Category: People

One of the major elements which makes a city is its people. Without its people, the city is absolutely incomplete. And Udaipur has an umpteen number of such talented people everywhere making the city proud.

The section ‘People’ of UdaipurBlog jots together the information and details about the prominent personalities in Udaipur. It gives a platform to all those people who, with their hardwork and spirit, glorify the name of the city everywhere. Here you can read about all those people who, with their hard work and passion, create news in the pages of Udaipur.

The section also deals with a special series named ‘People in Udaipur you should know about’ which features all the renowned personalities who with their hard work and accomplishments, have not just made the city proud but the entire country proud. These people have set a benchmark in the history and secured a well-deserved spot in the blogs of this section.

Ashish Yadav- A young Entrepreneur from Udaipur started Trybhi.com

Ashish Yadav -a young entrepreneur from Udaipur at 17 years old began his inventory by contributing 1 Million making a site named Trybhi.com

Ashish structured a site where portable embellishments from the whole way across the world would be accessible at a sensible cost. Producing business in online business Ashish at such a youthful age happened to become solid and firm in his field.

The current era of Existing web-based e-commerce platforms are more qualified to sell organized and branded items (for the most part gadgets like cell phones, TVs, and climate control systems). They for the most part offer to generally refined customers, for whom accommodation and determination are significant. Their English-first approach and UIs are requirements for the NHB portion.

In addition, the organization does not empower a significant instrument for structure trust, for example, data on what others are doing on the stage. For merchants as well, web-based business is intended to take into account bigger, sorted out players, though most vendors in India, even on the web, are little. Overall, online shopping is at present more about price discovery than product discovery. Online business has made significant steps, yet its infiltration is still low in India.

Today Ashish Yadav at 17 years old has an immense scope of extras and various purchasers online and serving huge range of products in the mobile and electronic world.

Visit his website trybhi.com and also Amazon & Flipkart marketplace to explore the available products.

55 Countries and Counting – The Story of a Backpacker from Udaipur

Venturing out into the unknown all by yourself is something that holds an apex position on the bucket list of many. After all, who doesn’t want to leave behind their everyday regime of hullabaloo and ruckus? But certain things are easier said than done! If there are the perks of being a gallivanter, there is a slew of challenges attached to it, with pecuniary affairs sitting on the top.

But every cloud has a silver lining! And Vaibhav Jain from our very own City of Lakes – Udaipur – seemed to have found that periphery.

A backpacker, Vaibhav Jain is on a travel spree from last 4.5 years. And guess what! In this span, he has covered a whopping 55 countries all with his backpack, yearning to explore new places, and desire to meet new people. His passion for traveling didn’t kick 4.5 years back. In fact, he was bitten by the wander bug in his pre-teen years. Since his early days, Vaibhav used to mark places in the map and read about them. Soon he was engulfed by the urge to visit these countries and marvel at their beauty and explore their culture.

When his friends were attending lectures during college time, Vaibhav was somewhere exploring the less visited hill stations in Himachal Pradesh. He was rejoicing the bustling metros of Mumbai and secluded beaches in Goa when his academic allies were battling with different disciplines.

Well, before you brand Vaibhav with the tag of ‘an oofy guy’, let’s bring in the limelight his personal life and figure out how he manages his globetrotting.

Vaibhav is a fruit of a middle-class family tree. After pursuing his MBA, he stepped in the corporate world, with travel thoughts always hovering his head. However, owing to his travel ardor, he decided to bid adieu to his 9 to 5 routine once and for all. It was after two years and four different jobs in four different industries, Vaibhav was now all set to take the leap of faith. Undoubtedly, his family’s support in this endeavor further encouraged him and boosted his morale to step out of the norms laid down by the society. With all his courage collected, he made his first international trip, which also turned out to be his gateway to his ‘world exploration’ mission.

As a backpacker, he endeavors to travel more at an expense that doesn’t burn a hole in his pocket. He leverages local transport which keeps things under check. Commuting in local transportation facilities also helps him in knowing the life, people, and culture of that place. Being a vegetarian, he further manages to cut down his trip expenses. With a backpack containing fewer attires and accessories, he ensures that he has a quick and seamless movement from country to country and continent to continent.

