Thriving on Surprises

When did you last spring a surprise on someone in a distant city?

Most people would say 'I'd rather send a surprise gift or make an unannounced video call'!

But don't you agree that no AI or technology can match a warm hug or the joy of giving (or receiving) a surprise in person! Of course it requires time and effort, which in my opinion is worth it!

Ghumakkad thrives on surprises! Surprises give joy.

Ghumakkad recently made a surprise visit to not just one but three people in Bengaluru. I travelled 680 kms either way from Hyderabad. Thanks to Vande Bharat trains, I did not require any elaborate planning to spring the surprises!

'Harsh Beta Sada Sukhi Raho'

An aunt nears 90. An affable person, sonorous voice, calligraphic handwriting, a dancer of repute, charming as ever and Ghumakkad's regular reader. Ghumakkad wanted to give her a surprise. My cousin Nidhi who also lives in Bengaluru, made a ploy to visit her. Literally after alighting from Vande Bharat train ride from Hyderabad, we drove to Savita Mami's house. Though her husband Jolly Mama was also part of the surprise drama, but with Mami Ghumakkad has a special bond. She was thrilled seeing me. See the pictures and the video below courtesy Nidhi and Mukul.

See the surprise on the faces of both the nonagenarians in the video below.

We had earlier published an exclusive story titled 'Dancing At Eighty' few years ago. See the graceful performance even though Savita Mami had to be seated because of her aching knees! You may click the link to browse the pictures and videos.

When Another Nonagenarian Blesses You

As a young Sub-Lieutenant I was posted in Jamnagar in 1973. That is when we met Dr and Mrs Achar. Dr Achar was the Medical Superintendent of Irwin Hospital. Their elder son had joined the NDA at Khadakwasla and daughter Harsha was studying at BITS Pilani. That is how the connection got established. It has been 53 years since then. Dr Achar is no more. His unmatched humour still brings a smile on our faces. Mrs Achar, a sprightly 92-year old lady, lives by herself in Bengaluru. She runs a school for the under-privileged since many years. I had last met her few years ago and made it a point to meet her again, this time unannounced.

A plan was hatched with Harsha to get her to RSI on the pretext of an Army social evening. Her joy of seeing me there and my own happiness, surpasses any other material gift. Let the pictures do the talking. PC courtesy Kedar, her grandson and Harsha.

A Pirate Party

When a Naval buddy turns 75, you can't miss being there. Moreso when the invite is so creatively designed by his daughter. See the clip below.

Ghumakkad gave another surprise in Bengaluru to Capt NR Ravi on his 75th birthday. Tanvee helped keep the surprise. Feel the thrill on the faces and hugs of  Ravi (partially hidden) and Lakshmi in the pictures below. Have also included the pictures of the elaborate decor and a video of the cake cutting. Thanks Tanvee and Vikas for all the effort. Thanks Saibal Roy Chou, who travelled all the way from Kolkata, for the shots in which Ghumakkad is not behind the lens!

 

Another fleeting video of Pirates jesting around.

It was such a pleasure to give the surprise to Ravi and Lakshmi.

Here is the video of cake cutting and the fireworks.

You are never too late for return gifts! See the imaginatively designed packaging of the return gifts!

Recalling Earlier Surprises

USA to India Surprise: We had the biggest of surprises few years ago when Ankur, our son-in-law landed from USA  unannounced at our home in Secunderabad. Instead of giving us a surprise, Ankur got the 'reverse' surprise on seeing the house locked. Some quick calls and smart guessing, he figured out that both Neeta and I were at RSI (our fauji club in Secunderabad). And lo and behold-- he gave us that biggest of surprises by locating and joining us at RSI that evening. Totally unannounced all the way from USA Unfortunately, no pictures or video of the memorable moment exist! But it is permanently etched in our memory.

India to USA Surprise: Sharing one more surprise across the continents. This time our son Ankush from Chennai, gave a pleasant surprise to our daughter Akanksha in California completely out of the blue. Of course such a secret operation can not be carried out without local support. Our son-in-law Ankur in USA teamed up with Ankush to pull it off. Back in 2012, the excitement was sadly not filmed.

Giving Surprises in Mumbai and Vapi

Another two surprises which Ghumakkad pulled off in November last year gave us a thrill. Two buddies one each from the Navy (who turned 75 that day) and from BITS my college (who had been unwell for a while), were thrilled beyond words when I entered their homes unannounced! Some of those precious moments are captured in the story below:

Thrill of a Surprise - Story of a secret operation from Hyderabad to Mumbai and Vapi with pictures and videos.

