ALLES GUTE ZUM GEBURTSTAG AMBA

THIS ONE IS FOR A DEAR FRIEND

It was in the middle of ninth standard, sometime in November 2004 when I first met this fair, tall guy who had just rejoined Mushtifund High School after a short stay in his hometown of Pune. We had very little interaction back then; one which I distinctly remember was at the Fire Brigade ground in Panjim during the practice for the Annual Sports Day where he told me that he had a copy of Dr Salim Ali's The Book of Indian Birds. I asked if I could borrow it for a 'few days' and he obliged; the book which is a field guide to the different avian species found in the country remained in my possession for six months and not even once did he complain or fuss about it. Still, to be frank, we were not 'buddies' in true sense. However, things changed in Mushtifund Higher Secondary when the two of us landed in the same division. In fact, over a period of time, we came to know each other well and soon became good friends.

Apart from the fact that we were and still continue to be Habbu Sir's ladkos (favorites), back then we would talk a lot on a wide range of topics - politics, history, share market, sports, social issues, books and yes studies too, although that was quite rare. Anyway, I was pleasantly surprised by his versatility and floored by two qualities which in my opinion define him - humility and honesty. While our friendship grew deeper in those two years, things changed in Goa Engineering College. We traveled together, sat on the same bench, bunked the same lectures, copied the same assignments (in fact the whole class copied it from Sav), studied from the same books and most importantly 'admired' the same girls. In fact at the end of those unforgettable four years, we were not friends anymore, we were more than that - we were brothers, well not just me and him, everyone in that group which sat on the third bench - the witty Niketh (Please note that the extra 'h' is not a spelling mistake, it is just the way he writes his name), the genius Savalo, the lover-boy Sai and the brainy Datta. Today, as Ambarish Kulkarni or Amba as I prefer calling him, turns a year older, I want to go down the memory lane and dig into the memories of the time we have spent together in the last nine years, something that I will treasure for life.

I have always idolized people who have fought against odds, who have risen from the ashes, defied the norms and won when the world had written them off. This is precisely the reason that I love the 'Comeback Man of Indian Cricket' - Sourav Ganguly and personally consider Emperor Humayun to be far greater than Akbar. I am extremely proud to say that Amba has been blessed with this quality. It was in February 2007 and we had just finished our prelims. In those days, answering chemistry exams was nothing less than a nightmare. However, by this time, many of us had figured ways to tackle Miss Menon's googlies. Unfortunately, Amba was not one of them. To be frank, chemistry was never his forte; not that I was brilliant at it. Meanwhile, he had not scored well in the exams - the semi-final before the all-important boards and was highly dejected. Habbu Sir later told me that he had never seen Kulkarni so sad. Not being the one to take things lying down, he put in extra hours, working on the problem areas (Organic Chemistry) while perfecting the topics in which he was already good. In the next few months, he scripted a fairy tale, faring well, first at the boards and then coming out with flying colors in GCET. Not many would have expected him to do so well, especially after the prelim results. However, through sheer dedication and hard work, he turned things around, much to the delight of all his family and well-wishers. In fact, he faced several such setbacks during Engineering too yet he fought them and won. They say 'Whatever does not kill me, makes me stronger'. Ambarish for me personifies this.

Another of his strengths is the strong value system that his parents have imbibed in him. While it is true that his parents deserve credit for this, you have to give Amba his due for not wavering from them. He is a man of principles; I have seen him falling into trouble for standing up for what he thinks is right. I am not sure how many of us have that kind of courage. In the eight years we studied together, one more thing that I have envied about him is the fact that he has an extremely clean public image. An episode in this regards is the election to the Computer Council - CURSOR during the third year of our degree. The post of Treasurer or the Finance Secretary was an important one. Besides the prestige, you are also responsible for the collection of funds and its proper utilization. It was very common for people to fall for greed and swindle money for personal use. This had happened many times in the past. Considering this, I was a little surprised when Kulkarni told me that he would contest for the post. One thing that we all knew was that he was the best candidate for this position considering his in depth knowledge of finance and economics. To add to it, his clean image helped him get the coveted post unopposed... yes you are right, he and Niketh (Technical Secretary) were the only ones to be elected unopposed. In a class like ours which was fragmented into numerous groups, this was a huge feat. The best part of the whole thing was that in the entire year, not once was any allegation of wrong doing made against him. You know, these positions come with a high amount of risk; people with malicious intentions can easily malign your image even when you have done no wrong. To see Ambarish come out of this Agnipariksha without any blemishes was indeed a delight. Our Council Adviser Miss Maruskha was highly impressed with him for the manner in which he had conducted himself. Believe me, to get a compliment from her is quite an achievement in itself.