Vaibhav’s fondness for souvenirs is unmatchable. Wherever he goes, he collects them. Be it maps, boarding passes, keychains, currency or t-shirts, he has some or the other thing from the places he has been to. He has a separate room at his home dedicated to all the souvenirs that he possesses. He stores all these novelties and mementos in special travel trunks.

‘…today, when everyone wants to be ahead of someone by blindly following the rat race, it is very essential to know and discover yourself as to what interests you and what you are passionate about.‘ shares Vaibhav, thus clarifying that for him, traveling is more about self-discovery than selfies.

From Cape Point in South Africa, Victoria Falls in Zimbabwe, Lisbon in Portugal, Seville in Spain, Verona in Italy, Bratislava in Slovakia, Hoi An in Vietnam, Chiang Mai and Koh Lanta in Thailand to Pamukkale in Turkey and St. Petersburg in Russia, the travel portfolio of Vaibhav entails a myriad of different destinations around the world.

Vaibhav is also the proud owner of Map My Escape, Instagram Handle and a blog which is all about traveling. He frequently updates it with the details of his destinations including cultures, activities, food, transportation, etc. thus helping other backpackers and travelers from across the globe.

As you travel alone, you create stories, make new friends, and share your culture with others. Not only Vaibhav puts forth the beauty of India but he leaves no leaf unturned in describing the magnificence of our princely state and beautiful city.

There are many different and interesting things to see and do in this world. But if you believe that all of them come with a price, then remember Vaibhav – The Boy with His Backpack.

Map My Escape

Website: https://mapmyescape.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/vaibhav.jain.1272
https://www.facebook.com/mapmyescape/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mapmyescape/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC2Wolkjp12fp-XOzp0hGSQQ

[Intro Entrepreneurs] Kunal Bagla – The path builder to ‘ARCGATE’

We all know how Udaipur has evolved greatly over time and marked its presence across the world as a well-known tourist destination. While roaming around the city, it came to my surprise that it also has many “OMG” aspects apart from the city’s hospitality and tourism. Since I have become a part of UdaipurBlog Team I’ve seen many things developing around the city but one thing that attracted me the most was well booming IT city. Yes, you read it right, Udaipur has left a great footprint globally in the IT industry as well. A separate IT park in the Mewar Industrial Area commonly known as Madri speaks for the IT thing itself.

Being from an IT field myself, I was more than curious to know that how did an IT industry grow in such a comparatively smaller and technologically unremarkable city than the metropolitan. While the search was on, luckily I got a chance to have a cup of coffee with one of the most successful people running an IT industry down in Udaipur. I happened to meet this ever motivating and inspiring person, Mr. Kunal Bagla, Founder of Arcgate. The conversation was more than just a normal interview and it would be wrong on our part if we don’t share such great views with you.

Let’s find out how the cup of coffee turned into an ever inspiring interview:

Q.1. Let’s start with first things first, how did the journey started from being a normal Udaipur boy to an inspiring businessman?

-So born and brought up in Udaipur, I got admitted to St. Paul’s. I studied till class 6^th over there, went to boarding school in Dehradun for higher studies. Then I flew abroad to the University of Texas, Austin for my undergraduate course in Master of Information Systems & Business Honors. Since then, life has always been a rock and roll ride.

Q.2. Being from the IT field itself, you must have a vast sea of experiences, feel like sharing it with us?

-The journey started by moving to Houston. I was a technology consultant there for one of the big elephants at that time, Deloitte. Being there for good 6 years where I did a lot of large scale technology development for clients spread across all over the US. It inspired me to do something like this for my city as well.

Q.3. Tell us about your inspiration which helped you to build a corporation like Arcgate?

-It’s never a single person as such, it’s typically a journey of events which molds you and motivates you to go in a particular direction. In my case, as I mentioned I saw a huge potential in providing world-class services like Deloitte which takes it to where it is now. Again it is back in 2004-05 after the dot com burst. Even today the fast-growing companies typically do not get the attention because of:

a.) It requires a lot of attention is required.

b.) The size of the business is also very small as compared to the other industries and the risk factor in which they don’t do well.

And in our experience, no one was tapping that market, we saw an opportunity and thought to grab it. I started Arcgate while I was still in Austin. We set up a back office in Udaipur itself, pretty much a garage kind of setup. We’ve grown organically from the last 14 years by taking one step at a time. So it’s not just a person, it’s a combination of people who see the good work and contribute in different ways.

Q.4. Can you please share with us some of the fond memories from your schooling till building such a corporation like Arcgate?

