Exquisite Grace.......

And she's big-time into dancing - synchronised ballet dancing !!!

a tender moment...
a mother in silent, blissful conversation with her child....
Really didnt want to interrupt them but my l'il bro (always the more enterprising chap) got excited, literally snatched the camera from me and began clicking away...until She noticed and understandably took an aggressive stance the very next moment, assuring us in no uncertain terms of the dire consequences that would necessarily follow unless we retreated immediately...and needless to add, we complied !!!
In both cases, observe her complete absorption in her actions...she could turn on & off, at will...the nurturer and the protector..donning the two roles effortlessly and seamlessly....the nature of maternal instinct !!!
a scary moment.........

So Many Avatars...But Who Are You ??

Water, Water Everywhere...but whats her true nature?
I say 'her' - She creates life, nurtures it, sustains it like a Mother would ; but then again, She also destroys her own creations from time to time for no apparent rhyme or reason !!! Not the 'job definition'of a rational person by any stretch of the imagination :)
So what is her real identity? her real form?
Tried capturing Water..yup,plain simple water on a recent ferry trip!


See the pattern of waves in the wake of the ferry's motion..a calm, unruffled surface disturbed dramatically...each wave with a life of her own, merrily dancing and like a domino effect encouraging the next wave to follow suit...but as events unfolded-lasting only for a few moments...she soon restores herself to status quo with a minimum of fuss and the same deceptive serene countenance plays on its face !!!

Fast-forward a few hours later, on the return journey the same water body now reflects the city lights at a distance...like a clear mirror, the water itself doesn't 'add value' to reflection, just throws back what is thrown on it ! Just a mute witness to the world outside....

Caught these "little drops of joy" from the upper echelons of an artificial fountain ! Seem to have a life of their own, right? Dynamic, ambitious, enterprising,energising..the adjectives flow thick & fast...

So Who is She? What is Her nature ?

Am none the wiser but perhaps this little train of thought brings about the most intriguing question of all - what is our real nature? that of the inner self ??? Surely there is but one face, one soul behind the countless masks that we wear so conveniently..

Contd.....

Gutsy winds accompany the ferocious onslaught of the marauding clouds, completely blotting out the landscape...(the missile-like raindrops forcing my camera to beat a hasty retreat from the vantage-point)
Unbelievably,the entire episode lasted a little over 10 minutes and just when you think the curtains should be down on this brutally one-sided battle, a new visitor dramatically arrives on the scene -- a blue lightshaft slowly but surely ploughs its way through the dark forces and begins sketching a new world order !!!

Clouds' Day Out !!!

Its that time of the year again, when the Clouds shed the neatly pressed starch-white uniforms and don their Sunday-best dark suits ---literally shaking off the fluffy,cute 'cotton'ish images to those of mean monsters gobbling up anyone in their wake!

Captured these snaps off my window-sill on an overcast Sunday afternoon...simply thrilling to observe the sheer pace at which these chaps were reinforcing their 'troops' and in no time, flexing their biceps across the entire canvas....................................Contd.

" Shock & Awe"

Got this one off a running train somewhere near Orissa ages back...'twas pitch dark with an overcast sky outside & it took me scores of failures (blank snaps) before i actually caught this flash, a momentary spark that brilliantly lights up an otherwise morbid canvas for a solitary moment!

Looks like a Child up there is just learning his first alphabet - he merrily scribbles across the blank (sky) slate quite illegibly, suddenly feels something's not right & almost instantly rubs the slate clean...looks behind his shoulder mischievously, checks if the coast is clear...his big, round eyes dancing in sheer delight, he again has a go at the slate !!!

"The Invisible Hand"

i do not claim to know the 'father-son' duo (Adam Smith-Economics) very intimately,but i do say this with conviction - there's a mad painter at work here..just swishing a delicate brush carelessly across the mute canvas..unperturbed of 'market' forces, clicking tongues & wagging fingers. It is madness, plain madness at display here...yet simply Delightful!

The Mist Continues......

(missed out posting these ones..Sikkim again :)

Mesmerizing........ For once, i shut up & let the pictures do the talking :)
(pics shot on our way downhill from NathuLaPass,Sikkim towards Chango Lake)

ok, i give up...here i go blabbering again ----

Imagine Time itself stopping its mundane tick-tock, rubbing its eyes again & again in utter disbelief and spontaneously taking an unofficial break to actually witness Nature.....all her elements seemed to have reciprocated and colluded to dish out these visual gems...patiently 'posing', after all they have all the 'time' in the world !!!

"Chinese Nature ?"
'course She pays little heed to man-made boundaries...but when i say 'ChineseNature', well this is quite literally a glimpse of her manifestation in China..to be precise, on the Chinese side of NathuLa Pass at the Sikkim Border....at 14,500ft She expectedly does throw some tantrums...our group was greeted with a barricade of clouds & fog as soon as we set foot at the Indian Army outpost..thankfully, She relented soon enough and we had our fill of her play!

A lone Chinese soldier patrolling the area....friendly chap, he even posed for photos with us....ofcourse both parties' on either side of the barbed wire!!! Hats Off to the Indian Soldiers there, smiling amidst all the tough conditions and Her unpredictable often volatile mood-shifts !!! (the Pass is actually open to visitors only for 2-3 months in the year...She likes her solitude, you see ;))

Skyscapes 2
Contd from the previous post....the last pic is one of my favourites - the sun has all but called it quits for the day, yet in a defiant mood it lights up the immediate clouds above it in varied hues of gold & pink to show who's the boss !

Skyscapes 1

these ones came off a moving train somewhere in Central India.....