A morning at Vijayanagara Kingdom

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That moment when the sun rose from behind the endless boulder-strewn hills, the ruins of Vijayanagara kingdom came back to life beautifully!

Have you been to Hampi? Tell me, what is your favorite place there? 😃 

The winter in Himalayas

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Winter is a beautiful time to be on the mountains to experience snowfall and see the mountains transforming to a winter wonderland!

I remember how in one of my winter treks in the Himalayas, as soon as the Sun goes down it would get intolerably cold. We would layer up as much as we could and not move an inch from the warmth of the bonfire, and share a lot of travel stories with one another. Cheers to beautiful times!

So, where are you planning your winter adventure??

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An evening in the old city of Hyderabad

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As the cities are growing rapidly and moving towards modernization, there's almost always that old cultural quarter somewhere in the corner that still preserves the lifestyle and heritage of the city from the olden times.

While the city of Hyderabad is getting rapidly urbanized, there's still the old city on the other side that maintains the history and heritage identity. When you take a walk here, it is as if you are time traveling by a few decades to the past. From the iconic Charminar to various other heritage buildings, and bazaars that still have that old world style, the times certainly haven't changed here a lot!

Do you have a cultural quarter in the city you live in? What do you think is different there compared to the modern side of the city?

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Storm in the CBD

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Have you ever been outside photographing during a storm? I know it's crazy right? But even in the craziest of situations, Nature is sometimes at her best!

Have you ever noticed? there is always a strange eerie atmosphere that prelude a storm and when it passes, there is suddenly a whiff of freshness in the air, everything is so polished and beautiful. And especially when the storm clears during the golden hour, the result is a pure Magic to rejoice! 

Intricately carved ceiling of Thirumalai Nayak Palace

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The fun of travel photography is in carefully observing the details of the place we visit! Do you think this is a random flower artwork? please observe carefully! This is a beautifully carved ceiling of the famous Thirumalai Nayak Palace in Tamil Nadu, India.

The little sculptures, the viewing platform, and the layers of architecture finally leading to the floral work adding to the depth and 3D appeal. Isn't it mind-blowing, the number of details gone into the making of this ceiling? 

A stormy morning in Mussoorie

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Travel photographers are crazy souls. We can tradeoff sleep and comfort in order to capture a perfect moment!

On that cold winter morning, I woke up very early to watch the #Sunrise. But my bad luck, it was cloudy and drizzling outside. Capturing the sunrise was out of the question but my persistence and sacrifice paid off finally when the clouds broke a little later and the golden rays of light beautifully beamed down on the mountains, and spread warmth all over the place! It was a satisfying moment to watch and capture.

Have you ever experienced such magic on the mountains? Share your experience!

10th anniversary of Mumbai Terror Attacks

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Remembering the beautiful Mumbai CST station on the occasion of 10th anniversary of 26/11 attacks!

On that fateful night, 2 terrorists simply walked into one of the busiest railway stations of Mumbai and opened fire on the innocent public, and killed whoever came their way. Many brave heroes emerged out of the situation selflessly fought and protected others by trying to stop the terrorists as much as possible.

While the terrorists were caught and the justice was served finally, praying for this hatred and terrorism to end completely.

Winter morning at Pushkar

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Beautiful winter morning scene at Pushkar Mela grounds with a picturesque hilltop temple in the background.

For those who are unaware, Pushkar Mela is one of the largest camel fairs that happen in the Indian state of Rajasthan. Villagers from far and wide flock to the small town of Pushkar to trade their livestock to make money and shop essentials for the family. The small desert town which is otherwise chilled out rest of the year becomes buzzing with tourists during this time of the year.

 From camel rides to hot air balloon rides, camel race to fashion shows, this rural cattle fair is growing and attracting more people year after year with its colorful theme!

Hike to Kalapathar

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After trekking continuously for 8hrs from the morning, by the time we started our ascend to Kalapathar it was almost late in the afternoon already. Not even halfway through and we were already above the clouds with only the tallest of the tallest 8Kers visible. And there it was, right in front of us at a seemingly stone throw distance away, the majestic black rock stood with tiny patches of snow on its shoulder glimmering in the golden light.

We knew it's humanly impossible to make it to the summit that evening. Nevertheless we tried. Not that we made it to the summit but the experience of descending down with zero visibility and only with the aid of light from our head torches was surreal!

Can't believe it's already a decade since my trek to the base camp of Mt. Everest! Sitting at the summit, freezing yet staring at the majestic peak seems just like yesterday :)

The little planet of Old City Hyderabad

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When you are surrounded in 180 degrees by beautiful heritage buildings, you cannot make up your mind to point your camera in a certain direction. You make your own little planet instead, accommodating all of them!

Sometimes it's a curse that in the pursuit of traveling and seeing the world, we miss to explore our own backyard gems. Think I should make it a point to explore my own city Hyderabad more in the coming days like I used to.

 If you are a traveler/blogger/photographer, tell me how you balance out exploring your own city/country vs traveling to explore other countries?

Serene backwaters of Dandeli

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Serene backwaters, gentle drizzle, earthy smell, distant rain, golden light peeping through the dark clouds backlighting them beautifully, tranquil jungle, the silence of which is occasionally broken by the distant sounds of hornbills. That's exactly how I would describe my blissful evening in Dandeli!

Hiking in Har Ki Dun Valley

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Nothing beats the experience of hiking in the Himalayas!

