Philosophy with Muaazam

May 30, 2018

Kyrgyzstan is a relatively quiet country and not very densely populated. The main town of Bishkek mostly has all the amenities that a capital city should have like airport, malls, eateries, hotels, transportation, taxi, salons and bars. The town is a maze of lanes running across each other. You can find gardens and greenery all around the city. Muaazam Bhat was my roommate in Olive as I slept with him during the shoot. A fellow Kashmiri, Muaazam was a devout Muslim and many times, I had to wait outside the room when he would be praying to Allah and performing the Namaz. This Kashmiri had a thick brown beard and a lean body. He was as tall as me I suppose and enjoyed eating fruits and dates during the day.

I went around the city bookshops and malls taking videos with my GoPro. Because of no shooting and delays, we overslept most days. It was very hot in the afternoon to venture out of our AC rooms. There was an expression of peace on Muaazam’s face all the time. He was at peace with himself and had a calm slow purposeful walk. I gifted him a free copy of my book but it was not until the very last night before pickup that we got embroiled in some heavy conversation about life, philosophy and faith.

Being a Muslim, he had his views about sex, marrying four wives and the search of truth within. He sure looked like a man who had tasted the inner reaches through meditation, Sadhana and prayer. I am sure he went into trances while performing the Namaz.

“Tho aap ne zindegi mein kya sikha?” He asked me as I lay on the sofa in the lobby of the hotel. “Very easy. Everything in this world is transient. What you have today, you will not tomorrow and the same goes for your relationships. There is nothing like success and failures. They are both imposters.” I gave him a piece of my mind.

We knew that it was our last night in the city together. It is then that I told him about the tragedy of my life and the demise of my father. Bhat was stunned but then smiled, “You are one tough nut, my brother. You can teach us a lot through such a deeply personal experience.” He understood the evangelist hidden within me and the spirit with which I wanted to travel the world spreading love, wisdom, peace and joy to every human being. There, I made my global vision and the vision of my Travelthon clear to my roommate. “I have tasted the inner riches through mediation and renunciation of material death and things. I have done the inner journey and have been lost in its energies, light and wisdom. I have known it very closely but the end of that path is only Moksha or Nirvana when the mind and body drop and the soul is released into the universal consciousness or essence.”

I explained to him in great detail about my love for OSHO and the various chakras I was able to arise while doing his meditation and how I would laugh for hours after doing the Nathbhram meditation in particular. Muaazam and I finally connected that night as I had to be awake to catch my flight to the airport before dawn. “I will read your book. Have you written all the things you just spoke about in the book?” He was indeed excited about the content of my book. I just shook my head and said “Yes”. Then I walked out of the room towards my waiting taxi.

By adminin Kyrgyzstan, others

Babrik and Bacha Bazi

May 29, 2018

As I walked out on the steps of our hotel Olive, I was greeted by a 6 foot 4 inch tall Pathan by the name of Babrik. He was from Afghanistan but due to the dire circumstances of the country, he had fled to Sweden 20 years back. This was an Afghan with a jet-black beard.

I greeted him and gave him a free copy of my book Survival which I had been distributing to people throughout the shoot. “Tell me, Babrik. Why do you have this tradition of Bacha Bazi in Afghanistan? I mean, you guys make the kids dance and then even have sex with them. Don’t you think it is wrong?” I asked him inquisitively. “Well, you see, young men are not allowed to talk to girls or interact with them. If they do, they will be beaten by the girl’s family or even killed. Parents arrange marriages and we are expected to fall in love after marriage. This had led to the suppression of sex and has resulted in the act of Bacha Bazi. It is our tradition so we cannot say it is wrong.” He tried to explain with a straight face.

So it was a tradition, I was told. Islam does have its divines when it comes to sexual practices. Apart from fondling kids, there are also rules on how to have sex with your wife and what the appropriate sex positions are that one can use while doing the act. You can’t have anal sex or go doggy style with your spouse nor can you have sex with her by putting her on top. The right position is to screw your woman sideways as both of you lie together on the bed. One can have four wives but one can only keep a wife after the first wife is agreeable. Now that must be difficult. I can see that no woman would allow her husband to marry again and again, but the Quran allows it.

