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February 19, 2012

Faces - Part 1

If playing one flute wasn't hard enough, this guy plays 2 with his nose. Pretty cool, Eh ?




A man dressed as Dushasana from Mahabharata, an Indian mythological story.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dushasana

A Hawaldar from the Mumbai Police. We Mumbaites call them 'Pandu'/'Mammu'. These guys are probably one of the hardest working people in the city. Respect.


A few faces from the recently concluded Kalaghoda fest at Mumbai. This is Part 1 of a new series which includes my new found interest in Portrait photography. 

February 7, 2012

Travelogue - Part 3

The lighthouse at Fort Aguada,  Goa. The fort was constructed in 1612 to guard against the Dutch and the Marathas. It served as a reference point for vessels coming in from Europe at that time.


Just for fun. With the B&W infrared filter, this small scooter looks quite awesome. In Goa, these are available for rent to make transportation easy.

Future Beckham ? Nope, Just Chuck Testa :P

A few friends, on a small beach near Calangute, Goa.

This is the 2nd and last series of my last year`s trip to Goa. All of these photos have been touched up using Adobe Lightroom which I have recently started using. The originals are just as awesome, but the presets give them an all new dimension. :)

February 1, 2012

Travelogue - Part 2

Arambol beach, Goa.


Missed the Sun by around 30 minutes. Would've been a perfect picture of the Sun, Moon & Venus.


Calangute beach, Goa.


Arambol beach, Goa.

Arambol beach, Goa.



January 11, 2012

Travelogue - Part 1

The  rock formation seen in the background  forms the peak of Mt.Kalsubai, Maharashtra. This photo was taken after a long trek climbing up to an altitude of  approx 5400 feet.
 
A fishing village north of Mumbai celebrates the onset of Narali Purnima. The festival marks the advent of  the new fishing season and fishermen appease the sea-god before sailing out in their decorated boats.
 
As the sun sets over Venna Lake, Mahableshwar.


Gorai Jetty, Mumbai.

Indian Railways, frozen in time.
Apologies for the grainy-ness, this was taken from my 2 MP mobile camera. 

Pratapgadh Fort in all its glory near Mahableshwar, Maharashtra. This fort has quite a history.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Afzal_Khan_(general)

These were only some of the ones that i had clicked in the past few months. Many more travelogues to come. :)

PS: All rights reserved. Do not copy these images for commercial purposes please. I am not a big fan of watermarks if you noticed. :P

December 29, 2011

Trekking Kalsubai


The place: Kalsubai is the highest peak in Maharashtra located about ~40 km from Igaptpuri. It stands tall at approximately 5400 feet behind a small village called Bari from where most trekkers start climbing. Though quite famous, it may still take an effort to find the village if you are the only people on the road.


Reaching Bari: The village is located about ~10km from Bandhardara and 30-40 km from NH3. You need get off the highway immediately after paying toll at Igatpuri. From there go through Ghoti and get on the road towards Bhandardara. The road from there on is a bit confusing if you dont have Google maps (like we had) or someone to tell you the way.

How we did it: We started from Mumbai at 11pm and reached Bari at about 4:30am. Reaching Bari by car was easy, though a bit of help was required from drunk truck drivers and ofcourse, Google Maps. The same cannot be said if you are travelling by ST buses. We didn't come across any on our whole journey.

We chilled at Bari for an hour or so and started climbing at 6 in the morning. It was still dark but the moon gave us enough light to move ahead. It is a surreal experience to trek under moon light. Everything appears as if you are viewing it in a mix of infrared light and fake HDR. Photography enthusiasts will know what HDR is.

About 200 feet up the mountain, you will reach a small open area. This place provides an excellent place to click photos as the sun rises over the mountains.


Sunrise from Bari
You will cross 2 single huts before the actual climbs begins. After that its almost a straight climb to the top. There are many stair cases on the way which make your climbing up a bit easier. A note of caution though, these stairs might be slippery in the rains and it is advisable that 2-3 people be on them at one time. They might be sturdy but certainly dont look like they are. :p

One of the many staircases

Looking behind (facing North)


As you climb up you can see many other peaks behind you. About 500 feet from the peak, there is a tea stall and natural well which provides much needed refreshments. This well is supposed to, according to legend, have 3 feet of potable water at all times. The water is chilled and looks clean, but personally I wouldn't advise anyone to drink from it since dogs and cattle mostly get their water from this well.

From here on, the peak is about 30 minutes away. You climb up the last ladder which takes you right at the top. We reached the peak at 11:30am. The view from up here is unbelievable. On a clear day,  you will be able to see Bandhardara backwaters in all their glory.  There is a rock behind the temple which juts out  from the sheer cliff. If you were ever to fall down from this rock, there would be nothing to stop your fall till you reach a small plateau about 3000 feet down.



We rested on the peak for an hour or so and then made our way back. Climbing down was fairly easy, though it was slippery in quite a few places. We reached  base by 3:30pm and rested in the village for a while before heading back to Bombay.

Total climbing time: ~4 hours

Total descending time: ~2 hours

Things to carry: Torches(if you are trekking at night), enough warm clothes, sufficient water and fruits. Travel light as the trek is long and tiring. Even when you feel you are there, you will still have some more trekking to do before you reach the actual summit.