-You always have good days and bad days, right, you always learn something new lessons and that’s the beauty of the IT industry that you get to learn new things every day. The key is to do something you enjoy and be open to learning new things. Make sure that you never get overconfident and complacent. Every success and failure is a fond memory in growing a startup like we are, from 2 people to 2000, the ride has been amazing.

Q.5. That accounts for the many amazing delights connected with the journey. Speaking about the darker side, what all challenges did you have to face??

-I feel challenges are part of your journey, right. All the hardships you face from schooling till you are grown up, from learning chapters in schools to meeting deadlines for your client, shapes you as a person you are. I think if you dodge those tough time and opt for shortcuts, cause mind it, you’ll be offered those, it catches up with you real soon if you fail to take it in a good stride.

Q.6. So when you are not working, what are your favorite go-to things to recreate yourself?

-Unfortunately working for a startup like Arcgate you don’t get much of the time to spend for personal life and hobbies but that’s a decision or a lifestyle choice I made. No complaints about that. As soon as I get time, I go back to the family and be with them. Apart from that I also like reading interesting success stories and business books like ‘Work Rules’ by Chief People Officer at Google, Laszlo Bock, ‘Value Investing’ and many more by Warren Buffet, there’s no end to learning.

Q.7. A piece of advice for all the budding entrepreneurs out there in the city?

-Today entrepreneurship and startups are a worldwide thing happening as far as the remote areas in Africa or be it Northern Europe. Youngsters today are trying to innovate new things and believe in taking their chances. But on the flip side, the startup culture is made to look glorified and sexy by our media whereas the reality is nothing close to that. It’s a different dynamic, DNA and yes, of course, a long journey as well. You just don’t start it because it’s a wave, you have to be in it for long term.

Q.8. Setting goal is a tough task too nowadays, how do you set it, like is it for long terms or for shorter periods?

-You should always have a long vision like planning your next 6 to12 months because anything bigger than that is more of a life goal. There’s no point coming up with a business plan for 5 years in today’s world where the things are changing drastically in the 6 months itself. Make milestones for every month, what you want to be and you are already halfway there.

Q.9. The life mantras which have always worked for you?

The biggest mantra is to “WORK HARD”, keep your focus and stay grounded. Never let success or overconfidence get to you.
Be nice to people around you as they are working for you day and night, appreciate them for strengths and weaknesses as well.
Focus on ethics, never try to take shortcuts in life because they catch up to you very fast.
Do good things that help other people as well. That’ll help you to have a good night sleep at the end of the day.

Q.11. A special message for us at Udaipurblog?

-Udaipur’s hospitality and travel industry has always made into the news worldwide; hopefully a decade from now, it can also be known as the world’s IT hub! And we look forward to platforms such as Udaipurblog that has always been the best in increasing the awareness about the potential for IT Industry. Udaipurblog has always been the best at growing things digitally as well as socially in and around Udaipur. We wish that Udaipurblog continues the great service it has been providing to its customers from the last decade.

If you like to share something or have feedback for us, Feel free to share with us on mohit@vivirmedia.com

उस उदयपुरवासी की कहानी जिसनें 1971 के पाकिस्तानी हवाई हमले में लिया था हिस्सा

पाकिस्तानी आतंक की खबर सुनकर आज भी इस उदयपुरवासी का खून खौल जाता है. वीर चक्र विजेता 83 वर्षीय दुर्गाशंकर पालीवाल भारतीय रेलवे के वही पायलट है जिन्होंने 1971 के पाकिस्तानी हवाई हमले में काफी महत्वपूर्ण भूमिका निभाई थी. दुर्गाशंकर ने भारतीय सेना को सीमा के उस पार जाकर असलहा और बारूद पहुचानें का काम किया था. उस समय भारतीय सेना ने पाकिस्तानी सीमा में करीब 30 किलोमीटर तक कब्ज़ा कर लिया था और जब सेना का असलहा ख़त्म होने को आया था तब और असलहा उपलब्ध कराने की ज़िम्मेदारी दुर्गाशंकर पालीवाल को दी गई थी.