85th Birthday Surprise

Earlier this year, Ghumakkad gave a surprise to Col GB Sethi PhD, my golf partner, on his 85th birthday in Secunderabad. We share our birthdays and have many things in common. I wrote an exclusive poem, framed it with a picture of both of us and presented it in person. He was visibly moved. Sharing below a few pictures and a video clip courtesy Swati, his daughter.

Surprise Tests

The only surprise which is unwelcome is a surprise test by a teacher! Ask any college student and he/she will scoff at the very mention of a surprise test or surprise quiz in the class. Of course, teachers love giving surprise tests. But unlike surprise visits and gifts, the receiver (students) do not like such a surprise. Here is a symbolic picture of an MBA class.

  

What are you waiting for? Go and give someone a surprise visit. Remember surprises make memories which you cherish. If you are a teacher wanting to give a surprise test, think of the students too!

We close with a quote by Gilbert K Chesterton who said, "Surprise is the secret of joy." Now you know why Ghumakkad is so joyful!

Thanks for browsing and stay connected.

Do share your experience of a memorable surprise.

    - Harsh-the-Ghumakkad/ Bengaluru/ 31st May 2026

#ThrivingOnSurprises #SurprisesInLife #JoyOfASurprise #SurprisesThrillEveryone #GivingSurprises #GettingSurprised #Joy #happiness #memories #cheer #ghumakkadhb #ghumakkadharsh #friends #relationships #GilbertKChesterton #PQs #SurpriseTest #SurpriseQuiz

An Evening In Paris

Remember that iconic song 'An evening in Paris' from a Hindi movie by the same name?

The lyrics of that song from 1967 romantic thriller went something like:

अजी ऐसा मौका फिर कहाँ मिलेगा 

हमारे जैसा दिल कहाँ मिलेगा ?

आओ तुम को दिखलाता हूँ 

पेरिस की एक रंगीं शाम 

देखो देखो देखो देखो देखो 

An evening in Paris!

This story is inspired by the title of the above film. We take you around Paris through the lens of Akanksha, our daughter. As the lyrics of the above song say, "Where else will you get a chance like this?"

Readers may listen to the title song on YouTube.

Ghumakkad takes you to Paris just for an evening and that too in winter! Once again courtesy our daughter Ashi. She took the train from Amsterdam to Paris and back. She has shared some pictures taken recently. 

The photographer stayed in Paris for another day. So, we have some more daytime pictures of Paris but without the sunshine of the summer. But as I said earlier, gloomy weather of the winter poses more challenges for the photographer. And Ashi has done it well. Thank you Ashi once again.

Who wouldn't like to be in Paris on the Valentine's Day? Experience it through Ashi's lens. 

The Sacred Heart Basilica

The Arc De Triomphe

Notre Damne

Paris- The Olympics City 2026

The photographer on location!

Ashi had earlier shared the pictures of her short stay at Amsterdam a few days ago. We had posted a picture story linked below.

Amsterdam in Winter - No Tulips, yet a beautiful place. But yes, you can buy Tulip Hand Bags for the ladies as shown in the picture below. Moving at its own pace, people still feed the pigeons in the city square there.

Thanks for browsing. Stay connected and do leave a comment. It encourages us.

   - Harsh-the-Ghumakkad with Akanksha Bhargava/ 10th March 2026/ Secunderabad and Paris

#francebytrain #eurorail #aneveninginparis #parisdiary  #amsterdam #Cellphonephotography #akanksha #twokidsandpoetry #travelfun #powrofobservation #ghumakkadhb #ghumakkadharsh #amsterdam #tulips

Trust Them

Pulwama terror attack.

Nation outraged.

Outpouring of grief.

Surcharged emotions.

Hit back. Do this, do that!

But what each one can do is to 'Trust Them'. In the words of Ramya Sriram of @thetapcomics fame, 'Let's stand by them the way they stand by us'.

Ghumakkad is privileged to feature two guests in this post devoted to our fellow Faujis. Having been a fauji myself for 30 years, I can feel the pain and anguish at the loss of lives in Pulwama terror attack. Dastardly and cowardly act. Highly deplorable.

See what Ramya Sriram, a freelance visualiser presently in UK  created recently. She got the trigger from 'Bharat Ke Veer' campaign of the Govt of India. You can browse Ramya's Instagram handle for more creations. Thank you Ramya.

Ghumakkad personally feels that we should go beyond monetary contribution. We should instead give our time, talent and energy for the Nation and the Armed Forces. Every person's effort counts.

