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Reasons why you MUST visit India

Anand Patel — Mon, 20 Aug 2012 06:49:31 +0000

Aashish Sood Get Ahead reader Aashish Sood on eight compelling reasons why one MUST visit and explore India.

I was talking to a South African colleague of mine about Indian culture etc. when he suddenly said to me ‘So Aashish! Sell me India. Why should I visit India?’ I was asked the same thing when dining with his very lovely wife, Veronica. I did the same on a team dinner when I tried to talk a couple of colleagues into coming to India, while being surrounded by a number of SA settled third generation Indians.

I tried to tell them about the great cultural diversity in our land, the myriad variety of foods that we eat, the innumerous dress languages that we have, literally millions of gods and goddesses that we look (literally) up to, a melee of cultural values living with boardroom antics.

And they seem to have been sold on that. But then I thought, am I really doing justice to the incredibleness that is INDIA!

So I ran a search on the net via Google dev (god) to search why indeed should anyone visit India. Surprisingly, while there was a lot of material on what to visit while visiting India, there wasn’t even a single post on WHY should they be visiting India in the first place?

Having failed in my attempt, I decided to make an effort at penning down a post which might act as a ready reckoner for anyone who is planning to maybe visit India. Maybe I can help tip the scales. Who knows?

So here you go… My top reasons why I feel that India is a must visit for any person (though I myself cannot claim to have seen it all).

Monuments

India has a number of monuments that are a must visit for everyone. Not all of them are historical though. I am sure all would have heard about the Taj Mahal (after all it figures in the list of wonders of world).

India has myriad historical monuments such as the Red Fort, Qutub Minar, Ashok Stambh etc. In addition, we have a lot many of religious places such as the Jama Masjid, Delhi; Golden Temple, Amritsar; Jagannath Puri Temple, Orissa; Akshardham Temple, Delhi and Gujarat.

We have a wide variety of forts and palace such as the Old Fort,Delhi ; Red Fort, Agra; Hawa Mahal, Jaipur; Jal Mahal, Jaipur; Gingee Fort, Tamil Nadu and what not.

Culture

In India, we love talking about our cultural heritage, our legacy etc… but what exactly does all that encompass? The cultural traits, the way we dress, the way we talk and sing, the way we behave among family and friends changes every so often.

In music we have Hindustani Gharana music, Carnatic music, ghazals and folk music. In textile we have Chikankari, Kanjeevaram Saree, Zardozi and the like. We have several dance forms such as Bharatnatyam, Kathak, Kathakali, Kuchipudi, Manipuri, Mohiniattam, Odissi, not to mention Punjabi Bhangra and what not!

Did you know that India has millions of gods and goddesses? Hinduism itself has around 330 million deities.

Food

When you hear people swear by Indian food, it’s not an exaggeration. Visiting India is a culinary delight for vegetarians and an eye opener for meat lovers. I am often asked why I don’t eat non-veg and I simply say: because I don’t need to with so much vegetarian variety. That’s not to say that we don’t have sufficient craving for chicken or fish. And the best food in India is the one that is sold on the myriad roadside stalls, and not within the four square walls of a fancy restaurant.

On one hand we have a gazillion variety of sweet meats whereas on the other hand we have a range of spicy, taste bud tickling offerings. And worldwide, chicken tikka and tandoori chicken are the words which are just about to get added to the Oxford dictionary.

Language

In the land of one billion people, not only do we have dozens of language, we have several dialects within those languages as well. And not like English the Texas way vis-a-vis English the London way. No Sir! We have languages which a person from other territory might not recognise. The languages are as different from each other as apples from oranges. Did you know that we have 22 official languages and 398 living languages in India.

Unlike other countries, we don’t have a singular language (ofcourse Hindi and English are our two primary languages to communicate in when we go to a different zone of the country). So when somebody asks me to speak in Indian, I am often stumped as there is no language called ‘Indian’.

Variety of people

Being in a place like India is as much of an experience as having visited scores of countries because the people are simply so different from each other. And yet, despite all this diversity, they still manage to live in a harmony with each other. While on one hand we have the boastful, garrulous people from Punjab who believe that showing off is the way to communicate with peop#8804 on the other hand we have the passive aggressive folks from South India who believe in simple living high thinking.

