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our visit to the lovely IUCAA campus in Pune, India
19 July 2025 . Wow what a lucky start to today. We got to visit IUCAA this morning — i was keen on seeing the Foucault Pendulum (which i saw and it was really cool!) but instead got a full tour of the 22-acre campus, where all the buildings are designed by Charles Correa.
July 19, 2025
a thirty-year correspondence...
Couple of weeks ago, my friend T invited me to a reading event at the Symphony Space. It was a Letters of Note event. I follow them on twitter and so knew that it would be a fun event to attend. It was indeed a wonderful evening, made even more special by the actors who read out aloud the letters, which were unique and startling and always revealing about the letter writer. What people write when they think only one person will read it is usually different than what they write if a crowd is going to read it. Jane Curtin read a job application letter by a funny woman from the south, writing in to the New Yorker. (I’m forgetting her name now.) Phylicia Rashad read a surprisingly ordinary letter from Queen Elizabeth II to Eisenhower about her drop scones and also included the recipe that had measures in the form of tea cups; 'very quaint' is all that came to mind. An everyday letter from a not-so-well-known (at the time) Keith Richards to his aunt was so exuberant and youthful and innocent that the vision of Richards now was hard to reconcile. One of my favorites of the evening was Kate Mulgrew reading a letter by Kathryn Hepburn, in perfect Hepburn pitch (honed perfectly from Tea at Five, I’m sure; Mulgrew even had Hepburn’s head-shake & voice down pat), a letter to Spencer Tracy, a letter unsent to him and unread by him, a letter of confession and of questions, a letter so beautifully honest that it made me cry. It was a cold evening that night. T & I walked a few blocks after just to take in the cool air. I mentioned how letter writing had been a wonderful activity for me growing up and how this event reminded me that the two long-running correspondences I’d had so far, had both ended. One by death. One by just times, they are a-changing. Both had begun when I was eight… and thirty years later, they were both over.
Feb 24, 2015
A walk around the block...
It's a little past 10pm [oops!] and I decided to walkabout round the block tonight. Nights are cooler than the days so it seemed like a good idea. Dadar-Prabhadevi-Shivaji Park neighborhood of Bombay is predominantly Maharashtrian, laid-back, and very simple. Life in South Bombay or "town" is far different. But here are some jhalaks (glimpses) from my walk tonight. The corner that during the day hosts a chaiwallah , vada-pav stand, and fruitwallah , is now a bustling little corner "bistro" with local faves such as bhurji (scrambled egg with masala), pav-bhaji , onion-tomato mixed stuff and gawd knows what more (I couldn't really tell). The neighborhood guys on motorcycles are cruising about trying to figure out what to do and where to hang out.
Nov 17, 2010
it's Diwali time...
Diwali is almost upon us. This year, 2010, Diwali is on Nov 5th & 6th. My brother & his family will be here. My mama (uncle, ie mother's brother) & his family will be here as well. So it's going to be a fun filled Diwali... family, friends, food, farrar (Diwali snacks), fireworks... all the necessary Diwali stuff. We've begun prepping for all this already of course. Gifts have been bought. Farrar - besan ladoos, bhajini chaklis, shankar parya etc - are ready to be had :) Family will soon be here. Fireworks will be bought later, only the no-noise-making ones though - fulzhadis (sparklers), flowerpots, chakras and more. We've also bought Diwali lights for all the windows. Only one item was left pending... the Akash Kandil (Diwali lantern). We decided to make one at home although there are some very pretty lanterns available all over town. We had a lantern framed out from last year so with some color cellophane paper, Fevicol, glitter paper, we completed our Diwali Akash Kandil - a regular dodecahedron - namely 12 pentagons. Here's how we did it...
Nov 1, 2010
these feet are for a-walkin...
I love to walk especially in my trusty birkinstocks . I wear them ALL the time it seems. Can't explain my obsession or fetish (call it what you will) with feet and walking, but here are some photos from my various walks. I also love textures and barefoot walking. In NYC, wearing vibrams made sense but here in Bombay, it's completely silly, especially when most people are walking barefoot for real... I take photos of my feet to document time & place & adventure and also other people's feet cause they are so cool.
Oct 4, 2010
Look up... and you'll see stars, even in Bombay...
Most people think that star gazing is not possible in a big city. But it is possible… I know from firsthand experience. In New York we met most every Friday and Saturday in Central Park to view the stars, basic solar system stuff, the moon, and open/closed clusters too. I hung out with some astronomy buffs Peter , Charlie and others. Peter generally brought one of his telescopes to the park. We all had our binoculars as well. As you can imagine, once a scope is setup, it's an immediate people magnet. People are surprised firstly to see that that star gazing is possible and then curious to see what we are looking at. Pointing out Venus shining brightly in the setting west sky would always draw lots of oohs and aahs. Mars & Saturn were also great favorites. The joy for me in star gazing is not so much the physics and theory of the universe etc but more the idea of the stars and how they move through the night sky. Watching stars moving daily allows me to connect with them and lets me imagine how seafarers in times past navigated by them. It's magical.
Oct 2, 2010
A Daily AMwalk... Good for the Body and Great for the Soul...