There are so many things that I have personally learnt from Kulkarni. He was the one who introduced me to the world of blogging; I distinctly remember him asking me to blog about Indian history as early as 2008. I am extremely grateful to him for introducing me to this hitherto unknown world; seriously, I cannot imagine my life today without Abhiprai. Secondly, his flare to learn new thing is indeed appreciable. Tell me who has the determination to learn German after office hours? I have been wanting to learn Kannada for nearly two and half years now and all that I have done till now is nothing. His social network is huge; he is even in contact with friends whom he made in Standard II. Now that is quite some time back. Finally, I do envy his lean physique. However, with my unhealthy eating habits and hatred for exercise, I am not sure whether I will ever get into that kind of shape. Now as I end this post, I want to recollect one more incident that happened in 2009. While coming back from college, we were arguing and things went a little out of hand. While I was stating facts when I said that Emperor Ashoka's empire was far bigger than Shivaji's kingdom, Amba was deeply hurt. There was a heated exchange of words till I gave up. When I went home that night, I wondered whether things would ever be the same again between us. However, when we met the next morning at the Panjim bus stop, the first thing that he did was offered an apology for losing his temper. Of course, both of us stood our ground in that argument, I still believe that the Mauryan Emperor is great whereas he still continues to worship Shivaji, but his ability to accept his mistake of losing his temper made me respect him all the more. It was then that I realized how much mature our friendship had become over the years; we could be friends in spite of having diverse opinion on so many topics.

The last one year has not been a good one for Ambarish. On the personal front, he did face some serious problems. However, like always, I know he will bounce back; he had done this so many times in the past and I see no reason why he would not this time around. As a colleague, as a friend and as a brother, I wish that the next twelve months be the best of his life so far. Happy birthday Amba. May you find success in everything you do throughout your life.

LIFE IS A BEACH

THE GOA DIARIES: FUN AT VAGATOR

DD: Niks, kite karta re tu?

Sav: Oye, purro atta

Kadam Kadam badaye ja...

DD in Deep Retrospection

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Small Green Bee Eater (top) & sea life (below)

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All Hail the King

PS: The images posted here were clicked by me and my friends Sai and Sav.


For more on the Goa trip:
(1) An Evening in Vagator - Part 1 (Link) 
(2) An Evening in Vagator - Part 2 (Link)
(3) Birds at Goa Velha (Link) 
(4) More Birds at Goa Velha (Link)

AN EVENING IN VAGATOR - PART 2

THE GOA DIARIES: SUNSET AT VAGATOR

Sunset at Vagator

If playing in the sea is not something that you enjoy, then the best thing to do at a beach in the evening is to sit down and watch the sun going down. As the temperatures dip and the cool winds start blowing from the sea, the sky is transformed into a canvas changing shades from blue to yellow to golden, sometimes strewn with shades of pink as the lone star in our solar system - now resembling a bright orange ball, disappears into the waters in the distant horizon with its reflections shimmering on the waves. Having spent about an hour and a half at Vagator, we got the 'golden' opportunity to witness this spectacle while we were walking back from the Orzan beach towards DD's car, covering all the three segments of the shore. We walked along the edge of the shore enjoying the marvelous view in front of our eyes as the sun went about its business to illuminate the other half of the world, providing some wonderful photo-ops.

The descent of the sun

We had parked our car in an open place, close to the entrance of the Big Vagator beach and not in the parking area around the headland. As this was not an organized parking, some 'irresponsible' fellow had ended up parking his vehicle right in front of ours leaving us stranded. This is quite common as domestic tourists, in their hurry to hit the beach, end up acting like 'idiots', with least concern for the the inconvenience that they cause to others. It is true that one is here on a vacation but so are many of us and it would be great if all of us act sensibly. However, the blessing in disguise was that from here, the view of the sun descending in the background with coconut palms in the front was amazingly beautiful.

