Jim Ankan Deka | Music, Photography and More

As frequent traveler within the city who doesn't like either driving or public transportation, I mostly rely on cabs for commute. Taxicabs arrived in 1911 to complement horse wagons. But many a time, I wished horse wagons continued their services. Infact, my folks used to tell me tales about how they used to travel in 'bullock carts'. With the current traffic situation in the Indian cities, that looks like a viable option. I have a neutral opinion on most of the cab services in Bangalore. Taxicab service is a lucrative business. One can conveniently book a cab from the thousand companies listed on Google. What happens next? When the taxi should arrive at your doorstep, you get a call from a drunk driver that he has reached some place unknown to you, to pick you up. Most of the time, you have to wait outside, on the street waiting for the driver, while giving instructions over the phone (Sounds familiar? Remember the time in school/college when you would wait for your swe...

Road to Mudumalai National Park (photo - Jim Ankan Deka) "If you want to see tiger, go to a zoo; not a tiger reserve!" Says Nitesh, one of the officials of Mudumalai National Park in Tamil Nadu. It was a bright sunny day when we reached the entrance of Mudumalai National Park. We already had rooms booked at The Nest Inn, a small but clean resort in Masinagudi (one of the five ranges of the wildlife sanctuary). The 180° panoramic view from the resort was actually astounding. The cool green background reminded me of my hometown in Assam of North East India. After checking in, we thought of going through the travel guidebook. First destination on the menu was the Moyar River, a tributary of Bhavani river which originates from a small town called Moyar along the Masinagudi. The moment we reached the river, which was actually very close to our resort, we got the stench of human excreta. What we thought to be a clean forest and animal destination, ended up becoming the lav...