When in New York, I loved going walkabout, either in Central Park or along the river or just within the city as well. A typical day's walk was about 3-4 miles. I thought I'd continue a similar tradition here. However, walking in Bombay is a whole other ballgame. There are so many more things a pedestrian needs to look out for and pay attention to. Footpaths (sidewalks) do exist along most major roads though they either tend to be taken over by street vendors or are in disrepair, forcing people to then walk on the streets, which in turn places congestive pressure on traffic. The whole thing is rather messy and I haven't yet been able to figure out why a more orderly and coexisting pedestrian and vehicular traffic pattern isn't possible here.
Sept 20, 2010
The Flight Home to Bombay... contd
Although the flight was full, at my set of three seats, there were only two of us. I was at the window and a guy at the aisle. To add to this amazing luck, the seat in front of me was occupied by a 3-month old baby girl. Babies don't recline but they do cry. However I don't mind their crying, so it was a great pairing. The family with the baby and a young son were nice to chat with. We were all fellow Indians living in America, coming home to visit family and friends so had many of shared experiences. One of the highlights of the flight was seeing Jupiter right outside my window as we took off. When we reached midway altitude, I looked out to see the big dipper. it was unreal. I just didn't think a view of the stars en route would be so clear. We were truly flying amongst the stars. Earlier this year in May, my parents gifted me a pair of binoculars. Nothing fancy but pretty great. Nikon 8x42 6.3deg Waterproof. I've always been interested in star gazing. Back in school, we used to have pretty clear nights. A friend of mine was good with star maps and she was our guide of sorts. In New York, I hung out with Peter, Charlie and others who usually set up each weekend at top of the big lawn in Central Park, viewing from sunset to when the park closed at 1am.
Sept 20, 2010
Ganapati Bappa Morya...
Being in Bombay during Ganesh Chaturthi time is exciting. Hindus follow a lunar calendar so each year this festival falls on different dates. This year Ganesh Chaturthi started Saturday Sept 11th. This festival is celebrated with more vigor in south India than in the north; so yes, Bombay, Maharashtra, is south India. The day before Ganesh Chaturthi is known as Haritalika Tritiya and many families perform a puja (ceremony) on this day as well. Like most things in Hinduism, there are no set-in-stone rules for how to celebrate Ganesh Chaturthi. If you have a Ganesh at home, in Marathi it's known as 'Ganapati basowla' literally meaning that Ganapati has been 'seated'. Families choose to seat Ganesh for different lengths of time: 1-1/2 days, 2 days, 5 days, and then 11 days. If you don't seat a Ganesh at home, it's tradition to go visit friends and family who have. After the Ganesh puja is the visarjan where the idol is then immersed in a flowing body of water. When bringing the Ganapati home and then during visarjan is when there is more than usual chaos on the streets. On Wednesday Sept 15th night, it was visarjan time for the 5-day Ganapatis and the traffic all over was pretty bad; I got stuck for an hour and half en route from Sion to Dadar.
Sept 20, 2010
Origami in New York and now in Bombay...
One of my favorite hobbies is origami. The national non-profit origami group OrigamiUSA (OUSA) is headquartered in NYC and I've been a member with them since 1997. There are many regional origami groups all over the US and of course, around the world as well, but having the national group in New York is great as we have monthly origami meetings (Folding Sundays) at the American Museum of Natural History (AMNH), where OUSA has had their offices since inception.
Sept 24, 2010
Getting a mobile in Bombay ought to be easier...
Since I'm going to be in Bombay for a little longer than couple of weeks, I decided to get a mobile number. The easiest way is supposed to be a prepaid option. I went to the neighborhood Vodafone dealer (I believe I had gotten a similar mobile number setup with them last year) to get information about the application etc. The form clearly stated a requirement of two different sets of ID: a passport is helpful and proof of address via an electricity bill or similar. Having paid Rs.150 for the sim card, I filled out the application, and got all my documents ready - a black/white photo, passport, PAN card (this is India's version of a national ID card of sorts & stands for Permanent Account Number) and an official letter from my father's work confirming that I live where I do, and copies of all the original documents etc. The letter from work is in lieu of an electric bill and an Indian's driver's license; more on the license later. The boy (yeah, he's probably only 17yrs old, working at his father's shop) at the shop, without so much as a glance at my application and papers, outright rejected it. He complained about the black/white photo, although it was current (a day old) and clearly it was me. He didn't even bother reading the official letter that confirmed my residence. The Indian passport and PAN card did not mean anything, especially since the passport had a Jaipur address (where I lived when I got the passport made, some 10yrs ago). I'm not sure what folks are supposed to do if they move around; I think the boy expected me to have gotten a new passport every time I moved. In any case, I got a chance to speak with the shop owner (the boy's father I believe) who actually read all the documents I'd brought, and after having me sign them all in front of him (verifying my signature with the one in my passport), he okayed it and said the application would be processed in 24hrs. Sounds like I did pretty good right? Unfortunately you'd be very wrong if you thought that.
