation was in full swing. The last moment packing and yes, food! We ordered Biriyani to-go for our night train journey. Our friends picked us up in a rented Sumo, and our journey started. 

The journey to the station was anything but smooth. The famous Bangalore traffic made us wonder whether we will be able to catch the train at all. Thankfully the traffic moved, and we reached our destination - the Bangalore City station. On checking the schedule chart, we came to know that our train - Hampi Express, is delayed. All that tension was so unnecessary! Finally the train arrived and we embarked on our journey towards Hospet.

We reached Hospet at around 8 AM in the morning. We had booked the Hotel Mayura Bhuvaneshwari, the only hotel located within the World Heritage site area. After reaching the hotel in an auto, we freshened up and headed for breakfast. The  KSTDC chain hotel was a normal budget hotel, with small but clean rooms, but like all the Government hotels, the location is perfect. We had proper English breakfast for all the 3 days in the hotel as it was the only option available, and there is no other hotel/restaurant available in this side of the river. All set, we started the sight-seeing for the magnificent historical town of architectural wonder that is Hampi. This write-up may come across as a class in history, but friends, it is Hampi, the epitome of history !!

Spread across 26 sq. km. lie the remains of the splendid medieval city of Hampi or Vijayanagara, the City of Victory. Bounded by the wide Tungabhadra river on one side and impassable craggy hills and ranges with massive boluders on the other side, the site offered natural defense which the rulers used to their great advantage. Hampi was the capital of the powerful Vijayanagara empire from AD 1343 to 1565. It is also said that this region was the mythical Kishkindha-kshetra from the Ramayana! 

We selected auto rickshaw as our mode of transport. There are other modes available, such as rental cycles. The place can even be covered by foot, though you have to be a very good walker, and have to keep in mind the scorching sun. Luckily for us, we got a very pleasant cloudy weather on the first day of our stay.

Our first destination was the Hemkuta Parvata. This is a hillock made of huge boulders. The parvata hosts the pre-Vijayanagara constructions. The constructions from this period were made only with boulders. Bricks and plasters were used only later during the Viajayanagara reign.

The 360 degree view from this hillock will take you back in the Viajayanagara period. The architectural wonder on display, including the Virupaksha temple, is wonderful.

There are three temples next to Hemkuta - Badavilinga, Lakshmi Narasimha and Virupaksha temple. We started with the Badavilinga temple. Here we got our first taste of the exquisite architecture of these temples. Every nook and corner, every wall has some story to tell. The figurines of Shiva-Parvati, Ganesh, various incarnations of Vishnu depicting the level of craftsmanship. We headed towards the Narasimha temple next. There is a huge statue of Narasimha, which will definitely scare you with His eyes or the sheer size. This is the largest statue in Hampi. Narasimha (also referred to as Ugra Narasimha on the basis of the protruding eyes and facial expression) sitting on the coil of a giant seven-headed snake called Sesha. The heads of the snake act as the hood above His head. The original statue contained the image of Goddess Lakshmi sitting on His lap. But this statue has been damaged seriously during the raid leading to the fall of Vijayanagara.

Moving on, we turn another page in the history of Hampi, and visit the Deccan Muslim remnants. Though famous for its Hindu kingdom and architecture, Hampi has a rich demonstration of the Deccan Muslim rulers as well, This began with the Battle of Talikota in '1565. This was a watershed battle fought between the Hindu Vijayanagara Empire and the Islamic Deccan sultanates. The battle took place at Talikota (a town in northern Karnataka). The treacherous defeat of Vijayanagara Empire, followed subsequent desctruction and looting. This had had its impact on Hampi as well.

We can see some Indo-Islam architectures right next to the temples. Some of the famous ones being the Mohameddan Watch Tower, Band Tower and the Mosque.

