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I have visited few cities in my life so far. None of those cities created any remarkable impression in my mind. But the city of Udaipur, which has sobriquets like ‘ city of Lakes’ , ‘Venice of the East’ and ‘ Kashmir of Rajasthan’, stole my heart on the very first day of my visit. Unlike many crowded cities in our country Udaipur stands out as a city with manageable traffic on the road and it gives a feeling that you have landed yourself in the middle of a hill station. The sight of Aravalli ranges deceives you with that notion too. Though Udaipur is not boastfully large it does hold most of the romance and flavor of Rajasthan. It hosts the largest palace complexes on the banks of Lake Pichola, one of the cities four lakes. This afternoon we had planned our trip to Lake Pichola and Doodh Talai , a hill with an attraction of cable car connecting Karni Mata Mandir atop another hill, that is Machhala Hills.

Doodh Talai hills has a garden and also houses a restaurant which serves the tourist while they wait for their turn to move onto the cable car. The distance traveled in the cable car is about 400 meters only. But the breathtaking view on either side will keep you spellbound. On your right side you can have the panoramic view of the Lake Pichola and on the right side one can see the valley between the ranges through which a structure like fortress runs through. The fortress wall reminds you of the Great Wall of China. As you set your foot on the Machhala hill the view engulfs you for a minute. You will decide to stay there for as long as you can. If you have passion for photography just consider yourself to be on the right place. The spectacular view of the city from the hill would give you a great joy. While the structure Jag Mandir and Taj Lake palace that rises from the Waters of Lake Pichhola would really amuse you as they are world famous luxury heritage hotels. And to top it all to view the scenic beauty of city palace which has the state’s largest palace complexes from top of the hill are royally pulsating. This place is also called the Sunset point. To watch the sun go down from behind the Aravalli ranges painting a crimson shade on the waters of the lake is indeed a gift that gets unwrapped everyday.

No matter how much we have advanced scientifically the nature has a way of telling us that nothing gives us joy and pleasure as much as it does. A sense of serenity and satisfaction overwhelms as you slowly start to walk down the hill.

Dhobi Ghat

Dhobi Ghat is a movie directed by Kiran Rao, wife of Aamir khan. Not a typical Aamir Khan type movie. The secondary title of the movie “Mumbai Diaries” reveals vividly the theme of the film. The plot is not a leaf picked from the life of any single individual. But a story of Mumbai, known as Maximum City, that is churning out dreams of everyone who has made it their home. Each one of its dweller stands apart from the rest of the crowd in more than one ways. And yet the city connects one to the other in a bizarre way. This is exactly what happens to the protagonists of this flick.

Munna , a dhobi in the neighborhood meets Shai a well-educated Indian investment banker in USA who is on a visit to Mumbai. And Shai also meets up with Arun an introvert painter. Here’s another a character , Yasmin Noor, who do not make a on-screen appearance or so to say but makes a reverberating effect on Arun, the painter played by Aamir Khan. All four of them are poles apart in all aspects of their lives. What connects them to each other emotionally is love, loneliness, passion and survival.

Mumbai Diaries as the movie is called does not picturize the globalized part of the city but that face of the city which Bollywood had forgotten long time ago. There are neither sheening bungalows nor the gleaming sports cars. May be this is why it is titled Dhobi Ghat. The video tapes of Yasmin Noor are a real depiction of loneliness with no tears shed. It was completely moving. Munna , a lanky lad carries a heavy weight on his shoulder and big dream in his eyes with a heart willing to accept the paradoxes in his love for Shai. He is sure a star in the making. And shai is on the search for love that had possessed her during a one-night stand. Arun comes as a passionate painter with the hope of fixing his botched up marital life.

The movie by and large is a interesting watch. But I must say it is not entertaining but engaging though.