[MX6]

Pic 2: uh oh, this picture doesn't make me look good. I'm either overtaking this vehicle from the left or worse, I'm being overtaken by a bus!

Now that's a pic of a BUM. And some one said they won't be posting any bum pics.

[aargee]

To me it looks like the bus overtakes, could be my assumption too

[addyhemmige]

Originally Posted by smartcat

Pic 2: uh oh, this picture doesn't make me look good. I'm either overtaking this vehicle from the left or worse, I'm being overtaken by a bus!

Pic 7 & 8: Chitradurga is a hot and dry region, but this fort built in 15th century uses rain water harvesting. The Fort never faced any water shortage, even in the summer.

Looks like that bus which is passing by is a KSRTC Airavat. In that case I won't go into the debate of who overtook whom

Hmmm. Lets just hope that people have the sense to go for rainwater harvesting in their houses too

[sushrutha]

Smartcat,
sometime back you promised to come up with Madikeri trip log. Where is it ?

[SmartCat]

Originally Posted by MX6

Now that's a pic of a BUM. And some one said they won't be posting any bum pics.

On the GQ, when vehicles on the fast lane don't let me pass, I flash and overtake from the left. The only other option is to honk madly to make him move, but I'm not a very "horny" guy. I like to overtake quietly.

Originally Posted by aargee

To me it looks like the bus overtakes, could be my assumption too

Originally Posted by addyhemmige

Looks like that bus which is passing by is a KSRTC Airavat. In that case I won't go into the debate of who overtook whom

If an expert analyzes the photo (looking at the blur lines), it looks like I'm overtaking the bus. But anyway, since its an Airavat (Volvo), there is no shame either way.

Originally Posted by sushrutha

Smartcat, sometime back you promised to come up with Madikeri trip log. Where is it ?

I will post it in the end - it is rather boring. Since the car was new at that time, we mostly took car photos rather than Madikeri photos.

[SmartCat]

CHITRADURGA FORT TRIP (CONCLUDING PART)

Pic 1: Chitradurga Fort is famous for Obavana Kindi and Onake Obavva - the legend of a fiesty woman called Obavva (not Obama or Osama), who single handedly killed several enemy soldiers. There is a small secret crevice (Kindi) through which one can enter the Fort from outside.

Pic 2 & 3: Haider Ali's troops discovered this secret passage into the Fort, and sent several soldiers to enter the Fort via this crevice.

Pic 4 & 5: The forces occupying the Fort obviously knew about this crevice, so they deputed a guard there. When he had to leave for lunch, he asked his wife Obavva to stand guard. At the same time, Haider Ali's soldiers tried to enter the Fort via the Kindi.

Pic 6 & 7: Quick thinking Obavva got a heavy wooden stick (called Onake - used to separate wheat from the chaff I guess) and smashed the enemy soldier's skull using the Onake. She then dragged the body to the side and waited for the next one to appear. Re-enactment of the scene -

Pic 8: Karnataka answer to Arunachal Pradesh's Bum La. - the Archaelogical Society of India reported that the Kindi had strangely increased in diameter - I'm pretty sure Shaiju had something to do with it. Anyway, Obavva killed several soldiers this way before her husband finally appeared and called the troops. Haider Ali's attempts to take the Fort that day for foiled by one woman with a fat stick.

Pic 9 & 10: There is also a lake and a cave closeby. We explored the cave for sometime, but stopped after seeing this weird looking shivlinga. We headed back home to Bangalore in the evening.

[ampere]

Quite a history ! There is some mention of this fort in the history texts related to Hyder Ali. But it you read Bhagan S Gidwani's book (on which the serial sword of Tipu Sultan was based) nothing is mentioned.

Partly because focus is more on Tipu and Hyder's people and not Hyder's conquests. But there are some particular texts, which focus of Chitradurga fort and I have seen Hyder being mentioned in them.

But definitely not the woman and stick ! Good one !


Can you cover the whole thing in one day? If one starts by say 2AM from BLR, can he back by 6?
How much time you think one would need to see the fort?

[StarVegabond]

Hi Smartcat,

My history lessons / learnings got refreshed, especially after seeing the modern incarnation of Onake Obavva and the Hyderali's soldiers.

BTW, have you ever attepted stree plays or stage plays ?
You (along iwth your gang) can look at it as alternative profession or second business unit

[pramod]

One correction Smartcat!

