Kyunki Mai Hun Yahin Tere Paass...

Back after a long spell, this is the second song I wrote for my brother's band...its a man's version who is nomore and what he wants to say to his wife who is left back....Feedback welcome :)

Is raat ke sannate me gunjti hai ye aawaaz

Tum yunhi keh jate ho tham le tu is dil ko---

Kyunki aaj bhi hun mai tere paas

Yunhi na behne do is ashru ko

Mai hun yanhiiii teere paas...

ooo jiya re tu yun naa rokar beeta ye sari raat..

Kyunki mai hun yahin teere paas....

....

Har sitare me tu dhundhey hai mujhey

tujhse hi hun jeeta har pal main...

Jane kyun ye khaata hui rab se, ae bedard e dil ki ye shikwa...

Hun yahi mai tere sang, teri bahon me yun humsafar

Dil bhi jane tu hai mera rahgeer...kyunki aaj bhi ye aks zinda tere liyeee....

Tu tham na ja is pal me

Ye palchin jane nahi ki ye hai tere liye..

Tere har sawalon ke hai hazaron jawab, 

beparwah yun tu keh jati hai ki mai hun nahi ab tere sath...

Tune jana nahi ab tak mai hun har pal tere sath...

Zindagi ki hai ye imtihaan, tu ab bhar le nayi udaan...

Yunhi na jana tha tujhse dooor bawarey, 

aaj bhi hun tere pass jan ley tu....oooooo

Mai hun aaj bhi tere sang humsafar....

The magical Andaman Islands

It has been a childhood dream to visit the mystical and magical island called Andamans…the green-blue sea, the stories of Indian freedom fighters from the far away “kaalapani”, the flora and fauna, rare corals and shoals (a group of fish), littoral forests, picking up shells only to be taken away at the airport security..... the beautiful picturesque island has something new to offer every day and amaze you with its silhouettes…..

Since my travel updates atleast a dozen people have asked me about the trip, costs and how long the trip should be…so I decided I will write the blog in parts…

Firstly, Andamans trip cannot be done in 3 days. So if you thought Andamans is doable in 3 days or 4 you are wrong, its not your destination. The place deserves atleast 5 days if not 7 or 10.
We toured Andamans for seven days and came back rejuvenated and happy.
An ideal trip includes

Day 1-
Most of the tourists reach Port Blair airport by afternoon, it’s advisable if you take a morning flight and reach their by lunch. After lunch we headed to see the Cellular Jail, the star shaped stone building which takes you through the stories of Indian freedom struggle. There is a sound and light show which starts in the evening at 6pm. After the tour we visited the Carbyn Cove beach….this is one of the beaches where water sports takes place. You can also see snake island from there. Recently crocodiles have been spotted on the beach and it is advisable to avoid bathing in this one.
Entry tickets in the jail is rs 20 per person and rs 30 extra for cameras.


Day 2: Ross Island, Viper Island, North Bay Island
One heads to the three islands.. Ross Islands, Viper Island and in the end North Bay Islands.
Ross Islands is where British officers used to stay, you can see peacocks and deers roaming around…
From ross Islands we headed to Viper island where there is a small ‘faasighar’ on top of a small hill….it was actually the first jail in Andamans Island, later the Britishers shifted it to Port Blair. From Viper the ferry heads to North Bay Islands, which is the bed of coral reefs and underwater sports.
You get to do snorkelling, scuba diving and underwater sea walk at this point. Also there is a concept of glass boat, wherein the boat has glass on its base through which you can see coral reefs and water life.
Costs- Snorkelling in North Bay Island costs Rs 500/- per person
Scuba Diving costs Rs 3500 per person with photo and video cd
Underwater sea walk costs Rs 3200 with photo cd
Glass boat ride costs Rs 300 per person

Snorkelling can be avoided at this beach because the best place to snorkel is Jolly bouy island and it is included in the ferry ticket so one doesn’t have to pay for it. Also snorkelling doesn’t cost more than Rs 300 in other beaches. It is advisable to buy your own snorkelling kit and roam around on your own.
Ferry ticket costs Rs 500 per person inclusive of lunch meal and a water bottle


Day3-
Baratang Islands
Have you ever heard of Jarawa tribe?Andamans has four-five tribes of its own one of which is Jarawa tribe, they are found in the forests that starts from Jirkatang. The dense forest is the house of Jarawa’s and it’s a treat to drive through that part of the forest.
It takes nearly two hours to reach Jirkatang from Port Blair in the car and one has to get permit done before entering the forest. It is a 50 km stretch, one and half hour ride, where you do nothing byut sit back and look out for Jarawas.
Jarawa watching was banned by the court a few years back in fact the gates have been opened just a month back. Travellers cannot click pictures, if found guilty one will be jailed. The drivers cannot stop their cars or over take, if done their licenses would be cancelled. You cannot give clothes, food, or talk to them.
Once you cross the forest, you will reach Middle Strait from there ferry’s ply to Baratang Island where one visits the limestone caves and Mud Volcano. To reach the limestone caves one has to go in a speed boat which speeds through mangrove forests and takes you to a forest and after a 2 km walk you reach the limestone caves. This experience is just splendid to say the least.
The whole day trip costs around Rs 1000 per person.

