HIMACHAL & LADAKH ADVENTURE: PART 1 SHIMLA

We landed in Delhi, with utmost surprise, our crew was whisked away by the custom's officers for a random enquiry. Upon knowing that all of us were educators much pleasanteries were exchanged, after all they were doing their duty. But it was still puzzling, why us, perhaps we looked kinda motley.

Our adventure only started at Shimla, we took a train from Delhi to Chandigarh and from they a Tempo Traveller to Shimla. Arrived pass 6.00pm, and were greeted to this nice cosy hotel, called Woodville Palace. 

This property had served as the residence of 4 successive commanders in chief of the Indian Army during the British Raj. In 1926 the the Ruler of the Princely state of Gondal, Maharajah Sir Bhagvat Singh bought the property for his daughter Princess Leila Ba.

In 1977, the grandson of Raja Rana Sir Bhagat Chand's, Raj Kumar Udhay Singh of Jubbal converted this 31 bedroomed palace into a heritage hotel, which stands todate.

A quick shower and we were at the bar wanting a warmer before dinner. We met this cute barman who has been with the hotel for good many years. 

Whilst at the bar, we chanced upon the current heir to the Palace, Prince Raj Kumar Jubbal. That is the Prince in the middle next to Greeja, in the photo below. A fine gentleman he is, went on to explain his illustrious family heritage. Currently the family had leased the property to a 3rd party to be managed as a hotel.

Waking up early in the morning, looking at a picturisc scene from our bedroom was a sight to behold. How I wished this would be an everyday scene from my bedroom at USJ. 

The air was so fresh, and the greenery was so refreshing to the eye, that I felt rejuvenated instantly. Greeja and I went for a short walk around the property, soaking in, the early morning sight, and sounds from the valley. The temperature was slighly above 16 degrees C, perfect for a nice stroll. 

  

After breakfast, our journey began, Greeja, Vijay, Baldev and me, got onto our Tempo Traveller, driven by Vicky our able driver. Thus began our seventeen days adventure spearheaded by Sifu Baldev. 

Footnote on Shimla:

Shimla is a Hill Station situated 7238ft above sea level, and in 1864 it was helmed as the summer capital of British India. Situated in the foot of the Himalaya, and was named Shimla, dedicated to Goddess Shyamala Devi the preciding deity and an incarnation of Goddess Kali. I felt kinda sentimental and blessed knowing that we were beginning our journey from Shimla, with Goddess Shymala Devi as our patron. 

ravivrammankkanniappan@11112006223.0567° N, 101.5851° E

from BEARDO's kitchen: Vegetable Kurma Curry

 Today we are going to look at Vegetable Kurma Curry.

The good thing is we can add any vegetable we like except for anything that is leafy. So for today's preparation I am looking at Carrots, Cauliflower, and Brinjal (aubergine aka eggplant). Other common vegetable used in this prep are potatoes and tomatoes.

Firstly place all the vegetable in a pot and boil it till it becomes tender. Some of you may prefer to use the pressure cooker. That's fine too. Remember not to overcook it.

Prepare a paste using coconut shaving, cashew nuts, garlic and cloves. Do not put too much of cloves otherwise your curry would be overly spicy.

Tampering item includes cumin seeds, star anise, cinnamon stick, cardamom, ginger, onion and green chilly.

As usual heat up wok or pot with coconut oil. Firstly add cumin seeds followed by cloves, cardamom and cinnamon stick. Once it's nicely roasted, add ginger followed by onion. 

When the onions turn slightly golden, add tumeric and corriander powder, stir till it blends well. 

Then add green chillies followed by the coconut paste and allow it to cook well. 

Add water at this juncture according to the level of gravy required and allow it to cook for about 5 to 7 minutes..

Then transfer the boiled vegetable, stir and allow it to cook for another 7 - 10 minutes. Don't forget to add salt to taste.

This is where you can add garam masala, and maybe a little kurma powder. You maybe wondering why I am leaving kurma powder as as optional item, its because the entire preparation in itself is already a kurma mixture😀

As a grand finale add a little bit of ghee. That will give an ump to your Vegetable Kurma. And Voila you have your dish ready. Can accompany bread, rice or idiyapam (string hoppers aka putumayam). 

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from BEARDO's kitchen :VAZHAKKAI PORIYAL

Vazhakkai Poriyal

(aka Plantain Dry Fry)

I have decided that hence forth I am going to park all my cooking on my official blog. Well it may also whet your reading appetite as I also write on other things too.

So today I am going to share with you how to prepare Vazhakkai Poriyal or Plantain Dry Fry. Its a typical South Indian dish that is simple to prepare.

Wash and deskin the plaintain. (You can cook it with the skin too, but the texture will be different). Then chop it up in small cubes and let it soak in water. ( Add a little yogurt in the water, to keep the plantain from turning dark due to oxidization.

Then drain out the water, add tumeric, chilly powder and salt, marinate for a short while. 

Tampering item includes, cumin seeds, fennel, fenugreek, dried chilly, urad dhal, and mustard seeds.

As usual, heat coconut oil, throw in the tampering item, always remember mustard seeds goes first. 

Then transfer the marinated plaintain and stir. 

Add a little water to allow the plaintain to cook. 

Then add chopped green chillies and stir. Btw also add a little hing to avoid flatulence. Plaintain is known too cause 'angin' (gas). 

Pour a little ghee to give it a flavour and the finale would be to sprinkle desiccated coconut, and let it blend well. 

and .... Viola you have your Vazhakkai Kootu. 

It will go well with rice and bread.

My Amma just mentioned that I should have squeezed some lime into it to give it an ump...Amma knows best. 

Try it out and let me know.

RaviVarmmanKKanniappan1253110520223.0567° N, 101.5851° E

Dilemma of Happiness: Is it Really a Dog's Life?

 

Arya on His Happiness Mode

Whoever coined the phrase, "its a dogs life" in the 16th century (term first recorded) must regret saying so, if he/she lived today. Our Arya lives a good life, with good food, good health care and most importantly receives abundance of love from everyone at home. What could anyone ask for more?  

Mercantile Capitalism to Industrial Capitalism and now Information Capitalism, only the form has changed but the context of a captured mind since the European Renaissance is deeply rooted in consumerist society of today.

For a little while the dialectical materialism dazzled the imagination of some, but that too did not withstand to the power of capitalist economy. Despite the many evolution of economic modelling the prescription laid by Adam Smith with his invisible hand metaphor still holds steed and has given commercial elites vacuum to act with impunity, continuously bedazzling the masses with illusory hope and aspiration about what constitute happiness.

Whether it was the British worker in the early 19^th century or the American worker in the 40’s or the Japanese worker in 60’s or the Koreans in the 70’s, they were all principally driven by the foundation laid which can be traced to the Baconian programme during the 17^th century. This saw what is known as the Enlightenment Age which followed throughout the 18th century, primarily focusing on applying natural philosophy and expanding knowledge in solving technology related issues towards economic prosperity.

I see this as the beginning of the colonization of the western mind which eventually led to the globalization of the same.

This article captures the essence of how the working class has been wired to this ideagogue without them even realizing that they are co contributors to this malaise, and made to feel guilty for not being able to live up to the illusory expectation imposed on their minds.

This article is definitely a wakeup call, but whether one is going to wake up, or pretend to sleep is left to that individual. Lesson learned, for the Commercial Elites is, old school template on workers has to change. There is already a shift on how workers perceive work and life, thus approach to managing people, has to fit into this new dynamics. Failure to accommodate would only result, the best to move away.

What more with the approach of a “gig economy”, every individual with an expertise can become an entrepreneur, marketing their talent, and only would engage if they find it brings them happiness, both material gains and most importantly socio-psychological comfort. 

Below is the original Guardian article, "Your work is not your god: welcome to the age of the burnout epidemic".

https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2022/jan/06/burnout-epidemic-work-lives-meaning?CMP=fb_gu&utm_medium=Social&utm_source=Facebook#Echobox=1641813048  

by

ravivarmmakkanniappan133706022022@3.0567° N, 101.5851° E       

NEVER A BYE BYE, ALWAYS WITH US, PAPPA

The Liberation

 It has been 31 days, yesterday, since my Pappa left us. We went to the Shivan Temple to do a prayer for him and to light the Moksha Lamp (மோட்ச தீபம்). It is customary in Sanatana Dharma to light this lamp to symbolize liberation of the soul from the cycle of birth and death.

It was very painful for everyone in the family to accept that he is no more. I realised that it was easy to console others for their loss, but when it actually happened to me it, boy it wasn't easy. I stood strong during the funeral and later throughout the 16 days mourning period. Things needed to be done and I didn't have the space to grief. But eventually after the 16th day prayers, I broke down and let go my emotions.

