Feb 112015
 
Sarson Ke Khet: Mustard Fields

– desi goes to Sarson Ke Khet of Punjab — पंजाब के सरसों के खेत Sarson ke Khet! Mustard fields! Ah, those golden blooms spread over acres and acres bringing a smile on the wrinkled face of the old farmer. I was as his callused hands tenderly touch the delicate blooms more delicately than Shahrukh Khan caressed the tresses of Kajol in that eternal love song- “Tujhe Dekha to yeh Jana Sanam— तुझे देखा तो ये जाना सनम, प्यार होता है दीवाना सनम “ that made the “Sarson Ke Khet the ultimate romantic destination in India”. But dear reader long [Continue Reading By Clicking Here…]

Feb 102015
 
Pick the image from Punjab you like most

  Pick your favorite image from Punjab   Well technically they are all same image only processed differently just for fun. If you were following me on Twitter or Instagram you must have seen our #RahiOnRoad when we shared our images clicked in the golden Sarson ke Khet of Punjab.  So here is a single image processed in 4 different ways. Which one you like the most ?     You can answer here on the blog in comments or you can answer in this survey by clicking below Which image you like the most This is not a contest and [Continue Reading By Clicking Here…]

Feb 092015
 
Ramayana The Game of Life Shattered Dreams : Book Review

Book Review: Ramayana – The Game of Life Shattered Dreams The epics are called epics because they are epic in every sense. I don’t make any sense?  Right? Well what to do, I started this post to write a review of Ramayana- The Game of Life , Shattered Dreams book 2 by Shubha Vilas. But how do you review an epic you were raised  on, as lullabies by your doting granny? When you heard story of Rama as a toddler, read about him in Amar Chitra Katha, saw him in Ramleela in the neighborhood and later on TV.  So Ramayana [Continue Reading By Clicking Here…]

Feb 082015
 
Ber : A fruit with Mythological Signficance

Beri Wala Bagh and other musings about Ber the fruit Statuary Warning: This post is nothing about Travel. So I will not feel bad if you want to skip and move on with your browsing. But I would feel awesome if you are interested in travel and may want to check this little story about the kindness of strangers in Rural Rajasthan, or how I met a Home Stay owner with Gandhian values in Wayanad Kerala,  during Kerala Blog Express. Those of you are still with me, thanks for still being here, you guys are awesomeness + sweetness combined, desi gets an [Continue Reading By Clicking Here…]

Feb 012015
 
A Drive With SOUL: Rediscovering Passions

Drive With SOUL: A herd of Wild Beasts Tamed By Passionate Owners We were tribesmen first, bonding over a bonfire on starlit nights under open skies, dancing to the orchestra of wild brooks and collective laughter emerging from the deep bowels of Souls celebrating the bounties of mother earth.  Then we evolved and things got complicated, nations, religions, caste, community, and language all played a role to divide while we thought we are evolving as a species. No more. The baser instincts to belong to a tribe are back and we long to belong to a tribe that disenfranchises us [Continue Reading By Clicking Here…]

Jan 312015
 
February 2015 desi Calendar Wallpaper

    February 2015 Calendar: Tea Gardens of Munnar So as promised the wallpaper for February 2015 is here, this is one of my favorite pictures from my Kerala Blog Express trip, and clicked in Munnar. Here is a small story about this picture: We were all clicking the beautiful Tea Gardens of Munnar and some of us actually danced like in movies in the Tea Gardens of Munnar.  We were getting late to reach our hotel and so we had to cut short our  song and dance sequence and rush back to the bus. As I was about [Continue Reading By Clicking Here…]

Jan 262015
 
Fountains near India Gate- Slow Shutter Speed pictures in Night

Low Light Photography: Capturing Fountains in Lutyens’ Zone near India Gate When I visited India Gate while circling around the endless circles of Lutyens Delhi I saw some of the fountains illuminated for the coming 26th January Festivities. We decided to park on the side of road and I calculated the time the traffic signal was taking to change. It was about 120  seconds between the lights change. But as the traffic was coming from all four directions I typically had about 60 seconds to rush to the middle of road, set up the tripod, compose and click the [Continue Reading By Clicking Here…]

Jan 232015
 
26th January Parade Rajpath India Gate and President Obama Visiting India

India Gate – Parade on Rajpath and President Obama’s Visit  It is easy to get lost in Delhi whether you are in Old Delhi ki Galiyan  or circling around the power circles of Lutyens’ Delhi. The city loves to play pranks with you just look at it the biggest show of might of the democracy the 26th January Parade in Delhi marches on Rajpath or the path of the Royals. Did the naming pundits forgot that Democracy succeeded by trampling Raj under the callused feet of masses? And once the Raj fell like a pack of cards or should I say Humpty Dumpty, [Continue Reading By Clicking Here…]

Jan 212015
 
How I got my MBBS MD

desi Traveler gets his MBBS MD I did not start traveling with a reason, there was no guardian angel telling me that “Travel” it is my calling, no inner voice haunting me to leave everything, pickup a backpack, kick-start a bike and start traveling. It just happened, just like pimples in teenage, the most natural thing that can happen to you. So needless to say I get a bit puzzled when I am asked questions like why do you travel? What kind of traveler are you? What motivates you to travel etc?     And I never have any answer [Continue Reading By Clicking Here…]

Jan 192015
 
Golconda Fort and The Legend of Bhakta Ramadas

Golconda Fort & the Story of  Bhakta Ramadas &Tana Shah Every time I climb the stairs of the Golconda fort I discover something new or spend the time to understand and photograph something in more detail. I hope you have read my post about Kali Temple in Golconda Fort,  right next to the Royal Palace, if not please do read before moving further. So this last trip we spent some time in the prison room of Bhakta Ramdas, his name means a devotee of Lord Rama though his original name was Gopanna. The story of the prison is a combination [Continue Reading By Clicking Here…]