Escapades

                                                                           Forget the cry for pyaz ka pakoda with chai on a rainy day, ours is a family where it is inevitable that Dal-Bati be prepared for dinner on a wet summer evening. Just the thought of ghee soaked Bati dipped in dal and smeared all over it with the bhartu of aloo and baigan is enough on its own to book a ticket to home. Dal-Bati-Churma, a variation of the very popular Litti- chokha of Bihar, is a proper meal in Marwar region of Rajasthan and thankfully that is where my ancestors were from. Dal prepared mainly but not necessarily from Arhar dal and blasted with tadka is served along with Bati, although most of the street vendors avoid serving the dal to make it look less "messy" but no bati is complete without dal and therein li...

  The Occasional Traveller:             I guess, I am that occasional traveller who heads out once in while and makes sure that the whole world knows every detail of trip. And that is why this post.   Just bear with me for a while. Let’s get started asap. Where and Why?             After months of being cooped up in a 1 B.H.K flat, we (me and flatmate/colleague) were ready to explore some place once the lockdown started to ease. And frankly, I would be ashamed if I did not go somewhere after endlessly watching touring videos on YouTube . And after no deliberation at all, we agreed we wanted to go to Igatpuri, a hill station, perched atop the Western Ghats of Maharshtra. This place offers scenery so beautiful that you will make a point to brag about it to your grand-children. How?             Igatpuri is a...