Oral sex is looked down upon and sex only for procreation is encouraged as Babrik explained the quirks of the Islamic faith. “Well, I like the way you guys pray five times and use it to meditate. The inward journey can be very sweet and rewarding. The kinds of energies one can tap into when one radiates and goes inwards. They used to radiate out of me like vibrations at times.” I got excited as I tried to tell my Afghani Friend about OSHO’s Nathbhram meditation and about the riches of the inward journey.

“My brother is the minister of social media and communications in Afghanistan. I go there every year to be with my people and live in the villages.” He got nostalgic as he spoke about his motherland. “But is it safe? I hope there are no beheadings.” I jerked up and asked him. “No, no, it is safe. Kabul is a big city with its own police and institutions. Nowadays, every country has some terrorist activity. So you should not believe everything you see on TV.” He tried to explain.

I guess if I am booking a ticket to Afghanistan, Babrik and my other Afghani friends will be my ticket to the land of Kabuliwala and Khajoor. Not to mention the fine taste of Afghani charas that grows wild in this land. “It is so soft, the charas you can just pull. It is like brown tar. Oh, one puff and Masha Allah, Masha Allah.”

By adminin Kyrgyzstan, others, Torbaaz

Liza and Her Orange Hijab – Torbaaz Behind the Scenes

May 28, 2018

The women were the most fascinating of the lot in this part of the world. They were fair with Persian features. Some had rounded Mongolian eyes and high cheekbones. In the midst of the Torbaaz shoot, I spotted Liza, a local girl wearing a bright orange silken hijab covered from head to toe. She looked wonderful and her fair pink cheeks glowed in the sun. I took a few pictures of her with close-ups as she posed for me with a smile.

There was pandemonium on the cricket ground as kids from either team played the game while they were being shot by almost 6 cameras that were placed strategically around the ground. The ground would be abuzz with activity as the theme music of the film would play and the crowd would go berserk with joy. On one side was a rock band with a drum kit and saxophone. On cue, they would start performing as the maddening crowd would rush towards them and start dancing for joy.

The entire shoot was a rush of blood for me as I ran from one end of the cricket field to the other with drones flying overhead. A team of three different cameras circled us from either side. Just to add a tad bit of masala to the proceedings, bombs would blow off from the edge of the film and terrorists from Afghanistan would open fire on the crowd. I almost lost my turban as I tried to make way from the stampede that took place. It was all fun and mayhem in the middle of the film as the cameramen circled us taking long and close shots. I tried my best to be in front and am sure that I must have made it in some of the shots.

As if on cue, Dutt would come into the crowd and pull out the stumps. The kids would hug him and he would wave his fists in the air dancing with joy as team Torbaaz enacted the winning scenes.

Food was another activity that I indulged in. Lunch was chicken, rice and dal. At times, Chinese fried rice and chicken Manchurian were also served to us. Evenings used to be typical with meals, fruits, dates and juices. There was always coffee and tea breaks where biscuits, buns and pizzas were served to the crowd who patiently waited to perform to the director’s tune.

Local kids dressed in Pathan suits and colourful turbans took photos as Sanjay Dutt walked in and out of his scenes. He looked apart as he waited for the director to tell him the sequence of his shots. I managed to grab a conversation or two with the locals who were part of the crowd. They were some Mongol tribes who had come to Bishkesh from Northern Pakistan.

The evening sunset would create an orange and purple hue on top of the silver foiled snow mountains that surrounded our city. We had a clear view of this breath-taking view of the mountains from the ground. By the end of the evening, my feet began to ache with all the running and activity of the shoot and I decided to head for my tent where I could do a costume change and hand over my get up to the makeup artist. I think I managed to capture the essence of ‘behind the scenes’ activity of this majestic Bollywood film.

By adminin Kyrgyzstan, others, Torbaaz

Torbaaz in the Land of Kyrgyzstan

May 28, 2018

I had taken a direct flight from Delhi to the capital of Kyrgyzstan called Bishkek. The flight was comfortable. We had a pick up from the airport to the hotel called Olive. I, in my state of absent-mindedness, lost my passport on the conveyer belt while we were checking out of the security area of the airport. So, I had to make an abrupt U-turn to fetch it back as I only realised this when I had reached our hotel. Yes, indeed, this was a large gathering of a Bollywood crew to shoot the Sanjay Dutt starrer Torbaaz.

Next three days went by quickly in the hotel as my shots kept getting delayed. I did, however, manage to take a tour of the city and visit the local malls, shopping stores and bookshops. With my GoPro in hand, now also equipped with a mouthpiece, I shot the city of Bishkek.

The city is surrounded by snow peaked mountains. In the midst of it all was our rugged cricket field where a match was to be played. I played the commentator in the match. This is a country populated with Mongols, Turkish Muslims and Russians. The currency of the county is Som. The official languages are Kyrgyz and Russian. People here have a mixed aryan and oriental look. It has ancient cultures dating back to 2,000 years. Kyrgyzstan was also part of the silk route. I had a lot of fellow actors here from Afghanistan as the film is based in Afghanistan. It is about the tussle between the Taliban and Sanjay Dutt who wants to bring about change through his cricket academy.

I got my chance to meet the legendary Khal Nayak and even managed to give him my book Survival as a gift, but alas, I did not get a snap with him. Nonetheless, I enjoyed the shoot, the running on the field and the pandemonium as the bombs exploded in the background. These scenes were shot with drones and a lot of aerial footage was collected.

The schedule was good. We had a pick up in the morning by 10 am and we would shoot till 8:30 pm before we headed for dinner.I even got the attention of a few Afghani chicks who were worried that I had captured them inappropriately through my camera and GoPro. I was able to calm them down and tell them I am a humble travel blogger and do this for a living.

Here, the afternoons are very hot but the evenings turn cold. One needs a jacket as the sky turns orange and the night holds sway. My best discovery was a packet of Sobranie which I managed to buy from a store – gold tip Sobranie cigarette with a brown cover. Man, this was the smokes of the kings and only the best could afford these. I loved smoking them and flashed it around the unit. In no time, I had finished both the packets of this royal smoke. Kids cheer around as the locals acted as part of the cheering crowd. The rest of the Afghani actors were either dressed up in military attire or in the Taliban get up. It was only on the third day that action for me began as I put on my Pathani suit, cap and beard to come into my character. I paraded around the grounds posing with guns and AK-47 rifles all being part of the shooting prop.

Yes, Bishkek. I had finally arrived in this ancient and wondrous land.

By adminin Kyrgyzstan, others

On My Way to Kyrgyzstan: Torbaaz Shoot

May 20, 2018

So now it has finally begun to sink in. My visa and passport arrived. I have a 30-day entry visa to Kyrgyzstan for the Torbaaz shoot. As I opened my mail, pop came my air ticket to Bishkek the capital city of this country. An ancient rough and rocky terrain, this is an ancient land inhabited by the Mongols, Russians and the Turkish Muslims. It has an amazing ancient Islamic culture with Islamic architecture, dome-shaped mosques and minarets are all over this country. It was also the silk route where, in ancient times, silk used to be exported from the Mediterranean countries to China.

My shoot for the Sanjay Dutt starrer Torbaaz film is in Bishkek and I am all packed up for the journey. A role as a cricket commentator in the film just fell into my lap by chance. An old friend who is looking after casting in the film called me up and asked me to send an audition to him through my phone. I promptly read the script and gave the audition. I was selected for the part in Torbaaz within days. All in all, its a six days work and I might get a scene with Sanju Baba as well. So I am keeping my fingers crossed.

Yes, of course, the delicious Nargis Fakhri will also be there as the female lead of Torbaaz with the veteran actor Rahul Dev playing the villain.

Looks and sounds like it would be the battle of the macho men on the rugged terrain of Kyrgyzstan. There will be a cricket match played and we all will be a part of it. That’s all I know and that’s all I can tell. You got to wait for this blockbuster to get released. The movie Torbaaz is being produced by the Wave Group that once was headed by Ponty Chadha.

I am now packing my gear to capture it on my GoPro and send you some exciting videos from the Torbaaz shoot. I know you can’t wait but good things only come to those who wait. So wait and watch this space only on TikkusTravelthon.in. It would be great if Sanju Baba said those words to promote my blog. My mission will be to get a testimonial from him.

By adminin General, others

WOW Air: A Game Changer in Long Haul Air Travel

May 17, 2018

WOW Air is the new kid on the block in air travel. It’s an airline modelled around making long-haul travel very cheap and almost half the price at what we can travel today by air. A Delhi to New York return flight will cost you just Rs 27,000. But then, it is without the frills or even an ounce of luxury. You have to pay for all meals, snacks and beverages. The seats are narrow with very little leg room. So it can be cramping a bit. But with such a fantastically cheap price for such a long flight, you can do without the frills.

Wow Air is the latest entrant in this low-cost long-haul airline segment and has created this segment. This Ireland-based airline has a central hub in Reykjavik. The company wants to make this hub as big as Dubai. Passengers will only be allowed to carry one baggage and that’s it.

But for such a low price, if you are looking to be very economical, then this is just the segment and the airline for you.

By adminin India, others, Varanasi

Varanasi – The Holiest of Cities by Kavita Kumble

May 4, 2018

Having become Time, itself, I destroy the world here, O Goddess! ~ Shiva, Padma Purana 1.33.14

Varanasi, this holiest of cities for those of the Hindu and Jain faiths, is just the kind of place where even a twenty-minute walk will lead you to a lifetime’s worth of travel experience as you uncover an unfathomably diverse range of sights and encounters around every corner.

Varanasi has been one of the most intriguing trips I have made. Never have I felt a city so full of going ons. Just inane, often crazy, some brilliant, another bizarre going ons. Just going on. Like Life. Just going on.

The first thing people tell you when they know you are visiting Varanasi is that it’s dirty, flighty, full of garbage and dead bodies floating in the Ganges. But the only reason we all travel is the uncanny ability of these places to throw surprises at us when we least expect. We are left with eyes wide open as we see what we never thought we would find. Sometimes one needs to let go and let the place take you by surprise in its stride.

Here is what I found out:

My first look at Varanasi was at the airport I landed into which was plush and well-equipped. As I collected my baggage and strolled out, I was greeted by the cabbie I had booked in advance. The drive to ghats from the airport is an hour long or so, and in between, one can stop for some awesome Lassi which Banaras is proud of. The city is connected well by trains and flights all over from India.

And there I was staring at River Ganges on a hot March afternoon. The river flowed in still and calm, and as I saw it flowing, felt the same calmness in my head. I was suddenly so much in awe of the entire scene I saw. As I sat in my boat to reach the hotel, I bowed down my head to Mother Ganges and slid my hand by the boat to take in some water from her. I forgot the hot scorching sun for that moment and was mesmerised by the age-old ghats floating beside, and I knew that in the next two days, I will be discovering this 3000-year-old magical city. Known as Lord Shiva’s abode and the city he built for his wife Parvati, the place had so much of history associated with it. And it was clean and pristine.

I was put up in this 200-year-old heritage property (Guleri Khoti), which was converted into a luxury hotel. It had an age-old world charm to the same and has well curated beautiful rooms which face the Ganges. The only way to reach the place is by a boat which the hotel arranges for. You can, however, walk by the ghats in the city any time of the day.

I ventured out in the evening and my first stop was the famous Manikarnika Ghat. Manikarnika or The Burning Ghats is just one of the many ghats of Varanasi. It is the main ghat where bodies are burnt. You see piles of wood stacked up by the banks which are used to light the pyres. And one sees never-ending bodies been bought here day and night.

On that day as I sat there looking at the pyres burning, I promised to be better and kinder, since the scenes of burning ghats to my left reminded me that the time to be better and kinder is running out.

Varanasi has many facades to it and it was not just the Ganges. The food, the people, the Ganga aarti, the age-old 88 ghats there. I soaked in the place with all this, walked those Banares gullies with cows at every turn and colourful doors to beautiful homes. In the two days I was there, I loved each bit of my experience. Be it the ‘Banarasi Brocade Saree Shopping’ where I was helped by strangers on the road to find the perfect saree followed by a ‘Tonga’ ride in the city in the evening where the tongas are still pulled in by humans. I also got lost on those roads but obviously found my way back too.

I will follow my series on Varanasi with more posts on each of this.

As you leave this city, you yearn to definitely get back soon. The effect of the place will remain with you for days to come, and one takes time to recover from the magic.

It forces you to see beyond the obvious. Varanasi removes the foils and fixtures that clog our mind. It opens the soul for one to see deep inside. But it’s not for everyone, it’s for the pupil to be compatible, the guru in Varanasi is open source.

By adminin Mehman, others

Ujwala Patil – The First Indian Woman to Sail Around the World in a Yacht

May 3, 2018

We all love to travel and try to get away from the routine mundane life of ours by exploring. We want to see the world for sure but how many of us really have the opportunity and the courage to leave the so-called ideal life and get into something adventurous as trotting the globe on a yacht? Let me introduce you to someone who is an inspiration and broke all the rules to become the first Indian woman as well as the first Asian woman to sail around the world in a yacht. Yes, you read that right, we have an Indian woman who did that feat way back in 1987-1988 when the world was not as digitalised as today, and there was no social media which carried news faster than lightning.

She is Ujwala Patil Dhar, born in Karanjawde Sangli, India to a farmer. Youngest of the seven siblings, she was adventurous as a child and was introduced to athletics, rifle shooting, flying, rock climbing, mountaineering, and at the same time, yachting was introduced by a friend. She graduated in economics and did a diploma in journalism and continued her adventurous side of her alive. She has won over 150 medals in shooting and participated in State, National Level, and Pre Olympic Trials.

Her first tryst with sailing long distance was at the age of 23 in 1978 where she sailed from Mumbai to Colombo in an open sailboat in 24 days. She went on in 1979 to sail from England to Mumbai where her yacht sunk in the Red Sea as it hit a reef. The navigation equipment here had failed due to some technical glitch. She took help of a life raft to survive on it for 4 days with barely any food or water till a Norwegian ship rescued her. In 1981, she sailed from England to Mumbai again via the Suez Canal.

All these trips made her confident and she decided to embark sailing the globe with the Government of India promoting her for this trip. On 13^th June 1987 at the age of 32, she embarked from Mumbai with a crew of 3 members to sail the globe. Ujwala was the navigator, and she did complete this journey of 24,000 nautical miles in a total of 22 months of actual sailing in 2 different stages. Jaykus-III touched Gateway of India on October 15^th, 1988.

However, the journey was not smooth, the yacht almost capsized in the Pacific due to a bad storm. Heavy winds and massive waves in the Pacific Ocean caused the yacht to almost capsize. But ‘Tandel’ went crawling on an almost toppled yacht to cut the main rope and release the sail thus releasing the air from the sails and making the yacht return to its normal position.

They also hit a sandstorm at Cartagena, Spain as they were leaving the harbour. She could see a different formation of clouds on the horizon. She realised these were sandstorm clouds as per the navigation books that she had studied. The captain was not ready to turn back to the harbour. However, after a lot of persuasion by her, he decided to turn back. As they docked at the harbour, a massive sandstorm struck. It had a speed of 120 miles per hour. By midnight, many damaged yachts came for shelter to the harbour.

Ujwala got back to India much stronger mentally than physically ready to face any challenges in life ahead. She was awarded the Padma Shri by the Indian Government in 1991 and also received various rewards globally. Ujwala got married soon to settle down in Mumbai with two daughters and worked as a journalist.

She inspires me immensely and gives all women a reason to think beyond our limits and go explore the world. I hope her story will make some of you out there to just go ahead and do what you believe in life.

By adminin India, Kerala, others

Hurray for Mollywood!

May 2, 2018

Yes, my travels through the Kerala landscapes was fast and furious as I moved with my team from one location to the other and from one hillside to the top of another valley. We maintained our shooting schedule for 8 days non-stop. But there was one thread in our conversations that stood out and that was about the Malayalam Film Industry that I aptly call Mollywood. We discussed the legendary acting skills of Mohanlal and Mammootty. “He was amazing in Company. Mohanlal plays the commissioner of police and there is this dialogue he says to Vivek Oberoi, yeh saab terry dande ki jaat hei.”

Even our locations at the falls were filmy. Many Bollywood movies had been shot under the majesty of the Athirappally Falls. Movies like Asoka, Raavan and even Dil Se. It was the favourite place for many directors of the south. Even in the sphere of music, Kerala has many firsts like A.R. Rahman and Ilaiyaraaja. The great character actor K.K. Menon is also from Kerala. Films are huge in this part of the world and they have their own stars and local movie celebrities. Kerala film industry is the fourth largest in India and has more than 1100 single screen cinemas. So it has mass reach into its hinterland. Even the big hit Vinod Khanna film called Dayavan was a remake of a famous Malayalam film with Kamal Haasan in the lead.

The spices, the ocean and the boats along with the film and music make this place a great vacation. Not to mention the variety of aroma, oil and massage therapies that one can get into to relax the body. I love Kerala for its fish, its mutton cutlets and its greenery. Not to mention, I also enjoyed some Kerala rains as we trekked up hills and through falls to get the perfect location to shoot for our videos.

We even witnessed a live song sequence being shot at the falls. It was Mollywood all the way.

By adminin India, Kerala, others

Fishing at the Lake of Eco Park – Cochin

April 30, 2018

The April heat was on our heads but we persisted with our week-long shooting schedule without a hitch. Our next spot was the Eco Park and its lake on the outskirts of Cochin. There is an entrance fee to enter and you have to pay Rs 250 extra to take the camera equipment. One is greeted with a row of palm trees, huts and tin shelters. On one side is the kitchen that serves lunch and meals. In the middle is a huge muddy lake which has wooden huts with straw roofs right in the centre. One can sit on many benches near the pond and fish. It was the first time I did fishing and, man, one needs a lot of patience for it. I got a lot of fishes and then posed for the camera with one of my fishes in one hand and the fishing rod in the other. I sat on beach swings and spoke about tales of life. But the most fun was taking a bicycle ride around the lake. I loved it and it was also a great exercise for me as I paddled my way in circles around the pond. I almost slipped into the pond but I managed to jump back into the safety of the land.

The fish I caught was fresh and that was the one I gave to the cooking staff to cook. They made a delicious fish curry and even steamed prawns with the usual Kerala rice and sambar. The Eco Park has been built so that man and nature can live together in harmony and coexist without troubling each other’s habitat. Fresh fish is cooked instantly and I had it for supper. All plants and vegetables are grown with natural fertilisers with no chemicals and additives mixed into the soil.

I took long walks around the lake and engaged to do some paddle boating with my film crew. I was spotted by an Asianet news crew who were also shooting a TV show at the Eco Park. I was able to chat with them and told them about my blog www.tikksutravelthon.in. I also showed them my videos and enquired about their shooting equipment. I hope they give me some promotion but still, it was fun to learn from them.

The kitchen was clean with taps to wash up and the food arrived with extra sambar and papad served if one needed it. The bony fried fish was my favourite with green chutney. The sun was about to set and a cool breeze started to flow as we decided to pack up and head back to our hotel after another day of adventure with nature.