That's how 26th January was...

The day was 26th January, a very important day for Indians as this was the day when we were declared a Republic in 1950. For me this day definitely evokes warm memories from my childhood. Those were days, when Republic Day meant going to school early in the morning in the cold winter to participate in the flag hoisting ceremony and making sure to collect chocolates, candies and sweets distributed at the end of the ceremony. Once back home, the Republic Day Parade broadcasted live on the idiot box from Rajpath, Delhi was unquestionably the program to watch. In present times, the day still holds its significance but I am sure the way we look at it has changed a hell lot.

For many it was nothing more than an extended weekend. For few others, it was a welcome break from steering their vehicles in the chaotic traffic. Instead it was a day marked by an air of relaxation, to sit and watch columns of soldiers marching in perfect harmony in different Republic Day events conducted across the nation in various television channels. Add to this, the display of tableaus showcasing the diversity and the varied cultural traditions of the nation.

But for me, this was another day to capture colors in the surroundings. I had been to Lalbagh Gardens, Bangalore early in the morning by 8:00AM to compose some frames from the Republic Day Flower Show organized at the glass house located in the center of the garden.



This flower exhibition dates back to the year 1922, when it was conducted for the first time, and since then this once-in-an-year event has seen a steady increase in entries for participation.



Lots of people had come with friends and families to see this exhibition, a carnival of colors. From whatever I saw there, my rough estimate is that around 200 flowering plants, mostly those that bloom in the winter season were on display.



Through my camera lens, I managed to capture some images, which had little to do with flowers and more to do with colors. It was as if everything were united by a riot of colors. Do you agree with me or you don't?





Apart from this, there were a number of stalls related to gardening in which companies such as Indo-American Hybrid Seeds, Namdhari Seeds, the Department of Horticulture, Coconut Development Board, Coir Development Board, etc exhibited their products and technologies.



Booths selling products from cottage industries also drew handsome crowd. The artisans displayed their rich crafts such as pots, vases, urns, molded images, trinkets, pottery and terracotta items, etc in the typical setting of a rural Indian marketplace





To ensure security when hooligans have turned moralistic leaders, when terrorists are recklessly determined to spew terror, special security arrangements had been put in place. Door frame metal detectors, hand metal detectors and cameras were deployed at several places for efficient tracking purposes.

All in all, it was two hours of time well spent.

Also, the day was noteworthy for another reason. It was the day, when Desicritics, turned three. A journey which started with around 75 bloggers in the desi blogosphere way back in 2006, today has grown into a family of 500, covering everything from nuclear deals to macaca-gate, from Bugti to Boston, from The Curious Case of Benjamin Button to Slumdog Millionaire, from the US Economy Fears to the Satyam's Fraud case, from men's rights to reservation rights. RC is proud to be a member of that team, still miles to go.

So here goes the rest from the lot of my today’s clicks to my friends at Desicritics and to all my readers. Hope you liked it too.

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Smell of an Indian Bazaar...

It was long since I had been out to shoot with my shutterbug friends. When I got an invite, if I could join them for a weekend shot at Russel Market, one of the prominent landmarks for the native Bangalorites, I thought why not. The reply was prompt because I have always preferred colder climes and at present winter is in full flourish. Also, wintertime mornings are usually marked with less activity and lots of freshness rules the air.



So all set and done and I reach the market place at 6:30AM. The market place was a melange of action, buying, selling, trading, chaffering, transporting, cleaning and lots more.



Russel Market is one of the oldest markets in Bangalore and it was built in 1927. The freshly painted minaret that stands across the road is a testimony that this place which was once the frequented by the memsahibs driven in their carriages is now replaced by the Marutis, the Fords and the Toyotas.



Even though the city today offers plenty of departmental stores from Sunday-to-Monday to Food World, from Reliance Fresh to Nilgiris, from Spencers to Spar but still there is a sizeable population that visits this bazaar for its weekly stock of fruits and vegetables and other requirements. The building that accommodates close to 100 vegetable shops and mandis today looks a bit jaded.



This place has narrow streets, filled with people unloading mini-trucks ladened with fresh vegetables and fruits. At one corner an old woman is selling a handful of vegetables, while at the other corner there is a middle-aged lady making a garland with different kinds of flowers, sipping hot tea from a glass. Even found a man who was so bitten by Bipasha Basu's 'Beedi Jalai le', that early in the morning he was puffing his jigar maan bari aag in a foolhardy way.



At this early hour of the day, there is action all around as vegetable vendors were busy sorting the vegetables into gunny bags which would be sent to various restaurants and hotels across the city. This place is a trading center for flowers, and florists can be seen exchanging their supply for cash. The topsy-turvyness here is more complex than what one would find in any stock exchange when in action.



As I was walked a little ahead, I saw the central courtyard, where there were neatly arranged rows of meat shops. Strung up were fresh cuts of mutton with hooks. Adjacent to the dark alleys of meat shops, dimly lit with bulbs is the street, which is a must visit place for any sea-food lover.



Variety of fish, prawn, crab, squid, etc of all sizes were available and the best part is it was all fresh stock unlike the refrigerated and preserved ones sold in department stores. This place is a beehive of activity and chances are high that a visitor would soil his/her clothes while purchasing sea-food here.



It was 8:30AM by now and people returning from the early hours mass at the nearby church were indicative of city life about to get started in a while. I along with my friend, proceeded to a nearby shop, which offers chai 24/7 and while having the chai, a person rushed hurriedly towards me. Seeing, a camera in my hand he told, 'Saab ek photo aap jaldi se lea lo, abhi thodi deear maain guard ke naukri ke liye, ek interview hai' [Can you take a pic immediately because I have an interview for the post of a guard to attend]. I had to politely decline to his request as my camera, doesn't have the instant printing capabilities.

Don't be surprised when I saw, you can click and publish pictures instantly, infact you can do this something similar to the Polaroid cameras of the 70’s. This year PoGo, an Instant Digital Camera unveiled at the annual Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, allows one with a push of a button to take pictures, edit those and then print those on full-colour, 2x3-inch prints. Can someone gift me one of those :)

You can see the rest of the pics here.

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Nothing special...

Is there something special about this pic? Does this qualify for a snapshot or a photograph? You decide and tell me.



I just look it early morning on a foggy day, when I was on vacation. The owner of the car had parked his broken-down car, Ambassador, don't think it is manufactured any more these days.

Few details about this pic.

Time : 7:00 A.M. on a foggy day.
Exposure Time : 1/60 or 0.017 seconds
Aperature : f/5.6
ISO : 320
Metering Mode : Matrix
Exposure : Manual

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Some random moods...

R for Relax:



S for Silence:



T for Twosome:



Mood when took these pictures, dullish, gloomy. The cloudy weather and unadulterated early morning did the rest. Don't know if my fingers orchestrated over the shutter buttons as I wanted. That part you decide?

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Gonna Take a Walk

A couple of weeks back, something struck my mind and I decided to visit Cubbon Park early morning at 6 A.M. Cubbon Park, the other lung of Bangalore, is a great boon to Bangaloreans, with the city expanding at a rapid pace these days. This is one place, which replicates peace and calmness on earth early morning for those who go for a saunter under the tree canopies and beautiful tree avenues. Its vast stretches of celestial green look form an elegant backdrop for the public buildings like the Memorial Library and the stately Vidhana Soudha.

Morning time is more refreshing and energizing as one finds both the animate and inanimate stirred by the vibrant rays of the run. Men and women walking in tandem making the best use of the branded sneakers, 'Common Nike, Reebok and Addidas ko deekhado' or use the permutations for the placement of the three words, Nike, Reebok and Addidas in the order of your choice. Few people practising yoga stretching and flexing their muscles and trying poses called surya namaskar is a very common sight.

While straying through the park, the eye glances over many exotic and indigenous flowering trees and the avians. Known after Sir Mark Cubbon, the celebrated Chief Commissioner of Mysore, the park was initially known as 'Meades Park' after John Meade, the then acting commissioner of Mysore. But later this was renamed as Chamarajendra Park in 1927. Sprawling over 240 acres, Cubbon Park is a heaven on earth for Banglorites.

Few people call this 'pagoda flower' or the 'wat flower' but the name by which I know this is 'champa'. I have seen women in South India and in Eastern part of India, placing the closed buds of this flower in their lustrous black hair, either plucked from the garden or having got the same on a visit to a temple. In the course of the day the flowers bloom completely, releasing their typical divine fragrance both for the individual to enjoy as well as those in the immediate environment.

The cutting down of trees for widening of roads, laying the metro railway service and construction of fly-overs, dwindling of water table and tanks and shrinking of park spaces due to encroachment have all contributed to the receding greenery in Bangalore. Even the verdant environs of Cubbon are not spared. With the permission of the guard who was brushing his teeth, I entered inside the perimeter of a small pond where the ducks were floating leisurely. I later learnt that this pond is turning to dangerous habitat for these innocent creatures as a sewage pipe runs close to this pond and decants drosses into the pond.

But still amidst all these allegations and counter allegations, attack and counter attacks Bangaloreans can proudly proclaim that this is one of the best metropolis in India. I really feel sorry for those people who keep complaining that the city is deteriorating in terms of the greenery stretch. Yes, it is definitely not the B'lore of yesteryears, with globalization touching every tentacle and appendage of life. What we are seeing is the dark side of the growth, the blunder side of globalization. But what have those who complain about the loss of greenery done, why can't each of these fellows go and plant a tree in their backyards or in their apartment complex or in their residential complex or in a nearby park. In this regard, I really appreciate the work undertaken by corporates and firms who have constructed and maintained green islands and small parks at various locations in and around the city. Many school kids and students from different institutes are also voicing their support for the preservation of greenery in my garden city.

The vibrant Gulmohar (flame of the forest tree) is what greets the joggers in this park. To me the most gratifying site was that of kids running here and there under the canopy of the gulmohar trees, to be intersected in their playful activities by elderly couples walking hastily with their pet dogs.

The mauve jacaranda blooming in joyous abandon amid the red gulmohar, and its carpet of petals early morning makes one crave for a long walk. But making sure that the fine spun natural rug on the ground is not disturbed. The entire environ is embellished with some shade, in cool shades of pinks and purples, or for that matter think of any color and you can find it there.

Somehow time passed by and by then I had spent 2 hours in the early morning on a lazy Sunday morning. I walked towards the K.C.Das outlet on Church Street to have poori and alu along with a cup of tea but then the shop was closed since it was pretty early in the morning.

Well then some other time but the visit to the park in the morning was worthwhile, as I don't like crowd. I make my visits to these places before the crowd plunges in when the city life comes into force as the day grows.

For this short and fulflling visit ek chota sa khayal

silence is there.
but then the curl of the hearing widens.
purple jacaranda filtering the morning breeze,
the birds twitter,
life slowly unrolls
and blend into groundbass....

daily life takes its depth, mantle and proportions
but the woods still stand there,
to reveal the secrets and signs,
move ahead take life as it comes.

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