[ssambyal1980]

Thanks bro for sharing this nice and sweet experience of yours. Heartiest congratulations to the newlyweds. Thanks and congratulations to Pawan Bhai and family for giving us an opportunity to virtually be a part of the wedding celebrations.

Originally Posted by BlackPearl

Being born and brought up in Kolkata and that too being an introvert, I had never dreamt of making so many "Non-Bengali" friends. This has been possible due to team-bhp beyond any doubt.

Couldn’t agree more. The Team BHP forum gives us all a great leverage to interact with like minded enthusiasts from all over the nation. Although I came to know about Team BHP in 2012 but it was only in 2015 when it occurred to me to seriously consider being its part. The best thing about Team BHP is its travelogues which gives a chance to virtually visit any place before we actually venture out and its through travelogues that I have got the opportunity to interact with avid travelers like you, Samba, Pawan and others.

Originally Posted by BlackPearl

Got the invitation to another big fat North Indian wedding in Delhi, that of Papabravo's sister in law. We met her last year during our Sikkim trip and we behaved unusually well with her when we came to know that her marriage was coming up. That undoubtedly helped in securing an invitation.

Must say that you have a really good sense of humour.

Originally Posted by BlackPearl

We reached Delhi the next day at around 2:30 in the afternoon. A drive time of 17 Hours 48 Minutes for 1471 Kilometers was pretty good and my best till date with the Thar. Only my Maruti Esteem has been faster than this on the Kolkata Delhi stretch. The downside was that the Thar gave a mileage of 6 KMPL and we had to halt multiple times for refueling. I will stress more on this later.

I really admire your stamina to embark on such a long drive immediately after wrapping up the days work. Although the high speed driving did make up for the time but that also guzzles a lot of fuel. Regarding low mileage would like to iterate from personal experience that the top economy is delivered till a uniform top speed of 90 km/h on overdrive and after that the mileage figure starts dropping and becomes inversely proportional to the speed of vehicle. The more the speed the lesser the mileage. Guess the same thing happened with the Thar. Please do share more on this.

Originally Posted by BlackPearl

The Innova that we were traveling in jumped a signal and the police caught the driver at the next junction. The driver initially tried to plead to the officer and requested him to let go. But the officer wanted to take his license. The guy then called someone and handed over the phone to the officer. After a minute police let the driver go off without a charge! Later I asked the driver how he managed it, he said his elder brother was in the Police.

Most of the drivers in Delhi are quite enterprising when it comes to cajoling traffic police personnel.

Originally Posted by BlackPearl

It was a bitter cold night in Delhi, but there were gas heaters placed everywhere. Thankfully I was wearing a turban and it prevented my bald head from getting frozen!

With me too supporting shaved head looks since last six years, so can fully empathise with you on this.

Originally Posted by BlackPearl

The drive back to Kolkata was sedate as we had plenty of time in our hands. The drive time while returning was around 21 hours and the Thar gave a mileage of 13+ kmpl. Coming back to the point I had mentioned that I would explain later. There was approximately 3 hours of difference between driving blazingly fast and adequately fast on a 1500 Km stretch. Traffic conditions were more or less same both ways. The price difference between the two trips for diesel was about Rs 5000. If I think about these statistics it raises a pertinent question if it is worth the additional effort to drive faster to save about 3 hours time and pay almost the double for the fuel?

Though in your case it was quite imperative to drive faster to be on time for the ceremony but nonetheless it's always advisable to depart early and drive at safer speeds. In my honest opinion a sedate drive is more enjoyable and a sure shot stress buster and with that comes complimentary saving on fuels bills too.

Originally Posted by BlackPearl

To conclude, I know this is not a travelogue and people will hardly find any interest to go through it. But I keep on writing because I love to come back on team bhp and read these to refresh my memory from time to time. I hope that I make many more friends on team bhp from different parts of the country and get invitations to attend such memorable events

Fully endorse your point of view. One should never hesitate from doing some thing which gives true joy and sharing travel stories is nothing less than a creative pursuit. This experience of yours reminds me of the road trip which I did in 2014 on Swift Dzire from Tricity to Hyderabad via Delhi, Agra, Jhansi and Nagpur to attend a wedding. That was my first cross country driving experience in which a total distance of 3800 kms (To & Fro) was clocked in about 60 hours of driving time. Sharing that experience on Team BHP is long overdue. Would definitely work on it. Thanks once again. Keep posting and keep motivating us all.

Best Regards.