This is the beautiful Har Ki Dun valley I had gone for trekking in the summers. The experience of walking alongside a glacial river, crossing thousands of years old villages, feeling nothingness while being surrounded in 360 degrees by tall snowcapped mountains, sleeping under the pitch dark starlit sky and most importantly spending countless hours (gadget free) with like-minded people, playing games and sharing memorable moments with one another, is always revitalizing!

Where did you go hiking recently? Share your best hiking experience in the mountains? 🙂 

Diwali Celebrations

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This is what you see when you compress one hour of Diwali celebrations into one frame! 😀

Diwali is one of the biggest festivals in India and it is celebrated by all communities with equal fervor. The way the sky is lit by fireworks of all shapes and colors is always a treat to watch.

Loy Krathong, the festival of lights

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As we prepare ourselves to celebrate the festival of lights Diwali here in India tomorrow, wanted to share a very similar Siamese festival of lights celebrated on the full moon night in Thailand, to pay respects to the goddess of water.

I captured this beautiful moment in where all the monks gathered together to light the entire temple with lights and sat down to pray in front of a large Buddha statue.

For the benefit of people who may want to experience this festival firsthand, in 2018 this festival is celebrated from November 21 to November 24, although the main Loy Krathong falls on Friday, November 23. While the festival is celebrated in different ways all over Thailand, I experienced the festivities in Chiang Mai, in Northern Thailand. This city is also famous for mass lantern release festival, Yi Peng, which happens around the same time.

Wishing all my blogger friends a very Happy Diwali!

Morning at Man Sagar

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As the warm golden light shines from behind the Aravalis, one can watch the tiny silhouettes of people flocking to feed the birds and fishes in the Man Sagar Lake. Keeping alive the age-old tradition of feeding the fishes, pigeons, and ducks in the morning!

~ Victoria and the Moon ~

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A few days ago when I exited CST station I noticed this huge full moon hanging above the Victoria statue on the dome. I tried my best to align myself such that the moon would align with the statue but beyond a point, the building was concealing it and perfect alignment wasn't happening. So I took the liberty of PP to make this image the way I imagined in my mind 😀

The colonial gothic structure, the moody lighting and the full moon sort of gave a spooky feel that I thought it will be perfect to share it today! Happy Halloween dear friends 👻

Blue hour by the bay

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One of my favorite places in the Mumbai city, to simply sit and stare at the ocean, and the waves crashing on the boulders one after the other. And as the evening fades into darkness, the horizon comes alive with beautifully lit street lights and tall skyscrapers of the city. Not to forget the youthful vibe of this place in the evening! 😎

Anyone here knows the history behind why this place is referred to as Queen's Necklace? 😀

Cricket is a religion in India

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What makes #travelphotography interesting are the city and its people!

During one of the days of Dussehra, we were taking a casual stroll towards Marine Drive and happened to cross this cricket ground with the countless number of people playing #cricket at the same time. God only knows how they differentiate each other's group, who bowls to whom and who's fielding where!

Amidst all the chaos I spotted a few stumps decorated with flowers. So I approached the players and asked why was it so! Apparently, the day was 'Astra Puja' day where people Worship their Instruments. I've seen people decorating their cars and other work instruments but this was my first seeing the Cricket Stumps getting worshipped this way! 🙂

Well, whoever said 'Cricket is a religion in India', definitely meant it quite seriously!! 😁

Mumbai, the city that never sleeps

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Mumbai, the city that never sleeps! People are always on the move. It is very difficult for any outsider to just drop in and adjust to the fast-paced life of this city.

Amidst all the mad rush and chaos, I couldn't stop myself from taking a pause and admiring this beautifully lit vintage building with Gothic architecture, standing tall as a witness to changing times of this beautiful city!

The scenic train ride

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Always love the scenic train #journey through the towering mountains and pristine jungles of Sahyadris!

Which is the most scenic train journey you have undertaken?

The beauty of dawn

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The golden rays of dawn are beautifully scattered by tall #Harkidun peaks I and II, Uttarakhand. 

Who is the early bird here who likes to wake up early just to watch nature's magic?

~ Countryside Greens ~

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It's that time of the year when the monsoon has just left the scene and the #countryside starts to glow in myriad shades of green!

 I love traveling in the monsoon! Do you? 🙂

The Happy Accident

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During one of my trips, I was shooting indoors in the night using tungsten white balance and went to bed without changing the setting back. Later in the morning when I woke up and saw this beautiful scene unfolding in front of my eyes, I got super excited and started snapping away without chimping. After sometime when I saw the screen I was shocked to see all the pictures in deep blue color due to the wrong white balance setting!

But guess what, I ended up liking this shot more than all the other frames I shot that morning due to the mood evoked by the color. And this incident turned out to be a happy accident 🙂

Did you experience any such happy accidents during your photography trips? Do share the fun 🙂 

~ Purple Haze ~

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It was our first day in #Kochi, #Kerala. We were taking a casual stroll on the #beach when we came across these giant #fishing nets. It turns out Chinese explorers brought these fishing technique to India and has been in practice here since centuries! It was interesting to observe their unusual style of fishing while the Sun slowly dipped far away at the horizon in the beautiful Arabian Sea. While the #Sunset wasn't spectacular as such, the #dusk light that followed left some brilliant hues in the sky! #Chinesefishingnets #travelphotography #travelblogger #landscapephotography

Subh Prabhāt Kashmir

That cold morning I stood mesmerized seeing the alpenglow on Pir Panjal range beautifully set against the placid Dal Lake which was slowly waking up and getting back to life! Hope the valley is always filled with peace and love. What do you say? Isn't that a glorious morning?