My first assignment when I joined Kirloskar’s in 2002 was a 12 day trip to Udaipur, which is a 5 hour drive through dry hilly terrain from Ahmedabad. The first image that comes to one’s mind when they hear the name Udaipur is the fort. The forts are indeed majestic – the one in the lake and one on the land. The fort featured in the James Bond film Octopussy apart from many other movies which are sold and shown even today at the numerous curio stalls there. The fort has an area where elephants are madeto smash a sinners head with one forceful stomp. The public are made to watch it so that crime rate is low. Rajasthan is full of forts and palaces and yesteryears kings led a lavish lifestyle. Indian Kings were important  customers (patrons) to Rolls Royce and other luxury car variants then. Todays maharajas - the Indian elite businessmen patronize, Bentley’s and Lamborghinis.

During our schooldays, there was a nationwide competition in newspapers for naming a new scooter. It was finally called Chetak. It was during my Udaipur visit , I came to know that Chetak was actually the name of  Maharana Pratap Singh’s gallant horse used in the battle of Haldighat – loyal to the master.

Udaipur is famed for its marbles. Starting from Udaipur and extending slightly beyond Nathdwara which houses the famous Shrinathji (Krishna) temple frequented by Kokilaben Ambani,, the 60 KM stretch is lined with numerous marble quarries ( white, pink and green ones). Marble is quarried in huge rectangular blocks and then sent to various gangsaw units along the roadside where an array  of diamond wire saws slice the block into neat slabs as we generally see it- just like a loaf of bread is sliced.  Anything in marble is cheap here. Many ornate circular tabletops of all sizes that fit a centre , or a corner or a dining table are all made effortlessly and priced much less than what we pay for in TN.

I saw lot of dhoti clad builders and traders from TN who usually come to Udaipur to purchase marbles by the truck. Many lodges and hotels have Tamil name boards and south Indian food is easily available. TN forms an important contributor to Udaipurs marble economy.

Udiapur’s  claim to culinary fame are the Kachori’s which are a  crispy  fried dish . It is the size of a mini poori and has thick & layered walls stuffed with masalas inside. It is to be eaten hot with an assortment of green, imli and other chutneys;  the spices make them even more hot. A Rajasthan Kachori is totally different from the Gujarat Kachori which are lemon sized & shaped  hard & firm outer and a soft filling. The Rajasthani one’s lasts for the same day while the Gujarati version lasts for months.

Being at a new place, I naturally ventured into the market scouting for new things. Those were days without Wikipedia or when Google was not that popular a search tool as it is today; internet was at its infancy  in the few net parlours only. So everything had to be re-discovered personally on foot. There is a real  joy in this.

I found numerous shops selling crumpled pieces of cloth as sarees. I was puzzled and checked with the shop owner. He explained that they were bhandini sarees made by the famous tie and die method and as a feature to distinguish an original bhadhini from a printed look alike it is always sold in the crumpled form. Only after purchase is it ironed to like a regular saree.

I found the bhandinis in silk quite nice and settled for a   bottle green crumpled one  with a thin zari border for around 1500/- Like with chikans buying bandhini is quite easy. Designs are immaterial. Just go by the colour combinations. It was worth the money as it never lost the sheen even after years of usage. Geetha still  has  it ( 12^th year running ).

Bhandinis are quite popular in Gujarat & Rajasthan especially cotton variants which are routine house wear.  Prices are once again dirt cheap. Rs.3000/- is sufficient to get at least 8 to 10 cotton materials for ladies. As you go up the price ladder, you get some real exquisite pieces

Rajasthan is famous for its numerous mass marriages – upto 200 couples tie the knot at the same venue on a given date. This is a common feature and organised by many sanghs or wealthy families as a charity. I saw one at Udaipur during my visit ( but did not tie the knot).

Bandhan & Bhandhini .