Obavva's husband went for lunch. During his lunch, Obavva went out to get water from the nearby pond/water source. She sees Hyder Ali's soldiers crawling through the crevice. She thinks of calling out her husband aloud. But she sees him peacefully having lunch and decides not to disturb him from his lunch.
FInally she decides to handle it herself and takes a "Vanake" , a Pounding wodden pole (used for pounding rice, wheat etc) and starts killing the soldiers coming in through the crevice. Looking at this, her husband stands astonished and then rings the Alarm.

This is how the story goes. See this song with the whole dipiction of the story of Obavva.

YouTube - Naagarahaavu - Kannada naadina veera ramaniya

[SmartCat]

Originally Posted by ampere

Quite a history ! There is some mention of this fort in the history texts related to Hyder Ali. But it you read Bhagan S Gidwani's book (on which the serial sword of Tipu Sultan was based) nothing is mentioned.

Kannada was the "second language" for us in school - and Kannada textbooks carry this story. Women in Karnataka get quite inspired by this story, and housewives regularly beat up erring husbands Obavva style.

Can you cover the whole thing in one day? If one starts by say 2AM from BLR, can he back by 6? How much time you think one would need to see the fort?

Takes 4 hours to get to Chitradurga Fort, 4 hours to see the Fort, cave, & lake and 4 more hours to come back to Bangalore - so plan accordingly. It has incredibly hot when we went there. I would recommend that you go to Chitradurga in the winter or when it is cloudy.

Chitradurga is a hot and dusty town, with no proper restaurants (atleast, we couldn't spot any on the way to the Fort). So I recommend that you leave Bangalore at around 8:30 AM, reach outskirts of Chitradurga town by 12:30 PM, having lunch in a restuarant on National Highway (I think there is a good one just before we reach Chitradurga), and then explore the Fort/cave in the afternoon. Leave Chitradurga by 5:00 PM, have dinner at Kamat on Tumkur Road and get back home.

Originally Posted by StarVegabond

have you ever attepted stree plays or stage plays ? You (along iwth your gang) can look at it as alternative profession or second business unit.

Whenever prices of tomatoes and eggs skyrocket, we do participate in stage/street plays

Originally Posted by pramod

One correction Smartcat!

Obavva's husband went for lunch. During his lunch, Obavva went out to get water from the nearby pond/water source. She sees Hyder Ali's soldiers crawling through the crevice. She thinks of calling out her husband aloud. But she sees him peacefully having lunch and decides not to disturb him from his lunch.

FInally she decides to handle it herself and takes a "Vanake" , a Pounding wodden pole (used for pounding rice, wheat etc) and starts killing the soldiers coming in through the crevice. Looking at this, her husband stands astonished and then rings the Alarm.

The bit in bold sounds a bit unlikely, logically speaking. Historians like to show women as a devout wife, always taking care of their husband. The rest of the story seems allright though.

[addyhemmige]

Originally Posted by smartcat

...Women in Karnataka get quite inspired by this story, and housewives regularly beat up erring husbands Obavva style.

Too good. I'm sure you are talking with experience here.

[SmartCat]

Originally Posted by addyhemmige

Too good. I'm sure you are talking with experience here.

Oh, it's that obvious huh?



Coming up later tonight, a powerful "aargee repeller" - pics of our trek to KUMARAPARVATHA. A preview -

[ampere]

Originally Posted by smartcat

Takes 4 hours to get to Chitradurga Fort, 4 hours to see the Fort, cave, & lake and 4 more hours to come back to Bangalore - so plan accordingly. It has incredibly hot when we went there. I would recommend that you go to Chitradurga in the winter or when it is cloudy.

Chitradurga is a hot and dusty town, with no proper restaurants (atleast, we couldn't spot any on the way to the Fort). So I recommend that you leave Bangalore at around 8:30 AM, reach outskirts of Chitradurga town by 12:30 PM, having lunch in a restuarant on National Highway (I think there is a good one just before we reach Chitradurga), and then explore the Fort/cave in the afternoon. Leave Chitradurga by 5:00 PM, have dinner at Kamat on Tumkur Road and get back home.

Thanks for that. I would prefer to start early by 4-5. Pack something for the fort. But the fact that we can cover it in 4 hours, is nice ! Will try it out in winter.


Also the next picture is nice! One TL goes and next comes it. I have never been to Kumaraparvatha (I call it KP; not to be confused with Kevin Peterson.)

Waiting for this to flow.

[aargee]

Originally Posted by smartcat

Coming up later tonight, a powerful "aargee repeller" - pics of our trek to KUMARAPARVATHA.

Why? Is it another trekking?

But I loved that evening sunset pic very much; new one on my desktop.

[KRRaj]

Originally Posted by aargee

Why? Is it another trekking?

Why? You dont like trekking? IMO, some of the best sights you can see is by Trekking only.