The next guest feature is a poem written by our daughter Akanksha Bhargava. She has so poignantly captured the spirit of every Fauji's soul. Thanks Ashi. You may follow Akanksha on Instagram.

 

Once again, please go beyond signing a cheque. Giving a donation is actually shying away from your societal responsibility. Give your time, share your knowledge and talent, be a volunteer for the society and Nation at large- like Ramya and Akanksha have shown!

Some of our previous posts on the power of giving and volunteering are linked below:

Winning the Hearts of People- The Army Way

Mothers are the Ultimate Givers

Hail The Giving Batch of BITSians

Thanks for browsing.

Jai Hind.

    -Harsh-the-Ghumakkad/ 18th Feb 2019

#ArmedForces #Giving #volunteering #respect #dignity #jaihind #pulwama #India #bharatkeveer #ghumakkadhb #ghumakkadharsh #martyrs 

Women Hiking in Water

Ever hiked in a flowing river? 
For 25 kilometers?
At the bottom of a thousand feet deep Canyon? 
Women hikers on their own.
Waist deep water- challenge for a non-swimmer!
No markers, no guides.
Like to do it? Then read on.

Zion Narrows is hailed as one of the top-5 adventure hikes by NatGeo. Located in Utah USA, Virgin river cuts through the Canyon in a north-south axis. One can hike either N-S (also called top to bottom hike) or S-N called bottom to top. For a complete adventure, hiking the entire Narrows from top to bottom, from Chamberlain Ranch down to Temple of Sinawava is recommended. That's exactly what an all-women team of four hikers did! See the map below.

This is a guest story by Akanksha, Ghumakkad's daughter who hiked the Zion Narrows along with three other women. All of Indian origin and in their thirties had left their husbands and children behind for two days of adventure. Kudos to Abha, Akanksha, Anchita and Kiran for doing it!

Pictures courtesy Akanksha. Used with permission.
Akanksha's poetic story in her own words. 
__________________________________________ 

Carrying 20 odd pounds, We set out to hike
The Zion Narrows, which seemed dream like.

Your trail is the river, some 20 feet wide
And the gorge is majestic, a thousand feet steep, dwarfing you, with no place to hide.

Very nervous, not knowing what’s in store
We gave it our best shot, not to shy, but explore.
Four women in our thirties, with only a swimmer amongst us
We stepped into the river, with caution, and a wooden truss.

The water was waist deep, and I was gasping for breath
Will I make it or not, carefully I would tread.

The water was cold and would make you dizzy
But we were well clad, in neoprene socks, a tad bit cozy.

By the river, we pitched our tent,
And the next morning, we set out again.

And what an adventure we had.
We, non-swimmers got dunked, in a pool, deeper than we thought
And started saying our prayers, with loved ones in our thoughts.

Just wanted to get across, across to the other side
And get on with what we started, to finish it right.
Thank God for our swimmer, who pulled us out
Because of whom we are still up and about.
Grateful for coming out alive, we were quiet for a while
But soon gathered our wit and set out in a file.

We finished our hike over two days
With memories in our hearts, which shall forever stay.
Bruises and cuts decorated us all
As we retreated, into nightfall.

Whatever said and done, the canyons are mighty sleek
They leave you in awe when nature starts to speak.

It was a 16-mile walk, a walk in the river
The best I’ve ever walked, One I’ll always remember.

____________________________________________ 

Thanks Akanksha for the gripping story written as a poem. Keep writing and keep hiking!

Ghumakkad had posted another guest story of a hike in the canyon titled 'Coyote Gulch- Hiking in a Stream'. It was written by Nikhil, our grandson then ten-year old. Akanksha the guest author of this story is Nikhil's mother. As they say, talent runs in the genes!

Ghumakkad has also hiked in USA. You may read the story 'Toddler on a Trail' where a two-year old toddler hiked with Ghumakkad around a lake in California.

When Akanksha had sent the pictures of Zion Narrows hike a year ago, one picture caught my eye. It showed how water chisels through solid rocks. I had then created a PQ- picturesque quote using the picture. We end this story with the PQ reproduced below.

Thanks for browsing. Do share your experiences of similar hikes or other adventures.

    -  Harsh-the-Ghumakkad with Akanksha Bhargava/ 24th Jan 2019
#zionnarrows #canyon #hikinginwater #womenhikers #adventure #utah #akanksha #ahsknaka #gueststory #ghumakkadhb #ghumakkadharsh #backpacking #PQ #virginriver