Back in 2017, over a glass of delicious home-brewed rice wine in Nagaland a friend had thrown the words ‘Dambuk Orange Festival’ at me. I was intrigued; Dambuk sounded exotic and the fact that it was an adventure and music festival held in the midst of orange orchards felt too good to be true! About…
In Lake Country : Tawang to Bumla & Shungatser Lake
It was a freezing cold morning in Tawang; and we were supposed to go to Bumla. We had a reasonably late night at the Tawang Festival. It was the end of October and night temperatures in Tawang were already hovering in the negative. On top of the cold, the local alcohol that we all had…
The Charms of Ranikhet : A Handy Travel Guide
It had been an uncharacteristically indecisive day on the road. I was somewhere in the middle of my long summer in Kumaon and had randomly landed in Ranikhet. After wandering to an ancient temple and water source in Someshwar, I’d hopped into a shared taxi to Ranikhet with no plan at all. It was that…
Offbeat Museums with Cultural Treasures across India
When I am travelling to an offbeat ; I always make it a point to check out if there’s a state museum around. Usually state museums are located in capital cities and they make the best places for an introduction to a state’s culture for travellers like me. Over the course of my journeys across…
Favourite Cafés & Restaurants in Delhi
Over the years, Delhi has been a transit stop on many of my journeys across India and elsewhere. I’ve had the opportunity of sampling all kinds of cuisine in Delhi ranging from street food in Old Delhi to the boutique cafés of hep Gurgaon. Yes, you sure want to eat good food when you come…
Alternative Living in Kasar Devi, Almora
In hindsight, I can say it must have been a fortuitous moment when I revisited Kasar Devi near Almora. It was the long Holi weekend in March 2018 and the trip had began with great difficulty from Delhi. It is a well known fact that migrating workers from across India go back home for celebrating…
Tribes of Nagaland – Hornbill Festival
As briefly mentioned in the earlier photo story; the Hornbill Festival near Kohima in Nagaland is a great place to have a glimpse of the different tribes of Nagaland in their traditional attire. Names of the various tribes of Nagaland are : Ao, Angami, Chakhesang, Chang, Kachari, Khiamniungan, Lotha, Konyak, Kuki, Phom, Rengma, Sangtam, Sumi, Pochury,…
Photo Stories from Hornbill Festival, Nagaland
I’d sipped a glass of delicious rice wine in someone’s home in Guwahati and had instantly made up my mind to go and attend Hornbill Festival. You see; the wine had been procured in Hornbill Festival near Kohima in Nagaland. That was the tipping point. I am rarely excited by the idea of bucket lists…
Champaner Pavagadh UNESCO World Heritage Site : A Memoir
I was lounging around in the lush green lawn in front of Laxmi Vilas Palace, feeling a bit down since DSLR photography of the exteriors was not allowed. I had an instant thought of going Live on both Facebook and Instagram. It was a memorable Live video where I didn’t have to bother about the…
Champaner Pavagadh Archaeological Park – In Pictures
On a heritage project for an assignment in and around Vadodara in Gujarat; the UNESCO World Heritage site of Champaner Pavagadh was high priority for me. And it did not disappoint; I spent an entire day savouring the Islamic architecture of the 15th Century town of Champaner and even older temples of Pavagadh. While the…
Vadodara : A Travel Guide For Must Visit Attractions
My assignment covering heritage in Gujarat came unannounced. I had the choice of either a car with a driver and guide (and lesser pay) or exploring in my own style (and higher pay!). Of course, I chose the latter. I arrived at Ahmedabad airport with a slight delay and immediately decided to head to Baroda…
Pang Lhabsol Festival in Gangtok, Sikkim
The rapturous crowd had just been silenced. The warrior looked fierce and scary in the red mask ringed by five human skulls; he twisted and twirled as he danced. My hair stood on end in anticipation; there was pin drop silence even amid the chaos around. I instantly knew I was witnessing something special while…