Darjeeling Carnival 2006 in Full Swing

We are all on familiar ground now with the Darjeeling Carnival in full swing. There’s a strange feeling of déjà vu every time of having been there, done that. The hick-ups and obstacles are always there, but after 3 years of organizing such a mega event the team is prepared and raring to face such challenges.

Need a car in 5 minutes? Call Ruben and its done. Orient Express needs sound check at 9am? No problem, Lipok, Gopal and Avinash are there, wiping sleepy dust (kachera) from their eyes. Security guards needs to be tightened? Rueben and the Gorkha Shield are there. The troupes arrived late or someone can’t find a room for the night? Well, Nita and Monlom are just a phone call away. Running short of volunteers? Sabina smiles, your volunteer’s there! Firefighting and motivation? Hey, we have Ajoy, ready to hear you out and solve your problem.

You can also see Suraj kaku and his enthusiastic volunteers busy feeding everyone and making sure that the guests are being served hot cups of Darjeeling tea in the evening. Yangchen, in her own slow and sweet way, is making sure that the Cultural groups are on time and performing according to the schedule. Gatty and Sikher are in charge of playing the sponsor ads every evening and also controlling the stage light and doing a great job at that. Kundan is on tenter hooks trying to manage the Carnival Idol which is becoming a big hit by the day. Namgyal (Pala) and Suman can be seen on and off stage trying to get the best angle and shot with their cameras. And good old Rajeev? Well, he is everywhere, from designing flexes and posters to volunteering on stage and doing everything else that’s being left out for the last moment.

As for yours truly, well, I am gliding around, trying to be the odd job man. No department tag on my volunteer badge, so am free to butt into anything I feel. From whispering the last number to the bands, to distributing invitation cards for the exhibition, from pleasing sponsors with my sweet talks to going in search of the electricians. There is no excuse for feigning tiredness or being sick till the 17th. This is after all, Carnival time!!!

Darjeeling Carnival 2006_Latest Update 23 Nov 06

15 days to go for D-Day! Everyone's in a hurry to get things done and beat their deadline. Good to see the office packed with people working their ass off. The No-Smoking rule inside the office is still not being followed too seriously! I can see tired faces and droopy eyes, top it up with the occasional late hour binging at Joey’s and Buzz and you have the perfect zombies next morning!

We have managed to inspire a group of proactive youth from Kurseong and they have decided to take up the challenge of organizing The Kurseong Carnival from 13 to 14 December. Mirik is on its third edition from 8 to 11 December. Arbin, Gyanendra and the gang are doing a great job there.

The Press Conference was perfect with Ajoy stirring the crowd’s emotion once again. Its great to hear him talk, revives our faith in what we are doing. For more info and audio bytes on this check out www.darjeelingtimes.com

Darjeeling Carnival 2006_Latest Update 14 Nov 06

Its good to attend the Darjeeling Carnival meetings. Feels like coming back home. The energy is high and there's so much enthusiasm within the group now. Great ideas are coming up and the program schedule is finally taking shape. People are spending more time at the Carnival office than at their workplace or at home, but then thats what happens when you are so engrossed with the Carnival!!!Kundan is still trying to juggle his time between his job and the Carnival...

Good news! Ajnish is back from London after his first international performance so the team can now gear up for the Darjeeling Carnival Idol to be choreographed by Ajnish and the Darjeeling music fraternity. Sweta, Shradda and their gang are busy preparing for the inauguration ceremony, Lipok and his cronies are gearing up for the music audition of all the local bands to be held tomorrow, Monlom and Nita are out begging hotels to sponsor rooms for visiting participants, Ranjeeta and her gang of architects are busy researching and collecting materials for the exhibition "Darjeeling - Past, Present & Future". Rajeev and Yangchen are running around trying to get the cultural communities involved, Ruben just came back after distributing the invitation letters to 22 schools. So much running around!!!

Mary is still in Calcutta going crazy with the "city of joy" and its irritating humidity. Narayan has again started his financial nagging and bringing us back to the ground. Love him for his reality checks! Ajoy is still running his brain and his imagination overtime (as always) coming up with new ideas for the Carnival. Neeraj is busy with his work on heritage awareness with support from Victoria Memorial, Caclutta.

We have finally managed to convince Alvin (Shalvin???) to stay back and work on the Press & PR dept. He was running away to Australia! The Superintendent of Police has promised his full support and participation so all the drunk rowdies can start running for cover!

Endless discussions, never ending meetings, empty stomachs, freezing feet, late nights, groggy mornings.... but hey, its worth doing it all over again just to make sure that Darjeeling regains its former glory.

