INDIA, the most colorful land on the earth is unique in itself. The exotic land of chivalry, color, valiance, invincible forts, palaces, sand dunes, snow clad peaks, serene lakes, rivers, vibrant beaches, backwaters and every thing that is important and essential for a tourist destination. India represents diversity in people, culture, costumes, music and dances.

There are innumerable temples, mosques, churches and gurudwaras in every state for the deities of all the religions. The ancient and medieval temples and mosques are the unique example of art and architecture. India is a land of culture and heritage. There are different type of culture, dances, music and languages in every state. The unique and unmatched example of art and painting, miniature painting can be seen in the monuments, temples, palaces and architectural buildings of India.

Lots of sanctuaries, national parks and Tiger Reserve provide sheltering for different kind of flora and fauna. The migrated and native species of animals, reptiles, birds can be seen in these national parks.

India is also famous all over the world for its handicrafts and jeweler designing. So, come and experience the magic of India with Columbus Treks and Expedition

Geography

India is the seventh largest country in the world with a total land area of 3.3 million square kilometers. It is 2933 kms wide and the 3214 kms long. The Indian sub-continent is unique from the rest of Asia. In the North are the towering Himalayas which slope out into the great Indo-Gangetic plains. In Central India, the Vindhya ranges separate the Deccan Peninsula from the northern plains. On the east coast of the country is the Bay of Bengal, while on the west coast is the Arabian Sea. The southern-most tip of the country projects into the Indian Ocean.

Deccan Plateau

The Deccan plateau is the oldest portion of India and was part of the single land mass comprising South America, Africa, Australia and Antarctica. As the continents drifted apart, the moving Deccan plate collided with the Tibetan block of South Asia about 50 million years ago. Over the years, the persistent pressure of the Deccan drifting northwards created the Himalayan mountains, a process that is still continuing.

Indo-Gangetic Plain

The Indo-Gangetic plain is formed by the basins of three great rivers, the Indus, the Ganges and the Brahmaputra. The other major rivers in the country are the Mahanadi, Godavari, Krishna, Narmada, Kaveri, Pennar, Tapti, and Periyar - all of which have which created deltas and flood-plains on India's east and west coast.

Varied geography

Apart from the mountains, plains and the seas, India has just about every geographical feature as well. In the West of the country lies the Thar desert in Rajasthan. A little south of it are the unique marshlands of Kutch, while on the east where the Ganges drains out into the sea is the world' s largest delta and a unique mangrove forest. Indian islands include the Andaman and Nicobar islands in the Bay of Bengal and the Lakshadweep Islands in the Indian ocean. These unique features mean that the country has a wide variety of flora, fauna and a climate that ranges from tropical to arctic.

The climate of the country varies from region to region. The North enjoys cold climate in the winter months between November and March. The coastal areas have a tropical climate throughout the year, while the plains and most central and southern regions of the country are hot in the summer months of April and June. Most of the country has a vigorous monsoon, which lasts from July and October.

Located in the northern hemisphere, India shares its borders with Pakistan, Afghanistan, China, Nepal, Bhutan, Myanmar and Bangladesh. The rest of the land is surrounded by sea.

The Sari

Legend has it that when the beauteous Draupadi - wife of the Pandavas - was lost to the enemy clan in a gambling duel, Lord Krishna promised to protect her virtue. The lecherous victors, intent on "bagging" their prize, caught one end of the diaphanous material that draped her so demurely, yet seductively. They continued to pull and unravel, but could reach no end. Virtue triumphed, yet again in this 5,000 year old Indian epic, the Mahabharat. Legend, fantasy, history or fact, it is the first recorded reference to the enduringly attractive SARI - the most enduring of all items in the history of women's fashion.

Over the centuries changes in the lifestyle of Indians has been reflected in the variety of materials used for a Sari and the way it is draped in different parts of the country.

