Taj unveil its second Luxury Wilderness Lodge "Baghvan" in India

Taj Safaris extend their presence in the arena of Indian wildlife tourism with the launch of its second luxury wilderness lodge, Baghvan situated in the Seoni District of Southern Madhya Pradesh.

The Lodge is located on the border of the Pench National Park, which received international recognition with Rudyard Kipling’s classic tale – The Jungle Book. Taj Safaris is a joint venture between Taj Hotels Resorts and Palaces, one of Asia’s largest and finest group of hotels, Conservation Corporation Africa (CC Africa), the leading eco-tourism company and Africa’s most comprehensive safari operator, and Cigen Corporation, part of the Chaudhary Group.
Offering a truly unique Indian wildlife circuit, the lodges will provide wildlife enthusiasts and high-end travelers with distinctive, interpretive wildlife experiences in India, which is based on a proven, and sustainable eco-tourism model.

The name Baghvan draws its inspiration from one of India’s iconic symbols, the Bengal tiger (bagh – tiger and van – forest). Designed by architect Dean D Cruz together with CC Africa’s talented designer Chris Browne, the Baghavan lodge features 12 stand-alone luxurious suites, leveraging its natural settings to provide a tranquil experience.

The Pench National Park is a confluence of hills and forests. A blend of southern tropical dry deciduous forest with predominantly teak trees and tropical moist deciduous forest, along with other beautiful species of shrubs, trees and climbers; this national park derives its name from the Pench River, which meanders its way through the entire stretch of the 757 km2 park.
This forested area is renowned for tiger, leopard, dhol (Indian Wild Dog), wolf, hyena, jackal, jungle cat, chital, sambhar, muntjac, gaur, wild boar, langur and rhesus macaques sightings. It is also known for its rich birdlife with over 300 recorded bird species including parakeets, hornbills, kingfisher, barbets, minivets, orioles, wagtails, and a host of raptors like the crested serpent eagle, crested hawk eagle and white-eyed buzzard.

Baghvan is conveniently situated near major airports – Nagpur (90 km) and Jabalpur (192 km).
With hues of copper and pale turquoise, each of the 12 charming individual suites has a contemporary bungalow feel with a retro 50’s ambiance. All suites comprise of two inter-linked buildings accessed through courtyards with each having a spacious air-conditioned bedroom with private shaded sit-outs. With cool pale cream cement screed floors, all bedrooms have a Jharokha (wooden latticed bay window) that filters the soft early morning light. The generously proportioned bathrooms are fitted with double vanity and feature the distinctive concept of indoor and outdoor shower areas. Each suite also features a Machan, a covered roof terrace for romantic sleep outs.
The guest areas are cool, airy and contemporary. The spacious sitting room has an interactive open kitchen, which spills out, into the dining area, with large shaded decks leading to the nullah (dry riverbed). Deep welcoming sofas, handmade Parsi tiles, giant ebony chests, high ceilings, overhead fans and huge windows, lend a quaint charm to this area.
Baghvan will provide guests with a host of distinctive dining experiences including in-room breakfasts on cool private verandas, pool lunches on a shaded deck, dinner for two served on the deck overlooking the nullah or on the Machan, sunset cocktails under the Banyan tree and picnics at Khoka Lake.

Baghvan will offer its guests a unique opportunity to discover the beautiful jungle of Pench National Park, learn about the rich biodiversity of Central India from a CC Africa trained naturalist, travel in comfort in a specially designed Tata open 4x4 safari vehicle, view tigers whilst riding an elephant, indulge in twice-daily safaris in the reserve, tick off Pench's ten Star Birds (a unique Taj & CC Africa programme), absorb the sights and sounds of a traditional MP village and much more.

The heart of the guest’s stay is in the interpretive wildlife experience led by CC Africa trained naturalists. These naturalists have gone through an intensive 14-20 week training programme, the first of its kind in India. The jungle is brought alive by their skilled interpretation whether it is a nature walk, jeep safari, bird watching or stay in a watchtower. This intimate guest experience is complemented by a warm yet discreet staff, butler service and delicious regional cuisine served with the best wines in unusual locations.

The first lodge, Mahua Kothi, situated on the border of Bandhavgarh National Park in Madhya Pradesh, had opened its doors for guests on 1st November 2006. More lodges will open over the next two years. Guests will benefit from Taj Hotels’ legendary hospitality, and the expertise of CC Africa in delivering unique and in depth wildlife experiences.

