I had work in Jamnagar and so landed up in Rajkot on 26th Oct morning at 7 AM.
I took a car at Rajkot airport for the 2 hour journey to Jamnagar.The road was good and the weather was balmy at that hour in the morning.
The car driver ( Zakir) stopped for breakfast at a roadside eatery--- it wasn't 5-star, I can assure you that.The tea stall owner was frying fresh ghatias ( something like our ompudi).This a favourite breakfast dish in Kutch and is meant to be eaten with onion smeared with red chili powder and raw green chillies---- yes, you got it right--- raw green chillies. I said no, thank you to the green chillies and proceeded toeat the ghatia with the onion masala.Truly enjoyable and then I topped it off with a glass of tea.
One would normally associate Saurashtra with dryness but the landscape was very green.The menfolk in this area wear a particular kind of dress.The upper portion is like a kind of frock and the chudidar is very loose and baggy.Both garments are usually in spotless white.
The common mode of public transport is a motorized tricycle fitted with a Bullet engine.The sides are very colourfully painted and the vehicle vies for attention with the riotous coloured clothes of the womenfolk.
Dwarka is around 140 Km from Jamnagar and another common sight in the area is the groups of people trudging on the road to these pilgrim destinations.It's not that they can't afford to travel by vehicle but a way of penance.Travelling in company probably eases the hardship.And then there are the camel driven carts--- Jamnagar is as different from Chennai as chalk and cheese.
Regretfully, I couldn't make the trip to Dwarka this time but I'll probably do this in my next visit.
Jamnagar was a princely state and there are vestiges of the old buildings still in sight.
The roar of fighter planes overhead reminds me that there is an airbase nearby.Remember that Jamnagar is a mere 10 minutes away from Pakistan and there are plenty of assets to protect.
The work has been satisfactorily completed and I head back to Chennai tomorrow.The car driver reminds me that Jamnagar is home to exquisite bandhini sarees and dresses but I'm not adventurous enough to buy.
Meanwhile I had a relaxing time watching "Khoon Bhari Maang" and a couple of meaningless Vinod Khanna movies and lots of songs from old Hindi films.
Wednesday, October 27, 2010
Thursday, October 7, 2010
2 days in Bhopal---- 7th and 8th Oct 2010
Work has brought me to this lovely city of Bhopal. My colleagues and I arrived here on 7th Oct morning from Baroda by the Somnath Express.
We reached Bhopal by 9 AM and straightaway checked into Jehan Numa Palace Hotel which is situated on Shyamala Hills in Bhopal. We had to make a visit to Mandideep and were scheduled to leave the same evening for Mumbai.
I was actually feeling sorry that I would not be able to stay back and enjoy the lovely ambience of the hotel. As luck would have it, we were forced to defer our departure by a day and so I had the opportunity to explore this lovely place.
Jehan Numa Palace was built in 1890 by Gen. Obaidullah Khan,Commander-in -Chief of the Bhopal State Army and second son of Nawab Sultan Jehan Begum.The General died in 1924 and then the palace went through many occupancies before it was reclaimed and renovated by the grandsons of Gen.Obaidullah Khan in Sep 1983.
The hotel has many photographs of the late 1800s vintage as well as early 1900s and displays them proudly along with a display of weapons belonging to Gen Obaidullah Khan.
The structure is typically colonial with wide verandahs, cane chairs, trellissed doors etc etc.
The staff are extremely hospitable and rush to meet the whim of each guest.There is a general laidback atmosphere and one can put one's feet up and while away the day.
Definitely recommended for those wanting to de-stress and re-discover the meaning of life.
Bhopal is the capital of Madhya Pradesh and is accessible by air from Mumbai and New Delhi.
We reached Bhopal by 9 AM and straightaway checked into Jehan Numa Palace Hotel which is situated on Shyamala Hills in Bhopal. We had to make a visit to Mandideep and were scheduled to leave the same evening for Mumbai.
I was actually feeling sorry that I would not be able to stay back and enjoy the lovely ambience of the hotel. As luck would have it, we were forced to defer our departure by a day and so I had the opportunity to explore this lovely place.