इस दौरान दुर्गाशंकर को 25 बोगियों वाली ट्रेन लेकर पाकिस्तानी सीमा में दाख़िल करना था. वे बाड़मेर के पास मुनाबाव रेलवे स्टेशन और पाकिस्तान के खोखरापर से होते हुए, परचे की बेरी रेलवे स्टेशन तक पहुँचे. उस समय रेलवे ट्रैक टूटा हुआ था तो करीब 10 किलोमीटर का ट्रैक रातों रात बनाया गया. दिनांक 11 दिसम्बर 1971 को दुर्गाशंकर बारूद से भरी हुई ट्रेन लेकर पाकिस्तान की सीमा में दाखिल कर गए.

पाकिस्तानी सीमा में खोखरापर से कुछ ही दूरी पर दुर्गाशंकर को एक विमान दिखा जो की उनकी ट्रेन पर नज़र रख रहा था. ज़रा सी देरी में वो विमान फिर से पाकिस्तान की ओर लौट गया. लेकिन वह विमान खतरा भांप चुका था और सुबह 6 बजे छह मिराज विमान मौके पर पहुंच कर बमबारी करने लगे. इन विमानों ने दुर्गाशंकर की ट्रेन को घेर लिया था लेकिन वे एक पल के लिए भी नहीं घबराए. उन्होंने अपनी ट्रेन की रफ़्तार बढ़ा दी और सिंध हैदराबाद की ओर जाने लगे. पाकिस्तानी विमानों ने कई बम गिराए लेकिन ट्रेन को नुक्सान ना पंहुचा पाए.

इसी तरह से विमानों में भी बम ख़त्म हो गए और रीलोड करने के लिए वे सिंध हैदराबाद की ओर उड़ान भरते हुए निकल गए. इस समय दुर्गाशंकर ने काफी अक्लमंदी और फूर्ति का इस्तेमाल करते हुए वे रिवर्स में ट्रेन को 25 किलोमीटर तब खींच ले गए. उन्होंने पर्चे की बेरी में अपने बटालियन को भी इस घटना की सूचना दे दी. पूरे बटालियन ने करीब 15 मिनट में पूरी ट्रेन का माल खाली कर दिया और एंटी एयरक्राफ्ट मिसाइल रिलोड कर दी.

वहां से लौटते हुए फिर से पाकिस्तानी विमानों ने ट्रेन का पीछा किया और खोखरापर से 5 किलोमीटर से पहले रेल लाइन पर एक हज़ार पौंड का बेम फेंका. बम से निकलती हुई चिंगारियों से दुर्गाशंकर का हाथ और मुँह भी जल गया था लेकिन उसकी परवाह किये बिना उन्होंने अपनी कोहनियों से ट्रेन चलाना जारी रखा. बमबारी के कारण रेल ट्रैक टूट चुका था जिसके बाद दुर्गाशंकर हाथ में बन्दूक लेकर ट्रेन से निकल गए और करीब 2 किलोमीटर आगे उन्होंने भारतीय वायुसेना का हेलीकॉप्टर को इशारा कर उतरवाया और अधिकारी को सूचना दे दी.

दुर्गाशंकर को अपनी वीरता और अदम्य साहस का परिचय देने के लिए, तत्कालीन राष्ट्रपति वीवी गिरी द्वारा वीर चक्र से सम्मानित किया गया था.

पुलवामा हमले के बारे में दुर्गाशंकर का कहना है की भारत ने पाकिस्तान को अभी भी पूरी तरह से जवाब नहीं दिया है. वे कहते है उनमे अब भी इतना जोश है की वे बॉर्डर पर जाने को तैयार है और सरकार के हुक्म पर देश के लिए कुछ भी करने को तैयार है.

Story of the Youth who Left Delhi to Build School in Udaipur’s Villages

Rahul Dubey was mere 19-year-old when he graduated from the Delhi University and came down to Udaipur for a three-month internship. He says ‘I was always a bright child and used to get great grades in school and college and so proceeded with mathematics in my academics. But this wasn’t what I wanted to do in my life. Another reason why I came to Udaipur was to find out what I really love.’

In 2012, what started as a three-month-long unpaid internship at Kherwara, a tribal village in Udaipur district became a turning point in his life. From a city like Delhi to a village in Kherwada, this was the first time for Rahul when he was witnessing the life there including huts, cows, farming, along with the issues like scarcity of water and electricity.

During his internship, he was meant to teach basic subjects to the children of a government school. It was the first time when he came across the education system there where the teachers didn’t use to come to the school, a single teacher was assigned to attend 80 students at once, many children used to drop out, many never came to the school, poor infrastructure and facilities was a huge void and all these issues disappointed him. Maybe that’s what made him stay a little longer.