It's busy time for artists in Gwalior ahead of Khajuraho Festival

Gwalior, Jan.31 (ANI): Ahead of renowned Khajuraho Festival, a number of sculptors are attending an ongoing statue making camp here. Organised by Allauddin Khan Music and Dance Academy, the camp has drawn various artists from different parts of the world. "The main aim of the statue making camp is that, the statues are carved showing the poses of different traditional dances. These statues are being made for the Khajuraho Festival, which will start from February 23 and will last till March 3 in Khajuraho. It is organised every year. Traditional artists are invited to make these statues," said Anil Kumar, an organiser of the camp. This year the focus in the Khajuraho Festival will be on creating sculptures on various forms of traditional dances like Bharatnatayam and Odissi. Artists from all over the country have come to attend the camp, Anil added. "I belong to Tripura. I am making a statue on Odissi dance. I have the photograph and I am making it accordingly," said Pandit Kalappa, a sculptor. "I am making a pose of a Mohiniatam dance. My forefathers have done this work. I have not taken any teaching for it. My forefathers use to work for kings. Nobody has taught me this work," said Ram Vishwakarma, another sculptor.

The week-long Khajuraho Festival is held near the world famous Khajuraho Temples. People from all walks of life come to watch eminent artists perform under theses ancient temples. The temples were built during the Chandela era. The 9th to 12th century temples of Khajuraho is evidence of the architectural geniuses that lived during the Chandela era. Situated in Madhya Pradesh, Khajuraho oozes with passion, eroticism, dance and music. The 85 temples were built in North Indian 'Nagara' style of architecture, though only 20 of them have survived the ravages of time. The two richer distinctive groups of temples are the Western and Eastern group of temples. Khajuraho Festival of Dances is organised by the Madhya Pradesh Kala Parishad. It draws the best classical dancers in the country every year, who perform against the spectacular backdrop of the floodlit temples. The festival showcases various classical styles of Indian dance such as Kathak, Bharat Natyam, Odissi, Kuchipudi, Manipuri and Kathakali. Modern Indian dance is a recent addition.Every evening, two accomplished artists from different genres perform in the open-air auditorium. (ANI)

Guna: More Than a District of MP

Anil Gulati

Guna, is a district in north-eastern Madhya Pradesh, has been in the news recently. Two prominent subjects that made headlines were the story of 'Kumbhkaran', a man whose family falsely claimed that he slept for six months sans break, and another person from Guna who won an astronomical Rs. 1 crore on KBC2.

The district is home to the heritage citadel Bajrangarh fort, though now it is lying in depilated state. It is also had religious places such as Bishbji and Jain shrines besides a few other interesting places. Though it's not on a tourism map, neither many people know much about it, except in political circles. Guna was once famous for saris from Chanderi block of the district which recently became part of the newly formed district Ashok Nagar.

The information superhighway (web world) reveals that Guna was also the birthplace of one Vijay Kumar Patodi, a mathematician who died at the young age of 31 but attained fame for his papers.

Interesting names of Dhabas

I often tour Guna and keenly observe fresh developments. On the way back to Bhopal from Guna one comes across several highway dhabas that have some unique catch in their names.Mention of a dhaba conjures up an image of a rustic eatery with a charpoy, platefuls of dal and tandoori roti. Dhabas have undergone a makeover and the complexion of the clientele has also changed. Charpoys have mostly given way to tables and chairs. Besides the dal, roti and mixed vegetables, soft drinks, mineral water and packets of chips also adorn the eateries.While naming dhabas many owners have incorporated a tag of some district of Madhya Pradesh. Some of them also prefer the word hotel. At Chanchod, there's Mishra and Shivhare Bhind Wale Dhaba. As you progress further along the highway you will encounter Tomar Hotel Gwalior Wale, Morena Dhaba and Dhoplur Dhaba Morena wale.A Punjabi dhaba is easy to spot. I saw many including the Guru Nanak Punjabi Dhaba, Dhillon Punjabi Dhaba and Agra Punjabi Dhaba. A rare name was Rangeela Rajasthani Dhaba. All this may be aimed at catching the attention of drivers from the respective districts but there is very little difference in menu. In Haryana, lots of dhabas are named after birds while in Punjab businessmen name dhabas after themselves and that's the reason we have Puran da Dhaba and so on.

Statue of liberty
If you are passing along the main road to Aron block you may encounter a replica of New York City's Statue of Liberty, and universal symbol of political freedom and democracy. It stands right there within the Royal Homes complex along Aron Road. I couldn't get an opportunity to interact with the owners to explore why this replica was put up. Guess I'll leave that for my next trip.

World's longest rock art chain in Vindhyas

T S Sreenivasa Raghavan

After Bhimbetka, Madhya Pradesh is poised to claim yet another world record in rock art — this time, for the longest chain of rock art. The 12-km-long site, with most of its petroglyphs or pre-historic rock carvings intact, has been discovered in Mandsaur district of Malwa region, which is also home to Bhimbetka, the UNESCO world heritage site, 45 km south of Bhopal. The Rock Arts Society of India (RASI), which knew about the existence of the site for sometime, has now gone official saying the site in the Vindhyan tableland, a plateau lying north of the central part of the Vindhya range, is indeed the "longest chain of rock arts in the world". "Nowhere in the world has anybody come across such an extensive chain of rock arts with little interruption. What's exciting is most petroglyphs are intact," internationally acclaimed paleontologist and former RASI secretary G L Badam told TOI.

