Monday 8 November 2010

Lucky's Korner

luckys kornerJust before the Neral phata there are a string of restaurants that one comes across, one of the well known restaurants is Lucky's Korner. Aptly named for its location Lucky's churns out some interesting dishes from various kinds of cuisines, not limited to Indian, Moghlai, Chinese and Sea Food.

Prior to getting to the food talk, the restaurant has a car park with steps leading to the middle, you can choose to sit either on the left or the right, both sides overlook a lawn dotted with geese or chicken for entertainment. They also have two, not so well maintained fish tanks but nice open space with limiting ambiance inside.
geese at luckys korner
The steps and path leading to the restaurant are dotted with plants and lotus pots. Lucky's Korner not only has a huge menu list, it offers friendly service with good quality food.
food at luckys corner
The Tandoori Chicken is what I call real value for money here, priced at Rs 180 for a full chicken its good quantity and quality in a single package. We also got a change to try Lucky's outdoor catering recently and enjoyed the Bombil Rawa Masala Fry, Prawn Curry seemed a little thin but tasty.
food presentation luckys korner
Over all the food is good, so is the vegetarian food, the only down side is they do not offer beer or alcohol which would compliment the wide range of appetizers they have to offer.

Lucky's Korner Contact No's:
9921841414
9881764964
9273127314

Thursday 30 September 2010

TMC's Low Cost Housing Project

the front of the 1 Bhk TMC enclaveWe had spoken about Tanaji Malusare City in an earlier post, with regards to their ambitious skywalk. But overall have not spoken about TMC Karjat in whole about the concept of the project and what exactly it is.

TMC is situated in Karjat approximately 2 Kilometers away from the railway station. But ofcourse they plan the TMC skywalk to touch the station which will basically be a big boon to daily travellers.

The Tanaji Malusare City comes under a low cost housing scheme that offers, five types of house namely a 216 sq. ft (1 Room Kitchen), a 304 sq.ft. (1 Room Kitchen), a 439 sq. ft (1 BHK), a 540 sq. ft ( 2 BHK) and a 684 sq. ft ( 3 BHK). The cost of the housing starts from Rs 3,00,000.

There will be a total of 15,000 flats spread over 100 acres including a School, Hospital, a 3 lakh sq.ft mall, multiplex, community hall, piped cooking gas, children’s playground and retail outlets strategically placed around the city.

Take a look at this video where you can get to see the master plan of the city, the location and the inside of a flat in TMC.



The plans of the flats are displayed below:

TMC 2 BHK Flat Plan:
tmc 2 bhk flat plan

TMC 1 BHK Flat Plan:
tmc 1 bhk flat plan

TMC 1 RK Flat Plan:
tmc 1 rk flat plan
The entire site plan can also seen below, unfortunately its not a high resolution image, stay tuned for more updates on TMC!
tmc master plan

Tuesday 21 September 2010

Back to the Basics of Ganesh Visarjan

Festivals bring families/communities together as everybody participates in the traditional customs and rituals. This was quite evident during Ganesh Chaturthi, celebrated in remote villages of Karjat. It was a contradicting picture as compared to the hyped up scene in Mumbai, and turned out to be more enjoyable, less noisy and the excitement was palpable.

Every house in the village get their own Ganapati, generally for five days, decorate the idol, conduct puja and on the sixth day immerse it along with goddess Gauri.
locals carrying Ganesh idols for immersion
On the immersion day the men in the village carry Ganesh idols, which are placed on a wooden stool, on their heads. While the women follow them carrying idols of Gauri on their heads.
gauri visarjan in karjat
It was interesting to see the way each idol of Gauri was decorated. Some draped saris around the clay statue, donned her with jewelery like nose ring, necklace, mangalsutra, flowers and leaves, while some were carrying photos of Gauri and placed it on colorful baskets.

Singing bhajans they all marched towards Pench river that flows through Karjat. One of the villagers also mentioned that the idols were only made of clay and not any harmful material that can pollute the river.
entire village carry Ganapati idols to Pench river
Another village was already performing the last rites of immersion while others peacefully waited for their turn.
last rituals before immersion
women conducting puja on the banks of Pench
Idols of Gauri placed on the banks of river Pench to perform the remaining rituals. There were similar type of flowers in each of these baskets, apparently the local boys get them from the jungle a day prior to Gauri.
A married woman doing puja of Gauri, considered to be goddess of prosperity and wealth.
goddess gauri donning sari and jewellery
woman worshipping goddess gauri
After the puja is done women remove the jewelery and prepare for Gauri visarjan.
gauri visarjan
While on the other side men perform the last rites in front of Ganesh by lighting candles, singing bhajans/hymns, break a coconut and preparing for immersion.
man worshiping Ganesh idol
taking Ganapati idol for immersion
It was much easier to stand close to the river banks to take pictures as compared to Mumbai, where it would be impossible to get close to the sea during immersion.
ganesh visarjan in the village
People carried their idols in the river and went as far as they could to immerse it and prayed for Ganesh to return next year. Some kids were just enjoying diving in and going for a swim.
people carrying the clay idols into the Pench river for visarjan
While the women bid adieu to Goddess Gouri, only immersing the idol and picking out the flowers.
woman immersing gouri idol
Also part of festivities were young boys who helped with the immersion.
ganesh chaturthi
At the end of it prasad in the form of poha, sugar, coconut mixed with banana was distributed among all the devotees. Most of the villages in Karjat follow this, except a few bigger ones who install speakers and an entire music system to start the procession, more like Mumbai style.
carrying the music system on a truck
But a simple ceremony, nevertheless that reflects the essence of a community festival. Bringing people together as one was much preferred as compared to Ganesh Chaturthi in Mumbai.