So just after three weeks, he decided to extend his stay for 3 more months. In this time period, he removed all those barriers which were stopping him to achieve what he wanted. He worked on the language barrier as the language ‘wagdi’ was spoken in the village, he stayed at the houses of the natives, understood the customs and culture there, got involved in their festivals and rituals and he says “the journey was so wonderful that today it has been 7 years since he has been in this village and it feels like it was just yesterday. However, so much has changed all this while. The organization, Alfa Educational Society, where I started as a mere volunteer has my guidance now as a CEO.”

This is how the school ‘Village Spirit Academy’ fell into place!

Back in the year 2013, Rahul went to Nepal for another internship of his where he saw the natives, as well as other interns from different parts of the world, renovating a very poor conditioned school made out of bamboo on a hilly area. It was a very difficult project but no one there was ready to quit. The interns, never bothered about other worldly inhibitions, gave in everything in the school. The entire episode seeded the idea of making his own school in Rahul’s mind.

This school was to be made on the land of Lokesh Kalal, Rahul’s friend and the founder of Alfa Educational Society, and on 1^st July 2016, the school was officially registered. On the very first day, they received a total of 99 admissions from the village.

Rahul wanted to build a school which turns out to be an ideal space for the children to learn and study even in the harsh climatic conditions including the scorching summer and aggressive monsoons. There were several problems awaiting their journey ahead.

After a lot of struggle and research, they finally got in touch with the architects of Chennai who helped them take another step towards their dream. Another challenge was the funding for the school. Since Rahul didn’t want to take up corporate funding, he organized an online portal for crowdfunding and received great support from people all around the world gathering an amount of 6 lac rupees.

For several days Rahul burnt the midnight oil to build an eco-friendly school made with huge mud blocks that could sustain the harshness of the climatic conditions. And all his efforts paid off in the year when his school ‘village spirit academy’ finally took a shape. He says that they might not have luxurious facilities in their school like fancy speakers, massive playground, LCD, but the structure of the school is such that it is fire resistant, sound resistant, earthquake resistant, and also adapts to the climatic temperature very efficiently. Children are happy and satisfied studying here.

“When the school was in its building phase, the round structure of the school made villagers think that we were building a church and will tell the students to convert. But when it got completed and they saw that it was an ordinary school, they became decisive.” Rahul funnily says.

How Did your Parents React to your Decision to Leave Delhi?

I belong to a very strong academic background. As every Indian parent would do, mine also wanted me to opt for secure and mainstream career options, and so apparently they were highly reluctant of my choices. During my internship period, which got unexpectedly extended, they were very concerned about where am I heading towards in my life, which clearly reflected in every phone call of theirs. They would tell me why I wanted to shift from a city to a village when everyone else was doing the opposite.

I remember them telling to continue my education and head for a master’s degree and so I enrolled in a college in Udaipur for Masters in Social Work, somewhere 100 km from my village. To attend college, I used to catch a bus at 5:30 in the morning and came to the village on the same bus by 7:30. Thereafter, I managed the school and NGO work and slept by 2:30 am and followed the same schedule every day.

One day I was traveling in the bus like any other day sitting on the ground of the bus when I received a call from the college. I heard someone saying that I had topped the University. When I communicated this to my mother, she would hardly believe that I even enrolled in a college and asked me to send the pictures of my fee receipts first.

It was actually the time which taught all of us, me to follow my dreams and them to understand my passion and let me do what I love.

Do you have any feedback or suggestions? Share it in the comment section below or write to me at juhee@udaipurblog.com

Bhanu Kumar Shastri | People from Udaipur You Should Know About

Our city – Udaipur is completely filled with beauty in and out. And this beauty is not reflected in just its history, culture and its places, but also in its people. There are some gem of the people belonging from Udaipur who, with their hard work and success, have not just made the city but the entire nation proud.

But sadly, with time we tend to forget the accomplishment of such people of the city. The series ‘People from Udaipur you should know about’ tends to glorify the journey of these famous and triumphant people from Udaipur who have become an epitome of success in their lives.