Sun setting amongst the palms

As we waited at the parking area, cursing the guys who had left their car right in front, thirst got the better of us and we headed to a nearby shack for some refreshments. The humidity levels was extremely high and we were soaked in sweat. With the climate in Bengaluru staying pleasant throughout the year, I do not remember when was the last time I had perspired so much. Some time later as we headed back, we were relieved to see a group of visitors, I guess they were Keralites from their peculiar accent, going back in their Indica which was parked in the front row. While this was not the four wheeler that was left in front of our car, we got just about enough space to move out of the parking lot. Though the space was less, DD managed to maneuver his brand new Wagon-R like a skilled captain negotiating his ship along a rocky coastline in rough weather. With Sav's GPS showing the way, we left for Panjim, bidding farewell to Vagator and planning for our next get-together.

A painting of the Buddha at a shack in Vagator

PS: The images posted here were clicked by me and my friends Sai and Sav.


For more on the Goa trip:
(1) The Chance Encounter (Link)
(2) Dil Dosti Etc (Link)
(3) An Evening in Vagator - Part 1 (Link) 
(4) Life is a Beach (Link)
(5) Birds at Goa Velha (Link) 

AN EVENING IN VAGATOR - PART 1

THE GOA DIARIES: VAGATOR BEACH - A PROFILE

Vagator in the evening

Having spent most of the first two decades of my life along the Arabian coast, it should hardly be surprising that I do not have any fascination for beaches, because for me, the sea has always been in the proximity and unlike hill stations or forests, it is not something that we have looked forward to while planning our holidays. However, there is one beach in North Goa which has been my favorite, so much so that in the 10 years that I have spent in Goa, I have never missed any opportunity to go there, be it with friends, relatives or on class picnics. As such, during my trip to the state in the last week of May, when I and my friends from GEC (that's Goa Engineering College for all those who don't know) - Niks, Sav, Datta and Sai were deciding on a place to spend the evening after having a sumptuous meal at Hotel Texas in Panjim, I instantly vetoed for Vagator and in a flash, we were on the way with Sav's GPS leading showing us the way, listening to Linkin Park.

Vagator Beach - North Goa

This serene beach is located in Bardez taluka of North Goa - the tiny patch of the Western coast flanked by the rivers Mandvi and Chapora on either side. Calangute - arguably, the most famous of all Goan beaches, Anjuna - renowned for the Wednesday flea market and trance parties, Baga - known for dolphin rides and Candolim which offers some of the best facilities for water sports in the state are some of the other famed beaches that are located in this stretch of land and are swarmed by tourists, both domestic and foreign during the season. The seaside headland where the car parking is situated, divides the beach into two major parts - Big Vagator in the north and the Little Vagator in the south. Besides the pristine beach, the sea waves creating a splash as they hit the numerous rocks along the shore, the coconut trees swaying along with the cool winds, the imposing 17th century Chapora fort, the pleasant weather and the tourists enjoying their time here away from all the tensions and worries, all contribute in making a visit to this place more than worthwhile.

Rocks at Vagator

The north side, better known as Big Vagator beach seems to be more popular with Indians than firangs. Also, it is far less crowded when compared to its southern counterpart. On the hillock over looking it lies the majestic Chapora fort. Considering its strategic importance, the place seems to have been fortified much before the Portuguese invasion of Goa. In the 1680s, when the Marathas under Sambhaji invaded Goa, this place was the scene of heavy fighting. The present fort was built in 1717 by the Portuguese. As the borders of their  possessions along the west coast grew beyond Bardez following the New Conquests, it lost its strategic importance and was neglected thereafter. As such, besides the laterite walls and the gate which have stood for close to three centuries now, nothing else remains of it today. The structure is huge yet simple. Nonetheless, the view of the sea and the beach below is spectacular. In fact, some of the scenes of the Hindi blockbuster Dil Chahta Hain were shot here.