Draping a sari

In the South of India, the nine-yard length is draped between the legs to fashion flowing pants. The Coorgis from Central and South India wear it to look like a modern western full-length gown. The traditional six-yard sari, is a classic that is almost Grecian in its elegance. Allowing for generous pleating and draping around the body and over the shoulder, it could be of shimmering silk or the finest gauzy cotton, perhaps a pastel-hued solid color or a riot of woven flowers, embroidered with golden threads, or finished with a richly tasseled border, it speaks of romance or riches, of sobriety or gaiety, of sophistication or innocence.

Men are intrigued by the demure floor-length attire and tantalizing display of a bare midriff in the back. It is said that a Sari rarely fails to flatter a woman. The sari suits all figure types, makes all women look goof, and feel feminine. It is an instant and eternal fashion, created by the hands of the wearer and subject to none of the vagaries and changes that plague the fashions of the western world.

The success of the Sari is attributed to its total simplicity, practical comfort, and sense of luxury a woman experiences when she wears one. The Sari is mentioned in Hindu literature and depicted in Hindu painting as far back as 3,000 B.C.

A charming folktale explains...

"The Sari, it is said, was born on the loom of a fanciful weaver. He dreamt of Woman. The shimmer of her tears. The drape of her tumbling hair. The colors of her many moods. The softness of her touch. All these he wove together. He couldn't stop. He wove for many yards. And when he was done, the story goes, he sat back and smiled and smiled and smiled."

Significance of the Bindi

Most Hindus wear a mark on their foreheads, between the two eyes. This point, known by various names such as Ajna Chakra, Spiritual Eye, and Third Eye, is said to be the major nerve center in the human body. According to ancient Hindu sages, red lead powder (sindhoor) and sandalwood paste have cooling properties, and therefore using these substances on the forehead between the eyes cools the nerve center associated with that location, and consequently the mind becomes calm and quiet.

The mark does not have any standard shape and form and is applied differently by members of different Hindu sects and sub-sects. It is applied as a red, yellow, or saffron 'U' by worshippers of Lord Vishnu. Worshippers of Lord Shiva apply it as three horizontal lines of ash (Bhasma). Men wear an elongated dot or tilaka, while women wear a round dot or bindi.

More then their cooling properties, bindis are worn by women as a symbol of their wedding vows. We are told that in ancient times, in Aryan society, the groom used to apply his blood on his bride's forehead as a recognition of wedlock. Myth is that it protects the wearer from the bad eye.

Today the religious significance of the bindi is largely forgotten and it is worn more as a fashion accessory.

Cinema

It's a world that never blinks. Indian cinema is a dream machine that churns out a new fantasy, a new romance every day. The 800 odd films the industry produces each year, make it the most prolific film factory in the world, leaving behind even the ubiquitous Hollywood. When you think of the handful of films made in such film capitals as France and England, India's cinematic centers of Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata, Hyderabad and Bangalore appear almost impossibly unreal churning out films by the hundreds. But they also cater to an audience whose appetite for the by-and-large escapist cinema or more aptly the cinema of dreams is unsatiated even after decades of this mass production. Culture mandarins may protest, but the fact is that this very cinema - particularly that peculiar genre of Hindi mainstream cinema - is possibly the single most binding force that unites communities and people in a land as diverse as India. Witness the collective rooting for Lagaan, India's recent entry to the Oscars (in the best foreign language film category). It is almost as if all of India is willing popular matinee idol Aamir Khan and his band of no-hopers turned winners (at what is incidentally India's most popular sport - cricket) to bring home the honours.

The start of an abiding love affair

The first rudimentary film screening in India dates back to the last decade of the nineteenth century and in 1912 what is widely believed to be the first Indian feature film - Pundalik - was made. And by 1931, when Alam Ara, the first Indian film with sound was made, an abiding love affair was well and truly on. Millions of people looking for entertainment beyond their daily lives embraced this magical new medium.

