3-year old Tiger Cub waiting for lunch at Ranthambore National Park, Rajasthan
Limited edition prints of this image are for sale. Ordering info is given at the end of the post. Click on the image for a larger view.
I spotted this tiger cub cooling off in a pool in the Ranthambhore National Park in Rajasthan, India. It was a hot summer day, with temperatures in excess of 50 degrees Celsius. The cub, though looking fully grown-up, has yet to learn how to hunt. My guide was not sure of its gender, but he/she has a subling. Both the sibling and the mother were away somewhere, and this cub was waiting for them to come back with some food probably. I waited a few hours myself hoping to see the family together but it was not to be.
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Art,
Hunt,
Limited Edition,
Rajasthan,
Ranthambhore National Park,
Tiger Cub
Frescos and Blue Doors in Shekhawati, Rajasthan
Limited edition prints of this image are for sale. Ordering info is given at the end of the post. Click on the image for a larger view.
This is the wall of one of the many havelis (houses) in Nawalgarh in the Shekhawati region of Rajasthan. I was actually on the roof of an adjoining haveli when I saw this sight – and it immediately struck me as an image waiting to be captured.
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Blue Doors,
Frescos,
Haveli,
Nawalgarh,
Rajasthan,
Shekhawati
A Kite Shop in Mandawa in Shekhawati, Rajasthan
Limited edition prints of this image are for sale. Ordering info is given at the end of the post.
I took this image in the town of Mandawa in the Shekhawati region of Rajasthan in India. I had reached the town late afternoon on a cold, January day – and ventured out to the market after evening tea. This shop was illuminated as you see after sunset – and most of the light on the street was from the shops themselves. It was a shot waiting to be taken. Continue reading if you want to order this print
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Mandawa,
Photo of the Day,
Rajasthan,
Shekhawati
Photo Feature by Prashanth Vishwanathan
The havelis of Shekhawati in Rajasthan are profusely painted with frescoes depicting gods and kings, flowers and arabesques and scenes from everyday life. The technique of Fresco painting in Shekawati was very close to the Italian Fresco technique developed around the 14th century. The havelis were owned by the rich traders of Marwar who have moved on to bigger cities and left their ancestoral homes abandoned. [continue reading…]
Tagged as:
Forts,
Frescos,
Haveli,
Paintings,
Rajasthan,
Shekhawati
Dial 9799115956 for a camel in Pushkar, Rajasthan
This photograph was taken at the Pushkar Camel Fair in Rajasthan where these animals are brought for trading. The number tattooed on the camel may be a good idea to identify it but one question comes to mind: After it is sold by the owner, does this mobile number go as a part of the package? 
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Tagged as:
Camel Fair,
Pushkar,
Rajasthan
Farmers sipping tea at night in Pushkar in Rajasthan during the Camel Fair
This image was taken late night in Pushkar in Rajasthan during the Camel Fair. These farmers, like thousands of others, would have come to the town to buy or sell animals (camels and horses mostly). After a hard day’s work, they are sipping tea at a roadside stall – just a few hours before this, there was barely space in the street behind to even move around with devotees in hundreds of thousands also coming during this period for a holy dip in the town’s lake. Click on the image for a larger view.
Tagged as:
Camel Fair,
Farmers,
Photograph,
Pushkar,
Rajasthan,
Tea
Driving in..
We entered Udaipur at dusk after a satisfying visit to Chittaurgarh. Udaipur is known by many monikers - the Venice of the East, City of Lakes, the most Romantic destination in the country etc.. We cannot wait. As the sun sets, we can see the outlines of the Aravali range leading us into Udaipur.
We had booked ourselves in Lake Pichola Hotel – affordable, yet on the banks of Lake Pichola. We navigate through some pretty narrow streets to get to the hotel and check in (We did not take our cars out for the next few days). We got rooms literally next to the lake. We were thrilled at hearing the lake water gently lap the parapet wall, right outside our rooms.
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Lake Pichola,
Rajasthan,
Udaipur
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f70_ZO7L_Ks[/youtube]
This video was made at the Purani Subzi Mandi (old vegetable market) in Udaipur in Rajasthan in India. With most stalls run by women, it seems people are out to shop here all the time.
Tagged as:
Market,
Rajasthan,
Udaipur,
Vegetables,
Women
One of the perks of being a travel writer is you get to meet characters you did not even know existed. Including Kikasso the artist in Pushkar.
The only Sikh I met in Pushkar, he says he has been painting since 1970. But he has had careers in the Army as a wireless operator from 1972-1978 and as a cashier in Syndicate Bank after that before taking voluntary retirement in 2000. It was then that he decided to pursue his ambition of being an artist full time. [continue reading…]
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Artist,
Kikasso,
Pushkar,
Rajasthan
Phool Chand Bhatt pursues his ancestral profession of making puppets for both sale and to put up shows. He lives in Jaipur, but travels to wherever opportunity calls. Like to the Pushkar Camel Fair where he sets up shop for a fortnight every year.
He is one of the many who take a shop in the market for Rs. 5,000-10,000; these would typically be tailoring or grocery shops rest of the year. He sells his puppets starting at Rs. 100 a pair going up to a few thousand. The expensive ones come with proper strings for all parts to move. He also has some very old ones: he collects these from other performers in villages who have decided to give up this profession. There are many he buys for 30-35 Euros to sell for 100-150 Euros to foreigners. [continue reading…]
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Artist,
Camel Fair,
Jaipur,
Puppet,
Pushkar,
Rajasthan
Chittaurgarh was not a planned trip. Our original plan of visiting Jodhpur was put on hold and our destination was changed to Udaipur when we found out that Lake Pichola was brimming with water. This was in October ‘05. Thanks to the incredible State Highway between Kishangarh and Udaipur , we had to pass by Chittaurgarh! Chittaurgarh was a last minute decision to visit when we learnt that this was the largest fort in India. Chittaurgarh is 120kms east of Udaipur.
[continue reading…]
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Fort,
Rajasthan
The process of buying and selling animals at the Pushkar Camel Fair is a regulated affair. All animals entering the fair grounds are issued a receipt; these need to be produced when the animal is sold.
At the end of all trading, the Government also issues a Safed Chitthi, a kind of a sale deed between the buyer and seller. And these have to be produced at checkposts as proof that only bonafide owners are in possession of animals. There have been incidents when animals have been stolen at night; after all, everyone sleeps in the open during the fair. People usually take turns staying awake to ensure their animals are safe. These receipts also serve as a record of the volume of trade each year, and the value commanded by the animals. [continue reading…]
Tagged as:
Camel Fair,
Pushkar,
Rajasthan
Events like the Pushkar Camel Fair are also a time to display special skills – with some bravado thrown in. Take the acrobats and an 11-year old girl dancer, Manjari.
While the acrobats were getting into position, the young girl was introduced as an exponent of Ghoomar, a traditional Rajasthani dance. Her claim to fame according to the show host? She is capable of taking 2,000 revolutions while dancing when normal people would tire after just a few. And off she went…1, 2, 3…by 25 she was looking like she would fall under the harsh sunlight. [continue reading…]
Tagged as:
Acrobats,
Camel Fair,
india,
Pushkar,
Rajasthan
Camel racing is a popular sport in rural Rajasthan, and it was only fitting to include the event at the Pushkar Camel Fair. However, dollops of amateurism was added to the event when foreign tourists were invited to race the camels. Of course, they could scarcely be expected to make these species walk, let alone run. They were thus allowed a local to ride pillion and be the actual ‘driver.’ [continue reading…]
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Camel Fair,
Camel Race,
india,
Pushkar,
Rajasthan
If you are looking to buy a camel or a horse, head out to the Pushkar Fair to pick up a good bargain. Yes, the fair ends on November 2, but if you read this in time you may still have time to make a quick trip.
The rates of animals this year have bottomed out due to the drought in many districts. This means lesser money in people’s pockets in a year when camel feed has become dearer – costing Rs. 10 a kg or Rs. 700 a quintal (100 kgs). A typical camel requires 10-20 kg of feed a day. But didn’t we read that camels can go without food for days on end? Rubbish, say the farmers. They eat when we do. [continue reading…]
Tagged as:
Camel Fair,
Pushkar,
Rajasthan
Who came first: the chicken or the egg? What happened first: Jodhpur’s Omelette Shop becoming famous or the coverage in Lonely Planet making it so?
The shop, opened in 1974 by Ram Kishen, is one busy shop. Selling a thousand eggs a day, half of them as omelletes and the rest boiled. Spiced to taste, with our without slices of bread, these cost as little as Rs. 10-15 (20-30 cents) a portion. It opens at 10 am, and closes just before midnight. Go at peak hours and Ram Kishen will have no time to talk to you. The clientele are mostly travellers in the day, and locals in the evening. [continue reading…]
Tagged as:
food,
Jodhpur,
Lonely Planet,
Market,
Omelettes,
Rajasthan
If you are an Indian, a sweet tooth has to be a part of your anatomy. With taste buds allocated specially to Indian sweets made of milk, sugar and other flavourings.
That is why the mawa business is so big in the country. A key ingredient for most Indian sweets, the Mawa Bazaar located just off the Banthiyon Ka Chowk in Bikaner is the biggest wholesale market for mawa in Rajasthan after Dholpur according to Laxmi Narayan Raj Purohit, one of the vendors. Made from cow milk around Bikaner, and buffalo milk around Dholpur, villagers make these at home and sell through wholesalers. A drop of poisonous hydro gives it the solid, granular look; current prices when I checked were Rs. 80 per kilo at the retail level. The distributor would have bought it for Rs. 74, the difference being his profit. [continue reading…]
Tagged as:
bikaner,
Dholpur,
Mawa,
Rajasthan,
Sweets
Bikaner can get anorexics to start questioning their own resolve. The city is full of food, all in your face, being prepared afresh and looking so sumptuous that you may have little choice but to try it all.
Take your pick from kachoris, samosas, jalebis and ghevar straight from the frying wok. Or choose from all kinds of Indian sweets and savouries from menus that read more like encyclopedic compilations rather than offering of a single eatery. Go a level below and join the crowds ordering hot dogs and tikkis simmering in oil. [continue reading…]
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Bazaar,
bikaner,
food,
Rajasthan,
Shopping