The Big Vagator Beach (Left) and Chapora Fort (Right)

The Southern beach is further divided into two more fragments - the Middle Vagator beach and the Little Vagator beach. The middle beach, which is the smallest of the three is also called as the Tel Aviv beach. The reason being the large number of Israelis who come here each year. Personally, I find it the most beautiful stretch of this shore primarily due to the uneven nature of the slope, the red cliffs and the large number of coconut palms. The Little Vagator beach, the busiest part of the stretch is popularly known as the Orzan beach. It used to be one of the famous hippy haunts of the 1960s, particularly amongst those of British nationality. One of the reminders of this bygone era is the Shiva statue carved out of stone at the southern end of Vagator. It is believed that it was sculpted by a hippie who is said to have been a devotee of Lord Shiva in a period spanning over a couple of years. Today, there are several shacks here and on any given season except for the rains, one can find hundreds of tourists here, either basking in the sun or playing in the waters of the Arabian. 

The Middle Vagator Beach (Left) and the Little Vagator Beach (Right)

I personally have very fond memories of the place over the several visits that I paid to Vagator. One of them was in Standard XII when we had gone there on a class picnic. Young men that we were then, watching so many white skinned women sans their tops was very exciting. As we were coming back, I distinctly remember me, Amba and Habbu Sir talk about a wide range of topics on our way to the bus which was waiting in the parking area. A couple of years later, I and a few friends, most of whom I have mentioned earlier in this post had been here on a Saturday in December 2008. Sitting near the Shiva statue we tried to out do each other in stone skipping. The competition between Sai and Niks was close. Eventually, it was the latter who won. I am very sure that my trips to Goa will never be complete without going to Vagator and refresh those memories amongst the undulating slopes, the tall coconut trees, the rocks, the sun, the sand and the sea.

A crab at the beach

PS: The images posted here were clicked by me and my friends Sai and Sav.


For more on the Goa trip:
(1) A Trip to Goa... Finally (Link)
(2) The Chance Encounter (Link)
(3) Dil Dosti Etc (Link)
(4) An Evening in Vagator - Part 2 (Link) 
(5) Life is a Beach (Link) 

DIL DOSTI ETC

GOA DIARIES: MEETING THE ENGIGOS

From Left: Sai, Pri, Niks, DD & Sav

Almost two years... or to be precise, nineteen long months had passed since June 2011 when we had graduated from GEC (Goa Engineering College). With me leaving for Bengaluru in July, few others going to Pune and the rest staying back in Goa, it had been a long time since we friends had a reunion. I am pretty sure that like me, the rest of the gang was looking ahead to a get-together. The preparations for this day had already begun about a month back at around the third week of March. Once my trip to Goa was confirmed, I immediately called up the guys in Pune - Niks, Sav & DD to check if they could make it and they were more than happy to come down over the weekend (April 27 - 28). Pri was reluctant initially. However, constant persuasion on WhatsApp paid off as she finally gave a green signal. Actually, we had made it clear that we were not going to listen to any of her natkas and I don't think she had any other options.

Though Rach was a little disappointed as we had declined her invitation to come to her new house (Next time pakka ayenge), she was sporting enough to adjust her tight schedule to make some time for us. This was inspite of the fact that she was expecting guests at home on the same day. And finally, one phone call was enough to convince His Majesty - Sai to 'grace the occasion with his auspicious presence'. While this will certainly be one of the most memorable days of this year, atleast for me, I am pretty sure that everyone present there will agree that it would have been much more fun had Amba joined us. The group seems to be incomplete without him. Amba, if you ever read this then remember one thing - you have to be there for the next reunion irrespective of whether it is held in the frozen caverns of Antarctica or the hot sand dunes of the Sahara desert.

The Fantastic Four

Now continuing from my last post (Link), I joined Niks and DD in the latter's car at the Goa Velha bypass road. In the many months since we had not met, the two guys occupying the front seat of the Wagon R had not changed at all, well... except for DD's new hair style. Though he may be more famous in the gang for his 'classic jokes' aka PJs, one cannot deny the fact that DD is one of the best brains in Goa. After all, not all of us can crack the tricky NTSE (National Talent Search Examination) tests. Besides this, what sets him apart from the rest is that he is a 'good boy', firmly entrenched in the values that his parents have imbibed in him. Actually, his decision to come by his car on that day proved to be a masterstroke as it allowed us the liberty to even go to Vagator beach in the evening, thereby doubling the fun and on a personal note, fulfilling my desire of visiting my favourite beach in the state (Link). Thanks DD... mein tera yeh eshaan kabhi nahi bhoolunga.