Darjeeling Carnival 2006_Latest Update_10 Nov

The Darjeeling Carnival is actually here, I can feel it, smell it and see our guys falling sick! Ajoy is admitted at Planters' Hospital, Narayan is runing a high fever, Reuben has his backaches and as for me I have my perennial congestion and tonsilitis.... Yes, Carnival time is really here!!!

AIRCEL will be our official presenting sponsor for the Darjeeling Carnival 2006. Isn't that great news! The guys from Aircel were here on Monday and the deal was sealed over ham, bacon and sausages at Keventers. As for the volunteers, they can now work their ass off and then gorge on Urgen daju's "sungur ko khutta and bhaat" without worrying too much in how to foot the lunch bills! Ofocurse, Narayan will go mad but then, thats so much like Narayan...

Poor Mary, she is in Calcutta trying to woo in more sponsors and make people understand what the Carnival actually means to the Darjeeling Hills. She's done more for this place than most of the fence sitters who are born critics. We are praying that World Space and Pepsi comes in also. No replies yet from the Chaudhary Group and so many others... Pray guys pray.

The team meeting on the 7th went off extremely well with lots of new faces and new ideas. Responsibilities have been taken up eagerly by the volunteers and we have a feed back meeting on the 13th Monday. All are welcome to join.

For more information get in touch with us at darjeelingcarnival@gmail.com
or come and meet us at: 22 Ajit Mansions, Chowrasta, Darjeeling - 734101or
call me at 9434209887 / 03542253905 (Samir)

Darjeeling & NP pay homage to their Loyal Son

The sun was up, the students stood in line, the family and friends were there and the School Colours were out in full form to pay homage to the Loyal Son of North Point. Shasheesh was no more with us but his dedication, loyalty and love for his alma mater and his home town was there for all to see.Fighting the lump in their throats both Fr. Van and Fr. Kinley gave a befitting tribute to the man who had done so much for Darjeeling in such a short time.

Was it just yesterday that I stood there with my dear departed friend in one of the school assemblies trying to figure out more ways in making North Point a better place for everyone. I finally realised that he was no more with us and will never be back. All this while I had fought back the tears but this was too much to handle. I let it out one last time for my friend, my philosopher and my guide. I will miss you my friend, but then.... what a way to go... I would like to be remembered and revered as Shasheesh when I leave this place...

Darjeeling Carnival 2006_doing it again

Fighting back the pain and shock of losing Shasheesh the Darjeeling Initiative has taken up the challenge of going ahead with the Darjeeling Carnival 2006. The group sat down yesterday and unanimously decided on going ahead with the dream that Shasheesh had so lovingly envisioned. He always said that "the show must go on, no matter what happens to the individual" so here we are back again, on track, trying to fulfill our dear friend's dreams.

We are planning to hold the Darjeeling Carnival around the first week of December so that the school exams get over by then. The timing has always been a major concern for schools because of the term end exams, hopefully all that will change this year. Our partners all over India such as EZCC, ICCR, IGNCA and the variuos Consulates are still there supporting the cause and ready to send their teams to the Darjeeling Carnival 2006. Not to forget our local partners, the DGHC Tourism, Darjeling Municipality, Darjeeling Police and the District Administration along with numerous local organisations who will always be there come rain or shine.

The major hurlde now lies in raising the sponsorship for the entire 10 day event. The team has started sending out proposals to the sponsors and hopefully we should be able to raise the required amount by end November. Another big challenge is in finding the right volunteers for the designated jobs. Every year we have team members leaving for greener pastures and we have to be prepared for new faces and new hands taking up the challenge. Fortunately most of the core group members are still around so they should be able to steer the team well.

Volunteers are most welcome as we always run short of people. There's no fame, no glamour, a lot of hardwork and excitement and ofcourse, that great feeling of having achieved something good at the end of the 10 days. You wont regret it. Its a promise!

Come join us.... 22 Ajit MansionsChowrastaDarjeeling - 734101
email: darjeelingcarnival@gmail.com
ph: (Samir) 9434209887 / (Ajoy) 9434006782

Darjeeling and all of us will miss Shasheesh

DEAR ALL,
HERE ARE SOME OF THE MAILS I HAVE BEEN RECEIVING FROM PEOPLE ALL OVER...

Shasheesh was a very special kind of man. With his powerful energy, he acted in so many fields – motivating others often in a very unselfish manner. I am very grateful about our relationship, proud to say: He was a friend to me.
Claire and Hans Joerg Bodenmann (Switzerland)


Many of us talk about giving back to the community, but never actually do anything about it. Shasheesh walked his talk, in that inimitable style of his. God rest his soul.
Jaideep Lahiri(New Delhi)


Shasheesh has taught me most of what I know today. Not only in terms of architecture but also in terms of how a life needs to be lived. What is important and what is not. He inspired me to believe in myself and take pride in what I do. I am lucky to have had a mentor like him in my life.
He always had some solution or the other for all the other things in life.
He loved Darjeeling in a 'devoted for life' sort of way and I hope that we can all together fulfill his dreams in our own ways.
Malvika (Bombay)


It is really an uncompensable loss to Darjeeling. We too miss such a good, hardworking and sincere teacher. I'll always treasure the days I spent there.
Milan (Kathmandu)


This is extremely cruel and unfair to all of us.
May be we could all meet a little later in Darj and
sort out some of the things close to his heart.
Things will never be the same.
Ashish Sharan lal (Kolkata)

Shasheesh_Great Loss for Darjeeling

Dear All,
Our Beloved Shasheesh, dear friend, brother, guide, key member and the brain behind the "Darjeeling Initiative" and the "Darjeeling Carnival" passed away after a brief illness at Delhi on 30th September 2006. There will never be no other like him and his commitment to the development of the Darjeeling Hills in all forms shall remain unmatched. I shall write more on his contribution as soon as I am back to my normal self.

The Shradh Ceremony will be held at Ajit Mansions, Chowrasta, Darjeeling on the
14th of October 2006 from 1:00 pm onwards.
We sincerely request all friends, relatives and well wishers to join us to pray and pay homage to the departed soul.

Darjeeling Initiative
Darjeeling Carnival

DARJEELING CARNIVAL POSTPONED

Dear All,
It is with much regret that I would like to inform that as of now the Darjeeling Carnival 2006 is postponed till further notice. Shasheesh, one of our key members and the driving force behind this whole excercise is very sick and admitted in a hospital in Delhi. He just underwent a brain surgery. The entire team is praying for his speedy recovery. There is no will to work towards a carnival at the moment. We will wait for him to recover in order to finalise anything on the Darjeeling Carnival 2006. Till then, please bear with us and pray for Shasheesh's recovery.
Samir

DARJEELING MEETS LOU MAJAW_The Dylan of the North East

In his own words Lou Majaw is a very simple man. You can talk
or meet him anytime and anywhere you want. He is completely made up of music, and music is everything for him.

A rock legend in his own style, ‘The Dylan of the North East’ has been associated with music for more than three decades now. Majaw and the late Eddie Rynjah started celebrating Bob Dylan’s birthday in Shillong from 24 May 1972 and since then it has been an annual festival in Shillong.

The legend was here in Darjeeling at The Buzz performing to a full house on the 1st of September. It was one of those rare moments in life when music actually starts making sense. Backed by "Darjammin" an upcoming local band, Lou also jammed with Benoy (Groovesuppa) and Hemu (Rusty Nails, G.Maximus).

Those of you who missed out on the show, here are some pics.

These days, Lou Majaw teaches kids about Bob Dylan's music in Shillong's public schools and has joined hands with UNAIDS and Maitri, a Shillong-based national HIV/AIDS awareness and prevention initiative to create awareness about the disease.

DARJEELING MONSOON FESTIVAL AT GLENARY'S

Ajoy's come up with a great idea to make the monsoon more lively in Darjeeling. He's organising a Monsoon Festival at Glenary's with lots of fun, food and music. There's special monsoon menus for the food enthusiast, discounted beverage for the booze freak and great music lined up for anyone wanting to shake his/her wet and damp body.

The Festival started of with AJNISH performing Ghazals on 17th and 18th evenings at the restaurant upstairs. Special performances are lined up for the entire month with the legendary LOU MAJAW from Shillong performing on the 1st of Sept at The Buzz. AJNISH will be performing his Ghazals again on the 24th and 25th of August followed by CRABH from Gangtok at The Buzz. The grand finale will be performances by the only Latin and Salsa band of India THE ORIENT EXPRESS on the 15th and 16th of Sept.

We have our very own local bands playing every evening at The Buzz also - Smooth Riff, G.Maximus and Herb Therapy. Given a chance these guys can compete with any of the best bands in India and come out a winner!

When everyone's scared of taking risks, that too in the monsoon Ajoy's gone ahead and taken a bold step in making people enjoy the monsoon for the first time. Keep it up Ajoy. Oofcourse, Threshold Entertainments' always there to support you!!!

MY BIRTHDAY AT THE BUZZ

16th of August was my birthday and I never expected it to be such a great day. As we grow older birthdays stop being important-its just another mark on your calendar. I have been drifting from year to year ever since I finished school. (Back then Dad used to make it special by preparing the entire dinner himself). But this time it was different. I got so many birthday wishes from everywhere. People started calling up from 6 in the morning and the sms were going on till midnight! I was on a high the whole day...
After much coaxing from Ajoy I decided to invite my friends for dinner at The Buzz and wow, what an evening it was. The music was good, the food was great and two birthday cakes were smashed on my face. Some of my friends (esp Ajnish) felt let down cos they couldn't taste the cake at all!
What makes me write about my birthday is the feeling that struck me, that there are good friends who are around you and who care about you. People who remember you on your special day and go that extra length to make it even more special for you. I am so fortunate to have good friends in my life. I love them for that. Ofcourse the gifts were great too!!! But hey, who cares for gifts when you got such precious friends as I have...

DARJEELING CARNIVAL 2006

Well its time again for the Darjeeling Carnival and we are on to the fourth edition. God, hardly seems like yesterday when we sat down and talked about organising a festival that would bring Darjeeling back to the tourism map and also bring back normal life to the Hills. We've done it three times in a row and against all ods. Now its time for Carnival 2006.
Everythings's so festive during the 10 days of the Carnival but people hardly notice the amount of hard work and sweat that goes into making those 10 days perfect. Preparations start from September onwards and reaches full swing by October end. Fund raising is a real pain and every year I have to spend atleast a month in Delhi and Calcutta tryng to raise sponsorship for the event. I guess I have to start packing my bags once again.
Every year there are a set of new volunteers and team mates. People have to carry on with their personal live also. This is what I keep telling my friends. We have to be prepared to let go and allow new faces and new leadership to carry the Carnival forward. The show has to go on.
But I really miss my old team... Karma, Yankee, Navraj and so many more who have gone ahead looking for greener pastures. I wish them luck and pray that some day they will return for another edition of the Darjeeling Carnival.

WHEN THE SUN SHINES ON DARJEELING

The rain seems to have suddenly stopped and we are blessed with great sunny weather. I could even see certain parts of the kanchenjunga range this morning. Blessed are we to be living in such a beautiful place. Blue skies, candy floss clouds, green hills... so colourful. Feels so good to be alive on days like this, everyone seems to be happy and cheerful. Chowrasta is full of people lazing around or taking walks around the mall. Children out for horserides and teenagers gorging on ice creams and soft drinks. Lovers crossing hands and trying to the live the moment to its full. Can't even dream of getting a place on the sun deck of Keventer's! Housewives freaking out trying to finish washing their clothes and drying quilts and pillows on verandahs and walls. And the evenings, they are something to die for, so many different shades and hues painted all over...

I guess this is what the real Darjeeling actually is and not the negatives that we talk about all the time. Can we spare time to observe and soak in the beauty of nature sometime and be thankful that we live in such a beautiful place...?

The beauty of the Darjeeling Monsoon

Monsoon arrives quite early in Darjeeling compared to other parts of India. Infact the wet season starts from May onwards and can stretch up to October end! Sad part is we do not have enough water to suffice the entire community - Water water everywhere, not a drop to drink!
But there is a positive side of the monsoon that I always love about. Darjeeling looks fresh and green. The sun plays hide and seek with the mist and the clatter of rain on a tin roof provides the perfect music for a weary soul trying to get some sleep. Its pure bliss to be in Darjeeling during the rains. Children walking to school with oversized rain coats and undersized umbrellas, the windscreen wiper of your car swinging left and right endlessly, snow white waterfalls everywhere along the hill cart road.
I always miss school days. We used to walk inside the drain so that the water could flow over our rubber (gum) boots. It used to be so exciting, like walking in a river. And later in College the fun was in sharing an umbrella with your girlfriend. Further on in life it changed to sharing a rickshaw in the rain with the plastic sheet covering both of us and creating a complete private space!!!
Tell me about your monsoon story, am sure you have one...
Sam

Darjeeling

Darjeeling is a small town (hill station?) in the North eastern part of India with the state of Sikkim on the North, Bhutan on the East and Nepal in the west. It is part of the state of West Bengal and has a population of around 130000. It was once known as the Queen of the Hills and used to be a summer paradise for the British and a sanotorium for ailing British soldiers. As the town grows older it is choking underneath the pressure of over population, pollution and trourism.

I look at old monochrome photgraphs of Darjeeling and wonder how it used to be back then. everything looked so big and wide and so beautiful. Now I can harldy recognize some of the places shown in the photographs. There is too much happening in this small town and it is bursting at its seams. No place to expand, so what do we do, we build more high risers in an earthquake prone area....