Fantastic and moralistic

Not that Indian cinema is only fantastic. It is actually a curiously moralistic universe where good almost always triumphs and true love is rewarded if not in this world then certainly in the next. Of course, there are lots of troubles and tribulations along the way. To soften the impact of these, Indian film-makers liberally use song, dance and slap stick humor.

The phenomenon called Amitabh

Perhaps the best known name in this colourful industry has been that of Amitabh Bachan, the Big B as he's called for the dominant role he played in the industry through the 1980s and after as much as for his towering personality. Indeed as French film producer Alain Chamas, who tried without success to sign him for a film opposite Richard Dreyfuss and John Voight, said "He's not a star but an industry".

Regional Cinema

Yet the best film makers in the country have come from regional cinema - Bengali, Malayalam, Tamil and Kannada. The best-known of them is, of course, the late Satyajit Ray, the Bengali film maker who put Indian cinema on the world map through his Apu trilogy. Among contemporary film makers people like Adoor Gopalakrishnan, Mani Ratnam, Goutam Ghose and Santosh Sivan have added new dimensions to Indian cinema, winning critical and popular acclaim.

Making their mark internationally

However, it is not just at home that Indian cinema is keeping audiences happy. Talented filmmakers of Indian origin are making their mark on the international film circuit. The impact of Indian filmmakers on the international arena has been in several waves. The 60s and 70s saw names such as Ismail Merchant, Krishna Shah and Jug Mundhra. In the 80s, producers such as Patel, Amritraj, Anant Singh and Deepak Nayar made their mark along with women directors Mira Nair and Deepa Mehta.

Among those whose names are part of the international film frat are Manoj Night Shyamalan, Tarsem Singh, Ashok Amritraj, Shekhar Kapur, Mira Nair, and Jay Chandrashekhar. Their films are hot on the international film festival circuit. At this year's Venice Film Festival the prestigious Golden Lion Award was bagged by Mira Nair's film Monsoon Wedding, an earthy comedy set amid the pageantry of a Punjabi wedding. At the Toronto Film Festival, the film shared the People's Choice runners-up prize with Maya, a film by Digvijay Singh.

The Film and Television Institute of India

The kindergaten for film training and education in India is The Film and Television Institute of India in Pune. From a modest beginning, it has, with the passage of time, grown into a unique centre of teaching technical skill and know-how in the whole of Asia. FTII has been credited with the resurgence of Hindi cinema and the steadily improving standards of regional cinema since promising film makers like Mani Kaul, Kumar Sajhani, Saeed Mirza, Adoor Gopalakrishnan, Kundan Shah, Girish Kasarwalli, Jhanu Baruah, Ketan Mehta, Chitarth Singh and Ashok Ghai received their training here. The Institute has also given the Indian film industry some of the best known acting talent in the country - stalwarts such as Naseeruddin Shah, Shabhana Azmi, Om Puri, Jaya Bahaduri, Danny Dengzongpa and Mithun Chakraborthy have all trained here at some point

Indian food is conquering the world. In addition, India's cuisine is as diverse as its culture, languages, regions and climate. Yes, it is spicy, but not always hot. India is probably the one land that boasts of as wide a variety of vegetarian cuisine as non-vegetarian cuisine. Moreover, as expected every region of India has its own unique dish as well as subtle variations to popular dishes.

Dals and Spices

Aromatic spices are the essence of Indian cuisine. Spices such as Coriander, Cumin, Fenugreek, Asafoetida etc., give Indian food its distinct flavor but the skill lies in the subtle blending of a variety of spices to enhance the basic flavor of a particular dish. Indian cuisine also uses plenty of milk products like ghee (clarified butter) and dahi (yoghurt), a variety of dals (lentils) and regional vegetables. Depending on the region and the season the variety of vegetables available differ and the way the vegetable is cooked depends on the main dish main dish being served. For example Sarson ka saag (mustard greens) is a perfect complement for the Makke ki Roti (corn flat bread) eaten in Punjab, while sambhar (lentil soup) and coconut chutney are a staple with idlis (steamed rice cakes) and dosas (rice pancakes).