The other guy occupying the front seat was Niks - arguably the most bankable of all my friends. A non-Goan like me, he is undoubtedly the 'soul' of our group. From collecting notes and question papers prior to semester exams to printing our projects and assignments to organizing group picnics, you can give any kind of work to him, no matter how mundane, yet he will do it with complete dedication. Actually, even this reunion was largely arranged by him. Niks belongs to the rare breed of people who treasure friendship above everything. Many a times, I have seen people exploit this quality of his but he still continues to go that extra mile even for the guys who do not deserve it. Apart from this, he is a complete techno-freak who (according to his own CV) enjoys exploring new softwares and repairing computer hardware. Itle bhopke purro dista re.

Clockwise: Sai, DD, Niks and Sav

DD seems to be pretty good behind the steering wheel and he raced along the Margao-Panjim road. As our Wagon R zoomed ahead, I remember seeing paddy fields along the way. Since it was summer, the fields had turned wheatish brown. I was enthralled at the sight of cattle grazing in one such field which had a Khuris (Cross) at the centre against the backdrop of the clear blue sky. Sights like this that make this state so special to me. Some time later we rode along the winding uphill road at Bambolim which is dotted with advertising boards of various telecom subscribers, alcoholic beverages, banks and what not. The view down below from this road is enchanting as the Zuari river meanders across the plains covered with dense vegetation. Next, we went past the famous Phulancho Khuris (Shrine of Holy Cross), the brightly painted Shiv Krishna temple and the Goa Medical College (GMC) - Asia's first medical college which was bustling with activity as usual, all in quick succession. Seeing all these places which I would often google on the internet in Bengaluru was very satisfying. As we descended along the slopes of Bambolim towards the north, I got my first glimpse of beautiful town of Panjim on this trip.

In the next five minutes we reached the Hanuman temple at the Kadamba bus stand where Sav was waiting for us. If you ask me or my batch mates who was the best programmer amongst us, I guess the answer would be pretty easy and unanimous. Be it pointers, data structures or performance optimization, Sav was at ease working with even the most complex aspects of computer programming while the rest of us would struggle. His grasping power is brilliant; he would study just for a few hours prior to the semester exams and still manage to pass with more than good marks. Wow! However, what I have admired the most about him is his simplicity and sincerity. Inspite of the fact that he was brilliant academically, his feet were always planted in the ground and he was always ready to explain different coding concepts to dumbos like me in college days. Besides, in the four years we spent together, I do not remember even a single instance of him not completing a program or an assignment on time. And finally, the best part is that he loves cricket in general and Sachin Tendulkar in particular. Actually, he is a chalta-phirta encyclopedia of the game and knows all the stats since the mid-1990s.

Striking a Pose

Once in Panjim, DD asked to me for directions to Hotel Texas. We took the road encircling the Ambedkar garden at Patto and then took a right near the beautiful traffic island dedicated to Divja and then passed by the new Patto bridge. The drive through the road with the Mandovi river on the left and city on the right was amazing and has always been something that I look up to, no matter how many times I have done this before. Passing by those places that are so dear to my heart - the Post Office which looks like a spatial Portuguese styled villa coloured in red and white; the Mermaid Garden; the Adil Shah's Palace which also served as the Secretariat till it was shifted to Porvorim in early 2000s; the Jetty which was getting a face-lift; the Quarter deck restaurant where he had our Std X farewell and so on felt very good. The girls who had who had already reached the city some time back were waiting for us at the Ferry Boat bus stop which Niks confused for Jetty - the most hilarious part of the day. Finally, after searching them for about 5 minutes, we picked them and headed towards our destination - Hotel Texas.

As we reached there and were finding space to park our car, I saw a guy of shorter stature coming towards us on a Honda Dio, flashing a perfect 'Coalgate smile'. In his trademark style, he managed to park his bike in between two cars and sprinted towards us. Flamboyant, charismatic, out-going, argumentative, confident, friendly, street-smart and Mr. Popular are just a few of the many words that one can describe Sai with. Always a delight to be with, his ability to get along with all and his positive attitude make him unique. If I am not wrong, I remember him being friends with everybody - with people across the myriad groups that our class was split into, with our seniors and juniors, with our batch mates from other sections of the college, with guys from other engineering colleges, GMC, GPP, Pharmacy and so on. Though he was the butt of most jokes we cracked amongst us, he would never take anything to his heart. I seriously respect him for this but that doesn't mean that I will stop making fun of him anywhere in the near future.

