Life in a magic world

The agony and pain of being punished for a wrong reason is all through seen in the frames of the movie Sarabjit. The visualization of sequence of events happened in the life of a young peasant whose world remained in the quarters of the agricultural field and the village opened up to a new world of tortures of different kinds and sufferings in a jail in foreign land is just push your consciousness to discover several facts. The pain of being taken in the custody of police, the brutal and heart breaking tortures in isolated cell, lack of contacts to the outside world ; in reality- justice, the shock of the family and close family members, pain of being accused as a terrorist, inhuman behavior of the jailors, the opportunist behavior of politicians, strength of media, etc… The feeling of helpness of ordinary people is highly visible in the movie. It also highlights the inefficiency of international justice system which is limping with the rulers and monarchs in many countries and onl...

I sat near the river side, My eyes were fixed at n infinite point, Far ahead in the sky, Or other side of the river, Or at moving boats, My legs were wet with the soothing waves Waves touched my feet at with a gentle calmness, as if the river wants to say me something, to comfort me like my mother in childhood when I am stressed.. When the waves touched the pebbles in the river bank, It appeared like the song of a mother, who pampers the child to sleep, the floating diyas and its shivering lights reached me on and off seems it invites me to the lap of the mother Ganges, The low flying birds came frequently my side.. They want to comfort me with their nose diving skills… as if, the mother wish to show me the beauty of our surroundings… Forgetting everything about this world, It’s a perfect place of your thoughts to sleep Switch your mood to an elevated one… But it is the river Ganges give you the feeling of a careful mother, who is a...

Walking in the ghats present you Vivid pictures of life… The children of ganges are found everywhere… toddlers to oldies enjoy the life here… I had a long evening yesterday at ghats… My attention was grabbed by a small group of Kids playing a local game, when the toddler trying to move faster, but falls down, his elder sister come for the rescue there… there is rythem in their movements, forming small circles, speeding up and slowing down further ahead saw some kids sell tea at Harichandra Ghat, it’s a cremation ghat and the common scene is different preparing the dead bodies for cremation, somewhere the flames engulf the burning bodies, but children have no worries ….. they move around casually and serve the needy with water and other stuff strange to see both boys and girls here moving with their routine life in the samsan where even elders fear to go Further ahead, seeing a group of kids playing cricket, there are no boundaries here to...

Body, Soul and Universe  The colours of life.... The evening breeze embrace the ghats.. hot summer day ends its routine… the ghats gets active as the sun slowly disappears, pilgrims move in a rush to attend the arti, boatmen waiting for their turn at the ghats, a group of oldies started their evening games, couples move in search of a private place , children play cricket with lot of excitement… Here I am looking at the illuminated ghats.. LED lights shower bright light in the  ghats, Form an arc of lights connecting all the ghats together, Red flames appears in a rythemic move.. Its not from the regular electric lights or flickering camera flash the flames move with the dance of the wind Up and down at several times… Its aarti time and the prayers are on… As the chants progress, the pundits move the lamps in the  hands of the pandits draw a picture in the air with dancing flames.. The songs of the soul Little far ahead, ...

Looking at this picture... you may think he is a beggar oh no...... it is my own picture ... its my life after some years... In the silence of the night.. and the glittering light from the lamp post I think of my past and glorious life I felt days where under my feet and its all about matching pace with the speed of time Days and nights passed... my legs are feeble now, and the body is weak as well memories are faded and hard to identify the- figures and people come in front of eyes feel the hands and legs, a burden of the body... eyesight has been poor by this time and shaded images move ahead my eyes... The tree is my support and the the plat form is my support My hands may shiver, but mind is firm, my legs may fail to move as fast my youth hood but I know my present life is to remember my past....

Its a silent evening, The lamp poles shower bright light around the ghats, As the darkness grips slowly, there is nothing other than silence remains, Boats carrying pilgrims and tourists, The boatmen/guide explain the ghats and about the city, wide open eyes and flashing cameras which capture the ghats, temples and monuments. its fun to see the way foreign tourists see Kashi, and its interesting to know the devotion of pilgrims too what excites me more here is the hear the narration of boatman, who are the real brand ambassadors of this city. but, the occasional ringing of  temple bells, gives a rythemic flow, even the children loud the name of Lord Shiv and the air too whispers.....'Har Har Mahadev... nowhere you see this attachment to Mahadev... Its Kashi, its Kashi...  and it is my city

The city is a fascination for many.. I find it more interesting than just living in Kashi... An evening at the ghats, looking at the endless ghats.. and the steep steps leading to in-lanes  Got a wonderful experience today.. was stressful after a long hot day and the decision to walk on the ghats in the evening got me some new exposures of the city  started my walk at Dashashwamed Ghat today, moved further and saw a scene of feeding the destitute and poor people by a family near the Mir Ghat just proceeded further, reached Manikarnika Ghat... as usual, bodies merge with the nature back in the form of ashes Manikarnika kund still stands as the witness of time, Ratneshwar Temple, stands ahead with sign of the latest lightening effect. two small side elevations broken and fell down as the water level is pretty low, you can still view the Shivlinga inside  Further ahead, the Panchaganga Ghat, Aarti is just going on in the riversid...