Rest continued in the second part.

Rain drops keep falling on my head!

Rain drops keep falling on my head!

As a child one of the most frequented poems while getting ready during monsoon season used to be,' Rain Rain go away come again another day' but now the antithesis dominates the desire list.
With rains hitting Kerala yesterday it has already begun its descent towards Mumbai.
The petrichor, little new green grasses, parched land tracts soaking the water gush, rush of greenery, nature trails and the joy of jumping and dancing under the waterfalls, the western ghats, a new lease of life for the flaura and faunna and ofcourse for us too.
I will enlist some destinations which needs one time check box in your travel list if you are in Bombay!
The most common names being-

1.Matheran-early june-walk walk and keep walking. It’s not the road less travelled so avoid it if you are looking for less crowded place.

2.Malshej Ghats- during July. Once you reach Bhiwandi and take the right to Malshej the roads are a driver's dream. Empty roads without potholes and greenery all around. Don't stop at the MTDC resort and come back but take the pain go right till Lenyadri temple and see the abundance of pilgrimage to farming to a beautiful overflowing river.
Fill your petrol or diesel tank, even though there are petrol pumps on the ghat sometimes they don't have reserves or ATM slots. Don't take risk!

3. Lonavala-Khandala- Aamir Khan sang,'Ati kya Khandala?' Yes. Indeed. It’s one place every Mumbaikar visits every year and shall continue to do so for the simple fact that it looks more beautiful with every passing year.

4. Kolad- White water rafting-Kayaking-Flying Fox and other activities. As clock strikes 8 and water from the dam gushes through the Kundalika River and rain pouring endlessly expect average rapid of 3 to sometimes 4 or more. It’s thrilling, exihilarating and an experience you take home with much pride. Though Hrishikesh is the best place for rafting, this can be considered as the best learner ground. Please don't say that you did this in Coorg because that's hilarious. Don't insult rafting.
There are various packages available on groupon and other sites. Rafting usually costs Rs 1200-1300 per person and each raft can carry maximum 8 people. Go in large groups.
Overnight tent and camping and normal hotel stays are available.

5. Beyond Amby Valley: Okay so I don't really know the name of the place but take the road that goes parallel to Amby valley's airport strip and keep going straight and after crossing fields, empty villages to mountain ranges you will end up being on Kolad which is on the Old Mumbai- goa highway. Kolad to Mumbai is 3.30-4 hours journey on a clean stretch.
I saw a few trekkers making their way to the mountain but couldn't ascertain the name but it’s a fantastic stretch. If you figure out let me know.

6. Nagaon, Kashid, Revdanda, Mandwa, Murud-Janjira- they all fall in the Alibaug region. Avoid Alibaug per se but try these places.

8. Igatpuri-Nashik-Kasara- Drive safely, click pictures abundantly and come back home rejuvenated and in a mode that's called Freshly.

9. Bhandardhara, Jawhar, Ganpatipule, Amboli Ghats, Kankavli, Durshet Forest, Guhagar, Malhar Machi- haven't been but research shows worth a visit!

10.Lavasa- good roads but feels like you are a compass making circles for hours since you hit the first patch of road which HCC has made- the entrance of Lavasa project. I am not a fan some of my friends are and it is a 5 hour drive from Peddar Road to Fortune hotel at Lavasa- just one way! I will avoid it but from Pune its 65kms.

11.Karnala Fort- there are two roads that take you up ..one on the left- the easier one and the one that's right infront of you as you cross the little lake. Take the road on the left it’s not that easy too. Should take around three hours to go and come back with ample break time.

12. N ofcourse the array of mountains Rajmachi, Harishchandragad and many more. I am not a trekking fan so will skip this part. Also don't forget to cycle around close to 21 kms inside the Borivili National Park.
With all these recos I am hoping even rains will dazzle us this year with some little extra MM's...
Have a great and safe trip with loads of chai breaks and garam bhuttas :)

The travel begins...

Travelling is a way of life. It opens new doors, new perspectives, contemplation, ideas, execution skills, emotions, testing our abilities and some times much more than what we think while setting out for the journey.
This blog was essentially made to capture my travel sojourns yet after travelling extensively for last few months I haven't updated anything. So I will start with the konkan wonderland-Goa, then head downwards to the hill station called Coorg via Bangalore. Not to be missed the highlight of the Coorg tour was the Storm Festival at Napoklu with electrifying performance by Indian Ocean and Shankar Mahadevan.
The month of March was all about taking a step towards making new friends whom I have known and been around with since childhood. A review of Rivertouch Resort at Karjat.
And then comes the heavenly abode lying in the midst of the Indian Ocean the beautiful islands called Andaman and Nicobar Islands. The seven day extravaganza of walking 30 feet under the sea to walking inside the limestone caves to watching Jarawa tribes while crossing 50kms of Jarkatang forest range. Did I forget to mention the cellular jail, breath taking islands and coral reefs?
Of course each trip comes with the hole in the pocket details and in some cases details of tour operators.
This is just the brief and I hope after reading the travelogues you will get your chappals on!
And of course hopefully with rains catching their train on time this year the journey has merely begun for travel crazos!
Happy reading and travelling!

