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Just About Everything

This blog is just about everything under the sun. It is really my diary....I jot out events that leave a lasting impression on me. It could be anything; relationships, business, culture...writing provides me a release from everyday stress and I take refuge in it very often. It gives me a lot of pleasure.

Tiger at Sundarbans National Park India

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- June 12, 2014

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The legend of Bon Bibi, Sunderbans, West Bengal, India

- April 08, 2012

I first came to know about Bon Bibi while reading Amitava Ghosh's Hungry Tide. In fact, Sunderbans unfolded before me because I read that book. Strange though, I was living in Kolkata for so many yaers but before that I had never had an urge to travel to Sunderbans! And I call myself a travel enthusiast! But seriously, my curiosity about Sunderbans happened only after that. "Hungry Tide" is a great book. I am a huge fan of Amitava Ghosh's books. Since I read that book, I have visited Sunderbans twice and I plan to go there again this winter. The legend of Bon Bibi fascinated me. In Sunderbans, Bon Bibi is the deity everyone prays to before going about their everyday business. She is the protector of the people; she protects the people from tigers. Hindus and Muslims alike, pray to the Goddess. According to the legend, there was a Sufi fakir, Ibrahim who lived in Medina. He was childless. Archangel Gabriel gave him a boon. He had two children, a daughter (Bon B...

Ancient Ellora Cave temples; Ravan Ki Khai (cave 14) and Dasavatara (cave 15) cave temples

- July 02, 2016

Ellora Cave 14, Ravan Ki Khai Today's post is in continuation to my earlier post on Ellora . Caves 14 and 15 of the Brahmanical group may not be as grand as cave 16 , but they are beautiful and you can see some amazing sculptures and carvings in these caves. Cave 14 is called Ravan ki Khai because of the sculpture of Ravana shaking Kailasa (this happens to be quite a popular theme in Ellora.). This cave seems to be dedicated to Shakti worship because there are a number of female deities in this cave temple. A panel on the wall has seven (could not get a good picture). Cave 15 (Dasavatara cave ) is grand. It is called Dasavatara because of the various beautifully sculpted incarnations of Vishnu in this cave. There is a dance hall (Natya mandapa) right at the centre of the courtyard. The ground section of the cave does not have too many sculptures, but the upper level has quite a few sculptures. The first thing that you see in the upper level is Shiva’s chariot, a beautifu...

Unakoti in Tripura, India, is known for its amazing Rock-cut faces dating back to the 11th century

- December 31, 2016

Unakoti, Rock-cut Shiva head Tripura is one of the states in India that I have never visited, i have been wanting to visit Tripura for a long time because of some of the gems it houses. Though not as tourist ready as other states, some of the places that we saw are indeed worth visiting. In our short five day trip, we managed to touch all the districts (we did a total of 930 km by road). The roads are quite well-maintained. If you plan to travel to Tripura, d on't expect elaborate food menus and great hotels.You will get everything, but without frills. The lodges that we stayed in were basic. My favourite was the Belonia tourist lodge in South Tripura district. On our first day, we headed straight to North Tripura towards Unakoti from the airport. We rented a car through an agent in Agartala who also booked the Government run lodges in the various places we visited.We arrived at Unakoti at 3.30 pm after covering a distance of 145...