to read - London Delhi by Road

06
HAPPENINGS
ONGOING ROAD WIDENING AT KESHAV PURAM HAS BECOME A PROBLEM
FOR THE COMMUTERS AS BUILDING MATERIAL IS DUMPED ON THE
ROADSIDE.
HT Live North Delhi, Tuesday, August 10, 2010
www.hindustantimes.com
Turning a dream into reality
mybestholiday
Tushar Agarwal
Everyone dreams of doing something crazy in life but only a few
are fortunate enough to convert those dreams into reality.
I am one of those. This journey
was the culmination of a longstanding dream that I had had
for many years. For Pooja, my
wife, the journey was an opportunity to raise awareness and
funds for a Delhi based animal
welfare organisation.
Driving from London to Delhi
gave us a chance to explore
those parts of the world that
are less travelled. We passed
through deserts, mountains,
sandstorms, snowstorms and
streams. We drove on the best
roads in the world in Europe
and on the worst roads in the
high altitudes of Tibet.
In Kazakhstan we drank
horse milk and camel milk and
in Uzbekistan we enjoyed the
warm hospitality that is especially extended to Indian citizens. We were pleasantly surprised when the custom officers gave us priority over the
local people and let us through
the border in a matter of minutes simply because we were
Indians. Even the police did not
■
Gupta has, till now, acted in 100 plays.
VIPIN KUMAR / HT PHOTO
Though Jitendra Gupta is a businessman by
profession, theatre will always be his...
...First love
Asheesh Mamgain
■
mamgain01 @gmail.com
Jitendra Gupta is a businessman by profession, with a shop
selling electronic goods in the
Tilak Nagar main market. But
his heart lies elsewhere. By passion and talent, he is an actor,
who is working in the TV serial, 12/24 Karol Bagh.
“I was bitten by the acting
bug a long time back. Though
I don’t have to depend on acting for my bread and butter, I
need it to keep alive,” says this
resident of Sandesh Vihar, near
Punjabi Bagh. Gupta’s journey
as an actor started with theatre
in his college days. Till now he
has acted in 100 plays. In addition, he has acted in TV serials,
commercials and a couple of
films as well.
Theatre has always been
Gupta’s first love. Says he, “The
kind of instant high you get when
performing in front of a live audience is unmatched.” Talking
about theatre gets him nostalgic. “In college most of our
evenings were spent in the Mandi
House area. Though I have been
taking care of my business and
taking out time is difficult, I still
manage to maintain my link with
theatre and acting,” he says.
Recently he acted in noted
playwright Revati Sharan
Sharma’s play, Purani Haveli,
staged at the NSD. During college days he had acted in Vijay
Tendulkar’s play, Teen Farishte.
Court Marshal by Asmita,
Kanjoos by Natsamrat and Kal
College Band Rahega by Delhi
Collegiate Society are some
other plays he has acted in.
Television is an altogether
different feel. “The daily grind
of soap operas can be difficult
at times and you need time to
adjust to it. But then there you
have a wider reach. As for me,
it is another way of giving vent
to the artist in me,” says he.
Gupta’s best acting experience on TV was Kyunki Jeena
Isi Ka Naam Hai and Munshi
Prem Chand Ki Kahanian, both
telecast on Doordarshan. He
is also playing an important part
in an upcoming serial on
Doordarshan, based in Kashmir.
FACT FILE
Serials:
Ji Mantriji, Kyunki Jeena Isi Ka
Naam Hai, Manzelein, 12/24
Karol Bagh and more
Theatre:
Worked under eminent directors like M. S. Sathyu, M. K.
Raina, Piyush Mishra, Dr. C. D.
Sidhu, Dr. Giresh Bakshi,
Arvind Gaur, J. P. Singh, M. S.
Azad and Vagesh Kumar
Singh. Won several best actor
awards in school and college.
Documentaries, telefilms:
Gupt Dhan, Pankhurian,
Salesman, Nurse, Nain Jyoti
Feature films:
Dil Darbadar with Sudhir
Mishra
■ Band Baja Barat with Yash
Raj Films
■ No One Killed Jessica with
Raj Kumar Gupta
■
Open-air joint with a difference
eatingout
Aadi Gaur
Are you tired of eating at the
regular multi-cuisine restaurants where the menus are long
but the taste of all the dishes
remains the same? Then try out
10 Pandara Road in Mukherjee
Nagar. Opened recently, the
joint is essentially a take away
that assures one of different
taste and unmatched quality.