Choota tera sath hai

My kid brother has a band and they make some good music..so he asked me to write something in hindi for him...yesterday late night i suddenly woke up and i thought lets write something.....

Here it is..its not a sad song,,its more with a peppy tune..don't read too much into it!

Janey ye Kaisa tera sath hai,
Choota ab tera haath hai.

Man Mera ye maney na
Piya mora tu sun le na,
Ye kaisi Kashmakash hai
Tujhsey kahne me kyun lage itna dar hai,

Choota ab tera hath hai,
ye kaisa tera khel hai,
Mora bhi jiya mangey tujhsey hisaab hai
toota mera bhi toh ek khwab hai..
sapno ka tha mera aashiyaan..par bhi they aaj asmaan me,
jahan tha jo mere sath me, aaj hua kyun ye berang hai..

Choota jo tera haath hai,
kaati ye patang hai
ankaheen sari bateein hai..
sun bhi le gar akhri bar
kis ghadi kiya jo tujhsey pyaar

Tere sang duniya beparwah thi,
khushiyoon ka woh jaloos tha
tujh bin piya jane ye kya kare jiya
Yunhi tune kyun munh mod liyaa...

Janey woh kaun baat hai
ab choota tera sath hai,
ab na hai tu mora piya....

Janey woh tera kya sath thaa..
ab jo na raha mera yahaan...
choota jo tera woh haath hai.......

A little slice of apna Amby

After climbing the foot over bridge as I came towards Amabrnath west, I waited for a moment to figure the steps going down and I looked above still fidgeting with my dabba kaliberry..I was shocked for a moment.... is it really where I was born, where I spent the best part of my life? the noise, hawkers, jammed bikes and car..it was too much to grasp in a minute's time, but normality soon sunk in when i couldnt find an auto for ordnance estate.....
Ofcourse finding an auto to go to WestClub is impossible, but as you make your way through ordnance estate, memories hit you so hard that you cant fathom that life has moved on so much. As i looked out of the auto to find Shah ka dukaan, the only shop where the entire ordnance wallas would go to buy notebook, stationary, gifts and other things, I realised that the shop was closed... the once throbbing shops where we all came most of the evenings to either buy a pencil or a notebook or a videogame, or to repair our cycles, to the monthly grocery or to the store to buy that birthday dress-it was the epicenter of our lives. Boys would wait for their girls to come by and friends would meet and chat.....that place has seen various heart break or make up.... A better look at the cooperative society building and I realised nothing is same anymore apart from the fact that the building is standing there......an old british building standing amidst the changing world...

The atta chakki on the left side of the road next to the police chowki, the infamous chowki where even a bulb does not light up or must have been stolen by the local boys, the empty cycle and scooter stand, the hooter from the factory echoing across the estate, the cold breeze, an old man cycling his way back home with his son siiting behind him, bunch of boys standing near the Canara Bank Atm-the one and only bank and atm of apna gaon,school playground with flags swarming the sky....the lonely streets....the street lights standing alone near class type trying to figure out why suddenly there is so much action at west club ...the otherwise least inhabited place in the estate.....
As i reached west club for my friendz brotherz wedding, I saw the same faces whom i had seen while growing up at Type III....Some failed to recognise some chose not to recognise, some warmly hugged and everyone was too engrossed in conversations.....
Then you try and locate people whom you would want to meet and then catching up with people whom you went to school with, and when you meet them after decades you realise that the warmth hasnt dried out yet and conversations keep rolling on, its acid all the way....

little thoughts of life

At 3am, standing in the midst of the beach and as the waves come and crash on your feet, you look up at the glowing sky with millions of stars shinning bright and noone around you ...you suddenly realise how beautiful the world is....

How beautiful life indeed is...

While standing in the middle of the waves, i was thinking about my friend whom i lost in an accident,and how we waste time being sad and thinking about our broken dreams and wishes, of the mistakes I made in my life, off all the chances ruined, more often than not we think about what could have been with us or what should have been rightfully ours,and with these thoughts i was coming to the shore and suddenly a crab managed to bite me and give me a reality check....
ofcourse as blood started oozing out of my feet and it started paining like shit i realised the fact which was very simple--- I am here in Goa at 3 standing at looking at this marvel of nature ... and that nothing can alter that truth....

and the fact is what could have been or should been mine is not with me, i am here and thats what the truth is...
I suddenly had the realisation that life is not about what we can have, its about what we have now at this moment and what we choose to do with it....
Ofcourse we all have dreams and aspirations and ambitions but it should not cloud our vision so much that we forget to see what we have today and relish that moment!

And since that day i havent wasted time thinking and imagining what could have been there, rather focusing on what I have and how can i make things better from here....

Even though its dawned a little late on me, i hope it stays with me,,because thoughts have an amazing way of changing their paths from our minds...