Ramp on Fire- Big Boy Toyz Hot Wheels

Big Boy Toyz extended its patronage to India Runway Week for the 3rd time in a row for the 7th Season, Winter Festival 2016. The Three Day Event was held at Thyagraj Stadium, New Delhi from 16th to 18th September 2016.

Big Boy Toyz, the name synonymous with setting new benchmarks & trends, has done it again and how!  The Fashion Shows have always been about glitz and glamour associated with Clothes & Accessories only, however for the first time, the Finale of IRW  by Riddhi and Sidhi which was an exclusive show co-hosted by Big Boy Toyz created sensation by bringing the Super Hot Wheels on the Ramp. Pumping a clear shot of adrenaline; three Supercars enticed the viewers with what is called Music to the Ears. As the Ferrari 458 Italia in sparkling Giallo Modena gaited gracefully on the Ramp, the crowd’s reaction was worth a watch. And if that was not enough, another Supercar- an Audi R8 ‘Spyder’ in Brilliant Red gave another shot of excitement. As the soft roof of the car slowly retracted, the audience could hear another set of V10s lighting up the Show. And this time, it was a Bianco Monocerus Lamborghini Gallardo ‘Spyder’ LP 560-4.

The company takes pride in being one of its kind that deals in super exotic cars in the country. They found IRW to be a perfect platform to show their support to the young and dynamic designers.

Jatin Ahuja, Founder & Managing Director, Big Boy Toyz said, “I am glad to be associated with IRW for the 3 ^rd time in a row for their 7^th Season. IRW is a wonderful platform for the talented designers to showcase their creativity & Big Boy Toyz is equally pleased to extend the support to this amazing platform. We certainly look forward to keep encouraging the Skill to help them touch the Sky and Shine with pride on the Global Scale.”

Avinash Pathania, Founder IFFD said “We’re delighted to welcome Big Boy Toyz as our associate for third time in a row for the India Runway Week Winter Festive 2016. Fashion designers are masters of the use of color, proportion, and textiles, which are all very important elements of luxury cars which they are selling. ”

The Delhi Deception- Book Review

Book- The Delhi Deception

Author- Elana Sabharwal

Genre- Romantic thriller

Number of pages in the book - 370

Type- Paperback 

Publisher- CreateSpace Independent Publishing

Usually I stay away from love stories since I find them too dramatic and boring. My favorite genre happen to be thrillers, murder mysteries, theology, sci-fi and horror by John Grisham, Agatha Christie, Ashwin Sanghi and Amish Tripathi. This time I opted for a new author to try something different. After all budding artists should be given a fair chance yeah?

PS: The book was NOT sent to me by the author. The review is my personal opinion and not for promotional purpose.

‘The Delhi Deception’ by Elana Sabharwal is a thriller written in the backdrop of Delhi.

The plot- Carla, born to an Indian father and South African mother, is a journalist by profession who was born and brought up in South Africa. She is married to Andrew, a war journalist with CNN, posted in Pakistan. Distance keeps the two physically apart and Carla desperately wants to meet him, before she goes to India to meet her father’s family. She gets the shock of her life on finding out Andrew cheating on her. An upset Carla leaves for India and stays with her best friend Elousie.

Taking refuge in retail therapy and historical tour of Delhi, Carla meets a handsome George who frequents the social gatherings. She is attracted to him, hushing up her inner voice that she is married. The story takes a turn when Carla is kidnapped, injected with drugs, sold to traffickers but rescued by George. Gradually she falls for him inspite of being warned to be beware of the latter; nursing her wound on one hand and feeling guilty on the other. An interesting turn to the story comes when George convinces her to spy on Elousie’s husband who is suspected to be involved in anti national crime. 

Caught between friendship and new found love, Carla finds herself trapped in the blind maze with no light at the end of the tunnel. As the story unfolds, Andrew comes to Delhi searching for Carla, making it even more difficult for her to trust her own instincts. She is drawn deeper in a black hole of shocking revelations as betrayal gapes at her.

My views- Not even for a single moment did I feel that the author is from outside India! The book has been written after deep research and Delhi beautifully described. Elana has taken care of every little thing about India. Writing on a culture not known to somebody ain’t easy, and she does that seamlessly! From tea culture to Indian family values, Elana has taken every detail into account to create a fiction which seems real.