Jehan Numa Palace was built in 1890 by Gen. Obaidullah Khan,Commander-in -Chief of the Bhopal State Army and second son of Nawab Sultan Jehan Begum.The General died in 1924 and then the palace went through many occupancies before it was reclaimed and renovated by the grandsons of Gen.Obaidullah Khan in Sep 1983.
The hotel has many photographs of the late 1800s vintage as well as early 1900s and displays them proudly along with a display of weapons belonging to Gen Obaidullah Khan.
The structure is typically colonial with wide verandahs, cane chairs, trellissed doors etc etc.
The staff are extremely hospitable and rush to meet the whim of each guest.There is a general laidback atmosphere and one can put one's feet up and while away the day.
Definitely recommended for those wanting to de-stress and re-discover the meaning of life.
Saturday, October 2, 2010
The Birth of Sandeep and later( 1981-1983)
The birth of my second child was due around Deepavali in 1981 and I decided to go to Jabalpur around that time.
Sudha's gynaecologist was Dr.Sarojini,a very old family friend of Sudha's parents.We celebrated Deepavali on 27th Oct and BVN's old friends, the Dwarkanaths had come from Nagpur to celebrate the occasion with us.
On 29th morning, Sudha developed labour pains and she was taken to hospital.There was a delay in the arrival of the doctor and she almost delivered right in the waiting room.
Anyway, everything went well and she delivered a healthy, bouncing 8lb baby boy at 9.15 AM.We were so sure that it would be a girl that it took some time for the fact to sink in that we had a second boy.
I reached the hospital around 12 Noon and there he was, cute and almost red all over.
My dad and mom got the news in KGF as they were about to leave KGF forever and settle down in Mysore.
Mrs.Dwarkanath was of great help during this time.
Finalizing a name for the child took all of 2 seconds.A son ( San) born on Deep(avali)day automatically became Sandeep.
OK, it wasn't actually Deepavali but Bhai Dhooj, it didn't matter.
The other notable event during that period was Sachin, Ravi and I going to see "Yaarana" starring Amitabh Bachchan and Amjad Khan. I had worn a particular coloured shirt for the movie and for a couple of years after that, Sachin referred to it as the Yaarana shirt whenever I wore it.
I returned to Madras soon after to resume my bachelor life. Dad and mom visited Jabalpur to see the child in Dec 1981.I remember mom mentioning that the child was trying to climb up her shoulder even when he was barely 2 months old.
I visited Mysore later in Dec 1981 and was happy to see my parents settling into their own home in Jayanagar Extension.
1982 dawned and this was the year of the Asian Games--- but a fairly momentous year for me.
Vasudha got married in Jan 1982 and I think Sudha missed this wedding.
Sudha returned to Madras with Sachin and Sandeep in Feb 1982.We were now in Teynampet in an independent house at the back of a main house.The owner was a Kannadiga, Dr.Srinivasan and the upstairs portion was occupied by Mr.Venkatachalam, his wife Meena and their two sons Mohan and Balaji.Mr.Venkatachalam was working in Best & Crompton Engineering.
Meena adopted Sandeep as soon as Sudha returned to Madras. He used to spend all his time in their house and called Meena "Amma".
March 1982 saw the first test for us as a family.The issue was school admission for Sachin.We had heard that DAV School at Gopalapuram,Madras was good and were determined that he would study only there.
The problem was that the admission was restricted to pupils whose parents were able to get an application form.
It was announced that applications would be distributed in Mar 1982 but the date was not announced.Sudha's brother Ravi was staying with us at that time and we took turns going to the school and waiting in a queue.The Principal ( Mr.Ram Kalia--- and a stricter disciplinarian I am yet to see) would come in the morning and say that applications would not be given that day and we would all disperse.
There were only 40 seats in LKG so the problem was to be among the first 40 in the queue.The queue started from 5 AM and slowly started going back to 4 AM, 3 AM and so on.By the 15th day, the queue started from 8 PM the previous day. Ravi was of great help to us during this time.
Finally, one day Mr.Ram Kalia announced that applications would be given and luckily we were among the first 40.
