ದೇವಾಲಯ ವೀ ಹೂವಿನ ತೋಟಂ. ಕೈ ಮುಗಿದು ಒಳಗೆ ಬಾ, ಇದು ಸಸ್ಯ ಕಾಶಿ. Do these words look somewhat familiar to you ? Does they ring a bell ? Yes, you are right. It's Lal Bagh, a place where beauty and splendor meet flowers and fragrance. The haven where people congregate, an avenue where friendships and alliances are made. The one place in Bangalore that has been left untouched amidst all the hustle, bustle and tearing down of roads, trees and poles to pave the way for the massive growth of the city to accommodate the crores who live, breathe and work in the garden city of Bangalore. The sprawling garden where people of all ages and physique come together to spend an hour amidst the magnificent surroundings encompassing a beautiful, sprawling lake, a breathtaking hill top, the glass house, the gigantic clock, and a huge assortment of plants, trees and shrubs.
Whenever I visit Bangalore one of the most important activities, or perhaps the most important activity on my to-do calendar is to take those early morning walks in Lal Bagh. Oh, I am willing to give an arm and a leg for that refreshing experience of breathing the freely available, pure, unadulterated oxygen in the air, and it's a pleasant sight to see that there are at least a thousand people in those eery dusk hours who perhaps think like me and want to get that whiff of gardena, flora and fauna while strolling through the magnificence that this picturesque, world famous park is. In the midst of all this, you get to hear all sorts of conversations related to sports, politics, science, art, music, literature and philosophy. Not to forget movies and entertainment.
My love affair with Lal Bagh takes on an elevated course when I have family and friends accompanying me during my walks, and we get to talk about the bat and ball game that's close to my heart and one that I have grown up with and been following passionately all my life. We get to discuss how two mild mannered, stylish magicians who went by the names VVS Laxman and Dravid turned a Test match on its head 17 years ago one fine day in Kolkata, how a bespectacled, gentle-mannered lion-hearted working class hero from Karnataka destroyed the famed Pakistan batting line-up, wreaking havoc through their innings to claim all the second innings ten wickets to engrave the most remarkable day in his 135-Test career into the cricketing stonehenge, or how another erstwhile Kannadiga/Karnataka superstar with the last name Javagal struck lightning in the South African ranks on a sunny day nearly 22 years ago in the metropolis of Ahmedabad. We get to relive those awesome memories when these cricketers catapulted our home country to some famous victories against formidable foes.
There is always that odd, old gentleman in our group from the grand, old days of Karnataka and Indian cricket who recalls with pride how a five-footer, diminutive maestro by the name Gundappa Viswanath from our home state defied the voracious speedsters from the Caribbean island, standing like the little boy on the Horatio bridge, blazing his way to an unbeaten 97 out of India's meagre 190, in a Test match in the hot Southern city all those decades ago, 43 years to be precise. And to tackle this gentleman is out there the greying head from the western metropolis of Mumbai who eloquently speaks about how his hometown hero Sunil Gavaskar from the 1970s and 1980s brought India to the doorstep of victory with a monumental knock of 221, defying all odds and taking it upon himself to chase 438 for a win at The Oval in 1979, only to stumble at the last gasp in what otherwise could perhaps have been India's most pivotal moment in their cricketing history, but unfortunately failing by a mere nine runs to attain glory.
Not to be outdone by sports fans like me, we have a small group of men in their 60s who could range anywhere from being diehard loyalists of Narendra Modi to vociferous critics of the current Indian Prime Minister. For every argument put forth by Modi's fans as to how he has brought about a welcome sea of revolution in the Indian economic diaspora by bringing in Aadhar card and Japanese trains, we have at least one man shouting out as to how Mr. Narendra Modi has been unable to stem India's burgeoning issues in water and food scarcity and how he should be doing something different from what he is doing now.
To add to the mix, we have the movie passionate folks who can never agree as to whether Kishore Kumar was a better singer than Mohammad Rafi or vice-versa, or how the current line of singers like Sonu Nigam and Shreya Ghoshal compare against the versatile duo of S.P. B. and S. Janaki from the last five decades. And we always have the "it was better in our days" trio who always feel that the current actors cannot hold a candle to the yesteryear heroes Dr. Rajkumar or Dr. Vishnuvardhan when it comes to presentation on the big stage while there are people who live, swear and die by Ramesh Aravind. There are those who have settled here for decades and are aghast at the tearing down of all those old theaters on Kempegowda Road to build the megabuck Malls, thus robbing our dear, historic city of its pristine charm and glory for the sake of commercialization and trade.
We have a small group of teenagers with us who are in their own world, clicking away furiously on their mobile devices and taking undue advantage of the oldies's tardiness, by taking as many pictures as possible in front of the glass house and the peacock, and not one bit bothered as to why why one of the adults is unable to agree with the other about whether it is preferable to go and sit in the tailor's shop for hours to get the right size cloth stitched as against purchasing a readymade shirt from one of the Arrow or Louis Philippe stores near the Jayanagar shopping complex. We always have people appearing or at least pretending to be oblivious to what one NRI lady thinks about purchasing sarees in the congested ಚಿಕ್ಕಪೇಟೆ area when pitchforked against another's lady wishes to buy from those multi-storeyed pricey shops on M.G. Road.