Under the smiling faces and painted colors of the elite class society, there lies a dark untold story, often concealed from the public. The smiles are fake, the gestures are forced, yet they look natural and good to naked eye. Elana has been able to bring out these aspects very well, making me nod in agreement each time while reading.

Carla is quite an interesting character portrayed by the author with different shades in her personality. I personally like the way Elana has shown Carla feeling guilty and then giving in. 

George seems every women's dream! Too perfect to be true (Hehe) 

Elousie, Carla's friend, is an underplayed character. Her actions did not make sense. But somebody always plays the fool in a fiction pulp, isn't it? 

The only place where the story stumbled was the climax where Elana picked up all broken pieces to complete the jigsaw puzzle. 

Spoiler- Why will terrorists dealing with Nuke leave the victim alive in an old unused factory? And why on Earth should the ladies be kidnapped just to be brought to the same factory where the nuke weapon was assembled?  Carla's reunion with her father's family (the main objective of her going to India) was diluted as the story progressed. The whole background of her father's family seemed unnecessary!

    

The book was otherwise quite engaging, leaving me wondering “what’s next” after each chapter.  If only the climax was a little better and watertight, the story would be flawless. Infact the climax was a bit stretched and over done. But as they say, no body is prefect, so the minor flaws do not annoy you. 

In a nutshell, this is a light read for all audience. Not suitable for "serious action"lovers may be but has all ingredients for a perfect Bollywood Masala fiction. Will not appeal to a mature audience. The language is quite simple, sans complicated words or jargons. 

My rating- 3 on 5 

About the author- Elana is married to an Indian physicist is a mother of 4 daughters. She lives in Cape Town, South Africa. A former fashion designer,Elana is currently work as a marketing director for a chain of five restaurants co-owned by her and husband.

Read more about her at http://www.elanasabharwalbooks.com/

Readomania Talk Fest- With RJ Nitin

Readomania's talk fests are one its kind and sadly I have missed attending them all this while. I attended the 5th Talk Fest which was a crowd puller because of the speaker RJ Khurafati Nitin. The stage was set at India Habitat Center, Lodhi Road for Sunday, 28th Aug '16.

The interactive show intended to bring his inspiring struggle story to the public along with exciting gifts and giveaways. For me, the best giveaway were the rich learning lessons. Nitin who is a well known entertainer and is the most awarded Radio Jockey held the crowd with his great sense of humor amid the story of highs and lows of his life.

For those who did not know, Nitin's full name is Jonathan Philip Nitin Brady. Born to a lovely couple who came from different castes, Nitin himself is married to Sunita, a girl outside his religion. His words "Mere ghar mei poora Bhaarat basta hai" hence stands true to the core.

He began his career with All India Radio around 15 years ago. Gradually his career picked up when Radio as a medium started to became popular. Amid the golden period of success and fame he enjoyed, Nitin faced a sudden downfall in his career when he was left with no job and was financially broke. He bravely faced the tough depressing phase of life and decided to move on with something, if not radio. He started selling samosa and chole bhature from a little eating stall in Gurgaon. The difficult time continued for quite some time. The best part was the thorough support of his family with a special mention of his younger brother Raul who quit his job to support Nitin.

The RJ shared a touching video of Derek Redmond who injured his leg hamstring few meters before the finish line. Determined to finish the race, Redmond got up with the seething pain and limped on the track.  A man breaking security barriers came to Redmond to offer him his shoulder. It was his father who said "We will finish the race together". Father sun duo hand in hand walked the track with a limping and wailing Redmond, refusing to give up. His father let him walk the last few meters on his own, amid a crowd of 65,000 people cheering for both.

The purpose of sharing the video was to show two things; One, to never give up, Two, no matter what happens, your family will always support you. With such a valuable lesson and emotional visual, my eyes turned moist and throat choked. I am sure many felt the same.

Quoting his own example, he takes pride in telling how his family has been an anchor and built a strong support system for him.

To lighten the seriousness, Nitin played humorous prank call recordings in between. As he continued narrating his life journey, he shared his insights about a backup plan. Soon after his mother questioned and planted an idea of back up plan in life, Nitin with his brother Raul ventured into production house. He played one of the short films he has made which intends to create awareness on a deadly drugs named SMILES.