Nanjunda got married in Jun 1982 in Mysore and we attended the wedding.
In July 1982, my boss Mr.N.P.Shah who was the Branch Manager of Akay Industries resigned to start his own business. This was also the time when the office lease at Casa Major Road in Egmore had expired and we had to start looking for a new place.
Mr.Dewnany, a senior person from Administration in Bombay, came down to Madras and we finalized new premises at Hardevi Chambers in Pantheon Road at Egmore, not more than 500 metres away.
Around the same time, Sudha's brother Vinod was engaged to be married to Veena whose parents were also in Nagpur.The alliance was finalized thru the Dwarkanaths who knew both the families well.The wedding was finalized for Oct 29th, 1982---- Sandeep's first birthday.
Another significant event that took place was our Office Sales Conference in Lonavala in Sep 1982. My colleague Verghese and I attended and the employees from Hubli came by us with their families.We were put up at the Faryas Resort and had a lovely time. The icing on the cake was the China Silk saree that was presented to each spouse.Sudha got a nice purple one and liked it immensely.
Around this time, I had also enrolled for a Post Graduate Course in Marketing at the University of Madras and had to attend evening classes for 3 days in a week.
With Mr.Shah's resignation, I was made acting head of the Madras Branch and the office car ( an Ambassador) was given to me.
My parents in-law had shifted to Nowgong in Bundelkand region of Madhya Pradesh in early 1982 and BVN's driver Shiraz had taught me driving in BVN's office Jeep when I had gone there in May 1982.Therefore, I had no problems driving the car.I remember that our first car trip was from Teynampet to West Mambalam to visit our good friends Kiran Kumar and Shantha.
We shifted to the new Office during a weekend in Oct 1982 and this was my first test of leadership.We closed at the old office on a Friday and the shifting was done over the weekend and we were back in business at the new office on Monday.We had also managed to get our office phone connection on Saturday---- no mean feat considering that Telephones was still a Government monopoly at that time.
Oct 18th ( Mon) was when Veena together with her sister Nalini and her parents were passing thru Madras on their way to Bangalore for the wedding.It was raining very heavily but Sudha and I were there to receive them at the station and with food packets.
Soon after, we all went to Bangalore for Vinod's wedding.It was a nice affair, made doubly memorable with Sandeep's first birthday.
The boys were growing up nicely.No trouble ( at least that's how it appears to us now).
The Asian Games came up in New Delhi in Nov 1982 and saw the advent of colour television.
Sachin was going to school regularly now.I would drop him off in the morning and Sudha would pick him up in her TVS 50 moped which we bought in Sep 1982.
Sandhya delivered her first child ( a son ) in Mysore.Sunil was born on Feb 13th.Ravi had also bought his flat in South End Apartments and the Grihapravesha was held in Apr 1983.
I drove down to Mysore in the Ambassador ( my first outstation trip) and brought my parents and Sandhya and Sunil to Bangalore for the grihapravesha
I took Sachin on his first airplane trip to Bangalore in Aug 1983.I left him at Bangalore, went to Hubli on official work and then came back with Sachin in Brindavan Express.I remember getting Sachin some comics to read and he was immersed in reading about Kalia the Crow, Doob Doob the Crocodile, Chamataka the Fox etc etc.
My Doddappa A.C.Kanteeravaswamy passed away in Sep 1983.He was ill for a couple of months . He and Kamala Doddamma were childless but they loved children and had an open house for visitors.Dad was in Mysore at that time and I had to speak to his neighbour and ask him to convey the news to my dad so that he could rush to Bangalore for the cremation. Communication was a major problem in those days.
Our company was participating in the ChemAsia Exhibition in Singapore in Dec 1983 and I was chosen by my company to go along with two other colleagues.
I was pretty excited since this was to be my first overseas trip.I was given Rs.7500 and told to get a suit stitched and also buy some more new clothes.
I left for Bombay on 2nd Dec and we all flew out from Bombay to Singapore on 4th Dec night.At Bombay, my MD gave each of us US $750 for our expenses.We landed in Singapore on 5th Dec 1983 ( it was my parents' 35th wedding anniversary).