A Non-vegetarian's Delight

Although a number of religions exist in India, the two most influential to Indian cuisine are the Hindu and the Muslim traditions. The latter is most evident in dishes like Mughlai food, kababs, Kormas, Koftas (meat-balls), Biryani (rice with meats), Rogan Josh, and barbecued preparations like tandoori rotis and tandoori chicken which are made in clay ovens popularly known as the tandoor. A majority of these are staple foods in the North of India, parts of which were ruled by the Mughals.

Hindu cuisine in the North mainly comprises rotis (unleavened flat bread) or parathas (unleavened layered flat bread), rice and an assortment of dishes like dals, fried vegetables, curries, chutney, and pickles. In the South, the focus is more on light steamed food and rice is staple and coconut is a basic ingredient in most dishes. Usually rice is served with sambhar, rasam (a thin soup), dry and curried vegetables accompanied by papads. The South Indian dosas, idlis and vadas (made of fermented dal) are popular throughout the country.

Desserts and Mithai

Sweetmeats also enjoy a major focus in Indian food and the variety can be mind boggling. Again milk is the basis for many Indian deserts. Kheer (rice pudding) and Seviyan (Vermicelli pudding) are common desserts throughout the country except that Kheer is called Payasam in the South. But arguably the tastiest sweets in India are the spongy rasagollas and the gentle sandesh that come from the East. Snacks, especially from Gujarat, are also popular. Try the samosa, the khandvi and the dhoklas and you will come back for more. Finally every meal is ideally wrapped up by a paan (betel leaf) that considered a digestive!

India's official language is Hindi in the Devanagri script. It is the primary tongue of 30% of the people.The States are free to decide their own regional languages for internal administration and education, so there are 18 official languages spoken throughout the country. Bengali, Telugu, Marathi, Tamil, Urdu, Gujarati, Malayalam, Kannada, Oriya, Punjabi, Assamese, Kashmiri and Sindhi, are among the official languages which are also widely spoken. Sanskrit though an official language is hardly ever used except in rituals and ceremonies.

While English enjoys associate status, it is widely spoken and is one of the most important languages for national, political, and commercial communication.

Hinduism

The majority of the people are Hindus and Hinduism is the strange amalgam of differing beliefs, some even contradictory. But most believe in the holy word, the Om. Jainism, Buddhism, Sikhism are also called the Om kaar religions because they too believe in the sanctity of Om. The river Ganges is held sacred and Varansi is the holiest of the holy centers.

It is believed that Hinduism developed as a result of the mixing of the Dravidian and Aryan influence. Hinduism is the world's third largest religion after Christianity and Islam but uniquely it has no single founder, no church hierarchy and no central authority. One cannot become a Hindu; you have to be born to the faith. Therefore there is no proselytizing like Christianity or Islam.

Worshipping a million Gods

There are about 330 million deities in Hindu religion at last count. You might be bewildered at the numerous changing gods and goddesses from region to region but for Indians all these don't make much of a difference because they know under the pictures the spirit is the same. Hindus revere the four Vedas, which have an antiquity that goes back to the fertility rites of the Dravidians and the nature worship of the Aryans. The Dharma Shastra were more in use by the lay people. These are basically codes of moral and social conduct and describe the various obligations of man according to his status in life. The most important religious epics for the Hindus are the Ramayana and the Mahabharata, the longest epics in the world.

Prayer and Worship

Hindus have a number of religious festivals like Deepawali, the festival of lights, Holi, the festival of colours, and Ramanavami, the birthday of Lord Rama, the idealized God. Another major festival is Shivaratri, the night of Shiva, the god of dissolution, for the Hindus believe life goes round in a circle and everything ever made must be destroyed for the next round of creation to start again.

Hindus pray in temples and only some temples will allow a non-Hindu to come in. Anyone who is not a Hindu cannot participate in Hindu praying rituals at temples. Some may allow you to watch, especially if you with a friend. You must not touch anything in a temple since Hinduism believes strongly in pollution and non-pollution.