After Fever 104 FM hired him, Nitin convinced the management to start a show with his philanthropic philosophy. He has managed to spread the message to Delhi and successfully raised funds for acid attack victims facial surgery, AIDS patients and getting those people released from jail who couldn't afford bail. The stories behind the project again left my eyes welled up.

A big salute to this man with a heart of gold who touched and changed so many lives. He took a huge risk with this show which had many eyebrows raised. Nitin went by the philosophy that even if he fails to raise money for the needy, he wants to do something good. He wants to live in the hearts of people who would remember him as a good person after he dies. From pleading people for making way for ambulance to stay away from drugs, Nitin uses radio as the best CSR medium.

Very few celebs have such generous hearts. Nitin proved himself not only a good RJ but an excellent human being too. Such motivational talks strike so many chords within you.

The house was open for Q/A and he kept tossing gifts to the audience. As Nitin ended his energetic talk after an hour (where he spoke non stop), the crowd flocked to him for pictures. Husband and I took one too. The picture is hazy but the memories are crystal clear :-)

 

The Conjuring 2

Movie Review

I am a big fan of horror movies. No, not the Ramsay banners please! I pick up a horror film expecting a unique content, but end up disappointed. The Conjuring-1 garnered lot of public attention with its different presentation. The team thought of continuing the legacy with a sequel. Want to know what happened next? Okay then, read on.

The plot- A single mother Peggy Hogdson stays in a big house in London with her four kids, struggling hard to make needs meet ends. Their life turns upside down when her eleven year old daughter Janet sleepwalks and converses with a spirit. Things go ugly when the screams become frequent and Janet is possessed by a demon who claims the house to be his own.

The incident reaches media and ultimately paranormal investigators Ed and Lorraine Warrren who were popularly known for investigating the AmityVille murders. Lorraine had a vision of Ed being killed by a demonic Nun figure during the investigation of AmityVille shootout.  In fear of Ed’s death, she takes a break from work, trying to stay away from investigations. When they are approached to help Janet, Lorraine agrees reluctantly, asking Ed not to get involved closely in the case. Both reach London as observers instead of investigators.

The local investigation team finds out Janet is possessed by spirit of Bill Wilkins but soon call it it a fake show when they see Janet in a video recording purposely throwing things. Being challenged on the legitimacy of spirits, an angry Peggy asks them to leave the house. The Warrens half heartedly return but turn around when they discover Bill Wilkin’s spirit is not the main culprit. Lorraine sees the same Nun demon from her previous vision haunting the Hogdson house. What was the connection? Why does she see Ed dead? Does Ed make it to the end? Well, you gotta watch it for yourself.

My views- Vera Farmiga and Patrick Wilson as the Warren couple, play their characters well. They efficiently portray calm, ready to help, no nonsense, sweet people. The real couple in real life was also as sweet and loving as shown in the film. The backdrop, the set of the old house gave it an authentic look of 70's. Madison Wolfe as Janet Hogdson was convincing for her age. 

Frankly, I missed the core horror factor. Same props and dim rooms no more attract the audience. Please try something new. Unlike the prequel, Conjuring -2 lacks the spine chilling factor. Why do demons or spirits make their presence felt only at night? Objects flying, tables shaking, hideously spooky faces are old school! (No offence to demons okay). Power cuts in the presence of spirits, creeky doors, disturbance in TV sets- seriously people? Who finds these creepy at all? Given the history of late 70's, I agree nothing much could have been done. Still, making it spicy is in the hands of the director, ain't it?

For those who still enjoy this level of horror, please watch it. If you are looking for something new, then this is not your cup of tea. 

By the end of the movie, I felt I could have invested time in a better movie. Conjuring 2 is good to watch if you have no other movie or sitting idle while travelling in local transport. 

Genre- Supernatural 

Duration- 134 minutes

Direction- James Wan

Restaurant review - INDIA ON MY PLATE

Fortune Hotel, part of the prestigious ITC group is well known for its excellence in service. The beautiful property located on Sohna Road, Gurgaon has opened a new restaurant INDIA ON MY PLATE and extended a warm invitation to me for its media preview on 16th July.