Saturday 26 June 2010

Magical Monsoons in Karjat

colorful spots on leafKarjat during the monsoons is as colorful as these leaves. Covered with variety of flora and fauna, Karjat transforms into a lively, energizing zone.

The plants come to life, flowers bloom in all its glory, birds build their nest and give life to new ones, frogs rejoice in the rains and the waterfalls begin to flow in full swing.
wild purple flower
white frog jumping Since monsoon is the best season to visit Karjat, its a favorite weekend getaway for many city dwellers. Here's a glimpse of magical monsoons in Karjat and what you might be missing on. brown bird in karjat Drops of rain settle on the branches of the casuarina tree.
raindrops in karjat There are fruit trees in Karjat, guava, chickoo, papaya, and many more. The one below is the pretty flower of the guava tree.
psidium guajava L or white guava There is so much water flowing, even the plants growing in the wild have lovely flowers.
pink wild flowers Trumpet creepers blossom only during the monsoons, the orange flowers add colour to the green landscape.
trumpet creeper or trumpet vine or campsis radicans Summer dries up the teak trees, and the rain gives new life to them.
new teak leaves
giant size teak leaves
A common sight in this season are the mushrooms, growing under the trees, on grass, and in all shapes and sizes.
mushrooms growing in the rains karjat The morning dew that collects on the plants makes a pretty picture.
karjat in the rains The open fields are covered in carpet of green surrounded by dense forest and cloud-covered peaks, its a beautiful view. scenic view of the hills in karjat Even the herd of buffaloes enjoy grazing in these fields. grazing cattle Even rafting is possible in Karjat during the monsoons, on the Ulhas river. Below photo shows a group of school children waiting to go rafting. rafting in  karjat Its the mating season for birds, amphibians, animals, reptiles, insects etc. A huge frog found his mate after several calls. frogs mating If you are a nature lover then its the ideal time to visit Karjat. There is no end to the amount of diversity you will witness here, all you need to do is observe. bird watching in karjat

Saturday 5 June 2010

Dada's Grill: Pizzas, Pastas and Curries

Dadas grill karjat
Although there are a variety of places to eat in and around Karjat, sometimes the need arises to have a cuisine that is not spicy, unlike most of the food served in this region. Dada's Grill, which is located beyond Takve village on the Karjat-Murbad road while going to Kashele, offers a welcoming treat for taste buds.
dadas grill pathway The à la Carte is something that can be really tantalizing, Dada's Grill in Karjat churns out some of the best pastas that can be compared to few restaurants in Mumbai. The food is a tad bit overpriced (since its main clientèle includes weekend hoppers from Mumbai, Pune, etc.)
dadas grill restaurant, places to eat in karjat
They also serve Indian food, we would recommend Chicken Masala a delightful starter, as compared to Garlic Cheese bread which is made out of sliced bread. The Biryanis and Butter Chicken too are sumptuous, good quantity but don't be surprised if you dig into a neck.
karjat restaurant chicken masala For the vegetarians, Veg Kadai and Paneer Mutter is a good bet, around Rs 90 onwards. A Veg Pasta costs around 240, while a Chicken Biryani will set you back by around Rs 170. They do serve Pizzas as per the menu but that's only if its a big group and you would have to place the order in advance.
chicken biryani and butter chicken at dadas grill in karjat
Dada's Grill overlooks a well-maintained lawn that's surrounded by trees and vegetable patches, you can go for a stroll on the sprawling property :) The only downside to it is the low roofing, making the place extremely hot during summers. veg pastas dadas grill karjat The aesthetics and ambiance of this place is soothing which makes Dada's Grill a fun place to dine at.
ethnic pot holder They also offer accommodation which is patronized by weekend goers. For the prices of rooms you can contact Pandey Ji on 9823429987. The per day inclusive of all meals, which is served via a buffet system. Although it may sound steep the cost is competitive to other hotels and resorts in Karjat.
dadas grill swimming pool Whats even better is that it has only a couple of rooms, a swimming pool and acres of land for you to get lost in.
dadas grill lawn

Dada's Grill Contact:
Murbad road, Chowk-Karjat, Raigad - 410201 Tel - 9823429987

Dada's Grill Location: