A trip down memory lane: Kasauli

You don't always need a sea for a change. Sometimes, 77 kilometres is more than enough.

Far away from chokehold of commercialised Shimla lies the quaint little town of Kasauli. Tucked away in a quiet hill of Himachal Pradesh and hidden and protected from vicious tourists and business minded gentry, this less known hill-station has all it takes for anyone to have an unadulterated experience of pure beauty. At 6,000 feet, adorned with tall and slender pine trees and the perennial burst of wild and ornamental flowers, Kasauli sure drugs the visitor with its scenic beauty and cooler climes. Lack of commercialization, and the fact that you can't buy land, seems to have no correlation with the eating joints here and perhaps this is what makes this place so stunning.

Kasauli is easily accessible by both road and rail. The nearest airport is at Chandigarh. Situated at a distance of around 325 km from New Delhi, the hill resort can be easily reached by hiring a bus or a taxi, from the inter-state bus terminals (ISBT). Buses, taxis and coaches are ready for hire from Chandigarh and Kalka as Kasauli lies en route to Shimla and the upper Himalayas. But I would suggest taking the toy train from Kalka, which is a one of it's kind experience when you travel with the hills and rich flora as companions and steep gorges as adversaries. These trains run in sync with the Kalka Mail that arrives at Kalka early morning each day. For Kasauli, you would have to get down at Dharmpur.

The town, that turned into a convalescent home for British nationals when they stemmed the growth of the ever-increasing hold of the Gurkhas in 1814, can easily cure writers, shutterbags, nature-lovers and birdwatchers of all their fastidious ailments and still leave them gasping for more. It's no surprise that the famous Indian author, Khushwant Singh often takes refuge in Kasauli whenever he wants his creative juices to get flowing.

Kasauli is far from being your archetypal hill station (although you still have Tibetians selling their wares!). It is small and can be traversed almost entirely on foot. It has a central area encompassed by two major roads- Upper Mall and Lower Mall. The Lower Mall has the bus stand and some shops, a photo studio and a departmental store. As you go higher up, a labyrinthine intersection of narrow roads takes you to the Upper Mall or to the children's park, Sanatorium and further on to the TV tower unfurling a couple of trekkable roads going further beyond. The Upper Mall - which is closer to the urban definition of a mall - is a small by-lane studded with stones with an amalgamation of small sweets shops, toy shops, a couple of shoe shops and the only barber shop of Kasauli.

Places to visit are few and far between in a place like Kasauli that is still nestled in the days of yore. Of greenery. Of peace. And most notably, of less concrete. At the juncture of the two Malls lies the "Church of England", a nineteenth century church built for the soldiers of the British garrison. At the end of the Upper Mall, sitting atop the Gilbert Hill, is Gilbert House, built as home to the first Brigadier of Kasauli. The bungalow today, hosts the current Brigadier. And according to lore, Gilbert's ghost is still 'seen' venturing out in the premises. Also named after Gilbert is the Gilbert trail, one of the numerous treks fraught with danger at every step and at every climb or descent. The odd hornet's sting or a wild plant's prick is bearable when weighed against the unmitigated beauty one witnesses on every bend. On it's way up the Upper Mall also lies the 120 year old Kasauli club, a sprawling complex with facilities to satiate any socialite. About 4 km from the Mall lies the Monkey/Manki point, an Air Force base that is known more for being home to notorious monkeys. Visitors are thus thoroughly frisked and not allowed to carry anything, and for more reasons than one! As you tread upon the direction the masses have taken, you will see a colourful temple perched on the top of a steep hill. However, it's your call whether you want to take the precipitous climb or not. Not far from Kasauli is the famous Lawrence School, Sanawar, one of the most famous boarding schools of the country.

Such a beautiful place, Kasauli's exquisiteness lies in its laid back nature. Look anywhere; shoot from any angle; or take any road through the whispering pines on both sides, the place has a naturally reassuring ambiance that, in a way -- I sure stumbled upon this feeling -- permeates into the skin and balms the soul.

P.S. : The credit for the first picture(and in fact, for the entire trip goes to Arjit Arora who will soon be here to revel in his day of glory!)

The Godfather: A Review

If there was ever a book that hasn't fallen short of my sometimes-unreasonably-high expectations, it would have to be The Godfather, one of the most widely read and revered books of all time. The plot of the novel is intriguing, the conversation and the plots so involving. The author, Mario Puzo, an American with Italian roots lays bare the strong Sicilian spirit coupled with the supreme importance given to family values and unity. The protaganist's life is a testimony to the fact that circumstances go a long way in shaping the life one lives.

The novel spans several generations of the Corleone family, going as far back as the turn of the century in Sicily. The book is a riveting page-turner, with little plot lines jutting out from the principal one - Don Vito Corleone, with three grown sons, struggles to keep the Corleone "Family" together and strong. Don Vito is a fascinating character to both the novel's internal characters and to its readers. He is a family man, a man of honor, brave, intelligent, and loved. He is also the leader of one of the strongest mafia clans in the world. The book is inter-sparsed with instances where the Don pulls strings to help his faithful. He has three sons and a daughter- Sonny, the eldest, Fredo, Michael, the youngest and Constantia Corleone. Elder brothers Sonny and Fredo are soldiers in the organization and Sonny is the most feared enforcer in New York. His adopted brother Tom Hagen is the lawyer who handles the financial details of the family business. Young Michael was different from the others in his family. He wants a queit and an honest life with Kay Adams, with whom he falls in love at college.

The story starts with Constantia's wedding reception. Scattered around are such luminaries as legendary hit man Luca Brasi, world-famous singer Johnny Fontane, and Mafia capo Dominic Clemenza alongwith scores of people who literally worship the Don. After the reception, Don Vito, Sonny, and Tom, meet with Virgil Sollozzo, a drug smuggler who wants them to become partners in his business. Though Sollozzo offers attractive terms, Don Vito, who considers drug trafficking to be too dangerous and against his morals, rejects the offer. When, a few days later, the Don is cut-down and seriously wounded by a pair of assassins, the violent Sonny is tapped to take the reigns of the family and vows to avenge his father.

In the midst of the resultant gang-war, "college-boy" Michael, to the surprise of all, volunteers to kill Sollozzo and Captain McCluskey, his police protection. Meeting with the two in a small restaurant, Michael slays them both with a hidden pistol. Michael is then exiled to Sicily by his own father to protect him from the police. And this is where Michael undergoes a complete transformation.

Meanwhile, all the five "families" of New York are engulfed into a war that leads to widespread bloodshed. One of the sons of the Tattaglia family is killed and very soon, Sonny too gets killed while he, in a fit of rage, decides to set his erring brother-in-law right. This forces the Don to call truce and in the bargain, arranges for Michael's return to America.

When the Don is finally felled by a heart attack and Fredo is sent to consolidate the family's power in Las Vegas, Michael is called upon to take control of the family business and take revenge on his enemies.

And the rest as they say, is history..

In every crevice of the story, the reader finds patterns of betrayal causing tragedy to make for a rich buildup of plot and suspense. This marriage of two dark themes makes a story that is a must for any serious reader.