people - 1

Remembering people I met during my travels.

The veteran pot-maker of Hooli village in action. The lower half and upper half are spun on the wheel separately. Then the halves are joined together by rapidly patting with a flat wooden bat. It's a skill this old man has mastered.

Mallappa Shetyappa Kumbhar of Hooli

Shankrappa Megappa Kumbhar and Suresh Megappa Kumbhar are grandsons of Mallappa Shetyappa Kumbhar. I met these folks five & half years back. Read this post to know more about pot-makers of Hooli.

Mallappa with his gransons Suresh and Shankrappa

Ningappa, my guide to Hooli Fort

This boy was my guide to Badami fort. Initially I was skeptical if I would get along this guy. I was wrong, though silent and frowning (he'd just woken up when we met) we got along well. He not only showed the fort but another rarely visited rock-cut shrine Arali Thirtha on the same hill.

Avanesh, my guide to Badami Fort

While checking out the less popular monuments of Aihole I happened meet these children. It was Saturday and schools closed by noon. They wanted me to take their pictures.. :)

bunch of kids at Aihole village

These boys are hostel-mates at Dodda Hunase Matha, Savanur. The second boy from left is Vinay, he and I became friends while I was taking pictures of the three Baobab trees in this campus. Vinay insisted me to visit the Matha office to see a fruit grown on one of these magnificent trees. I was in touch with Vinay for couple of months after this visit. I'd mailed them printed copies of their pictures and these four friends had fought over one extra copy ..funny kids :)

Vinay and friends

Lastly, in this post is Madiwala Erappa of Benakatti village however this picture was shot at Sri Ranganatha Devalaya, Devarahubballi. Erappa is a washerman by profession. his little laundry is at Dharwad and I know him since 2007. I admire his will to face difficult situations and carry on. I'd travelled to his village Benakatti to see the Ganapati idol. Also, he happened to take to Devarahubballi village to show Ranganatha temple. At Devarahubballi, I could see remains of a fort and moat. I guess a mud-walled fort existed at that village long time back.

This article is to continue in additional parts.

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December 22, shortest day of a year

Two years back on this day I was with Ramadasa atop Hiregudda near Bellary. Hiregudda is one of the important Neolithic sites of India; though quarrying has damaged the site there's a lot that still remains for an archaeological eye - petroglyphs, Neolithic stone implements, prehistoric ash mounds, cairns and what not. Our presence there on Dec 22 2013 was a coincidence. We could not catch him early morning because he was off to mark position of the hill's shadow. For the last 2 decades or so, on this day Ramadasa goes to the plains on the western side of Hiregudda to mark the position of a pillar rock. He's been studying its shift every year. Like wise he tracks shadow positions on summer solstice days i.e. June 22, year's longest day. Here's our man, Ramadasa the man of archaeology and astronomy.

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