FROM THE WINDOW OF TRAIN...

Last month we travelled from Pune to Lucknow.out of our three tickets only two the RAC ones were confirmed. Sunder's waiting one that too booked under tatkal scheme stood cancelled, despite our continuous efforts we could not get to see the chart before leaving home for station, that is an hour and half before train time, hence last minute rush and anxiety at the platform and finally sunder had to board the train with a general ticket in hand. A.C. compartments of the train were not interconnected to the rest of the compartments hence i and son were at one place and sunder on the other, connected through mobiles, waiting for the next station.
As evening was setting in, the outside view inspired me to scribble down my thoughts and feelings. I did that. later on we were lucky to get a seat for sunder also in the same compartment. My evening scribbling gave me an idea and sunder clicked photographs from the train window. We wanted to capture the change of scene from one state to other, some prominent features of the stations on the way. We were not entirely successful but the pics are memories of that journey. As the window glass that too quite dirty one was between the lens and the scene the photographs have a yellow tinge but still it's a kind of experiment.
i don't know whether you will enjoy it or not but my dear ones, i feel sharing is the key word here. so off i go.................

my scribblings on the evening of first day.............

डिब्बे मे सुकून भरा एह्सास पसरा हुआ है.लोगो के आस पास होने का एह्सास खुद को सुरक्छित मह्सूस करा रहा है. बाहर खेतो मे लहलहाती हरी ताजी फ़सल पर डूबते सूरज का स्वर्ण पराग झर रहा है. किसी कूपे से गाने के मद्धम सुर हवा मे तैरते हुये आ रहे है. ऐसा लग रहा है जैसे सब कहीं सब कुछ ठीक है. काश.............
दूर वह पतली पत्तियों और छितरे बालो वाला पेड़..............जैसे जोर से भाग कर कोई बच्चा अपने ग्रुप से अलग पड़ गया हो.
पहाड़ो की लम्बी चली जाती कतार के पार सूरज का लाल गोला धीरे धीरे झीने अंधियारे मे समा रहा है.
ताजा जुते खेत की काली नम माटी अंदर तक ठंडक पहुंचा रही है. फ़िर नये बीज रोपने की तैयारी है. जीवन का निर्बाध क्रम यूं ही जारी रहता है.
दूर पहाड़ी पर खड़ा वह नाजुक सा पेड़........अकेला...............जैसे गांव के आखिरी छोर के टीले पर आंखो के सामने हथेली लगाये,पंजो के बल उचक उचक,पर्देश से आती डगर पर नज़र गड़ाये ,बाट जोहती कोई विरह की मारी.
and then the night fell....................
Curtain rises in the morning. It's Budni near Itarasi in M.P. a group of young girls with books and bags get down. they must have got into the train on Itarasi. daily commuters to attend some college and on the platform are some local youths...........that early in the morning, all dressed up in jeans shirt with black goggles, properly done hair. believe me reason is not gel but the time spent before mirror and continuous combing . one or two in singlets with arm packs to impress. the efforts are rewarded. girls were not oblivious of their presence. the giggling, those demure looks from the corner of the eyes, pushing each other they climbed the stair . we enjoyed the innocence of the distant romance. that 'aankho hi aankho me' vala pyar still breathes in smaller places. i remebered the youngesters of my city, zooming in and out on bikes, hanging out in twos and groups on malls and multiplexes. they are more mature, confidant and clear about their priorities but this antiquity also has it's own charm. cadbury might be more delicious, costly and in thing but those orange and lemon kampats................they certainly left their taste for a longer period.
scene changes and we are now crossing  forests of M.P. Not definitely at their best as summer leaves them dry, panting and thirsty. but those rugged terrian has a magnetic charm.
Forests are bathed in soft golden light of rising sun. however in photo you can see only the silhouettes of trees as photos are against the sunlight.
Trees are mostly leafless,in between are few green one as if in a desperate effort to maintain the glory of forest.
Ravines, ridges, slopes, footprints of waterfalls,run past.There is this stretch of trees,leafless trees with sparkling white stems and branches ,stark naked beauties ,in contrast are black boulders,rocks, , powerful,shapely contours.nature in all it's form has so much to offer one has to just surrender and take in.






morning glow

planes of m.p.cattle searching for food.



the river flows..........nurturing as many as it can



if the nature and technology could always dance arm in arm like this.........



this hillock welcomes us as the trains approach Jhansi.on the left side of hill ln the deep curve can you make out a thin vertical line.in fact it's a statue of a soldier.might be memorial for the martyrs of armed forces.











in company.............?

we caught this one at orai..........hides perhaps..............but were not clothes for sure.



this is Yamuna near kalpi.






brick clins near pukharayan.

gaon ki galiya..................


that arch...........it's window of train.

the second window of our coupe ..............must have born the wrath of agitators some time.

view outside framed in window..............





this is our GANGA MAIYA at Kanpur.








the sun set in lucknow sky................just before we started packing to get down.....................this journey ends here while other horizons beckon........................so.......till then..............

all the pics by sunder iyer.


JOURNEY TAKEN IN JUNE 2009