The Sun, Sand, Sea and Friends

All the seven of us then walked to Hotel Texas where we had decided to have our lunch. Situated close to the National theatre, this restaurant aims to re-create the ambiance of the southern American state after which it is named courtesy PoP (Plaster of Paris) sculptures depicting cowboys chasing bulls, waiters dressed in typical hats and leather jeans, guns hanging from the walls and so on. Though it hopelessly fails in this endeavour, the food served here is excellent, probably the best I have had in Goa. It looks like Lady Luck too was on our side as we got a table the moment we entered in which is extremely rare, especially on a Saturday. DD had just turned 23 on the previous day (April 26) and we had decided to celebrate his birthday. The girls had already got a cake from Monginis - Goa's favourite cake shop. Though we didn't give him Birthday bumps, we made sure that we had smeared chocolate all over DD's face, much to the distress of the hotel staff. In fact, like him all the guys ended up having their faces coloured in dark brown.

After spending some twenty-five minutes there on the birthday celebration, we ordered some starters and drinks to begin with. Just having finished her beverage, Rach who was already getting late left soon after with Sai doing the honours of dropping her to the bus stand. Once he was back, we ordered the main course and were done by 3:30 pm. We had the whole evening and of course, DD's car at our disposal. As such, we decided to go to the Vagator beach. After dropping Pri at the KTC, we waited for Sai near the Divja statue as he had gone to Altinho to complete some unfinished business. Once he was back, he parked his Dio at a parking lot in the vicinity (below the bridge) and the five of us left for the beach.


For more on the Goa Trip:
(1) A Trip to Goa... Finally (Link)
(2) The Chance Encounter (Link)
(3) An Evening in Vagator - Part 1 (Link)
(4) An Evening in Vagator - Part 2 (Link)
(5) Life is a Beach (Link)

THE CHANCE ENCOUNTER

GOA DIARIES: MEETING THE BRAHMINY KITES

As I had mentioned in my last post (Link), we reached Bhabi's place at Goa Velha by 11:00 am in the morning on 27^th April. The locality in which they stay - Soji Kade lies on the busy road connecting two of Goa's most prominent cities - the administrative capital Panjim and the commercial hub of Margao. It is a residential area with simple bungalows located amidst lush green Bhaatts (Goan Konkani word for 'Plantation'). Each house has either a tulsi altar or a holy cross in the centre of the courtyard, signifying the faith of its occupants. The narrow, serpentine road carpeted by dried leaves falling from the trees growing along it seems to be catering more to pedestrians than vehicles. Once in their home, Bhabi's parents were kind enough to keep the entire top section of their sprawling two storeyed house just for mummy and me. 

This part of the house which was built just a couple of years ago is huge and extremely well maintained. The neatly painted walls, spacious rooms, big windows, well laid out bathrooms, minimal furniture and most importantly, the 'first class' treatment that we received there, made us feel as if we were staying in a holiday home. The balcony adjoining one of the bedrooms provides a spectacular view of the vegetation around which is soothing to the eyes. The first time I went there, I spotted several species of avians - Common Mynas, Red Whiskered Bulbuls, Magpie Robins, Black Kites and Flameback Woodpeckers to name a few, in just about 10 minutes. Not so surprisingly, this was to become my favourite place for early morning bird watching in the days to come. The surrounding greenery, the chirping birds, the feeling of breathing clean air and the house itself reminded me of our Porvorim home, making me quite nostalgic.

A pair of Brahminy Kites

While mom decided to be at home for the rest of the day since she was tired after the 15 hour long arduous journey, my plan was to meet my friends from GEC in Panjim. Two of them - Niks and DD were travelling in the latter's car from Margao and I decided to hop into it at the Goa Velha bypass road. This served two purposes. For one, I got to spend more time with these guy who had come down from Pune to meet me. The other and the more sinister motive was to avoid commuting by the crowded Kadamba buses in the scorching heat. With Bhabi's dad dropping me there, I arrived at the designated place well before time... for a change. There was very little shade here; the high humidity levels - something that I am not used to in Bengaluru, took its toll on me and I started sweating profusely. I called the guys just as to check where they had reached and was thoroughly disappointed when they told me that they were still about 20 minutes away.