I can still remember on the 11th of December 2021, I gave Pappa a haircut, shave and a nice hot bath. Somehow he wanted to stay longer under the hot shower, but I was more concerned of his health, being in the water for too long. In fact I even chided him for wanting to do just that. Looking back at the events that unfolded after that, now I feel, I should have permitted him that small joy just a little longer.

I was upset with Pappa the night before for spilling a mug of warm milk on himself. Since his grip was not steady, I wanted to hold the mug while he drank, but as determined as he was, he insisted to hold the mug himself and the next thing the mug tilted. It was 3.00am plus lack of sleep, I lost my cool, and I "snapped" at him, and then went on cleaning him up, the bed and the floor. If there was one thing that I now regret in my life with my Pappa, it will be that incident. Till today, it keeps playing in my mind, never occured to me then, that I won't be able to say sorry, ever to him.

Pappa was never a man who depended on others, he always wanted to do things himself. He picked up computer skills when he was in his late 60's. He was one of the earliest to use Tamil software when I was still struggling with MS-DOS.

                                    This Is Where It All Began: Lanadron Estate, Panchor, Muar.

Despite his personal ups and down in life, never once did his priorities concerning us children got distracted. Emphasis on education was everything to him, and he never compromised on it. Of course I have had my fair share of Pappa's hand prints on my cheeks, either for producing red marks in the school report card or getting myself injured being naughty. But before bedtime all will be resolved and he will check on us and will give a pep talk about the importance of education and life in general.

    As a Sportsman

Pappa had a very interesting life, he and my Amma fell in love while working as teachers in Factory Tamil School, Johore Labis Estate. Their relationship was something that we view in Indian movies, Pappa was a Tamilian of Indian origin and Amma was Tamil of Sri Lankan (formerl Ceylon) origin. Obviously a relationship that was not sanctioned by both communities. But a rebel rouser himself and a feminist Amma, both stood their ground and got married despite objections from both sides. 

The Product Of That Union

One thing that I have learned from my Pappa is, he always believes that "if there is will, there is a always a way." He says commitment and passion are important in whatever endevour we undertake and  without that nothing happens.  

Bestowed an Award by the then Agung (King)

Pappa has always been a public figure, which led him to venture into politics, which saw him associating with 3 prominent Presidents of Malaysian Indian Congress, namely Tun Sambanthan, Tun Manickavasagam and Tun Samy Velu. Pappa was also the past President of the Sri Maha Mariamman Temple in Segamat, and later upon relinquishing that position he became an Assistant  Registrar of Marriages

A Well Read Orator

Pappa was a man of principle, would stick to his values at all costs. He was meticulous and was highly regarded as a man of letters. His knowledge was not merely academic, but hands on. He loved to travel, and upon retirement set up his own travel and tour company. To this day many who have travelled with him had great things to say about his tours. In fact I met someone at Pappa's funeral who was narrating an incident that took place whilst on tour with Pappa, and how Pappa took charge of the situation and solved the problem. 

The Adventurer

Many who came for Pappa's funeral and even after that, had stories to tell about him, and all of them had their own narration of how Pappa had touched their lives. It was very inspiring to hear and at some point I began to question myself, could I even be half the man he had been? I think the greatness of a person's life should be measured not by his wealth or position but simply how his journey impacted others even in the smallest way possible.

The Suave Gentleman

Pappa led a colourful life, living on his own terms, unperturbed by challenges that life threw at him. To him, Amma,Vani, Thara, Greeja, Kumar, Kavin, Roshen, Harshini, Raviena, Dhivyaa, Pravin and me were his absoluteness. Pappa was always there to lend a ear as well as to give his piece of mind when something was not right. Today he is no longer with us, but the wisdom that he has imparted to me and the rest of us in the family will be our guiding beacon.  A doting grandfather, his grandchildren were  the apple of his eye, and together with my Amma,  have nurtured all of them since birth. Today the grandchildren bear testimony to all the values that Pappa stood for. 

He saw a complete cycle of a mortal life, through his grandchildren. All except one who is still in university have completed their tertiary education and have gone on building their own career, which he was very proud of. If at all there was one regret he may have at all, is that, he did not live long enough to see any one of them get married. 

My dear Pappa, don't fret, you have never left us, because you are part of us.

The Infectious Smile

Kanniappan K Kutta Reddy

1939-2021

Lead me from the untruth to the Truth.
Lead me from darkness to light.
Lead me from death to immortality
Om Peace Peace Peace.

