Jehan Numa – Gateway to the ‘Tiger State’
We’ve long been fortunate enough to know the Rashid family, owners of the Jehan Numa collection of lodges and hotels – from the days when theirs was our only haven of respite from the jungles we lived in within India. In those days they were in the formative years of turning their ancestral home – formerly the palace of the Begum of Bhopal (the first female ruler of a principality) – into a charming and impressive heritage...
Satpura‘s wonderful wilderness
India’s Satpura National Park – the most stunningly natural tiger wilderness in India. Watch Mugger crocodiles slip noiselessly into the reservoir as you approach by boat, the exhilarating flash of a tiger’s markings amidst the foliage as you amble on elephant back, a Barrasingha deer wading at the water’s edge, huge Gaur blocking your way or vultures and eagles soaring overhead as you ride the dusty tracks amidst dense forest...
Picture pitching-up in Pachmarhi
On a road to nowhere, there’s nowhere more pleasant in India than this Queen of the Central Highlands. Set atop a 12sq mile plateau in the heart of India on a road to nowhere, Pachmarhi, in the central state of Madhya Pradesh has to be one of the most beautifully preserved examples of Indian rural life and colonial heritage. First ‘discovered’ in 1857 by Captain James Forsyth of the British Army, Pachmarhi, although historically...
Taking the waters – in Kerala
Our short photographic exploration of Kerala’s backwaters. For most people with any knowledge of India, the ‘communist’ state of Kerala, more than any other, is synonymous with high literacy, good education, above average standard of living and moreover, for its extensive brackish backwaters ecosystem that extends for over half the length of the state. Barriers formed by low islands created by the action of the sea...
Shahpura Bagh – half way to everywhere
Don’t rush through Rajasthan; make sure you rest a while at Shahpura Bagh to absorb the real colour of this wonderful Indian state. So often, we hear of people who’ve been on ‘The Golden Triangle’ tour being hurried through India to give them a taste of its wonders, leaving them exhausted and overwhelmed. Part of any tour will inevitably cover at least the mesmerisingly busy city of Jaipur, if not Udaipur and Jodhpur as well,...