Sept 24, 2010
BKC-Bandra West-Dadar walk (part 2)
Getting to Bandra station was simple enough as it was all via the skywalk. Once at Bandra, I got to a T-junction on the skywalk, left to go west, right to go east. Getting to the west side meant going through the station area. In Bombay, stations have no turnstiles etc when entering... it's all open and tickets are per the honor system, like in Berlin. However when leaving stations, there are train conductors who randomly stop passengers and ask to see a ticket. If caught without a ticket, there's a fine, of course. There were many large signs on the westbound side stating that a valid ticket was needed to continue. Not wanting to risk any trouble, even though I wouldn't be using the trains, I walked east and down the stairs thinking I could cross over to the west side via some other path. Crazy thinking since Bandra west and east are separated by the very wide and busy Western Railway line. So I asked some folks who were standing in line for a bus about how I could get across to the west side and they said I'd have to buy a ticket to cross over. I'd seen the ticketing area earlier so I went back there. There were automated ticket machines but I'd have needed a smartcard to use them. Not having a smartcard, I stood in line to buy a ticket. I was pleasantly surprised that there were three lines properly formed and that order was maintained throughout. A few folks, spying friends closer to the window, cut ahead and bought tickets together but nothing more than that. I noticed there were signs and separate windows for Ist and IInd class. I had no idea what line I was in nor how much a ticket would be but going with the flow I thought I'd just see what happened. As I got to the window, a guy decided to cut the line and placed Rs.50 towards the clerk for couple of tickets. I didn't know if the guy cutting the line was being a jerk because it was me or whether he'd have done the same to anyone else too. I had half a mind to say something but then I let it go. Surprisingly, the clerk noticed that the guy was cutting in and motioned him to go back in line. Again, don't know if this is the norm or what but I was thrilled to see that it had happened. Speaking my best Marathi, I requested a ticket and said that I wanted to go to the west side. Turned out that there was a platform fee... it was Rs.3 With ticket in hand, I walked over to Bandra west, where I got to see the station from the outside. It was a beautiful old building with terracotta roof tiles. I don't know when the station was built but most likely it's from when the British were in India. Looking at the structure, I could only imagine what Bandra was like back then. Now, Bandra station west (and east for that matter too) was a bustling place with an auto stand on one side, a big B.E.S.T. bus depot on the other side, police vans, vendors everywhere, cars dropping off/picking up people... simply a blast for all the senses. Walking along the main road towards the B.E.S.T. bus depot, I saw another skywalk going further west. I guess there must've been a connection from the main BKC-Bandra station skywalk but I had missed it. Since the skywalk was in the direction I needed to go, I climbed back up the stairs. This skywalk was similar to the BKC-Bandra station one though with a different color palette. Walking along the skywalk is a welcome relief from the heat, and chaotic confusion that is the street, where neither vehicle, pedestrian, nor animal has a right of way on the road, thus making everything totally confounding.
Sept 28, 2010
BKC-Bandra West-Dadar walk (part 1)
Today (Sept 27, 2010) I walked from BKC/Kala Nagar to Bandra station to Dadar. It wasn't a long walk distance wise, approximately 4.5miles (7.24kms) but it took me almost 2.5hours as I took my time walking and taking photos. It was also rather hot and that has an effect on how fast one keeps going. Fellow tweeter @abhishinde asked me what the story was behind this walk, a question you may be asking as well, so here goes. I believe that a lot can be learned about a city by walking through it. In Bombay, for the most part, for good or worse, travel for me is mainly by car. One whizzes by neighborhoods and sees life in a blur. Only when there is a traffic does one get a chance to see city life more up close, which when walking, is an experience further amplified. I've been walking around my neighborhood and know it well now so thought I'd extend the loop and do this long walk. By starting at BKC, I also got a chance to walk the length of the first Mumbai skywalk.
Sept 27, 2010
The Flight Home to Bombay...
My folks live in Bombay and I've decided to visit them, explore this city and see what comes of it. It's been about 10 days since I arrived here in Bombay... the next few posts will be catch up ones to bring us up to speed... I left NYC Sunday Sept 5th on a continental flight direct from Newark to Bombay. Flying these days is a tiresome but necessary event; one where I have to prep myself to stay relaxed. Leaving my place I was running late but with no traffic on a late Sunday afternoon, we got to Newark in record time: 35mins. The check-in line was long, no matter; it gave me time to people watch... fascinating to imagine stories for the people you see, their lives, relationships etc. Continental (and most other airlines for that matter) these days use automatic check-in machines with only a handful of staff making sure everything goes smoothly, all to save precious $$$ for sure. But what the automatic check-in machines lack is of course that personal interaction that made travel fun... chatting with people you hardly know, flirting, trying for that seat upgrade maybe, seeing who was sitting next to you etc. all that is moot now of course. I was early at the airport for my flight. Being early (especially when traveling) is a crazy quirk I share with my father. The anxiety and anxiousness of travel makes me want to leave earlier than I normally would. But being early has many benefits. Since I was traveling to India for a longer than usual stay, I had decided to take with me various electronic gear that would surely take me a while getting through security check. But luckily, it was no problem except for the peach yogurt snack I had with me, which was promptly confiscated and chucked. I just don't get all the TSA rules... ah well.
Sept 20, 2010