It takes all types of people to make this world, as the saying goes, and that's true with walkers too. We have people who are willing to give endless lectures on what needs to be done to improve our kids' education, what should be presented in job interviews to be able to land a position in these prestigious corporate offices, and topics as far fetched as how to remove pollution from the streets in India, and how to bring about a method to the madness that is seen in Bangalore's road traffic. While we do have the less serious crowd too who are always having a problem with each other, each party trying to convince the other as why the Masala Dosa in Vidyarthi Bhavan, Gandhi Bazar is better than or inferior in quality to the one in Central Tiffin Room in Malleswaram, or why you should have your birthday parties in Food Camp or in Kamat Yatrinivas, discussing the merits and demerits thereof.
To add to the mix, we have the movie passionate folks who can never agree as to whether Kishore Kumar was a better singer than Mohammad Rafi or vice-versa, or how the current line of singers like Sonu Nigam and Shreya Ghoshal compare against the versatile duo of S.P. B. and S. Janaki from the last five decades. And we always have the "it was better in our days" trio who always feel that the current actors cannot hold a candle to the yesteryear heroes Dr. Rajkumar or Dr. Vishnuvardhan when it comes to presentation on the big stage while there are people who live, swear and die by Ramesh Aravind. There are those who have settled here for decades and are aghast at the tearing down of all those old theaters on Kempegowda Road to build the megabuck Malls, thus robbing our dear, historic city of its pristine charm and glory for the sake of commercialization and trade.
We have a small group of teenagers with us who are in their own world, clicking away furiously on their mobile devices and taking undue advantage of the oldies's tardiness, by taking as many pictures as possible in front of the glass house and the peacock, and not one bit bothered as to why why one of the adults is unable to agree with the other about whether it is preferable to go and sit in the tailor's shop for hours to get the right size cloth stitched as against purchasing a readymade shirt from one of the Arrow or Louis Philippe stores near the Jayanagar shopping complex. We always have people appearing or at least pretending to be oblivious to what one NRI lady thinks about purchasing sarees in the congested ಚಿಕ್ಕಪೇಟೆ area when pitchforked against another's lady wishes to buy from those multi-storeyed pricey shops on M.G. Road.
It takes all types of people to make this world, as the saying goes, and that's true with walkers too. We have people who are willing to give endless lectures on what needs to be done to improve our kids' education, what should be presented in job interviews to be able to land a position in these prestigious corporate offices, and topics as far fetched as how to remove pollution from the streets in India, and how to bring about a method to the madness that is seen in Bangalore's road traffic. While we do have the less serious crowd too who are always having a problem with each other, each party trying to convince the other as why the Masala Dosa in Vidyarthi Bhavan, Gandhi Bazar is better than or inferior in quality to the one in Central Tiffin Room in Malleswaram, or why you should have your birthday parties in Food Camp or in Kamat Yatrinivas, discussing the merits and demerits thereof.
And when it's about time to conclude our walk, my stomach is gurgling at the salivating thought of being able to take my family members to the nearby ಸೌತ್ ತಿಂಡೀಸ್ or ಉಪಹಾರ ದಶಿ೯ನಿ to enjoy the morning hot, steaming ಚೌಚೌಬಾತ್, ಪೂರಿ and ಕಾಫಿ. Our only problem in life, for the time being, being how to find a parking spot for the car in the crowded Jayanagar/Basavanagudi area close to the restaurant. Life's simple delights ride on these small activities we do to unwind ourselves, not having to worry about what it means to come back to the United States a week later, and getting back to the routine of waking up early and getting ready to go to work.
Lal Bagh, the heavenly abode in Bangalore where the introvert can still experience serenity and tranquility, away from the myriad distractions of life. And the place where extroverts like me can have endless discussions and chatter until the cows come home. As the old saying goes, what is good for the goose is good for the gander. What a tremendous pleasure it is to have all these conversations while taking a walk in the park, giving a cursory glance at the lake, taking time to smell the roses in the garden, shaking hands with friends and acquaintances, admiring the immaculately cut bushes, and enjoying the sight of the flowers in the glass house!!! Have you ever given a thought as to what it means to spend an hour walking in the evergreen Lal Bagh garden, living and enjoying every moment of it, and finally waving goodbye to the park at the gate after reading the sign: ದೇವಾಲಯ ವೀ ಹೂವಿನ ತೋಟಂ ? Do you want to give it a try ?
Lal Bagh, the heavenly abode in Bangalore where the introvert can still experience serenity and tranquility, away from the myriad distractions of life. And the place where extroverts like me can have endless discussions and chatter until the cows come home. As the old saying goes, what is good for the goose is good for the gander. What a tremendous pleasure it is to have all these conversations while taking a walk in the park, giving a cursory glance at the lake, taking time to smell the roses in the garden, shaking hands with friends and acquaintances, admiring the immaculately cut bushes, and enjoying the sight of the flowers in the glass house!!! Have you ever given a thought as to what it means to spend an hour walking in the evergreen Lal Bagh garden, living and enjoying every moment of it, and finally waving goodbye to the park at the gate after reading the sign: ದೇವಾಲಯ ವೀ ಹೂವಿನ ತೋಟಂ ? Do you want to give it a try ?
Nice blog Kiran! I also make it a point to have a early morning walk in Lal Bagh at once when I visit Bangalore. I normally start my walk from Shanthi Nagar (my in-law's place). After my walk, I proceed to Gandhi Bazar. I walk by my alma matter (National College). Go to Vidhyarthi Bhavan via DVG road. After the customary dosa, I drop into my relative's place. He is a advocate and lives just next door. I then go buy vegetables, fruits and flowers from Gandhi Bazar market. Return back either by BTS (first preference) or by Auto. This routine is one of the most satisfying things that I do during my trip. My trips to Bangalore are less frequent now. Thanks to your blog I was able to recall and relive them! - Harish
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