The restaurant theme revolves around different Indian cuisines under one roof. They serve variety of specialities from each Indian state, blending in authenticity and great taste. The USP of the place is LIVE ghazals by renowned Gharana sensation who also sing songs requested by guests. I thoroughly enjoyed the ghazals of maestro Late Jagjit Singh sung by the artist. What a perfect way of spending a weekend!

PR Shuddhita and Shrea gave us a tour and history of the restaurant, sharing their speciality with us. India on my plate has a spacious indoor seating on second floor of the hotel, overlooking a pool outside. The aesthetics on walls showcase the royal maharajas and maharanis from ancient times, adding more cultural value to the place.

Neer More

Ram Laddu

The courteous waiters started with traditional welcome drink named ‘Neer More’ which tastes like rasam. Partly tangy partly salty, the spices burst into your mouth as you sip this cool appetiser. 'Últe tawe ka khakhra’ coupled with an array of chutneys accompany it.  

Tilwali subz seekh - My favorite

Starters flowed in and each item on the plate spoke of a true Indian experience with the finest blend of spices. My order of veg starters comprised Ram Laddu, Rajma Galaouti, Tiwali subz seekh, dahi kebab, bhutta mutter shammi and pudina paneer tikka. I skipped the Nilgiri Cheese Dosai as I made space for main course. Nawab’s style Rajma Galaouti was simple crispy bite and little spicy just like the Nawab’s form. Awadhi style Tilwali subz seekh and dahi kebab stood out in the entire platter. Tilwale seekh gets a full 5 on 5 from me.

Rajma Galaouti

Cranberry mocktail

Hyderabadi combination of corn and peas made on tawa- Bhutta mutter shammi was the second best. I found Ram Laddu- stuffed moong daal deep fried served with radish and green chutney- okayish since I am not much fond of this. Maida roti layered with ghee accompanied the starters.

I sipped cranberry mocktail along the starters. Unfortunately this mocktail turned out to be quite sweet and not so refreshing.

Being the first day of the restaurant, the staff was quite busy with their hands full of orders from every table. Main course arrived after some delay while I enjoyed the live music and virgin mojito. Oops virgin mojito was not upto the mark. It was overloaded with sweet.

Beautiful bar in the middle 

Rasmalai

 I liked the copper utensils for serving dishes which completes the Indian concept palate. Be it chutneys in copper bowls or main course in the copper carriers, the presentation looked great! I opted for veg dum biryani that came on a plate covered by an edible veil for “dum”. Choley Darbari biryani was nicely prepared with all spices measured flawlessly. I loved the daal tadka which is also said to be the speciality of Fortune. Imagine a simple yellow daal turning out to be the best item of lunch!

Marwad famed Dahi aalu achaari is another unique item in vegetarian menu which is made by potatoes simmered in pickling curd. A nice tangy punch feels heavenly.  

The last item in main course was Amritsar’s Paneer Kasturi. The color looked tempting however the dish wasn’t much exciting. Husband enjoyed his non veg meal of mutton curry, chicken chettinad and gosht biryani.  

Amritsari Badam Phiri

After a hearty meal, I was full to the core but an Indian can never turn down desserts. Hehe

Husband had Rasmali and I chose Amritsari badam phiri. Former tasted way better than Phiri.

Shuddhita in her conversation told us about Indian Cuisines that would be presented rotational basis. The thaali would be unlimited, priced at 500INR only. This gives me more reasons to visit INDIA ON MY PLATE again in future. What’s better than pocket friendly authentic Indian food at a great place like Fortune Excalibur?

Ambience- Very comfortable, warm and cheerful- 5/5

Food presentation- 5/5

Experiment with cuisines- Good attempt- 4/5

Staff- Very courteous, polite- 5/5

Anything missing – I missed salad. May be it can be included. I also found the ‘health consciousness’ factor missing. However, health has not been the focus of Indian cuisine, so Fortune kept it at bay. May be they can introduce a section for health conscious ones like me.