Bhanu Kumar Shastri

Bhanu Kumar Shastri was the founding member of Bhartiya Jana Sangh and a Member of Parliament from Udaipur in the year 1977. He was also the chairman of the Khadi Board and at this time he was one of the oldest leaders of the Bharatiya Janata Party. Bhanu Kumar Shastri was one of the remains of the last generation of the Bhartiya Jana Sangh, who was also senior to people like LK Advani and Atal Bihari Vajpayee.

Shastri was born on October 29, 1925, in the Sindh region of Hyderabad (now in Pakistan) to a famous astrologer, Pt. Giridhar Lal Sharma. After the tragedy of the Indo-Pak partition, he came to Udaipur and decided to dedicate his life working here. He has been an important contributor in the politics of the Mewar region. Shastri is considered as a leader with a simple life and high thinking ability. Living with this simplicity throughout his life, he became a synonym of sanctity and also worked for education and political awareness in the tribal area.

His political career has been vast. He has been the President of the corporation and boards along with the rank of former MP and Cabinet minister. In his long journey of the Jan Sangh from being a volunteer to being in the parliament, he got the opportunity of discussion and co-operation on various aspects with heroes like Pandit Deendayal, Atal Bihari Vajpayee, LK Advani, Bhairon Singh Shekhawat, Jagannathrao Joshi, Sundarsinh Bhandari, Golwalkar (Guruji), Bal Thackeray, Deoras, Eknath Ranade and Madhavrao Mulle.

Bhanu contested against the then Chief Minister Mohanlal Sukhdiya in the 1967 assembly elections. After the election, he filed a petition in the High Court. On receiving a verdict against him from the high court, he approached the Supreme Court. After becoming a Sangh volunteer in 1942, he became the founding member of the Jana Sangh in 1951.

Shastri spent 40 months of his life in jail. During this time, he came to parole for his sister’s wedding and went back to jail immediately. From being the councilor of Udaipur’s City Corporation to Deputy Chairman, from MLA to MP, nobody could ever question Shastri’s honest and ideological life. During the time of emergency which began from 25 June 1975, he was the state president of the Jan Sangh. He died on 24th February 2018 due to long period of illness leaving behind his footprints of a simple yet strong life.

Do you have feedback regarding the article? Or have something to share of your own? Write to me at

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Jamnalal Jethi | People from Udaipur You Should Know About

Jamnalal Jethi

Jethi community has been known for its wrestling business or better known as ‘Pehelwani’ since the city was under the regime of kings and queens. There are still many ‘Akhada’ in the city belonging to the Jethi community such as the one at Chandpole and Gangaur Ghat. But it looked like, that wasn’t something which Jamnalal had decided for himself.

Jamnalal Jethi was born in the year 1932 in Udaipur. Many people back then wanted a secured life and a safe future but Jamnalal had something else in his mind. Being born in a slave country, he always wanted to do something for his country. At a very young age, he became a part of the RSS (Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh).

1947 was the year of independence for India but Goa was still seized by the Portuguese. This was the time when Jamnalal’s brother gave him a tea stall and suggested to earn his livelihood by the same. But the fire of independence and the feeling of patriotism made him sell this stall and with the little amount he got from it, he left for Goa in the year 1950 without informing anyone in his family and leaving his wife and 3 children behind. As a matter of fact, he was a mere 23-year-old boy when he took this crucial decision of his life.

He was the only one from Udaipur who participated in the Goa Liberation Movement. There were numerous challenges and hardships awaiting him there.

The rage rose up to such a level that the Portuguese started firing on all the agitators. During this while, Jamnalal also got hit by a bullet on his shoulder. While all of his co-agitators were taken to the crematorium, Jamnalal was taken to the hospital.

His family was completely unaware about the entire episode until he returned to Udaipur. He was welcomed by the citizens with utmost pride and honor at Jagdish Chowk. It was then that his family came to know about his whereabouts while he was missing.

Jamnalal Jethi awarded by the then Vice President of India, Bheru Singh Shekhawat

His dream got fulfilled in the year 1961 when Goa was liberated from the control of Portuguese.

On his return, he joined PWD and made his own house at Chandpole. His bravery and courage were even recognized by UIT which awarded him with a piece of land in Hiranmagri as a token of respect.

On 16^th September 2018, 85-year-old Jamnalal Jethi passed away and his last rites were performed with state honors in which many renowned personalities including the then Home Minister Gulab Chand Kataria were present.

He left behind his two sons and a daughter and several stories for his grandchildren to cherish. ‘My grandfather was such a patriot that he named me after his country’ says Bharat Jethi, his only grandson.