Learning about Hinduism

Organizations like the Chinmaya Mission are very open and will welcome you to sit in at their lectures. Their books are simple and extract the essence of Hinduism. The Art of Living of Sri Sri Ravishankar, which is a worldwide organization, is also a good place to learn about Hindu religion and participate in its bhajans or community chanting. You can pick up CDs of Hindu prayer chants of the other Ravi Shankar, of Beatles fame.

Ganesha - The Elephant God

Ganesh is a favorite god who is talismanic and is found in cars, shops, hotels, and houses everywhere since he is supposed to be a destroyer of obstacles as well as a destroyer of undesirable forces within oneself. It is a good idea to carry back with you small talismanic icons of Ganesha in crystal, silver or even in jade and amethyst. You will find an unbelievable variety of substances out of which Ganesha is wrought. Joss sticks and lamps play a great role in Indian worship. Joss sticks in wonderful organic essences are used ritually for worship.

Islam

Islam has a large following in India. The Jama Masjid in Delhi is one of India's most magnificent mosques. There are many old mosques in India but entry is restricted, especially for women. Mosques at Agra, Fatehpur Sikri are open for the tourist. Here too only Muslims can pray at the mosques.

Buddhism

Of course it is no secret that Buddhism originated in India but never really prospered here. However Buddhism is now a rediscovered religion in India thanks to its growing international popularity. There are a number of organizations in all the major cities in India, which have Buddhist chanting centers of the Nichiren sect of Japan. You can join in the chanting. Tibetan Buddhism has a lot of following worldwide and you have meetings of the lamas or religious heads who give talks regularly.

Many centuries ago the Buddha preached the sermons of the Eight-Fold path. Bodhgaya was the place where he attained enlightenment; Sarnath is where he preached his first sermon. Kushinagara is a place of great attraction to Buddhists because of his mahaparinirvana. The Sikh religion traces its history back to the 15th century and to Guru Nanak. A sight worth seeing is the Golden Temple of Amritsar, the holy of the Holies for the Sikhs.

Christianity

Christianity came to India in 52 AD with St Thomas who came to Kerala and converted the people of Malabar Coast into Christians. In the 4the century, Syrian merchants established the Nestorian sect whose services are in Armenia. Other Eastern orthodox sects include the Jacobites, Canaanites, and Syrians. Roman Catholicism came into India in the 16th century with a Jesuit missionary, St Francis Xavier. The British influence in India has resulted in various Protestants sects. Although there are churches in all parts of India the best examples are to be found Goa, Kerala, Bombay, Madras and Calcutta. Most of the 16 million Christians of India live in South India.

Jainism and Zorastrianism

Other minority religions include Jainism and Zorastrianism. Jain tirthankaras are enshrined at many places especially in Mount Abu, Sravanabelagola, Khajuraho, Palitana, Mahavirji, Ahmedabad, Ajmer and Jaipur. The 17-meter high statue of Lord Gomateshwara, which completed 1000 years of its formation in 1981, is anointed with thousands of litres of milk and fruit, and Sravanabelagola in Karnataka.

The colorful mosaic of Indian Festivals and fairs-as diverse as the land, is an expression of the spirit of celebration that is an essential part of the country observed with enthusiasm and gaiety; festivals are like gems, ornamenting the crown of Indian culture. They are round-the-year vibrant interludes in the mundane routine of life. Every season brings along new festivals, each a true celebration of the bounties of nature. In addition, that is not all! The birthdays of gods and goddesses, saints and prophets, great historical happening and the advent of the New Year, all find expression in colorful festivities. The same festival, though celebrated differently in the various parts of the country, exhibits an eternal harmony of sprit. Packed with fun and excitement, festivals are occasions to clean and decorate houses, to get together with friends and relatives and to exchange gifts. New attire, dance, music and ritual, all add to their joyful rhythm. It is a time for prayer, for pageantry and processions... a time to rejoice.