The site is situated inside dense forests, 35 km from Bhanpura town, about 350 km from Bhopal. Earliest carvings in the chain are mostly of animals like rhino, nilgai , bear, panther, elephant, monkey, turtle and crocodile. But there are also pictures of cow, bull, buffalo, pig and horse. Experts have called the discovery of the Bhanpura rock arts as "an important milestone in the history of anthropology". "The presence of a variety of rituals, processions and fighting scenes goes to prove the continuity of the art and early man's culmination into community living," said Badam. RASI officials have already pitched for National Park status to the Vindhyan rock-shelters.

Pachmarhi, nature's gift to heart of India

Anil Gulati





Captain J Forsyth discovered the gift of nature - Pachmarhi ‘the’ hill station of Madhya Pradesh, heart of India in the year 1862. This nature’s glory is nestled among Satpura ranges at an altitude of 1067 meters. The eroded rocks, red sand stones hills offer fascinating shapes and sizes which is attraction to trekkers and rock climbers. Pachmarhi lies in Satpura national Park, which is also a wild life sanctuary, adding to its beauty. Pachmarhi also hosts a number of trees and plants which have an immense herbal value. It hosts more than seventy varieties of butterflies and number of birds which offer an attraction for bird’s watchers or people who love to capture them in their cameras.


Pachmari is called as “verdant jewel” of Madhya Pradesh, and no doubt is one of the loveliest hill stations. It is a trekker’s paradise and offers nature’s walks, refreshing weather, and lovely views. It’s calm and serene environ enlightens one’s soul. Though the season when people visit peaks during October to December but it is even an experience during monsoon. Dotted with lush green trees, forests, hills, falls, streams, “grass rooted grounds” Pachmarhi vibrates with a rhythm that no other place has. Bison Lodge which was built by Captain J Forsyth, the discoverer of Pachmari still stands there and now serves as a museum to showcase the flora and fauna of the Satpura region.



Pandav Caves
It is said that Pandavs had spent their part of exile in the caves and from that Pachmarhi derives its name. At present caves are surrounded by a lovely garden, including cactus which is at the entrance of the caves. Caves also host a recently discovered brick stupa which though is partially eroded now. Pachmarhi is abound with the pilgrim spots. It includes Chhota Mahadev, (also called Gupt Mahadev) a narrow point in the hills; Chauragarh, where a pilgrim path leads to a sacred summit with several images of Shiva. It is more than 1330 steps if you go from Chota Mahadev. Jatashankar caves have a temple dedicated to Lord Shiva. It is located in a gorge and the shrine is hidden under a huge overhanging rock.



The water falls
The silver cascades of water falling from sandstones rocks entrapped within greenery makes Pachmarhi falls unique. There are several waterfalls in Pachmarhi, however the quite popular one is the “bee falls”. One can walk for the first point which is about one and half kilometers and is followed by a bit treacherous route into the valley to view the complete waterfall. But if you wish to take a gypsy, or four wheel drive vehicle, that is the only one allowed, you may have to shell out upto two hundred rupees.





Apsara Vihar also known for place where film Ashoka starring Shahrukh Khan and Kareena Kapur was shot: other ones are Rajat Pratap and Duchess falls (said to be one of beautiful ones in Pachmarhi but was closed at the time when I was there) and plus many others.
Guides at Pachmarhi say that you should visit Dhupgarh, a place to witness the morning sunrise and as they say even more spectacular sunset. I could see the sunset and it was fascinating. If you wish to catch a glimpse of beauty at a glance Handi Khoh and Priyadarshini point are the ones to visit. In addition to the its beauty there is one more thing which you will find in entire Pachmarhi - hoardings requesting you not to spoil the serene beauty by throwing used plastics bags/ bottles, but inspite of this one still finds the same in popular spots like Jatashankar and Bee Falls, may be strict action is needed there.



It would not be wrong to say that Pachmarhi has lot to offer, one cannot write about it in one article, may be one needs a series on it. Nevertheless, I had pen down its offering along with elaborating on the places which one can see. Nature is something that delights everyone. One can forget everything in the lap of nature. Our country has plenty to offer, but Pachmarhi is one of loveliest and is truly a nature’s glory.





How to be there
If ones have to travel to the Pachmari, it is about 54 kilometers from Pipraiya, the nearest railway station and is about 195 kilometers from Bhopal, which takes about four and half hours by road.

Photograph by Anil Gulati

This article was on http://www.boloji.com/places/0032.htm