On one hand we have the Bengal folks talking about communist way of life, while we have the business minded people of Gujarat where even a five year old has a business of his/her own. ‘Adda’ (useless chitchat between friends) of one place becomes ‘bakar’ in another and ‘gupshup’ in yet another. ‘Bhai’ (brother) of one place undergoes a range of transformation from ‘bhaiyya’ to ‘dada’ to ‘virji’ to ‘cheta’. Such is the wide variety that we have

Delhi

For those of you who feel that Slumdog Millionnaire was a reflection of how India is, or are still stuck in India as being the land of snake charmers, a visit to Delhi, the mecca of modern India is a must.

Being in Delhi is no less than being in the heart of New York or Beijing or Tokyo. You have all the major MNCs of the world with facilities that may surpass even the best of the best.

Natural beauty

The natural beauty of India is at par with its global counterparts. In the northern part of the country we have the valleys of Kashmir dubbed as ‘the Paradise on earth’, for its beautiful valleys, lakes, rivers, peaks and its people and for which Jahangir once said ‘Its pleasure meadows and enchanting cascades are beyond all description.

There are running streams and fountains beyond count. Wherever, the eye reaches, there is verdure and running water. The red rose, the violet and narcissus grow of themselves in the field’. In the south, we have the serene backwaters of Kerala and its majestic beauty.

Spiritual enthusiasts abodes

I feel like the word ‘spiritual tourism’ has been defined with India in mind. Off late, the spiritual tourism industry has seen tremendous growth especially after the popularisation of yoga and traditional Indian remedies and medicines in the western culture.

India offers something for every religion from Hindu to Muslim, from Sikh to Christian to Buddhist. Places like Varanasi, Haridwar, Golden Temple are the ideal destination for spiritual seekers. Four ‘dhams’ and nine ‘devi’ of Himachal are a must see for everyone.

Ancient Indian scriptures quote such cures and remedies and solutions which are increasingly finding their way in the modern lives now that people are trying to live more in tune with nature. Several western countries have tried and failed at getting patents over traditional use items in India such as turmeric for its medicinal property, Basmati rice etc.

Well that was my two cents on this topic. In no way that I believe that I have done justice to the wonder that is India as this is but a mere glimpse of what India has to offer to all. Do let me know as to what you think of this meager attempt to mine to summarise India. All bouquets and brickbats are welcome

Narendra Modi can be a good Army commander

Anand Patel — Wed, 16 Mar 2011 05:24:20 +0000

Narendra Modi

Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi has all the qualities of a successful Army commander as he sets deadlines and ensures targets are achieved on time, said General Officer Commanding (GOC) Major General I S Singha of the Golden Katar Division in Ahmedabad on Monday.”Like in the Army, he (Modi) keeps deadline for completion of work, and ensures that target is achieved by the set time,” he said.He was speaking at the inauguration of three-day ‘Know Your Army’ exhibition organised by the Golden Katar Division of the Army.”Chief Minister Modi has all the qualities of a successful Army commander. His programmes are aimed at development of both the state and the nation,” Singha said.Click on NEXT to read further…

Narendra Modi

Explaining the rationale behind having Naval unit of NCC in schools of coastal areas, Modi said, “The children of fishermen spent their life in the sea so they have a natural ability for dealing with coast situation. And I want this inbuilt strength to be utilised for national security.” If these students from the coast regions are recruited in the Navy, it will help a lot and also, their training, discipline in the Navy will help them secure the coast even after retirement, he added. The chief minister also said that engineering students should try and develop indigenous techniques to develop such weapons in India itself and decrease country’s dependence on other nations for weapons.

Narendra Modi

Modi also flagged off a 1300 km rally to promote and encourage youth in the state to join armed forces. The first leg of the rally from Ahmedabad to Porbander via Rajkot would be on motorcycles. From there it would move along the coast in a Coast Guard boat to Koteshwar in Kutch, where the participants would ride camels in the Kutch desert, before returning to Gandhinagar by March 21. The personnel from Army, Air Force, Navy, BSF and Coast Guard are participating in the rally.

Gujarat is growing fast, and for a good reason,gujarat people has been in the news for three reasons this month.

Anand Patel — Tue, 01 Feb 2011 07:57:36 +0000

gujarat people

Gujarat has been in the news for three reasons this month. The first is, of course, the Vibrant Gujarat investment festival coinciding with the Makar Sankranti season in the state. With the exception of Infosys and Wipro — for which Gujarat is readying a different kind of entrepreneur and Chief Minister Narendra Modi is confident that given time, they will be in Gujarat too — everyone who is anyone in industry was in the state networking, raising money and investing. Investment amounting to lakhs of crores (trillions) has been promised. The accent is on ‘promised’, the Opposition points out.

Narendra modi

Industry, on the other hand, is clear. One Bharatiya Janata Party-minded investor compared Modi to the third in the trinity of ‘Vivekanand and Gandhi’. Poverty of philosophy? Maybe. But industry thinks so.The second event went unreported in the national press but Dalit activists thought it was important enough to disseminate around the world. Dalit rights NGOs reported that for the first time in Gujarat and possibly the entire country, a newspaper editor was arrested under the Scheduled Castes and Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989 and kept behind bars for one full day and night. Seventy-five per cent of cases around the country under this law end in acquittal. In Gujarat, not only was the FIR filed, but successfully pursued. The accused was granted bail but had to stay in jail till the bail hearing was held.

industries

This is the unexpurgated version of what the publication wrote: “In ancient times parents used to send their children to listen to lectures of saints to provide them good company. Children used to visit forest-school (tapovan) for education. In forest-school virtuous rishi munis shaped their characters. In modern times children go to schools, where they come in to contact of children of ‘inferior caste’ and learn bad manners. In present day schools children having inherited bad manners also come to be educated with sons of ‘reputed families’. They definitely affect sons of reputed families. In past, only Brahmins were chosen as teachers in pathshalas. Nowadays, even people of ‘backward caste’ become teachers by getting benefits of reservation. These teachers cannot teach good behaviour to children.”The third time Gujarat made the headlines was when Maulana Vastanvi, the newly appointed rector of Darul-Uloom Deoband, said in an interview there is ‘no discrimination against the minorities’ in Gujarat. Islamic groups in India and abroad are furious at his statement and the Maulana is under pressure to apologise.The three instances come together to illustrate new — and some old — realities about the state. Gujarat and Gujaratis have always understood money better than the rest of India. Congress leader Madhusudan Mistry and leader of the Opposition in Gujarat Assembly, Shaktisinh Gohil said so in Burari and used this intelligence to attack Modi (“he’s promised a lot of money for the state. But where is it?”).

export-import

The question is, why is Gujarat getting the money now? A former Indian Administrative Services officer who is now a private sector advisor on infrastructure was blunt: “In my mind, Godhra equals 1984. What is then the differentiator between previous Congress governments and the present BJP one? The performance of the chief minister and the administration.”"There are two things you have to hand to Modi: He might accept money for the party, but he never asks for money for himself and will not allow his colleagues to make money either; and he’s a nitty-gritty man — nothing is left to the imagination of the bureaucracy (for which he doesn’t have much time anyway) so there is no space for exercising discretion. Every detail is seen through by him,” he added.The closest comparison was with another BJP chief minister, Raman Singh in Chhattisgarh, whose state is also considered a frontline performer. Raman Singh is laid back and believes in living and letting live, but Modi’s style is perform or perish.Modi’s power sector reforms appear to have impressed the most. Power utilities have successfully separated the domestic and agricultural feeders. This has ensured that both sectors get a fair share of power with a regularity that was not possible earlier.

open source for business

Gujarat’s state GDP is 11 per cent and agricultural growth is 9.6 per cent. Power is essential. But so is land. So how does Modi cope with the rising demand for land from industry and the compulsion of high agricultural growth? Gujarat has a law under which non-farmers cannot buy agricultural land, and if a farmer sells his land and does not register the purchase of fresh agricultural land in three years, he loses the right to be called a farmer. So everywhere Modi goes, he tells villagers: “Don’t sell your land; and if you do, buy more agricultural land.” Farmer versus industry agitations are gaining ground in the state; but so is prosperity. Farmers in Sanand protested against land acquisition — and how? By not sending their children to school.

mahatma mandir at gandhinagar

Modi’s social project is gaining ground. When Vibrant Gujarat was on, by day he would sign MoUs. And come evening, he could be found in Dalit bastis in Ahmedabad, flying kites with children, interacting with people. Muslims do complain of discrimination. But they say the pace of development in their area is not as fast as in the Hindu areas.Gujarat is growing fast. The rest of India has to trust, verify, but as Maulana Vastanvi pointed out, grow up as well.

Sohrabuddin case: Gujarat minister Amit Shah resigns

Anand Patel — Sat, 24 Jul 2010 08:37:48 +0000

NEW DELHI: Facing charges of murder and arrest, Gujarat minister of state for home Amit Shah, a close associate of chief minister Narendra Modi, on Saturday resigned from the state ministry.

“As I landed here in Delhi, I have information that Amit Shah’s resignation has reached my residence in Gandhinagar. On return, I will accept it and complete the formalities,” Modi, who is here to attend the National Development Council meeting, said.

Asked by reporters whether the resignation amounted to accepting that Shah was guilty, Modi said, “He was accepting it because under the Constitution, certain formalities have to be fulfilled”.

He said Shah would fight the issue legally and expressed confidence that judiciary would provide him justice.

Shah’s resignation comes a day after CBI charged him with kidnapping and murder of alleged gangster Sohrabuddin Sheikh and his wife Kauser Bi in November 2005.

Though Shah has resigned still nothing was clear about his whereabouts.

The CBI, which filed the chargesheet on Friday before a court in Ahmedabad, has already sent teams for arresting him after he refused to appear before an agency team by Friday’s 1pm deadline for questioning.

Shah’s anticipatory bail application before the CBI court on Friday was rejected and his lawyers were planning to approach the Gujarat High Court.

Attacking the Congress, Modi said, “The case against Shah was a revenge for its loss in the 2007 assembly polls when it had made Sohrabuddin a hero. This was a politically motivated action against Amit Shah and the BJP government in Gujarat to corner it and to put obstacles in development work it was carrying out”.

He said, “Shah is completely innocent and the charges against him are fabricated. The CBI is being misused by the Congress against its political rival”.

He said the BJP would go to the people along with those fighting the forces of terror.

Modi said the Congress and central government had completely “failed” in all fronts in facing the challenges of Kashmir, Maoists and problems from Pakistan.

“The Congress government at the Centre was fully using the CBI to target political rivals after it failed on all fronts,” Modi said.

He said, “The government failed on the prices issue and was faced with an unprecedented bandh. Srinagar is on fire and the government came back fully beaten at the Indo-Pak dialogue in Islamabad and the Maoists were replying by bullets in the fight in which innocent people were killed”.

In Ahmedabad, officials in the chief minister’s office (CMO) said Shah’s resignation has been accepted by Modi.

Shah had failed to appear before the CBI on Friday for questioning for the second time in two days following summons issued twice.

Shah’s anticipatory bail plea shortly after he failed to show up before the CBI was on Friday rejected by special CBI court judge G K Upadhaya.

CBI also sent teams to the office and residences of the senior BJP leader in Gandhinagar and Ahmedabad and recorded statements of Shah’s staff but could not locate him.

The probe agency tightened the noose around Shah, who has been named as an accused along with 14 others including some IPS officers in the chargesheet filed on Friday in the special CBI court.

Shah has been listed as accused number 13 and the chargesheet notes he has not been arrested.

A CBI statement said the 15 accused were booked in the fake encounter of Sohrabuddin and for brutally killing his wife Kausarbi. The CBI probe was spread over five states–Gujarat, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra.

About the summons to Shah, the statement said, “He did not appear and hence chargesheet was filed without his examination.”

Besides the murder charge, the other charges against all the 15 accused included criminal conspiracy, wrongful confinement, kidnapping and abducting to murder, extortion and destruction of evidence under various IPC sections.

The CBI is conducting a fresh probe into the November 26, 2005 encounter at the behest of the Supreme Court after questions were raised on the investigations by the Gujarat police. Sheikh, an alleged gangster, was killed in an alleged fake encounter by Gujarat Police.

The accused included IPS officers Abhay Chudasama, D B Vanzara, Dinesh M N and Rajkumar Pandian and eight other policemen. All of them are under arrest.

“Yes, we have sent teams,” CBI sources said but avoided a direct reply when asked whether teams have been sent to arrest Shah.

Isolated in house, BJP may take hardline

Anand Patel — Sat, 24 Jul 2010 04:40:34 +0000

The BJP-government showdown over CBI action against Shah is certain to split Opposition down the middle as neither Left nor any other non-UPA party will be seen in the same corner as BJP. This will also see BJP isolated and raise the prospect of the party lurching to the hardline Hindutva posture symbolized by Narendra Modi. A good part of the monsoon session of Parliament may become a casualty if the confrontation does not abate.