It is one of the most prestigious places of India. The achievement of Government is visible in every inch or the sign of prosperity of India. Seeing the palatial design, One forget that he is in India. it is almost 2 am now., waiting for my next flight with sleepy eyes. People are sleeping in transit lounge in the first floor of the departure building. Some are coming, some are going to their check in counters. The FM radio of T3 echoes the old Hindi songs, Trolly bags moves with a burden of the weight on their back people are moving with a shadow of sleepy and tiring body it is 3.30 am now. my eyes are trying to get a relief, but my alarming body takes care of by baggage all of a sudden appears 3 young boys. making ready their counter. 4 or 5 young girls appear other side getting ready with their tasks now the counters are ready, alerting their clients to be in line Once the work is done for client, the staff sighs in relief, But another pax come to the...

Banaras -A City or Civilization. Sri Amitabh Bhattacharya  (Renowned journalist and scholar, Varanasi) Benaras - A city living through ages where other cities progress and thrive up on modernity, it stands as an example of enlightening oneself to the highest state of self actualisation. it is a city of detachment of desires or enable one to elevate once mind to state of desireless. It gives the meaning of life. Manikarnika Ghat and Harichandra Ghat tells the world about the ultimate meaning of human life where the human body again becomes part of the nature. It has a history, and it has a strong foundation. This foundation  is the cornerstone of the the richness of the pluralistic life and culture which survived the invasions of Mughals, British and at the same time it shown the world coexistence of faiths and religious tolerance. 27 religious identities live in Banaras in absolute harmony. The city is lives with Lord Shiv, the Ganga is the fluid form of Shiv...

Prof. Amreswar Galla Executive Director, International Institute for the Inclusive Museum Denmark, Australia and India As part of BHU Centenary Celebrations, the Department of History of Art, arranged a Special Lecture by Prof. Amreswar Galla in Annie Besant Hall, Faculty of Arts on 19.08.2015. The title of the lecture was Linking Tourism with World Heritage and Sustainable Development.  Key points  India: The land of unlimited opportunities. The approach of government exploring the possibilities of developing important cities in India through  National Heritage City Development and Augmentation Yojan a  (HRIDAY) and  Pilgrimage Rejuvenation and Spiritual Augmentation Drive ( PRASAD) scheme are examples of opening up the space for citizens and tourists as well. But the main question is  India prepared to take the advantage of the opportunities? Are we ready to take up the issues seriously to conserve the heritage of...

Scattered clouds all around the sky, The setting sun shower its golden rays, the slopes of mountain say bid adieu to the day. The journey ends here and the day ends here. but left the golden memories around, as the shades of darkness slowly grip the earth, memories also fade over time, but the mountain peaks, stand as the witness, of the passage  of time.

Lucky those live here.. a scene captured in camera during my trips (Himachal Pradesh)

Today is March 01, 2015 (Sunday). Time 5.30 a.m. location Assi Ghat There is mild breeze in the air. The ghats are still under the sleepy silence. People started coming to Assi Ghat to experience the Subah Banaras i.e Morning Banaras. With a slight change in the regular days, the Ghat is occupied by tourists as well as local people. An announcement is audible with a caution to take seats and keep silence. Its 5.45 a.m. The girl students from Panini Kany Vidyalayay, Varanasi, in yellow sarees are ready to chant the Sanskrit mantras in a rhythmic way. The panditjis who perform aarti is ready and is facing the river Ganges with folded hands. The silent air echoes the prayers and everyone is deep in the heights of spiritual sphere. After the end of the chants, the girls move to Yag ya area where they started the yagya while the morning aarti takes place. The sky is slowly clear now and the breeze is bit stronger. The fire in the yagya and the aarti both touch the minds and s...

Light to the world  A tribute to the tree and the God   an illuminated house 

The river flows silently, the horizon turns red to welcome sun... Subah Banaras, The day starts..  To catch the morning in to canvas 

  Some expectations of a philanthropist I am a frequent traveller in Indian Railways. Trips last for minimum 6 hours to maximum of 48 hours. Mainly in 3AC after joining BHU, and also worried of the comfort and safety. Some issues always turn my attention to dream for a better railway system. 1. Changing platforms int he last minute without proper information. Imagine a station like Mughal Sarai, where most of the crowd convert overbridges as platforms, and if there is no light or electricity in platforms.  If you are travelling with your family(elderly, women and children).  only way is to pull the chain.  2. Inside the train, don't expect any civility from co-passengers as well as the Linen staff or the pantry car vendor. ( I just dream that i may get my due space (berth/luggage space), or proper cash return on purchases of pantry car item) 3. Dont expect a clean lavatory(Toilet) or wash basin if its a long journey. sometimes you may find no water in ...