The night was young as we stormed the small shop crammed to the ceilings with decorative items. Small beaded chandeliers hung from a wire and glinted in the light. "They would look good along the side of the doorway" a friend caressed them. "Can you show us some Toranas [decorative piece hung at the top of the door]" another friend asked the boy manning the counter. Tornas like streamers were strung against the door. Made of colouredbeads some had painted elephants, peacocks, mangoes in their midst. Each one was better than its neighbor. An all white piece caught the light and shone like sea shells. I walked in. A friend was admiring an embroidered one. "I want three of these I said” pointing at it. "Ok we need eight of these now" my friend laughed. The shop owner chased his assistant to pick up all the stock available from his brother's shop. We started stacking our choices to one side. An hour later we streamed out bags full :)
The sun had set and sodium lights lit up the night sky. We had a date with Dagdu Seth Ganapati. We had seen him from the outside. Now we walked in. The bejewelled Ganapati Bappa sat resplendent in a golden sanctum sanctorum. Our jaws dropped. He wore huge gold and diamond jewellery. A few devotees sat before him singing bhajans. It was time for the evening Aarti. With nobody pushing or pulling us aside we stood transfixed before him. Slowly the crowd moved and carried us towards the stairs. The pillars with coloured glass pieces glittered in the light. Little wonder this place is so well guarded I thought as we stood watching the Aarti from the balcony above. We had walked in through metal detectors. We stood for a long time and then walked out. The God is visible from outside through the glass door and we lingered here again. Slowly we walked towards the car.
Dagdu Seth Ganapati through the glass door
"Careful, careful" we cried out as the driver crashed the two hundred rupee bargain we had stuck for the statues in the bus at Ajanta. The owner of the statues winced in pain and walked sadly in. A quick freshening up and what's for dinner began. "It is our last chance to eat Maharashtrian food. Let's find a place" we chorused. "Ankit suggested a place on Ferguson road, let's go I said". We set out. With the help of Google we directed the Driver through a lot of bye lanes only to land up at a Multi cuisine restaurant. "There is a thali meals hotel round the bend" a friend consoled as she disconnected the call with her friend. A sumptuous dinner was served on a banana leaf and we tucked in. "Dal, dal madam" the waiter said as he ladled the dal. "Varan" I said as memories of eating it years ago at my friend's place surfaced. "3 plates" the head waiter said as we went to pay the bill. "We are six" we said. "We offer thirty rupees off on every empty plate. Looks like three of you have not wasted food" the manager explained. Impressed we walked out.
"Why is the light streaming out from our room?" I thought as we walked into the corridor. The room was unlocked. Shocked we stood and peeped in. Suitcases stood where they had been left so were the toiletries. We had forgotten to lock. I had assumed my friend would and she had assumed I would. I sank into the chair and looked around. Everything seemed to be where we had left. "Shreyas" may not be a "Lemon tree" but it was an honest place. It had redeemed itself. A round of plans for the last day was made and it was bed at twelve.
"There is nothing to explore here, no swimming pool, no garden nothing. I cannot sit by myself in the breakfast room" I thought as I snuggled back. But I was wide awake and couldn't sleep any more. I got up. Others followed suit. Breakfast done we walked into the "Chittale bandu" shop and picked up Bakarwadi and Shrews berry biscuits and headed to Parvati hill.
"Where in Hindu mythology do we see celestial beings with wings?" I thought as I took pictures of the entrance arch. Our Gods just descended or ascended! A long flight of steps lay in front of us and we started our ascent :) Wow the guy in front was climbing the stairs with a guy seated on his shoulders. He must be training for something. A girl ran past us shoes in hand. "She will fly away in a whiff of breeze. Don't tell me she is exercising to lose weight!" a friend exclaimed as we stood to the side trying to catch our breath. Slowly we climbed up. At the last landing the guys exchanged positions and started the trek back. We stopped to catch our breath again :) It was a small Temple with a courtyard and the door was locked. We peeped in through the grills. A white marble idol of Parvati could be seen through the faint light. Were those fresh flowers near her? So the Puja was over? Though there was no board I decided to leave the Gods in anonymity and didn't take pictures. Lord Ganesh, Vishnu and Surya were also close by. A group of girls walked in and climbed the small turrets in the corner and took pictures of each other as we walked around the courtyard. Had they bunked class? We had arrived early; the priest would arrive only at ten a board said. Was that a well? I looked at the grills as we walked beside it. I climbed up the stairs to the top of the turret and saw a panoramic view of Pune all around.
Parvati temple from the turret
We decided to check out the museum near the last landing and went in. The place was crammed higgledy piggledy with artifacts and layers of dust coated the glass cases. The queens in the pictures stared down in disapproval just like us. What a contrast to the Kelkar museum that we had seen the previous day! Were all Government museums doomed like this one? The dull men at the counters sat unmoved and unappreciative of all that lay before them :( Sad. I went up to a senior citizen walking out and enquired about a tunnel in a well. Our driver had been very keen that we see this. He had mentioned that it went all the way to Shaniwar wada. The senior citizen happened to be a trustee and said there was no tunnel in the well. He had seen the inside of it and it had a big room and looked like an ammunition store. So much for legends :) I ran back and peeped through the grills. I couldn't see much except the ubiquitous coins on its dry bottom. We walked down. The girl was running down. "Are you training for something?" I asked her before she flew past us. "Yes" she said and was gone in a breath :) "For?" the unanswered question hung in air. We continued our descent.
At the bottom was the memorial of Shri Balaji Bajirao also called Nanasaheb Peshwa. Parvati temple was built by him at the behest of his mother. A couple of cannons and puppies guarded the memorial. Inside a garlanded photo of Nanasaheb sat on his cemetery and other Peshwas looked down from walls. A map of India with the Marartha Empire spreading all across it caught our fancy. The puppies had decided my shoes were worth a game and were dragging them around when we came out :) The driver had gone for breakfast and kept us waiting at the entrance and we stood taking in old Pune. Finally we were off.
Nanasaheb's memorial
"What is that picture doing there?" I gaped at it. "He is the person who built this temple" the lady in a nylon sari answered. The picture sat along with Vaishno Devi. I was aghast. I have this strong dislike for human beings as God and this put me off. I am all for women as priests but the lady somehow didn't fit in :( She pulled out a couple of chunnies and blessed my friends with them. Perhaps she saw/felt my scepticism and I didn't get one :) What didn't work there? The nylon sari, the picture of a man with the God, the manmade cave or the nonchalance for God? I had touched God at Grishneshwar and was moved but this one left me cold. I am thinking now the Agha Khan Palace would have been a better choice compared to Vaishno Devi temple in Pimpri. It didn't appeal to me in any way. And I will not even compare it to the Vaishno Devi temple in Jammu. I have trekked to that temple.
Vaishno Devi temple at Pimpri
"Why are you people doing things the roundabout way?" the driver asked as we drove to Chaturshringee temple. "This could have been done soon after Parvati hill or even before that". "I have to see a friend close to Chaturshringee" I replied. Chaturshringee is the reigning deity of Pune. She is another form of Goddess Shakti and legend has it that this Goddess now resides here so that her ageing devotee Dhurlabdas could see her in his old age. Dhurlabdas was a money lender in the court of the Peshwas. Chaturshringee is another name for Goddess Kali and to circumambulate her we actually climbed the hill, went around the temple and climbed down. Haven’t seen anything like it before. There were just another couple of visitors and the Goddess sat resplendent on a lion. The priests desultorily moved around catering to the few devotees. As we walked out a friend decided she needed another dekho and went in again.
Chaturshringee temple
At the end of the long driveway my friend was waiting and we left for her house. Her house was less than two kms from the temple and soon I was having yummy home cooked food. Every time I visit a new place I wish to see the houses of real people. The tourist attractions I feel are not truly representative of a place. It is the houses of people which are the heart/ soul of a place. This time I was in luck. I got to see two houses :) I think I could live in Pune :) I came back to tales of my friends having shopped some more and having had a lovely Maharashtrian Thali meal at Shreyas. It was available right under our noses twice a day and we had gone searching for it the previous night :)
We hurriedly packed and the friend whose son we had visited the previous night left with her daughter in law to stay with them for a few days. And we left for the Airport. Just one person was missing; we seemed a smaller group and kept looking for her :( It was boarding time soon and in the dark I saw two planes parked close by with Gun wielding Commandos guarding them. I asked one of them "Is this going to Bangalore?" I was at the front and I didn't want us getting into the wrong one. He nodded curtly and sheepishly I climbed up. It was Goodbye Pune, Goodbye Shivaji Maharaj as the plane took off and two hours later we were zipping in a taxi on our way home in Bangalore :)
Goodbye Pune
Exchanging notes with my sister on our trips I have realized somewhere the focus has shifted from seeing to experiencing. Touching God at Grishneshwar was one such. So was coming back to an unsecured hotel room that wasn't burgled :) Though we ran into rains during this trip some things worked out very well. The drivers of the cars are turning out to be an additional person to reckon with :) and the hotels are proving to be memorable too :)
Three memorable trips in three years and such wonderful memories to relive :)
Where will 2017 take us?
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