ஓம் அசதோ மா சத்-கமயா 
தமஸோ மா ஜோதிர்-கமயா
ம்ருத்யோர்-மா அமிர்தம் கமயா
ஓம் சாந்தி சாந்தி சாந்தி

Asatoma Sad-Gamaya
Asatoma Sad-Gamaya
Tamaso Maa Jyotir-Gamaya
Mrytyor-Maa Amritam Gamaya
Om Shaantih Shaantih Shaantihi 
AUM TAT SAT
Ravi Varmman@0732210120222.5035° N, 102.8208° E 

Bye Bye ATHENA - Till We Meet Again

The Regal ATHENA 

Athena as her namesake, was indeed stately and has all the characteristics of the Greek Goddess, a beautiful warrior Goddess.

It was about three months after Krystal passed on, Greeja and I felt the lost even greater when we came back to a home not being greeted by the ever happy Krystal wagging its tail, and jumping in joy excitedly seeing us. We thought it was about time we moved on, wanting to fill that void. It was rather coincidental, when one of Greeja's friend mentioned that there was a puppy for adoption in Klang. We contacted the person and she sent us the photo of that puppy. Instantly we took liking to him, and decided to make a trip to Klang to pick him up. Though initially it was just Greeja and I making the trip to Klang, we were accompanied by Roshen, Dhivyaa and Kavin in the end.

So we went, saw the puppy, got excited and was just about to leave with him when the lady (who runs the animal shelter) mentioned in passing that the puppy's sister will be lonely now. This got everyone a little emotional. She added on saying that no one wants her because she has a darker shade compared to the rest. I am not sure whether the statement was meant to make us feel guilty, but everyone felt that they had to see that puppy too. The lady brought her out, and it was Kavin who picked the puppy up and said she is beautiful, shall we adopt her too. Well it was not him alone, but everyone felt the same way, including Greeja and me, and that's how Athena came into our lives. A video was sent to Raviena in New Zealand, and she too thought it was a good idea to have them both together.

From day one, they were a boisterous pair, shoes were not spared, and the front door saw the brunt of their teething.

It was Athena and Arya. Athena depicting the symbol of Wisdom and Arya meaning the Noble One. Whether it was coincidental, as they were growing up, Athena exhibited the signs of being the alpha, and expected Arya to follow orders.

"Can't You Behave Yourself", Athena Reprimanding Arya

She was not only protective over everyone at home but also showed her affection too. She will be the first to greet us when we come home, wagging her tail and jumping on us. As she was rather a large dog, the tendency to push us off balance was very frequent. They say that human's best friend is a dog, and nothing can be far off from that, when I saw the bonding between Roshen and Athena. They have their affectionate moments both before he leaves to work and after he returns. They appear to almost whispering to each other exchanging some kind of deep emotions. To the point sometime last year an incident shook all of us, when whilst they (Roshen and Athena) were having their moment, Arya butted in, and in an instant reaction, Athena bit Roshen's lips. That was a gory site, and Roshen was immediately rushed to the hospital and eventually had to be tended to by a plastic surgeon to minimise the scar on his lip. I don't know whether Athena felt remorseful but until Roshen came back from the hospital she was awfully quiet and distant. Three days later he came back, Athena saw him, and they had their moment again, and after that everything was fine.

The Lady After Her Bath

Even when my Mom and Dad or my sister’s family visits us from Johor, they are at their best behavior. They also know our neighbors well. But anyone else, they would go furious with blood curdling barks. The worst is if anyone comes to the gate (postman,courier etc) or even seeing other dogs passing, they would jump on the gate and would kick a big fuss.

The Rascals Having Their Afternoon Siesta

On the 19th of November, Athena, started to exhibit some unusual behavior. She was not eating and wobbled when she walked. We took her to our regular clinic at Subang Jaya, but was referred to the Veterinary Hospital at Jalan Gasing. They did all the necessary tests, including an MRI, and we discovered to our horror, that she was suffering from meningitis on her brain stem. According to the Vet, this was rather unusual for a young dog (she was 3 years old), but she also mentioned that in the last 2 months, there were four other dogs with similar symptoms and in all except one, it was fatal. We were solely hoping for that 25% chance for Athena. By the second day she wasn't able to move much, except when we visited her and called her name, she responded with slight movement of her legs and made a yelp kind of sound. The meningitis had affected her throat muscles too, hence she couldn't bark nor was able to eat. She was on drips all the way, and was administered with high a dose of broad spectrum antibiotics. Last Thursday when Roshen visited her and spoke to her, she gathered all her strength push herself and lied her head on his lap. That sought of gave us, including the doctor some hope, but that night itself her conditioned worsened.