Mujhe naaz hai- Empowering to encourage

NAAZ JOSHI: INDIA’S FIRST TRANSGENDER COVER GIRL

After big celebrities like Caitlyn Jenner and Laverne Cox appeared on the cover of Vanity Fair and Time magazine respectively, it was time for Tehelka to look for an Indian name. That is how Naaz Joshi, the strong headed woman, became India’s first transgender cover girl. She is a leading fashion designer, stylist, model, model manager, model trainer and a fashion columnist, who has worked with renowned names like the ex-cabinet minister Shelja Kumari, late model Viveka Babajee, Riya Sen and Neha Dhupia.

With a name that means pride, 35-year-old Naaz was born in Mexico City into a middle class, family. She was born a transgender with a twin brother—the late fashion designer Chirag Joshi. Soon after they realized she was a transgender, and considering the conservative family she was a part of, her father sent her to a distant relative in order to avoid wagging tongues. While living with relatives, she studied till class 8 and was unable to complete her education, as her brother passed away after losing his battle with cancer at a very young age. It was then that Naaz came back to Delhi and took control over her brother’s business.

It’s not that Naaz was new to the fashion world. She has had a flair for fashion from a very young age and also used to take lessons in marketing strategy and public relations from her brother as and when possible. Ask Naaz how fashion designing happened to her and she says, “I was merely 12 when I started my career by designing beautiful diyas for Diwali meals. As soon as I turned 14, because I looked older than my age, I started working backstage for the Sunder Verma, Rohit Bal, Ravi Bajaj, Payal Jain and Abu Jani Sandeep Khosla shows. I was mesmerized by Madhu Sapre’s style when she was crowned Miss India in 1992, and soon I started following fashion institutes and event companies so that I could give wings to my dreams.”

That determination brought her to Pearl Academy in 1998 where she did her first student fashion design show with top models like Mehar Bhasin, Dipannita Sharma and Sonalika Sahay. Thereafter, Naaz got into NIFT and even won the most creative designer of the year award for her designer lehengas and got to work closely with super models like Noyonika Chatterjee, Bhawna Sharma and Lakshmi Rana. Continuing the story, she adds, “After that, I polished my Indian wear designing skills by working with brands like Ritu Kumar, Ritu Beri, Adarsh Gill and Divya Bindra. I have also done certificate courses in fashion from the Singapore School of Fashion. In 2007, I launched my own label and started retailing from a number of big stores.”

In India, despite the fact that the third gender has been given a green signal, it is still looked down upon and that is the reason Naaz had to face the gender tussle. She went through breast augmentation surgery in 2013, sex re-assignment in 2014 and eventually a breast removal surgery because of cancer in 2015. Ask Naaz how difficult it was to face society and she says, “When I decided to undergo a change, my own so-called friends left me. I also worked as a cabaret dancer at night in order to feed myself. People used to hate us during the day but the same people were ready to pay a price for our glamour at night. I landed up in prostitution so that by working as an escort, I could save funds for the surgery. My clients stopped coming to me and I went through so much emotional distress that I tried committing suicide thrice but failed.”

Naaz was not just answerable to the society for who she was but remains unacceptable to her own family members even today. “I was never accepted by my family. Even today, there are many restrictions on me—no male friends, no socializing, no late nights, always wear covered clothes, sometimes I feel I am living like Cinderella,” states Naaz.

But, all this doesn’t stop the fashion designer from aiming high. It was in 2014 when Supreme Court gave recognition to the third gender. After that, Naaz left prostitution and started her own company. This time, she was a one woman army, unapologetic, strong headed and one who wanted to rise in her career.

As the owner of Naaz Joshi Designs, the designer offers Indo-western fusion clothing to women. She seeks inspiration from Donatella Versace, who, like her, took over as the chief designer of Versace after her brother’s death. She has been a part of several fashion weeks and events. Apart from the wide acceptance Naaz has been receiving from her participation in social media, she is also a recipient of many awards like Miss Queen Mauritius, Wamba Diva of the Fortnight, besides achievement awards from NGOs and news magazines. As a grooming expert, she has trained more than 500 aspirants, including home makers, students, models, corporate clients and singers.

Naaz lets her work do all the talking and is constantly on a mission to find out ways to help the community so that they are not deprived of their basic rights. What has been her learning in life, we ask, and she says, “My life has been a roller coaster ride full of emotions. I love it simply because unlike others who are ashamed to accept who they are publically, I came out in the open and took a stand for myself. I love teaching, training students and children—it makes me feel like a mother because biologically I can’t have kids.”

