Peaks, waterfall & an ancient temple!

There are some things in life that don't make sense. But they turn out to be the core reasons of your existence. Not that there's no sense at all; it's just that rest of the world can't see the reason behind that.

For some of us it's travelling, reading, watching a movie, photography, music, driving (that's me!!). And our moms won't necessarily have the same view about these wasteful activities. Yet, we indulge.. One such adventure coming up: starring four people of the travel category.

After planning for ages, we finally managed to zero in on a date and location. Thanks to advent of summer, there were only a few places that were worth trekking. So the surrounding places of Chikmaglur were targeted and Varun n Arun: both having visited these places already, would be our guides.

On a pleasant Thursday evening, Arun, Rajath, Varun n I were speeding on the Tumkur road. No, I didn't get to drive: the driver wouldn't give me the wheel and I forgot to get chloroform. The journey had a lot of music, munching and a Kannada movie. The Qualis had a DVD player & screen, but the only DVDs available were Mr. Rajiv's (our driver) choicest.

We reached our 1^st destination: Kalhatti falls at 4 in the morning. As the sun rose an hour later, we caught a glimpse of the pathetic guest house, the dismal waterfall and decided to leave. The next destination was the Kemmangundi guest house and thankfully, it turned out to be in a better state. Now that the biggest Indian tourism problem (read: finding a decent washroom) was solved, we had breakfast and started the trek to Hebbe falls. Now this is where nature offsets the gap created by infrastructure: or lack of it. The 13 Km terrain was quite treacherous and we did take a lot of shortcuts which presented more adventures.

The last 2 KM stretch involves crossing the stream thrice. Crossing water bodies never ceases to thrill. The water so clear: You could see rocks, fish and what not! Getting a view of the majestic waterfall was a reward itself and upon reaching we didn't waste any time in getting into the water.

I thought this was the most enjoyable time of the trip. Well I was to be proven wrong in some time. After stepping out of the water, we decided to head for another trail where 4X4's would be available to take us back. Tough Mahindra Commanders were found but sadly the money in our pockets could not match up to the drivers' demands. Now one guy in a pick-up offered to take us at half the price and we jumped at the offer. Though three of us would have to stand with his cargo (he'd pick that up in some time on the way), we were looking forward to the mini adventure.

We had a jolly ride until he stopped for his cargo. Surprise surprise: the cargo turned out to be chopped trunks of trees. Kindly note that I do not say chopped wood as I don't think it'd do justice to the massive blocks having volume almost equal to 1 Rajath.. We were informed to sit 'on top' of the cargo. Now sitting 'on top' of the cargo poses a greater peril than 'standing with the cargo'.

Soon the cargo and three of us were loaded (Rajath grabbed the cockpit seat). Now we started crawling on the terrain. Again, I am not using we drove on the road. Soon, we lost count of the number of near misses. Branches tried to scrape us. Tons of wood resting beneath us whomped our backs and bottoms. A live wire passed above us. Thundering clouds threatened to strike and set us on fire. All the while the vehicle tried it's best to throw us around. At one instance, the front tires could no longer hold and the front was lifted off the ground. The passengers sitting 'on top' of the cargo were asked to get off and stand on the hood to generate better traction. After fighting for our lives for the next one hour, we finally reached and jumped off. The smiling driver asked us if we had a good time and if we'd ever forget this drive. Silly question... The aching body parts kept sending signals to the brain: 'wouldn't trekking back have been less painful??'

Pain and thundering clouds did not deter us. We decided to trek to Z-point immediately. The narrow and steep trails challenged us all the way. But in the end we were rewarded with howling winds and a heavenly view.

The next day, we headed to Mulliangiri: the highest peak of Karnataka. Though they have built a road right upto the peak, Varun suggested we take the trail at the base of the mountain. A great decision! Took us almost two and half hours but again; anything for the panoramic spectacle.

We headed back after lunch and after an impulsive decision, decided to stop at the 11th century HaleBidu temples. You may detest photography or history, but you cannot help being amazed by this place. The sculptures can entice even the naive and artless mortals (I refer to my-self) and you can't help being awed at the rich history of our country.

As I said, I was a bit skeptic thinking about where we'll stay but in the end this fear is exactly what made this trip unforgettable. Not that we had to struggle a lot for a decent place.. It's just that since there aren't many places to stay around here; most of the population has stayed away and the place remains uncorrupted and pristine..