After cursing them for about five minutes and watching cars and buses go by at break neck speeds, screeching sounds (keeyeee) from the sky, suddenly caught my attention. As I looked towards the heavens, I saw a pair of Brahminy Kites hovering above, sailing across the light blue sky like fighter jets. One amongst them was executing some breath taking mid-air stunts including sharp turns and nose dives, before flying higher and repeating the whole thing again. This continued for some time before the duo - probably a male and a female engaged in pre-mating ritual, finally perched on a nearby tree which offered an excellent view of the entire area. Since the guys were still about 15 km away, I decided to make the best of this opportunity, crossed over to the other side of the road (so as to utilize the 50X optical zoom of the Canon SX50HS to the fullest) and took pictures of these majestic birds of prey - some of which are posted here.

The Brahminy Kite - Haliastur indus

The Brahminy Kites and their cousins - the Black Kites are the most common members of the Accipitridae family (eagles, kites, harriers and Old World vultures) that are found in the country. In the peninsular region, the latter is predominant in the interiors; however, the tables are turned along the coast where the former is comparatively more widespread. Mother Nature seems to have been extremely kind on these avians and their unique colour combination - rusty brown plumage, white underside, yellow beak and round bronze eyes make them very adorable and easy to identify. Scientists have discovered four different sub-species of Brahminy Kites and the one seen in the country is called Haliastur indus. In India, they are found in most areas, from the Himalayan foothills to down south. In general, their range extends from the Indian Sub-continent to Australia covering most parts of South-east Asia and islands in the Australasian region.

Primarily scavengers, their diet consists of dead fish and crabs, explaining their abundance in coastal areas. Nonetheless, they are decent hunters and are known to prey upon bats and rodents. The mating season of the Indian sub-species is said to last from April to June, just before the onset of monsoon. Generally, the two eggs laid will hatch after an incubation period lasting for about 25 days. Presently, the species is classified as Least Concerned by the IUCN, though their numbers are on the decline in some areas. For the people of southern and south-eastern Asia, these birds have tremendous cultural significance. In Indian mythology, it is generally associated with Garuda - the King of the Birds and the mount or Vahana of Lord Vishnu. They are also the official mascots of the Indonesian capital of Jakarta where they are known as Elang Bondol

Coming back to the Goa trip after all the gyaan, after clicking several snaps, I kept my camera aside and stood there just looking and admiring these winged creatures. Though, I was fully drenched in sweat, I wasn't complaining. Who gets to see these amazing animals everyday, especially if you are an IT professional employed in Bengaluru. After waiting for half an hour, at about 12:30 in the afternoon, I spotted a grey Wagon R coming my way. As the car approached closer, I could see clearly see DD behind the steering wheel with a devlish grin on his face as Niks frantically waved at me through the window. I got into the back seat and as the car headed towards Panjim, I looked at the pair of the Brahminy Kites still perched on the trees through the back window, being grateful for the company that they had given me for the last 30 minutes.

The two impromptu photo shoots on the same day - the Cormorant at Ankola (Link) and the Brahminy Kites at Goa Velha was a fantastic beginning to the Goa trip. Though the snaps are just ordinary, as any ace photographer will point out, the whole experience will be etched in my memory for a long time. It re-affirmed my faith that the Western coast, which is undergoing modernization at a rapid pace still continues to be one of the most beautiful places in the country, especially for a nature lover like me. From the mesmerizing salt pans of Kutch to the pristine beaches of Kerala, it is full of surprises, some known, others yet to be explored. The mighty Western ghats and the vast Arabian have colluded to make it one of the most ecological diverse regions of the world and it is in our interest not to tamper with it. 

SOURCES

(1) Wikipedia: Brahminy Kite (Link)

For more on the Goa Trip:
(1) A Trip To Goa... Finally (Link)
(2) Dil Dosti Etc (Link)
(3) An Evening in Vagator - Part 1 (Link)
(4) An Evening in Vagator - Part 2 (Link)
(5) Life is a Beach (Link)