Specialising in Mughlai cuisine, what makes it unique is
the fact that instead of cramped
up dining halls in most restaurants in the vicinity, it is an openair joint with a standing capacity of about 12. “The arrangement is such that it gives the
patrons the feeling of an expedition. Take away or home delivery constitutes bulk of our business but many prefer to stand
and eat here as well. We named
the place so because Pandara
Road is favourite eating out destination in Delhi and we are trying to bring that experience
closer to North Delhi,” informs
Harish Arneja, one of the promoters.
For a joint that is primarily
a take away the décor is rather
tasteful. Having launched their
first take away counter, the promoters are already planning
two more such counters in the
North Delhi.
“Anyone who wants to have
good Mughlai food is our prime
target. We maintain hygiene
and use the best quality material. Since we have a live kitchen
anyone can see the way we do
our cooking. Since our restaurant is both student and family oriented, the prices are quite
nominal. But there is no com-
■
The restaurant specialises in
Mughlai cuisine. SUSHIL KUMAR /
HT PHOTOS
promise on the quality of food.
We don’t take our customers
for granted and try our best to
satisfy their needs,” says Arneja.
Coming to the food, the service starts around noon with
lunch and continues till 10 p.m.
Whatever you order, if you are
going there don’t miss out on
their specialty butter chicken,
biryani, malai chaap, masala
chaap, kathal tikka, etc. Though
opened recently, they have started on the right note. Patrons
are indulging and have already
decided their favourite dishes.
“I like the taste of the food they
serve. Also the food is very
hygienic and economical. I am
a vegetarian and my favourite
here are kathal tikka, dal makhni
and veg biryani,” says Subhash
Sharma, who is a regular here.
10, Pandara Road, Shop Number
865, Main Road, Mukherjee
Nagar
Phone: 011-27607080,
9310027080
FACT FILE
People: 2
Countries visited: 15
Days taken: 51
Total distance: 12,000 km
Fuel consumed: 1,500 litre
Time zones crossed: 9
■
Driving from London to Delhi gave them a chance to explore those parts of the world that are less travelled.
fine us for overspeeding on four
different occasions just for being
of Indian origin!
Gold teeth are very popular
in Uzbekistan. One view we got
on this was that the gold in the
teeth is actually their savings
(banks are not trusted too
much). The other view was that
it is actually a decoration, i.e.
enhancing facial beauty.
Kyrgyzstan is a fascinating
country where 90 per cent of
the land is covered with mountains. We were driving up a
mountain towards the China
border when suddenly the 4x4
mode of the car stopped working, the windscreen wiper broke,
the sun was replaced by dark
clouds, it started snowing and
we reached the top of the mountain in these conditions. The
following day, our car got stuck
in snow in the morning while
driving through frozen lakes
and glaciers with nothing but
snow all around us. It was one
of the remotest areas of
Kyrgyzstan but suddenly a truck
approached and rescued us.
The first month of our journey was very pleasant but we
had no idea what was in store
for us in Tibet. The roads were
treacherous, the altitudes were
extremely high and hygiene was
not a priority. We could not find
any toilets or bathrooms in Tibet
and the result was no bath for
at least a week!
We lived on an average altitude of 13,000 feet for over a
week and this affected our health
to the extent that one night I
had to rush Pooja to a lower
altitude to help her breathe after
driving all night through one of
the remotest areas of Tibet. We
were lucky because the lodge
owner had a good supply of oxygen that saved Pooja’s life that
night.
Nepal was a welcome change
where we felt that we were back
to civilisation after the remoteness of Tibet. But leaving Nepal
became a bit of a challenge.
While approaching the border,
the police stopped and told us
that Maoists have burned some
vehicles and the border has
been closed. We waited for a
few hours and then as if by miracle the borders opened again
and we were allowed to cross
into India after this last minute
hiccup.
The writer is a resident of Civil Lines