Singapore was like a wonder land and we were just gaping at the sights. We stayed in a house of one of my colleagues' friends.Next day, we went to the World Trade Centre where the Exhibition was to be held.We got our exhibits unpacked and set up our stall.
In the meantime, my colleague Sharma and I decided to go to Bangkok and come back after the exhibition and so we booked our tickets.We were booked to return from Singapore to Bombay on 17th Dec but our return ticket was not confirmed.
The exhibition was for 4 days and was a great learning experience.In the evenings, we went to all the malls---- Scotts, Far East, Takashimaya, C K Tangs, Centre Point, Yaohawn's--- we went to all of them.
I bought a Minolta camera ( which is still with me), a transistor cum tape recorder ( the ubuquitious 2 in 1), a watch for Sudha,another bracelet, sarees for mom and Sudha and shirts and shaving accessories for the gents. A toy train for Sachin and lots of clothes for both the kids. I also bought a lot of English music cassettes, a suitcase etc.
During those days, none of these articles were available freely in India.Of course, things are vastly different now.
We also went to Sentosa Island, the Haw Par Villa, Japan Garden, China Garden etc.
Singapore has always been one of my favourite destinations outside of India and its charm is evergreen.
We were told to stay in Patpong area in Bangkok and had no idea that this was a very notorious area.Barely 5 minutes after we checked into the hotel, one of the waiters appeared and asked " You want girl?" We said no. He said " Oh, you want boy?". It was taken for granted that we were visited Bangkok only for naughty purposes.
We made a one day visit to Pattaya and saw an interesting " show".
We returned to Singapore but found that our Bombay ticket was still not confirmed.
Meanwhile, the date of departure was drawing nearer and we were almost in a panic.On the 17th , we were told to try our luck in the Airport.We were really worried and didn't know what we would do if the ticket was not confirmed.Our money was running out and those were the days before international credit cards.
We went to the check-in counter and waited and waited. All the confirmed passengers were cleared and then the names of waitlisted passengers were called. The time of departure was nearing and we had lost hope.I started reciting the Gayatri Mantra. At last they called "Prasad and Sharma". We put our hands up, checked in and sprinted to the departure gate.
We landed in Bombay next day morning and then I caught the evening flight to Madras. My dad and mom were very proud that I had made a foreign trip and had come to the airport with a garland.
A couple of days later, I got a call from my Bombay office asking how much duty I had paid in Bombay airport. I said Rs.2000. A couple of days later I got an envelope containing Rs.2000.
That's it for now. My next blog will cover 1984 and later.
Sudha's gynaecologist was Dr.Sarojini,a very old family friend of Sudha's parents.We celebrated Deepavali on 27th Oct and BVN's old friends, the Dwarkanaths had come from Nagpur to celebrate the occasion with us.
On 29th morning, Sudha developed labour pains and she was taken to hospital.There was a delay in the arrival of the doctor and she almost delivered right in the waiting room.
Anyway, everything went well and she delivered a healthy, bouncing 8lb baby boy at 9.15 AM.We were so sure that it would be a girl that it took some time for the fact to sink in that we had a second boy.
I reached the hospital around 12 Noon and there he was, cute and almost red all over.
My dad and mom got the news in KGF as they were about to leave KGF forever and settle down in Mysore.
Mrs.Dwarkanath was of great help during this time.
Finalizing a name for the child took all of 2 seconds.A son ( San) born on Deep(avali)day automatically became Sandeep.
OK, it wasn't actually Deepavali but Bhai Dhooj, it didn't matter.
The other notable event during that period was Sachin, Ravi and I going to see "Yaarana" starring Amitabh Bachchan and Amjad Khan. I had worn a particular coloured shirt for the movie and for a couple of years after that, Sachin referred to it as the Yaarana shirt whenever I wore it.
I returned to Madras soon after to resume my bachelor life. Dad and mom visited Jabalpur to see the child in Dec 1981.I remember mom mentioning that the child was trying to climb up her shoulder even when he was barely 2 months old.
I visited Mysore later in Dec 1981 and was happy to see my parents settling into their own home in Jayanagar Extension.
1982 dawned and this was the year of the Asian Games--- but a fairly momentous year for me.
Vasudha got married in Jan 1982 and I think Sudha missed this wedding.
Sudha returned to Madras with Sachin and Sandeep in Feb 1982.We were now in Teynampet in an independent house at the back of a main house.The owner was a Kannadiga, Dr.Srinivasan and the upstairs portion was occupied by Mr.Venkatachalam, his wife Meena and their two sons Mohan and Balaji.Mr.Venkatachalam was working in Best & Crompton Engineering.
Meena adopted Sandeep as soon as Sudha returned to Madras. He used to spend all his time in their house and called Meena "Amma".
March 1982 saw the first test for us as a family.The issue was school admission for Sachin.We had heard that DAV School at Gopalapuram,Madras was good and were determined that he would study only there.
The problem was that the admission was restricted to pupils whose parents were able to get an application form.
It was announced that applications would be distributed in Mar 1982 but the date was not announced.Sudha's brother Ravi was staying with us at that time and we took turns going to the school and waiting in a queue.The Principal ( Mr.Ram Kalia--- and a stricter disciplinarian I am yet to see) would come in the morning and say that applications would not be given that day and we would all disperse.
There were only 40 seats in LKG so the problem was to be among the first 40 in the queue.The queue started from 5 AM and slowly started going back to 4 AM, 3 AM and so on.By the 15th day, the queue started from 8 PM the previous day. Ravi was of great help to us during this time.
Finally, one day Mr.Ram Kalia announced that applications would be given and luckily we were among the first 40.
Nanjunda got married in Jun 1982 in Mysore and we attended the wedding.
In July 1982, my boss Mr.N.P.Shah who was the Branch Manager of Akay Industries resigned to start his own business. This was also the time when the office lease at Casa Major Road in Egmore had expired and we had to start looking for a new place.
Mr.Dewnany, a senior person from Administration in Bombay, came down to Madras and we finalized new premises at Hardevi Chambers in Pantheon Road at Egmore, not more than 500 metres away.
Around the same time, Sudha's brother Vinod was engaged to be married to Veena whose parents were also in Nagpur.The alliance was finalized thru the Dwarkanaths who knew both the families well.The wedding was finalized for Oct 29th, 1982---- Sandeep's first birthday.
Another significant event that took place was our Office Sales Conference in Lonavala in Sep 1982. My colleague Verghese and I attended and the employees from Hubli came by us with their families.We were put up at the Faryas Resort and had a lovely time. The icing on the cake was the China Silk saree that was presented to each spouse.Sudha got a nice purple one and liked it immensely.
Around this time, I had also enrolled for a Post Graduate Course in Marketing at the University of Madras and had to attend evening classes for 3 days in a week.
With Mr.Shah's resignation, I was made acting head of the Madras Branch and the office car ( an Ambassador) was given to me.
My parents in-law had shifted to Nowgong in Bundelkand region of Madhya Pradesh in early 1982 and BVN's driver Shiraz had taught me driving in BVN's office Jeep when I had gone there in May 1982.Therefore, I had no problems driving the car.I remember that our first car trip was from Teynampet to West Mambalam to visit our good friends Kiran Kumar and Shantha.
We shifted to the new Office during a weekend in Oct 1982 and this was my first test of leadership.We closed at the old office on a Friday and the shifting was done over the weekend and we were back in business at the new office on Monday.We had also managed to get our office phone connection on Saturday---- no mean feat considering that Telephones was still a Government monopoly at that time.
Oct 18th ( Mon) was when Veena together with her sister Nalini and her parents were passing thru Madras on their way to Bangalore for the wedding.It was raining very heavily but Sudha and I were there to receive them at the station and with food packets.
Soon after, we all went to Bangalore for Vinod's wedding.It was a nice affair, made doubly memorable with Sandeep's first birthday.
The boys were growing up nicely.No trouble ( at least that's how it appears to us now).
The Asian Games came up in New Delhi in Nov 1982 and saw the advent of colour television.
Sachin was going to school regularly now.I would drop him off in the morning and Sudha would pick him up in her TVS 50 moped which we bought in Sep 1982.