People like Jamnalal Jethi turns out to be an inspiration to all the citizens of Udaipur. Leaving behind all the worldly pleasures, Jamnalal’s spirit and dedication to liberate his nation has been commendable.

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Juhee@udaipurblog.com

Brij Narayan | People from Udaipur You Should Know About

Brij Narayan

Brij Narayan is a renowned name in the field of Indian classical music. He is the eldest son and disciple of the world-acclaimed Sarangi maestro Pandit Ram Narayan. Born on 25 April 1952 in Udaipur, Brij Narayan was fascinated by the sound of Sarod right from his young age. He graduated from the University of Mumbai in 1972 after which he also worked on several movies while touring Africa, Europe, and America.

The powerful musicality and adaptability of his father to a range of ‘Gharanas’ (musical styles) gave the opportunity to Brij Narayan to develop his own original style. As a matter of fact, Narayan hailed from a family with musical expertise with his Uncle, Chatur Lal being a Tabla player and father being a sarangi player.

Over his long career, Shri Brij Narayan performed in many esteemed music festivals in India as well as abroad including the celebration of the Munich Olympics; and in the University of Pennsylvania, USA. He composed music for many films and has many recordings to his credit including a collaboration with Zakir Hussain. He has also been featured as an artist in a film by Dinkar Rao named as Magic in Fingers for Films Division of India, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Government of India. In 1978, he played in a movie ‘Main Tulsi Tere Aangan Ki’ and composed music for the movie Bengali Night by Nicholas Klotz starring Hugh Grant.

Awards and Recognition

Shri Brij Narayan has received many titles and awards for his contribution to Hindustani instrumental music which includes the President’s Gold Medal in All India Radio Music Competition (1967), the Dagar Gharana Award by the Mewar Foundation (1996), and the Marwar Sangeet Ratna Award (2012). He also received the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award for Hindustani instrumental music – Sarod in the year 2015.

Currently, Narayan lives in Mumbai along with his family. His son Harsh Narayan plays sarangi since 1997. Narayan also works for Pt Ram Narayan Foundation in Mumbai which offers a scholarship to Sarangi students.

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Hari Singh | People from Udaipur You Should Know About

Hari Singh

Hari Singh was a significant brigadier in the Indian army who played a crucial role in the Indo-Pakistani war of 1965. He was born on 24^th October 1922 in Udaipur and went to Bhupal Nobles School for his education. In the year 1941, he joined the army which made him travel to different cities around the world. He went to Indian Military Academy in Dehradun in Feb 1942 and was commissioned in the month of October of the same year.

He was then stationed to the Middle East in 1944 wherein he went to Iran, Iraq, Palestine (now Israel), Syria, Egypt, and Lebanon. Two years later, he went to England in 1946. He only returned to India after World War II was over.

After that, he was selected as an instructor at Indian Military Academy. After serving for two years there, he was appointed A.D.C General-Officer-Commanding 19 Infantry Division in Srinagar, Kashmir. It was in the year 1952 when he was posted to 62 Infantry Brigade Head Quarters.

Notable works

In the year 1962, he took part in the operation against China at SELA Pass.
1962 – Took over command of 18th Cavalry
Hari Singh commanded the regiment during 1965 operations against Pakistan, in Sialkot sector. During these operations, he was awarded Mention-in-Despatch for gallantry.
1967 – He was promoted to Colonel and was appointed Deputy Commander 1 Armoured Brigade at Patiala.
1969 – Hari Singh was promoted as Brigadier and posted to 5 Mountain Brigade in Arunachal Pradesh.

Brigadier Hari Singh with Governor of Punjab at Pathankot in 1973 | Source: brigharisingh.abhinayrathore

Awards and Recognition

Hari Singh was awarded AVSM or Ati Vishisht Seva Medal by the contemporaneous president of India, Mr. Vivi Giri for his outstanding service while in command of the Brigade during Bangladesh operation.

Mr. Singh got retired in the year 1974. After one year, he was appointed as Secretary, Rajasthan Soldier’s board where he remained till 1980. On March 14th, 2003 Mr. Singh bid goodbye to the world leaving imprints of his strong personality.

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‘Aavaran’ From Udaipur Has Taken Mewar’s Dabu Hand Prints to International Levels!