[BlackPearl]

Originally Posted by MDED

Dear BlackPearl Sir,

Driving down from Kolkata to Delhi in a Thar must have been some experience. But, nonetheless you witnessed a wedding which every Indian wants to attend. I sincerely hope that you get to attend a Punjabi wedding in Punjab, wherein you will be received on the outer ring road of the city by the hosts with Band & Baaja!

Please don't call me sir! Though I have been in England for quite sometime now, there is still a few years left before I get knighted
This was my third trip to Delhi with the Thar and every time it has been exciting. I hope you can help me in getting invited to a Punjabi wedding in Punjab!

Originally Posted by GTO

Just read your travelogue in detail - thanks for sharing, BlackPearl. Every time I see pics of your Thar on holiday, I want to buy one myself. Looking amazing in that rear 3-quarter pic of the opening post. Enjoy your Jeep, man. I have fond memories of touring in mine.

Thanks GTO! Please get hold of one before they stop making the Thar.

Originally Posted by GTO

Sharp threads too, Mr. & Mrs. BlackPearl. That grey suit with blue shoes is . You guys look great together.

Thanks once again! The wardrobe is entirely managed by the missus, I have a terrible taste and absolute lack of interest in clothes.

Originally Posted by GTO

I think that's probably because your Thar has the aerodynamics of a brick . Wouldn't make such a big difference in a modern car with a low drag coefficient and a tall 6th gear for cruising.

Lol.. yes

Originally Posted by Uprasenjit

I don't have anything else to write except that all of you are looking dashing

Thanks Uprasenjit!

Originally Posted by AKSen2015

I second Uprasenjit da . Nothing to say ... Sherpa looks regal and so does everyone else.

Thanks AKSen2015!

Originally Posted by Samba

Waiting for the day to come, when you and your Bhpian wife will drive both the cars to attend someone's wedding!

I hope that day does not come, we will not be able to afford the fuel for two guzzlers! Thanks for the lovely pics. AJ-Got-BHP and you have clicked some of the best pics of the Bolero and the Thar!

Originally Posted by Samba

Regarding this travelogue, as-usual it was an engaging read with some nice pics! All of you are looking gorgeous and my best wishes to the newly wed couple.

Rated 5*.

Thanks a lot Samba!

Originally Posted by Jeroen

Thanks for sharing. I had the pleasure of attending a few Indian weddings myself.
Not necessarily the largest, but certainly lasted very long enough( well at least for us European. Our neighbours daughter in Delhi. For five days it was a constant coming and going of family friends, caterers what have you.

Love weddings and by the looks of it, this was a great one. Looks like everybody was thoroughly enjoying themselves and so many happy faces!

Cars look great too!

Thanks Jeroen! Yes Indian weddings are quite time consuming.

Originally Posted by Jeroen

Our daughter, my princess, just got married last week here in the Netherlands. It was a a splendid ceremony with a gorgeous bride (of course every dad will say that). The actual ceremony was outside in the afternoon and for the evening dinner and party we moved inside. Next day, big afterparty in our new home. So in essence a day and a half, which is extraordinary for the Dutch already. But we have a very large international spread out family and same with our friends. So they never come for tea only. The night before the wedding we had 19 people staying at our place. Mattresses everywhere. We had more family/friends staying in three B&Bs nearby. It was good fun and it gave me enormous pleasure to see my daughter and wife enjoying every moment!

Jeroen

Congratulations to your princess and you son-in-law. Do post some pictures when you get a chance. I was not too far from your place, just needed a schengen visa if I had been invited. Just joking!

Originally Posted by megazoid

That is some serious mile munching there BlackPearl. I can imagine how much you would have pushed to get that kind of top whack. Great snaps and writing to match. The roads were 4/6 laned through out?

Thanks Hari! The roads were 4 to 6 lanes throughout.

Originally Posted by ALTIMAed

Must have been one hell of a drive, but knowing the kind of driving experience that you have, for you it would be 'another day at work'!!

Nice colourful pics coupled with a lot of smiles. Pawan and you look great wearing the safa.

Could someone photoshop your (present) Mini between the Bolero and the Thar in the picture with you and Teesta!

Thanks Suneel Da! Also thanks for reminding the word "Safa" as I was not able to remember it. For the photoshop part, we will have to request Samba to do it!

Originally Posted by mi2n

Congratulations to the new couple. Absolutely brilliant reflection of the essence of events through your narratives and photographs!

Thanks mi2n!

Originally Posted by mi2n

What a dash to Delhi! I took more time reaching Lucknow

Believe me, there is nothing better than a relaxed long distance drive.