Sandhya delivered her first child ( a son ) in Mysore.Sunil was born on Feb 13th.Ravi had also bought his flat in South End Apartments and the Grihapravesha was held in Apr 1983.
I drove down to Mysore in the Ambassador ( my first outstation trip) and brought my parents and Sandhya and Sunil to Bangalore for the grihapravesha
I took Sachin on his first airplane trip to Bangalore in Aug 1983.I left him at Bangalore, went to Hubli on official work and then came back with Sachin in Brindavan Express.I remember getting Sachin some comics to read and he was immersed in reading about Kalia the Crow, Doob Doob the Crocodile, Chamataka the Fox etc etc.
My Doddappa A.C.Kanteeravaswamy passed away in Sep 1983.He was ill for a couple of months . He and Kamala Doddamma were childless but they loved children and had an open house for visitors.Dad was in Mysore at that time and I had to speak to his neighbour and ask him to convey the news to my dad so that he could rush to Bangalore for the cremation. Communication was a major problem in those days.
Our company was participating in the ChemAsia Exhibition in Singapore in Dec 1983 and I was chosen by my company to go along with two other colleagues.
I was pretty excited since this was to be my first overseas trip.I was given Rs.7500 and told to get a suit stitched and also buy some more new clothes.
I left for Bombay on 2nd Dec and we all flew out from Bombay to Singapore on 4th Dec night.At Bombay, my MD gave each of us US $750 for our expenses.We landed in Singapore on 5th Dec 1983 ( it was my parents' 35th wedding anniversary).
Singapore was like a wonder land and we were just gaping at the sights. We stayed in a house of one of my colleagues' friends.Next day, we went to the World Trade Centre where the Exhibition was to be held.We got our exhibits unpacked and set up our stall.
In the meantime, my colleague Sharma and I decided to go to Bangkok and come back after the exhibition and so we booked our tickets.We were booked to return from Singapore to Bombay on 17th Dec but our return ticket was not confirmed.
The exhibition was for 4 days and was a great learning experience.In the evenings, we went to all the malls---- Scotts, Far East, Takashimaya, C K Tangs, Centre Point, Yaohawn's--- we went to all of them.
I bought a Minolta camera ( which is still with me), a transistor cum tape recorder ( the ubuquitious 2 in 1), a watch for Sudha,another bracelet, sarees for mom and Sudha and shirts and shaving accessories for the gents. A toy train for Sachin and lots of clothes for both the kids. I also bought a lot of English music cassettes, a suitcase etc.
During those days, none of these articles were available freely in India.Of course, things are vastly different now.
We also went to Sentosa Island, the Haw Par Villa, Japan Garden, China Garden etc.
Singapore has always been one of my favourite destinations outside of India and its charm is evergreen.
We were told to stay in Patpong area in Bangkok and had no idea that this was a very notorious area.Barely 5 minutes after we checked into the hotel, one of the waiters appeared and asked " You want girl?" We said no. He said " Oh, you want boy?". It was taken for granted that we were visited Bangkok only for naughty purposes.
We made a one day visit to Pattaya and saw an interesting " show".
We returned to Singapore but found that our Bombay ticket was still not confirmed.
Meanwhile, the date of departure was drawing nearer and we were almost in a panic.On the 17th , we were told to try our luck in the Airport.We were really worried and didn't know what we would do if the ticket was not confirmed.Our money was running out and those were the days before international credit cards.
We went to the check-in counter and waited and waited. All the confirmed passengers were cleared and then the names of waitlisted passengers were called. The time of departure was nearing and we had lost hope.I started reciting the Gayatri Mantra. At last they called "Prasad and Sharma". We put our hands up, checked in and sprinted to the departure gate.
We landed in Bombay next day morning and then I caught the evening flight to Madras. My dad and mom were very proud that I had made a foreign trip and had come to the airport with a garland.
A couple of days later, I got a call from my Bombay office asking how much duty I had paid in Bombay airport. I said Rs.2000. A couple of days later I got an envelope containing Rs.2000.
That's it for now. My next blog will cover 1984 and later.
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