Truly living up to its name ‘Aavaran- Echoes of Rural India’, has taken Mewar’s Dabu work to international levels. Aavaran derives its inspiration and beauty from the indigenous work of the families residing near Udaipur. The dabu work is an exemplary example of the art of indigenous communities of Rajasthan, known to be one of the best art forms in the entire nation.

My visit to Aavaran:

I visited Aavaran a few days back and as soon as I entered the main area I was startled by the fact that everything around me had the aboriginal Indigo color. The spreads, the cushion covers, the coasters, even the ‘chappals’ were made from the Indigo dyed cloths. Aavaran believes in zero waste hence even the ornamentations were made from the scrapes of the Indigo clothes.

I noticed motifs getting printed over cotton cloths via hand block printing- the blocks for printing are being hand carved. It is a long process but the output is simply stunning and pleasing to the eyes. I got into a conversation with the managing team there and came to know some staggering facts, figures, and information about Aavaran which surely made me awestruck, amazed and proud. Yes, proud that Udaipur has some hidden gems which we people are still missing on.

What exactly is Dabu Work?

Dabu is mud resist hand block printing technique from ancient Rajasthan. The practice almost died out in the last century but was revived and flourished by organizations like Aavaran. This technique of cloth printing is quite laborious and involves several stages of printing and dyeing. At Aavaran, artisans also make use of double and triple dabu techniques for cloth printing. Undoubtedly, the result is extraordinarily beautiful.

Aavaran- Echoes of Rural India

Based out of Udaipur, Aavaran was started by Ms Alka Sharma, who is a textile grad from Indian Institute of Crafts and Design, Jaipur. She, from her childhood, always had a thought for bringing out the craftsmanship of Indian rural communities. One such community lives in Akola, a village near Udaipur, which utilizes a cloth dyeing technique called Dabu.

Ms Alka, fascinated by the artwork, urged to sustain this impeccable yet dying art form.

She calls Aavaran a journey started to uphold the rural indigenous communities and their traditional craft. Aavaran’s attempt is to evolve and sustain the traditional ‘Dabu’ mud resist technique of hand printing, specifically the indigo dyed ‘phentiya’ print which is a staple of Mewar Region.

“Our efficient team works on minimal prints, with no compromise with comfort and style.” –says Ms Alka Sharma. She further adds, “As we are a zero waste company, we utilize all our scrapes in inventing home furnishings, jewelry, bags, pouches and so much more.”

Aavaran Family

‘Aavaran’ From Udaipur Has Taken Mewar’s Dabu Hand Prints to International Levels! — Aavaran Family

Aavaran has almost 280 people working with them, out of which 80 are skilled artisans. There are 200 ladies who with the support of Hindustan Zinc Limited and Aavaran by COS-V, have learned different skills like stitching, hand embroidery, rug making, accessory making etc. and work for Aavaran, which helps them to generate a livelihood for themselves. Rest of the 80 artisans work at the Aavaran production unit, where they are involved in the activities of Dyeing, Printing, Stitching and so on.

What makes Aavaran different?

Aavaran uses Dabu Mud resists hand block printing as the primary technique wherein natural dyes are utilized like Haldi Dye, Manjistha Dye, Kashish & Indigo Dye.

Apart from this, Aavaran has developed Ayurvastra which is a 5000-year-old philosophy revolving around Ayurveda. Here organic cotton is treated with a defined combination of herbs and oil which treats ailments and heals inside out. Clothes dyed under the concept of Ayurvastra help in increasing the immunity and reaching a better mental equilibrium.

Aavaran in the markets and other accomplishments

Aavaran, not only produces goods under their label but also for other renowned labels. This has subsequently increased Aavaran’s presence in India as well as in the entire world.

One of the prime people working with Aavaran is Mr. Ramkishore Ji Chippa, who has received an award from CRAFT COUNCIL OF INDIA, for the natural dyeing process in the year 2016, which is indeed a big accomplishment for Aavaran.

The workspace of Aavaran is a beautiful premise with loads of dedicated workers and artisans joining hands together to create impeccable and outstanding pieces of apparels. With 3 different outlets in Udaipur, Jaipur, and Bengaluru, Aavaran has established its name in the textile industry via reviving a unique art of hand dyed prints.

The journey of Aavaran has been through ups and downs. With climate changes and other factors, it has seen quite a number of hurdles in its journey and despite all these issues it has risen and planned a better life for artisans.