Memories Live On

A person goes away.

Creates a void. In your life. Perhaps, in many other lives. Lives that the person touched.

You learn to live on. Gather fortitude. Overcome emotions.

How?

By deriving strength from the memories. Memories of the time spent together, of the adventures, of joy and of the ups and downs of life. Memories of things that the deceased person loved to do. Memories of people and places.

Sharing some of these memories of the person you all knew. 

Many of the pictures pertain to her 70th birthday (which was to be her last!) and the last road trip we did together in May 2024. There are many more pictures, videos and other memorabilia which we couldn't include lest the story should become unwieldy.

Neeta- A Family Person

The 70th Birthday at Bengaluru. Who knew it would be her last? Multiple celebrations happened. Pictures and videos below.

The video of the cake cutting at the Taj follows

Next cake was sent by Neeta's favourite Anand Bhaiya from Sharjah. See the video and her voice below:

And the tastefully decorated cake follows.

Neeta The Traveller

She was Ghumakkad's companion for all the travels in India and overseas. Sharing below few of her travel pictures.

 

She loved mangoes (who doesn't? Well she has an uncle who does not eat mangoes!) specially the ones naturally-ripened from our garden. Sharing a picture of what we had carried to Chennai last year for family and friends.

Neeta The Animal Lover

She loved animals, birds and Nature at large. Sharing two of her pictures below.

Friends Her Lifeline

Neeta loved being with her friends. Be it her school and college friends, or from the Navy (after our marriage) or Harsh's college buddies and spouses, or from the Army and Air Force (after our inter-services appointments) and lastly her 'Kitty' gang! Her face would lit up in the company of friends!

Neeta The Photographer 

Sample one of her frames below

Her Team at Home

They all remember her and offer their respects.

Neeta Lives On

What We Said Earlier...

Sharing below our earlier posts about Neeta. In case you hadn't read it earlier, you may click the links.

Miss You Forever - Eulogies and tributes by family and friends on Neeta's demise in Sep-24.

Balancing Weight of Ghumakkad's Life - What all she loved including online shopping (off-line too!) and mangoes. Written on her 69th birthday.

Spouse's Birthday is Always Special - Posted on her 63rd birthday. What happens after 40 years of married life and more. 

Finally, here is a special video created by Ashi, our daughter. It captures the happy times that Neeta spent with everyone. Thank you Ashi.

We end with a quote about the power of memories which says, "Time moves in one direction, memory in another."

Thanks for being a part of our life. Friends and memories keep us going. Am sure Neeta is watching from wherever she is and giving us a broad smile!

Stay connetced and say a few words before closing the page. It will add to our pleasant memories.

   - Harsh-the-Ghumakkad with inputs from Ashi/ Secunderabad/ 27th May 2025

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Puducherry- The Changing Face

Has Puducherry Changed?

Puducherry (aka Pondicherry), a French colonial settlement till 1953, was known for the following:

• Sandy beaches
• The Prominade by the sea
• French villas and houses
• Auroville (City of Dawn) and Aurobindo Ashram
• JIPMER- premier institute for PG medical education and research

With the passage of time and construction of breakwaters, beaches are no longer sandy. JIPMER continues to attract top most meritorious students. Auroville, an ecologically designed township, gets thousands of visitors every week. With Union Territory status, the economy of Puducherry has bounced back. However, to cater to the tourists, number of fast food outlets, Airbnb and other types of accommodation and wine shops have mushroomed. Ghumakkad visited Pondicherry enroute to Pichavaram on 17-19 May 2024. Sharing below few pictures bringing out the changing face of this colonial settlement.

The history of Puducherry reveals territorial dominance by multiple dynasties from about 4th Century CE to the 20th Century. While staying in Puducherry, Ghumakkad noticed neighbourhood chicken and cocks fighting for territorial dominance for the morning feed. Sharing a short 30-sec video with you. Mankind, animal kingdom or the birds- the story is the same! What do you say?

How to Reach

Puducherry is well connected by road and air. Rail head is 24 kms away. See the coastal route from Chennai in the map below:

The existing icons and the emerging face of Puducherry are brought out in the pictures below.

Inaugurated in November 2022, the imposing structure shown below is sure to become the new icon of Puducherry. Unfortunately sites like Wikipedia haven't updated yet!

Airbnb and other travel portals, offer a variety of budget accommodation at Puducherry. Where we stayed, it was nicely furnished and well kept. Loved the way old glass bottles had been recycled by the owner. Few pictures.

Why carry a bicycle all the way from Chennai to Puducherry as shown in the picture below? Because on the return leg, our son Ankush who is preparing for the Iron Man challenge, rode his bicycle for 120 kms. He left at 5.30AM and reached Chennai before us in the car. 

You may browse the picture story of 70.3 Iron Man which he completed in Nov-22.

Iron Man in the Family - A thrilling narrative of 1.9 km sea swim, 90 kms bike followed by 21.1 km run - all on one morning in that sequence!

The story on Puducherry continues.

Puducherry-Cuddalore highway has a unique cafe. Called Grami Cafe, It serves millet-based dishes and is very tastefully done up. See the pictures below.

Once again, many thanks to our son Ankush for putting the whole trip together and accompanying us on the road.

Readers may browse our story on Pichavaram Mangrove Forest by clicking the link below:

Pichavaram Mangroves- The 2nd Largest in India - Pictures and videos show how the mangroves in Pichavaram have been well protected despite a large number of tourists every day.

Change is part of life. In fact changing seasons help sustain life on our planet. Best example of a change which we encounter everyday is the sunset and sunrise. We close with a PQ- picturesque quote on the morning glow in our lives by Gautam Buddha. He said "Each morning we are born again. What we today is what matters most".

Thanks for browsing. Stay connected.

   - Harsh-the-Ghumakkad with Neeta Bhargava/ Secunderabad/ 2nd July 2024

Postscript:

3rd July: Dr Umesh Dhyani wrote: 

"1. In 1980s- Pondicherry shops had wooden doors.

2.  in 1990s-  wooden doors were changed to glass doors.

3. Shops were AC, beeches were vibrant and tourism vibrant. 

4.  You missed Pondicherry university. Campus is like a resort.

I did my PGDBA from Pondicherry university. 

City was heritage in 1980s."

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