If there is one common thing you will find in books on India, it has to be the pictures of Jaisalmer. One of the most photographed places in India, Jaisalmer with its colorful people and rich culture is an oasis of paradise amidst the desert.
I am recounting below my trip to the golden city that I undertook with my brother Rajiv. Wish I could have loaded the photographs too...Sometime later maybe, when mouthshut permits.
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It was the night train from Jodhpur that took us to Jassalmer, the place that I fervently wanted to visit to see India’s only desert, the THAR.
I had missed the opportunity of a photo session at Jaipur with the Jawans. My wish was soon fulfilled at Jodhpur as the railway station was teeming with our fauji bhai. In my compartment, I had some great conversation with a jawan who was from Karnataka and another from Tamil nadu. Got an insight into the life of a jawan and if fate wills, will make a movie on them someday using such content.
As tired as we were, when I woke up (and got Rajiv to wake up with great difficulty) at Jassalmer, I realised that we were covered with layers of sand. Wondered where all the sand had come from in the night. We had been instructed at Jodhpur to go to a hotel called the GOLDEN CITY PALACE. Everything in Rajasthan is called a palace. Just to let my readers let go of the grand illusions they might have conjured of the hotel.
Jassalmer is called the golden city as the constructions are built out of sand giving them a golden hue. The city was founded by Jassal Singh.
The htoel was a decent enough place and the owner organised our tour to the desert, thus sparing us the bother of our own preparation. With some bargaining, at Rs. 2700, we got
1)Taken around jassalmer,
2) the camel ride in the desert
3)A a nights stay in the desert with entertainment and
4)a trip to the border, the next morning.
To give the devil his due, the htoel guy is a great organiser. A family from Benares joined us along the trip. We visited Salim Singh ki haveli, Gadsar lake, Sonar Kila and Patwon kihaveli, the most photographed among all the havelis. So many movies and ads have been shot in this place that every step taken, one is reminded of something already seen before. Whether it is the jain temple containing an astoninshing 200 and odd dieties who are worshipped daily, the picturesque gadsar lake or the intricate Patwon ki haveli, Jassalmer gives you goosebumps.
For a connoisseur of music, ’’kesariya balma’’ which echoes throughout the desert is a mirage of heaven in the desert. The main raag of Rajasthan is maand but it is the ahir bhairavi, yeman, shyam kalyan that in toto gives the Rajasthan flavor. Being folk singers does not in any way make them go besur like most of the folk singers I have seen. Their sense of sur and lay is immaculate.
We had a photo session with the guy with the 4ft moustache aiming to break his
bereaved fathers record of 12 ft. I bought a pagdi and since most of the people said that I looked great in it, I kept it on. Also, the pagdi managed to keep my head cool under the 37 degrees of October heat.
Afternoon, we headed towards the desert and after paying our respects at a jain temple were on the road in the midst of a seemingly endless stretch of sand. The camels awaited us at the other end and after overcoming the beginner’s difficulty, had a lovely ride on Kaalu bhaiyya (my camel was supposedly the darkest of the lot but he stank less). The other two camels were Rocket and Jet although in speed, none were the better. The sunset point where all the camels gather with their entourage defies description. Since I was so eager not to miss the sunset, went overboard clicking snaps of it until we landed up with a dozen or more of them. Felt sorry for the latecomers (with a slight amount of happiness too at being more prievieleged) who had missed the sunset.
Our tents awaited us and I was pleasantly surprised to see a band of folk singers waiting to entertain us. Never knew this was on the agenda. A lovely troupe comprising singers, percussionists and dancers to entertain us six! Felt really royal. Even more surprising was the fact that two of the singers had appeared in a Hrithik Roshan ad for coca cola. We felt that their faces looked familiar but we had not realised why! The singing and dancing mehfil was the best thing that happened to us on the entire tour. I joined the singers for Dam a dam mast kalandar (although mine is a more urban version-so I just added my own alaaps) and for Kesariya balma. They found it surprising that I knew most of their folk songs but I told them that every song of theirs had been flicked by the kinds of Anu Malik and Hridayanath Mangeshkar (they had not heard both the names!).
A light dinner (mainly because of the paucity of toilets) and then Rajiv, the benarasi babus and me set off for a walk on the lone stretch of desert. Secretly wondered how mom would have felt of it! Walked back late to the worried benarasi parents trying their best not to look worried. The nights are cold in the desert and I was glad that for once I was stubborn in taking our shawl along.
Got up early in the morning to see the beautiful sunrise and set off for Tanot, the last place where civilian traffic is allowed. We had heard of the temple of the devi at the border through the army people. They had told us that the bombs thrown by the Pakistani army near the temple had failed to explode and also that no bullet aimed at the temple makes its mark. The ride itself felt so secure because of the continuous presence of army people on the way. Excited was not the word when we actually reached the border. We paid our due respects to the Devi responsible for safeguarding our frontiers. Lots of people had tied rumaals (handkerchief) for some minnat to be fulfilled but I was told that if my wish was fulfilled I would have to come back to untie the rumaal! This was kind of tricky so I just wished something for myself without tying the knot!
Two and half hours later, we were back in Jassalmer after the end of a very lovely trip and in the afternoon it was back to Delhi. It was then we realised where all the sand comes from. The sand which settles along the track simply blows into the compartments and although it did not feel at that time, makes for a very different experience. One will lose out on this in an AC cabin however.
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This is just a part of my essay on my trip to Rajasthan. Hope you liked it. The trip (for two of us) around Rajasthan (covering Jaipur, Jodhpur, Pushkar, Ajmer) cost around 12, 000 rupees inclusive of the shopping. You can do it too, without sacrificing much of your comforts. For Rajasthan, unlike other hyped things in the world is still available to the common man at his price.
Rajasthan, you can be sure ’’ I will be back!’’