Do check out Arun's write up: http://arunmulbagal.blogspot.com/2010/04/beyond-this-horizon.html

The Maruti story

As many of you might have noticed, praise for Maruti products has been limited on this page. Some not so great Suzuki products are to be blamed.

But here goes a big salute to Maruti Udyog and the creators.. For what it did for the nation, how they changed the industry..

R.C. Bhargava has never got the credit he deserved. His efforts made Maruti and the indian manufacturing industry world class. However people have heard more of Mr. Khattar than him. Not that Mr. Bhargava is a media hungry fellow. On the contrary- his humble nature is seen in this book. In a book of 300+ pages, only a few lines highlight his own efforts. It's more of 'we' than 'I'.

The story is quite gripping when there are instances which suggest that the common man's Maruti 800 could've been the Renault R-15, Ford laser, Mitsubishi Colt, or a Rover instead had Suzuki not jumped in as the last moment collaborator and technology partner..

Quality for the common man: We all know Maruti operated in an era when the only competition was from aging Ambassador and Padmini. Maruti could still have been insanely profitable had the 800 been moderately better than it's competition. We car starved Indians would still have been happy. Yet the leadership team were obsessed wit the best methods of production and technology putting the Maruti products in a differnt league altogether.

PSU Challenge: While the government backed the project initially (thanks to Indira Gandhi's emotional links) and steamrolled many barriers for setting it up, political pressure posed many challenges. Keeping recruitment, vendor selection processes free from politicians' referrals was no easy task. When the management did not select a politician's relative as the vendor, they were rewarded with CBI enquiries, legal action, etc.

Revolutionizing the Industry: PSU's were the only option for fresh graduates and their inefficiencies are no secret. The new PSU called Maruti udyog changed the rules of the game. It became a benchmark for the private sector and in some way also led to its evolution. Sadly, while the private sector was ready to learn, other PSU's were not interested in these lessons.

The interesting aspect is developing the vendors: who till then were ill-treated by their customers (Premier and HM). The company undertook vendor development plans as a priority. It deserves credit for overhauling the entire production industry. Bharat Forge, Shriram, MRF are classic examples of cases where companies chose to cater to the revolutionary quality and are currently considered leaders in the world market.

The list is endless. I’d rate this book 9/10. A must read..

Toyota Fortuner: the ploy works

Being a bhp starved Indian, a big motor feel fascinates me. I refer to the instance when you rev the motor lightly and you can fell a big reactive force pushing the front end down by an inch. The big Toyota did just that and I almost jumped!

Heinous looks, a superb engine makes the Fortuner hell of a contender in the premium SUV market. Toyota has smartly given us the aging but proven Hilux (the veggie hauler of Asia) platform for the Asian markets and we see none of the Land Cruiser’s gadgetry coming in here. However, it has been proven that it beats the competition in every aspect; save off road. The good ol' Pajero is still the king there and surprisingly the timid X-Trail fares better in that department. But considering the Indian market: where SUV's are more of a status symbol and hardly 2% are used for the terrain they are built for, I would not ponder on that small fact. In fact, none of the products available are more of hauling trucks than proper off-roaders (The Endeavor’s built on the Ranger platform and not the F-150, the CRV is too soft and now we have a good looking Toyota built on a pick-up).

The sore point is that the Dashboard shares some components with the Toyota Innova. While quality is supreme, you can't digest the fact that you share stuff with a vehicle that costs half as much.

The 3 Litre engine does the job superbly. Toyota has smartly offered only this engine in India. The 2.5L (innova's) engine option is available in Thailand, Malaysia, etc but not India. A proven strategy to maintain a premium and exclusive feel for certain brands. Why, we haven't got the Corolla 1.6 (the real Altis) in India yet, or the Innova 2.0. I guess Toyota is smartly maintaining the 'luxury car' image to have the Corolla competing with the Civic which otherwise should be competing with the Honda City..

To sum it up, a really awesome vehicle with the main selling points being looks and ‘mine is bigger than yours’ mentality. Whatever it is, it has a direct hit on the Indian customer. The response has been so huge that Toyota had to close bookings. It’ll take a year to cater to the present orders..