Amidst this Muslim splendor lies the Lotus Mahal. A tour to Hampi is incomplete without visiting this Mahal, also called Kamal or Chitragani Mahal. The glorious building, identified by its lotus like structure, is within the Zenana Enclosure, a segregated area that was used by the royal women of Vijayanagara dynasty. A distinctive feature about the Zenana Enclosure is that it was a well-guarded place during the days of the Vijayanagara Empire. The fortified area has two entrances, one in the northern side and the other in the north-eastern side.The enclosure initially had four watch towers. But now, there are just three watch towers which are located in the eastern, south eastern and northern sides of the enclosure. The presence of these three watch towers indicate that the enclosure was a protected area that offered privacy to the royal women of the empire, including the Queen. It is believed that the watch towers and the whole enclosure were guarded by the eunuchs. These eunuchs prevented any male from entering the area. The Lotus Mahal is one of the handful of few astonishing building in Hampi that had not been damaged or destroyed amid the attack on the city.

Right next to the beautiful Mahal is the basement of Queen's Palace. The Queen’s Palace is a ruined structure that has only the basement as a proof of its existence. The basement is located in the centre of the Zenana Enclosure. It is the largest palace base excavated among the Hampi ruins so far.

Elephant stable is located in the area that lies just outside the Zenana enclosure. The elephant stable was constructed in the 15th century, to house the royal elephants of the Vijayanagara Empire. The elaborate structure indicates the importance attached to the royal elephants during those days. It also suggests the amazing craftsmanship of the artisans of that era. This is one of the finest examples of Indo-Islamic style of architecture.

By this time, we were pretty hungry, and decided to get back to the hotel to take a lunch break. We had traditional South Indian meal. The food was very tasty. I must say that we have been particularly happy with the food in the entire trip, with the taste and variety available to the tourists. After lunch, we continued with our sight-seeing. Our next destination was the Hazararama Temple.  

The first thing that you notice in this temple is the wall of the temple. Probably this is the only temple in the capital with its external walls decorated with bas-reliefs of Ramayana stories in long arrays etched into the stones. The temple got its name Hazara Rama owing to the multitude of these Ramayana panels, including stories of Luv Kush, on its walls. This is not a huge temple by Hampi's yardstick, but this temple at the heart of the royal area has some peculiarities. Firstly, it had been functioning as a private temple for the king and the royal family. The importance of this temple can be judged from its nodal location in the royal area. Paths to various locations within the citadel concur at a corner of this temple.

The dusty path that connects the Royal enclosure with the Zenana enclosure passes along the temple courtyard. Right across the path of this temple is the Pan-Supari Bazar. During the imperial days of Vijayanagara this was a royal street that led to the palace. Much of it is ruined, and exists only in archaeological maps. The reason for such a unique name to this place is not known though.

The final destination for our first day's sight-seeing was Mahanavami Dibba. This is the tallest structure in the area, and visible as you enter the royal enclosure. From a distance it just looks like an elevated square with a beautiful all round view. However, a closer look depicts 3 layers of beautiful carvings of ornamentation from royal ceremony, city life to the erstwhile foreign envoys (Portuguese, Arabic, Chinese) to hunting scenes. King Krishnadevaraya constructed this in commemoration on the victory over Udaygiri (now in Odisha).

Next to the dibba, there is an awesome depiction of the advanced water management system that was in place, in the empire. There were channels for transferring water from a stepped tank to all the Pushkarinis in the vicinity.

With this we concluded our first day of the trip, and retired back to our hotel for a hot cup of tea accompanied with crispy pakodas! We had an early dinner and retired in our room for a round of movie.. Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara! Wouldn't you say it is apt to be seen during a road trip with friends?!

Travel Tips:

1. Nearest domestic airport is Bellary.
2. Best option is to travel from Bangalore via Hampi Express from Bangalore City to Hospet station. Hampi is 13 kms via road from Hospet. Train leaves Bangalore city at 10:05 PM. It also stops at Malleswaram (10:14 PM) and Yeshvantpur (10:22 PM), reaching Hospet Jn. at 7:10 AM the next day.
3. Autos and cars are available outside Hospet station to take you to Hampi.
4. Stay: There is only one option on Hampi's side of Tungabhadra - Hotel Mayura Bhuvaneshwari.
    You can stay near the Hippie settlement at the other side of the river. Lots of options are available over here.
5. Transport: Autos/Bikes/Cycles/By foot!


Courtesy:

• Wikipedia
• hampi.in
• www.karnataka.com

To be continued.........