The Kangaroo Pose

We know she was suffering, such an active dog, suddenly being in a state of immobility, is too much a pain for her to endure both physically and mentally.

On Friday the Vet told us the bitter truth, that none of us wanted to accept. She said, we had to let her go, otherwise she will endure this suffering till the end which was certain. It was a very difficult moment especially for Greeja. Like Roshen, Greeja's bond with Athena was special too. Every morning and evening Greeja spends quality time interacting with them. I always tell her "looks like Athena and Arya gets more of your attention than me," that should speak volumes of their bonding.

But we had to make the call, I did not want to push it, and wanted Greeja to take her time to cerebrate and decide the next course of action. That day, for some reason, Greeja brought milk for Athena, both of us fed her. Though she was lying on her side all the time, she seemed happy. But it was obvious too that she was fast deteorating. We left the hospital feeling wretched, informing the Vet that we will update her later that day.

Saturday morning, Athena was brought to the Vet's consulting room, where all of us took turns to feed milk to Athena and said our goodbye's.

Then the difficult moment came, Roshen, Kavin, Dhivyaa, Raviena (on video call), Yuhain (on video call), Greeja and I, witnessed the passing away of ATHENA, whilst Arunachala Shiva hymn was playing in the background.

We took ATHENA's mortal remains and gave her a meaningful burial.

Thus ended the life of ATHENA who choose us to be part of our family. A regal dog till the end, loved as a member of the family and died leaving good memories to cherish.

AUM TAT SAT

AUM SHANTI SHANTI SHANTI ATHENA

Ravi Varmman145429112021@3.0567° N, 101.5851° E

JAI BHIM the REALITIES

 Jai Bhim The Movie

Photo courtesy of The News Minute (Screen Grab from Amazon Prime Video)

Jai Bhim, beyond its gripping entertainment value, it also speaks about the inveterate state of affair in the criminal justice system. This is not an affair that is peculiar to a particular country, but appears to be endemic even in the most developed countries.

The irony of it all is that these perpetrators of these dastardly acts do have family, friends and lead a pretty normal life, like everyone else. Many are devout religionalist, fasting on Kandha Shasti, fasting during the month of lent, or even fasting during the Ramadhan month. But when they take on the role of position and power, suddenly they become a complete different human being altogether, as though either they are possessed or suffering from schizophrenic disorder. I am puzzled, whether is it the nature of their work (dealing with criminals and undesirables) turning them into psychotic state, or they already possess a manic disposition.

I can still recollect the words of Paulo Freire, "Dehumanization, although a concrete historical fact, is not a given destiny but the result of an unjust order that engenders violence in the oppressors, which in turn dehumanizes the oppressed."

Just because the weak has always been oppressed, it does not mean that it has to continue. We have come a long way from slavery to the pursuit of creating a just society, hence people like Justice Chandru (the protagonist in the real story) are the very pinnacle who have made significant strides in that direction. Surya's effort in bringing this story to mainstream attention is very much laudable.

The movie definitely has political undertones, which in a way reflects the movie makers perceived ideagogue, but it is expected. Though I do not think Surya himself has any political ambitions, but he surely has his own sociopolitical values, and I believe that seems to sync with the current TN government's.

Championing equality is one thing but pitting one community against another (SI "Gurumurthy" Vs Rajakannu, in the movie Jai Bhim), if it was intentional, then, it will have consequences to Surya the actor. But that is something that the actor would have thought about and I am sure he will deal with, if it becomes an issue.

I firmly believe that every individual have the right to prescribe to their own values, and it should be respected, even if it differs from our own. However, I would put a caveat here, “that as long as the prescription and practice of that value does not harm another human being”.

Go watch Jai Bhim, with an open mind, beyond good screenplay, acting, and cinematography, it speaks volume of the reality of oppression. As Frederick Douglass says, “where justice is denied, where poverty is enforced, where ignorance prevails, and where any one class is made to feel that society is an organized conspiracy to oppress, rob and degrade them, neither persons nor property will be safe”.

Until we collectively renounce fallacious and anarchic assumption on human diversities, we are actually shifting the focus away from the real inequity and discrimination, which in turn will do injustice to the pursuit of human progress.

 

Note: You can catch Jai Bhim on Amazon Prime

Ravi Varmman 1210141120213.0567° N, 101.5851° E