Originally Posted by ARAY

Congratulations to the newly wed.
A short and crisp narration of one of the most Epic events up North.
Good to see the Thar, maybe will see Hulk, the next time.
Had I been at Asansol, surely would have met you guys.
And I think this Samba has a valid point and a good foresight.
Thanks for sharing this experience.

Thanks ARAY! The Hulk was already there in Delhi. They had started a week earlier than us in order to do all the preparations. I hope PapaBravo puts up some pictures if not a new thread!

Originally Posted by ssambyal1980

Thanks bro for sharing this nice and sweet experience of yours. Heartiest congratulations to the newlyweds. Thanks and congratulations to Pawan Bhai and family for giving us an opportunity to virtually be a part of the wedding celebrations.

Thanks ssambyal1980!

Originally Posted by ssambyal1980

Must say that you have a really good sense of humour.

Thanks once again!

Originally Posted by ssambyal1980

I really admire your stamina to embark on such a long drive immediately after wrapping up the days work. Although the high speed driving did make up for the time but that also guzzles a lot of fuel. Regarding low mileage would like to iterate from personal experience that the top economy is delivered till a uniform top speed of 90 km/h on overdrive and after that the mileage figure starts dropping and becomes inversely proportional to the speed of vehicle. The more the speed the lesser the mileage. Guess the same thing happened with the Thar. Please do share more on this.

True, when driven around the triple digit mark the Thar gives quite decent mileage.

Originally Posted by ssambyal1980

Most of the drivers in Delhi are quite enterprising when it comes to cajoling traffic police personnel.

I did not know that, I had thought the police of the capital would be quite strict. I have had a few interactions with them before, but never had to pay any money as I was not at fault. A few of those were random checks and once I was stopped as my Bolero had a roof rack. I was asked to pay Rs 3000 or 5000 I don't remember, but finally did not have shell out any money.

Originally Posted by ssambyal1980

With me too supporting shaved head looks since last six years, so can fully empathise with you on this.

Lol....

Originally Posted by ssambyal1980

Though in your case it was quite imperative to drive faster to be on time for the ceremony but nonetheless it's always advisable to depart early and drive at safer speeds. In my honest opinion a sedate drive is more enjoyable and a sure shot stress buster and with that comes complimentary saving on fuels bills too.

Absolutely, nothing beats a sedate long drive with ample time to stop and enjoy.

Originally Posted by ssambyal1980

Sharing that experience on Team BHP is long overdue. Would definitely work on it.

Please do post it. I too have a lot of pending travelogues, don't know when I will get a chance to finish them.

[PapaBravo]

Thank you BP for the thread. I wouldn't have been able to pen it down so beautifully.

Originally Posted by BlackPearl

Being born and brought up in Kolkata and that too being an introvert, I had never dreamt of making so many "Non-Bengali" friends. This has been possible due to team-bhp beyond any doubt. Those who have known me from childhood cannot fathom this change in me Nowadays I am far from being introvert and my lack of Hindi speaking skill has not been much of a hindrance to making friends. Among them, PapaBravo and Navsjab stand out.

TeamBHP also gives you good friends who would DRIVE 1500 kms to be part of your celebrations.

We met her last year during our Sikkim trip and we behaved unusually well with her when we came to know that her marriage was coming up. That undoubtedly helped in securing an invitation

. You would have secured that invitation anyway.

Thankfully, there was no hiccup for the rest of the journey and we reached Delhi the next day at around 2:30 in the afternoon. A drive time of 17 Hours 48 Minutes for 1471 Kilometers was pretty good and my best till date with the Thar.

And we almost thought you would be late for the engagement

Originally Posted by ARAY

Congratulations to the newly wed.
A short and crisp narration of one of the most Epic events up North.
Good to see the Thar, maybe will see Hulk, the next time.
Had I been at Asansol, surely would have met you guys.
And I think this Samba has a valid point and a good foresight.
Thanks for sharing this experience.

Thanks Aritra. You can spot Hulk in the first picture of the thread, behind Sherpa.

Another one on the way to Delhi



And this one was clicked by BP on the way to one of the functions

Originally Posted by ssambyal1980

Thanks bro for sharing this nice and sweet experience of yours. Heartiest congratulations to the newlyweds. Thanks and congratulations to Pawan Bhai and family for giving us an opportunity to virtually be a part of the wedding celebrations.

Thanks a lot ssambyal1980 !!

Cheers,

Pawan

[hikersoul]

Thanks for sharing, seems like you people had loads of fun. Happy married life to the beautiful couple. Steal of the show were definitely your blue shoes 😍

[GTO]

Originally Posted by BlackPearl

Thanks GTO! Please get hold of one before they stop making the Thar.

I would man, I would. The idea of a Jeep with more power, space, air-conditioning, power steering and highway cruisability is too damn tempting. I really want a Thar. However:

1. I already own a Jeep.

2. I have 3 cars, none of which have high running.

3. Every other weekend, there is a test-drive car (for our official reviews) which I have to put miles on. As an example, today there is the Amaze Petrol MT which I'm taking out at night. This further reduces the kms I put on my own cars.

[debmum]

Nice photos and travelogue Lucid writing and thanks for the vivid description of a North Indian wedding. Congrats and all the best to the couple as well

[arun_josie]

Every other travelogue these days is from KOL/WB guys. From driving to Leh to NE to West to South, now it has come to earning social invitations just to drive 3000 Kms to attend a wedding. I love the driving enthusiast in you guys :-) and thanks for sharing the experience in team-bhp.

Nice pics and well written!

Originally Posted by BlackPearl

I hope that I make many more friends on team bhp from different parts of the country and get invitations to attend such memorable events

Lets meet for a cup of Chai

[tsk1979]

Originally Posted by BlackPearl

[b]
The drive time while returning was around 21 hours and the Thar gave a mileage of 13+ kmpl. Coming back to the point I had mentioned that I would explain later. There was approximately 3 hours of difference between driving blazingly fast and adequately fast on a 1500 Km stretch. Traffic conditions were more or less same both ways. The price difference between the two trips for diesel was about Rs 5000 . If I think about these statistics it raises a pertinent question if it is worth the additional effort to drive faster to save about 3 hours time and pay almost the double for the fuel?

Let me make you feel better. I recently got 10mpg in my GX. Highway trips give me around 15mpg. So thats like 4-6kmpl.

That said by driving about 15mph slower I can gain around 20-30%. Never tried "blazing fast" but I think it would be less than 10mpg

[rmonie]

Lovely read especially with the photographs! Enhances the large family feeling of T-BHP!
Congratulations to the bride & groom!

[dhanushmenon]

A wedding log from the Travelogue master!!!
Well, this wasn't expected

Great going. Loved the flow of the article. Wishing you more North Indian weddings!

[sayakc]

True, this might not be a travelogue but your crisp narration and the colourful photos have made it a gem of an article.
And with your super fast dash to Delhi (probably faster than the Rajdhani express) there's the motoring element too.
It's needless to say that papabravo and you with your better half look striking in the photos!

[BlackPearl]

Originally Posted by PapaBravo

Thank you BP for the thread. I wouldn't have been able to pen it down so beautifully.

Thanks Pawan!

Originally Posted by hikersoul

Thanks for sharing, seems like you people had loads of fun. Happy married life to the beautiful couple. Steal of the show were definitely your blue shoes 😍

Thanks Atish! The blue show is looking even more blue in the pics

Originally Posted by debmum

Nice photos and travelogue Lucid writing and thanks for the vivid description of a North Indian wedding. Congrats and all the best to the couple as well

Thanks debmum!

Originally Posted by arun_josie

Every other travelogue these days is from KOL/WB guys. From driving to Leh to NE to West to South, now it has come to earning social invitations just to drive 3000 Kms to attend a wedding. I love the driving enthusiast in you guys :-) and thanks for sharing the experience in team-bhp.

Nice pics and well written!

Lets meet for a cup of Chai

Lol.. send me the address for the meet!

Originally Posted by tsk1979

Let me make you feel better. I recently got 10mpg in my GX. Highway trips give me around 15mpg. So thats like 4-6kmpl.

That said by driving about 15mph slower I can gain around 20-30%. Never tried "blazing fast" but I think it would be less than 10mpg

Thanks Tanveer! But the GX is luxurious, so even if it gives 4 kmpl, you can't complaint

Originally Posted by rmonie

Lovely read especially with the photographs! Enhances the large family feeling of T-BHP!
Congratulations to the bride & groom!

Thanks rmonie!

Originally Posted by dhanushmenon

A wedding log from the Travelogue master!!!
Well, this wasn't expected

Great going. Loved the flow of the article. Wishing you more North Indian weddings!

Thanks Dhanush. Targets are west, south and north east.

Originally Posted by sayakc

True, this might not be a travelogue but your crisp narration and the colourful photos have made it a gem of an article.
And with your super fast dash to Delhi (probably faster than the Rajdhani express) there's the motoring element too.
It's needless to say that papabravo and you with your better half look striking in the photos!

Thanks Sayak!