Gujarati Literature Festival - January 3 - 5, 2014

This weekend, saw Ahmedabad host the first ever Gujarati Literature Festival at the Kanoria Centre for Arts, and it was such a roaring success that I hope the organisers make this an annual affair.

We are regulars at the Jaipur Literature Festival. This year, will be our 5th pilgrimage to Literature. However, we (my husband and I) have so far been content to be just attendees at the JLF, soaking in the experience, and drinking in the words of authors new and well loved.

Shyam, Samkit, Jumana, Leena, Nimitt and Tanvi took their love for books and literature one step further, they combined it with their love for all things Gujarat. Instead of just lamenting about the decline of Gujarati as a language, they conceptualised and conducted the first Gujarati Literature Festival 

Their enthusiasm was contagious and convinced even me (who understands just a smattering of Gujarati) to attend.

Inspired by JLF, entry was free for all, there were 3 simultaneous sessions through the day, performances in the evenings, a couple of book stalls, some food stalls, stalwarts of Gujarati literature, controversial authors and a writing competition for kids. On the side, the Kanoria Art Gallery also hosted an exhibition of Art Works inspired by Gujarati Authors and Literature.

Here are some glimpses from the 3 day festival.

From Left - Ms Minaxiben Patel , Mayor , Ahmedabad City, Mr Saurabhbhai Patel - Minister for Energy and  Petroleum , Gujarat State & Brajesh Bajpai - COO Vodafone Gujarat at the inauguration of Vodafone Gujarati Literature Festival held at Kanoria Art Center, Ahmedabad on 3rd January 2014 morning.

Court Martial of Kaajal Oza Vaidya

Arvind Vegda and LD Vadhiya performance on 4th January

Ashok Ahir performance on 4th January

Bollywood and Gujarati - Anand Gandhi in conversation with Nisang Desai

Krishan kare toh Leela, Hum kare toh Character Dealer - Shrungar Sahitya - Manvinder Singh Gohil and Vijay Pandya

A Play Reading about lions in Gir

Cricket Culture in Gujarat with Ayaz Memon

Vodafone - New Voice in Writing - Winner

The people behind the event.

Closing Remarks by Brajesh Bajpai

Darbargadh Palace - Morbi

Darbargadh Palace
Near Machhu river and Jhulta Pul (hanging bridge),
Morbi 363641,

We had a lovely trip to Morbi this weekend. We had the whole resort to ourselves, and it was an amazing experience.

I know some people have complained about the dust and cleanlines, but given that we went here during the monsoons, everything was washed clean.

Some visitors, have complained about general cleanliness and maintenance. But you have to remember that this is a 100+ year old palace. There will be construction issues. To see how much they have actually improved the rooms. Walk up to the 2nd floor and peep into some of the rooms that are still to be renovated and you will realise how far this property has come.

The service was excellent and I have hardly seen a cleaner kitchen.

The only recommendation I have for this place is to have brighter lights in the rooms (or at least one bright light per room) the yellow light is very atmospheric, but given that there is not much else to do in Morbi, I would visit the Darbargadh palace to relax and read or write or do other creative stuff and I would love to have brighter light for it.

The food is absolutely excellent and we had the most amazing shahi tukda, laal maas, pepper chicken, soups etc etc. The range of food is so large, that it was too much for us, so after the first meal, we insisted that they reduce the number of items served to us, because it was so difficult to manage portion control with such great food.

Room Tip : “There is no lift, so if you don't want to climb, opt for the Vijayba Mahal on the ground floor or maximum first floor, rather than Mayurdhwaj Mahal on the second floor.”

Rating : 4 / 5

Value : 4 / 5
Location : 4 / 5
Sleep Quality : 5 / 5
Rooms : 5 / 5
Cleanliness : 3 / 5
Service : 5 / 5

United States of Ahmedabad

Very interesting documentary style video on youtube about the attitude of Gujaratis/Ahmdavadis regarding USA - living there, working there, studying there, their food habits etc

EME Dakshinamurthi Mandir / Temple - Baroda

The EME Temple / Dakshinamurthy Temple, was built by the Electrical and Mechanical Engineering (EME) Corps of the Indian Army in the 1960's.

The entire temple is built out of aluminum waste and features modern geodesic architecture. The main deity in this temple is Dakshinamurthy - Shiva as supreme teacher. It is run by the Indian Army Authorities, and incorporates holy symbols of all the main religions of India since the army do not have separate places of worship for different faiths.

The 4 Semi -Elliptical Entrances of the temple are reminiscent of Jain Temples.
The Dome comes from Islamic Architecture.
The Tower is modelled on the Bell towers of Christian churches.
The Golden Taper above the dome represents Buddhism.

The Kalash on top of the tower symbolizes Hinduism.

The main deity in this temple is Dakshinamurthy - Shiva as supreme teacher. The idol faces the South and is believed to impart his teachings to the world, facing that direction.  Shiva is seen in human form with his foot pressing down on a demon which symbolises the distractions that keep a student from focussing and concentrating on his studies or work.

There are a few smaller shrines around the main temple dedicated to Ganesh, Radha Krishna, Ram Sita Laxman Hanuman and Sai Baba. There is also a cave modeled on the Amarnath Gufa which has a shivling made of ice.

There is a banyan grove of 5 trees called Panchavati. The trees have grown in such a manner, that it is difficult to say where one ends and the other begins.

The garden around the temple is green and has 106 statues ranging from the 6th to the 16th century. My favourite was the beautifully carved statue of Suryadev in all his glory on his chariot drawn by multiple horses.

There is a beautiful statue of Buddha at the other end of the garden. And if you cross the road after the Buddha, you will arrive at the simple Gurudwara.

For Visitors:
The EME Temple is open from 6:30am-8:30pm to outsiders.
You need to carry an identity document of some kind and register with the army authority at the gate before going in.
You need to take off your shoes when walking around the garden too, so be aware.


Note : Photography is prohibited in this Army Area, the pictured above is sourced via google/Flickr

Pure Drinks - Real Fruit Sorbets

I met the husband-wife couple behind Pure Drinks at their stall at a recent exhibition at Rajpath Club.

They sell frozen blended fresh fruits. While they have labelled their products as sorbets, they can be used to make fresh fruit juice, fruit sodas or milkshake or even as toppings for ice-creams. The sorbets are 100% pure and natural with no added flavours.

They can't be used in tarts because once they melt, the consistency is completely liquid.

Most of their products have added sugar, but they also have some sugarless options. They also promised me that if I order in advance, they can make me sorbets in whichever flavour they offer without any added sugar.

They offer over 50+ varieties depending on the season. The Sorbets are sold in 1/2kg and 1 kg bottles. Fast selling variants like Faalsa are sold in 5kg bottles too. They don't just offer simple flavours, but also a gamut of combinations like Kiwi Pina (Kiwi + Pineapple), Kiwi Heart (Kiwi + Apple), Herbal amla, Muskiwi (Musk melon + kiwi) among others.

The product is frozen and they say that as long as you keep it frozen, it can last for a year. When you want to use, just take it out of the freezer, scoop as much as required and return the jar to the freezer.

They can be contacted at
Pure Drinks
B 1004 Prernasikhar Apartment
B/s Bodakdev Fire Station
Judges Bungalow Road
Vastrapur
Ahmedabad

Phone: 079 2685 7082, 97129 78724

Email : enquiry@puredrinks.co.in and puredrinks@rediffmail.com