Naaz requests everyone to look at people of the transgender community as human beings. “I beg all of you to understand the fact that we too have a heart full of emotions. At least, listen to us, as we also value relationships. To all the parents, I just want to say that may be your children have changed their body, but their soul is the same. Don’t be ashamed of them and don’t leave them in darkness as they love you,” pleads Naaz.

Having emerged as an inspirational woman the society can look up to, Naaz has her future plans in place. She shares, “Things haven’t changed and even today people laugh, make fun and mockery of our gender. It is a long journey and will definitely take about 15 years to bring some change. From my side, I will try and come up with concepts where each and every member of the society gets to live a life of a model for at least one day, possibly in a reality show like Big Boss.” Wish her dreams come true.

(Source:- magzter.com)

From The Little Black Book - BoomBox Cafe

Review: RESTRO BAR CAFE

Gurgaon sector 29 is a hub of countless hip-hop cool eating joints. Every food joint tries to offer something different to win customer loyalty. The newly opened BoomBox Cafe has also joined the bandwagon and welcomed us for a food review meet. 

Boombox live upto its name with peppy foot tapping numbers and musical aesthetics on display. I loved the music. Atleast they don’t play the irritating Honey Singh numbers. You would be stunned with the superb ambiance, the moment you enter. Glowing BOOMBOX branding at the ceiling, cool retro musical artefacts, a beautiful large bar and variety of seating arrangement will leave you in awe. 

There were tall tables as well as lounge sofa seating. We chose the low table with four chair seating since our friends Mandira and Manoj had their two years old daughter with them. While the height of the table was perfect, I found the chairs a little uncomfortable. That’s the only area of improvement for Boombox. 

            

Guava Mary

 

Kiss of Kiwi

Chilly Paneer

We began our evening with Guava Mary and chilly paneer. Unfortunately the Guava Mary didn’t suit my taste buds. This mocktail is prepared on the likes of Bloody Mary with salt smeared on the glass rim. I don’t have a taste for bloody mary, so asked for another drink after few sips. The replacement – Kiss of Kiwi exceeded my expectations. Soothing, refreshing and filling it was!

Chilly Paneer was a surprise package. Usually I don’t find spice in pizza or rolls as they claim, so I happily ordered chilly paneer thinking it to be the same case. But the spicy punch inside paneer took me by surprise. It was well marinated and spices had seeped inside. Neither soggy nor hard, this dish was a killer!  

Dahi k kabab

Cranberry mocktail

Chef Deepak met us in person to tell about the menu selection. He personally recommended Dahi k kabab for starters. Sharing the secret of Dahi k sholay, he told us the correct proportion of curd that should go in its preparation. My apprehensions of cholesterol with deep fried stuff was resolved when he told Dahi k kabab were shallow fried. With a great presentation and tinge of tanginess, these soft dahi k kabab tasted heavenly. A good variety of chutney accompanied the dishes.

For another rounds drinks I ordered Cranberry mocktail which had subtle sweetness. Thankfully it did not have the taste of strawberry juice which usually is the case. Hubby tried Italian Smooch which was my second favourite after Kiss of Kiwi.

Veg platter

As the evening sky grew darker, the music tracks changed from one pop number to another groovy song. We swayed to the fantastic music as Chef Deepak curated a non-spicy bowl of veg noodles for Mandira’s daughter. The noodles kept her occupied as we ordered two platters. Non veg platter for husband and Mandira, veg platter for Manoj and me. They highly apprised non veg sampler. The veg platter had Dahi Kabab, Tofu Yakitori, Paneer Harrisa Tikka, Cottage cheese Spring Roll ,Tomato Bruschetta and Caesar Salad.

The cheesy spring rolls and Tofu Yakitori are things to die for! Every dish had the perfect balance of spices and salt. The spacious, beautifully decorated place won our hearts as we left with great memories and the promise to come again.

Highly recommend this place for office parties and large group of friends to chill and spend fun time. 

My rating- A good 3.5 on 5

The treasures in McLeodganj

My travel journal of the trip to Mcleodganj continued from day 2. This is the second half story of our second day in McLeodganj. 