A senior BJP leader said the party did not want to fall for a “charm offensive” on part of the government. At its press conference on Friday, BJP leaders Arun Jaitley and Sushma Swaraj took an aggressive line, arguing that CBI had acted on the basis of flimsy and unsustainable evidence. Senior BJP leader L K Advani wrote to PM Manmohan Singh and spoke to finance minister Pranab Mukherjee, explaining the inability of BJP to attend a scheduled lunch on Friday due to the “vitiated atmosphere”.

But when the heat is on in Parliament, even BJP allies like JD(U) will keep in the background. Being seen to defend Modi just after objecting to him campaigning in the Bihar polls due later this year, JD(U) finds itself in a deeply embarrassing situation. Its leader in Lok Sabha Sharad Yadav refused comment on the events in Gujarat but said he hoped to salvage Opposition unity by raising price rise as soon as possible.

BJP sources said the case against Shah would not stand close scrutiny as it was sbuilt on phone calls and testimonies that are like hearsay. But party sources agreed that if the Gujarat minister did not get bail, as was likely, he would be arrested and would have to quit his home portfolio. The party was hard pressed to answer the argument that CBI was acting on Supreme Court’s directions and so could not be accused of toeing the government line.

Congress spokesperson Abhishekh Singhvi said BJP was trying to subvert the SC-ordered investigations into Sohrabuddin encounter case. The CBI, he said, had sent “collective shivers” in the BJP and its leaders were trying to pressurize investigators.

MoS in PMO and in-charge of the department of personnel Prithviraj Chavan dismissed the BJP’s charge that CBI was politically motivated. “In these politically sensitive cases, CBI has gone into investigation following court orders and it is being supervised by the Central Vigilance Commission,” he said. He added that “everyone wants criminals to be arrested and let the CBI do its job”.

Congress in-charge of Gujarat B K Hariprasad said it was unfortunate and unbecoming of BJP to call off the lunch with the PM. “The law is catching up with them, the CBI is working on directions of the Supreme Court,” he said.

It’s destination Gujarat for celebs this Navratri

Anand Patel — Sat, 26 Sep 2009 07:00:29 +0000

From superstar Priyanka Chopra to item girl Sambhavna Seth, celebrities are making the best out of the Navratri season in Ahmedabad, be it extolling their Gujarati fans to watch their next film or just making a quick buck.

The Navratris celebrated across the state, have over the years transformed into nine days of glitzy revelry with Bollywood and TV stars providing the necessary dose of glamour.

While celebrities take the opportunity to interact with their fan base while ringing in some easy cash, organisers bank on the “celebrity factor” to pull in the crowd, who are spoilt for choice with events mushrooming all over town.

Singer-turned actor Himesh Reshammiya who was in Rajkot for the Akila-Pioneer Navratri celebrations took the opportunity to promote his upcoming film Radio, telling the crowd, “I have come to Rajkot for the first time, but I love my fans here. My film Radio is releasing on December 3. Please do go watch it.”

While the singer was lapping up the attention of the cheering crowd, the organisers were not complaining as a good 10,000 people had turned to catch a glimpse of the star, doubling the ticket sales.

“It is not so much about profit as about brand value because the rates for the celebrity performances are the same as regular nights. There are so many events all over, ours will now be known as the one where Himesh performed, it pays off well and we also get media coverage because of it,” said Satish Ahuja, one of the organisers.

Bollywood’s latest ‘It’ girl Priyanka Chopra too was in Ahmedabad with co-star Hurman Baweja and director Ashutosh Gowariker to promote her film What’s Your Rashee?’.

But it is not just Bollywood A-listers who are getting the red carpet treatment this Navratri, TV stars like Parul Chauhan of Bidaai, and Hina Khan of Yeh Rishta Kya Kehlata Hai the entire cast of Tarak Mehta Ka Ulta Chashma are also here.

“I love the Navratri season, it is so full of life and colour. I was in Surat and I enjoyed the experience thoroughly and I also have been invited to some overseas events. It is great to meet fans from all over the world during the festivals,” said former Bigg Boss contestant Monica Bedi, whose other claim to fame includes the infamous connection to underworld don Abu Salem.

But how much does the glamour cost?

“It depends on the celebrity and the fan following. TV and reality show stars get anything from 50,000 to 1.5 lakh per appearance, depending on the TRP’s of their shows and if you want a Bollywood star it costs a lot more. But if you have good connections and they have a film to promote, it can happen for free,” said Himanshu Shah, MD of SOI event management group.