Memorial at Dalai Lama 

As we left from St John's Church, it poured heavily for a good forty minutes. We were stuck in a massive traffic jam for more than an hour on the two kilometer road. Yet, we enjoyed that traffic snarl because of the pleasant weather and lush greenery around. Such amazing weather is so rare in the city.

We reached McLeodganj by half past one. The slippery wet roads and traffic in the narrow lanes of the market welcomed us. Post a hearty lunch we headed to Dalai Lama Temple.

On your visit to McLeodganj, Dalai Lama temple is a must visit. You never know you might get lucky to meet his highness, the holy Lama.
The temple premises has basic infrastructure with beautiful view of the mountains around.

As we entered the security check zone, to my surprise mobile phones and cameras were allowed as against my last visit in 2014 when they were not. People were free to take pictures even inside the premises this time!

Prayer Wheels of Dalai Lama Temple

Prayer Hall at Dalai Lama Temple

The temple complex attracts tourists globally who come in search of answers to questions of life and death. His highness Dalai Lama's temple houses a hostel complex for monks and students. Many have converted into Buddhists who spend their lives serving mankind or mediating there. The first floor with prayer bells and mediation hall gets the maximum footfall. 

Deep dive into the beautiful spiritual sojourn as you witness the large holy sculptures of Buddha, Avalokiteshwara and Gilded Chenrezig

Buddha

Avalokiteshvara

                Chenrezig

We had looked forward to spend some quiet peaceful moments in the temple, but it just did not happen. The place became noisy and a ground for selfie obsessed crowd. It surprised me to see the priests totally cool about it. We settled with some pictures of the deities and moved towards the prayer bells. It was not a pleasant experience unlike my last visit. Teens and young people obstructed the way of the prayer bell direction, posing for pictures and refusing to budge. Whatever happened to the peace of mind and maintaining the sanctity of a holy place?

The view from the first floor overlooking the green mountains is a visual treat. Infact the balcony view is more soothing than the statue premises. 

The whole premises takes less than an hour to see and soak in the positive vibes. We sat across the front gate of the ground floor trying to calm our minds and heal our hurt soles. By 3 pm, we departed from Dalai Lama temple, ticking it on our travel bucket list. :-) 

Our cab driver, suggested us to either go for para gliding or visit Khanyara. For the former we were not prepared nor had planned anything. So choosing the latter sounded a better option to us. Curious to explore, we covered a distance of around twelve kilometers to this lesser known place.

With very less footfall and serene beauty around, the isolated place boasts of a very old Aghanjar Mahadev Temple and a little river flowing in the backyard. Of-late this has emerged as a fun picnic spot.

Walk through this main entrance and see the open temple under the sky. The simplicity of the temple and the people is worth noting. No show of money, no royal ancient carvings on walls, no customary 'chadhawa', no loud bhakti sangeet would make you feel so free and at peace. I pondered over the show offs God is disturbed with. Isn't it? Why not just thank God for his blessings and give him a break? That's my idea of praying to the almighty.

History of the temple- During Mahabharat era, once when Arjun, was on his way to the Kailash Mountains. Lord Shiva appeared in front of him and blessed him with the Boon of Victory over the Kauravas. At this place Baba Ganga Bharati has fired "Akhand Dhuni" (Sacred Fire). 

Descend from a flight of stairs at the backyard, cross a little bridge and treat yourself to a splash of cold water from the Himalayan river.  

  

Slippery in many places, its good to seat yourself on the big stones. Dip your feet in water and relax. The backdrop is perfect for few selfies too! hehe

                                  

Though the place is extremely relaxing and worth travelling a long distance, Indian tourists always disappoint big time! Needless to mention how they litter all places and prove their cheap traits. To add to all this, there were beer bottles  at a holy place! Only God knows why does the temple authority ignore this. Atleast  people should respect the place! 

Anyway, we left the place heading to The Kashmir House crossing the Kotwali bazaar where we shopped for local specialties. We filled our shopping bag with lemon and honey flavor green tea, coconut cookies and tangy apple jam, of which the latter is my favorite. 

We retired to our lovely hotel and unwind-ed before packing and leaving from Dharamsala the same night after an eventful weekend. Dharamsala and McLeodganj happily ticked on our travel list in two days :-)