Monday, October 15, 2012

Incomplete Trip (Hesarghatta - Nrityagram & Taj -Kuteera)

I wanted to visit Nrityagram situated at Hesarghatta after seeing the pictures uploaded by my friend on Facebook but it was never happening as the plan was made and cancelled twice. Finally today we made happen but Incomplete !!!

Nrityagram is a dance school started by Odissi dancer Protima Gauri in 1990 and is located near Hesarghatta lake which is 30 km away from Bangalore . It is said that it is a place where nothing exists except dance.I was very excited to visit this place after reading about it and on seeing the pictures of the awesome view of the place. Taj Kuteera is a small resort right opposite to Nrityagram which is surrounded by lush green trees and peaceful ambiance.

Nrityagram - Pic Courtesy : Wikipedia 


Me along with my friend Basu met at RT Nagar and hit the Yeswanthpur road towards Hesarghatta. Although it was a public holiday and the time was around 8:30AM there was a fair amount of traffic making the ride totally unpleasant.As always my bike was deprived of petrol and  had to stop on Tumkur road to fill it up.After this we did not stop anywhere except for seeking directions but we rode at a very very slow pace :( 30-40 km/hr i know its horribly slow :D)and once we reached Hesarghatta we badly wanted to stop for breakfast but we hardly could find a decent place :( i was fainting :P . We were going going and going and finally stopped at a place which was a small eatery serving idlies at 10:00 AM:) yumm the breakfast was and the person was very humble as well and guided us to Nritygram as we had crossed the turn to Nrityagram and come 2 km ahead but no regrets as the breakfast was yum :)

Yummy Breakfast !


We rode back 2 km and took a left turn near the Bus stop of Hesarghatta (this is the major landmark, if you are coming from Bangalore it would be right turn from the bus stop) and after the left turn it was a very good ride although the roads were bad the air was fresh :) We passed through a Film Institute and also a crew which was shooting at a distance  and the place was called "Our Native Village" don't know for what reasons :P

Finally at 10:40 pm (yeah we road like crocodiles:P) we reached our destination "Nrityagram " "sigh" but the we had a surprise awaiting us : Nritygram is closed on Government Holidays :( ahhhhhrghhh..exactly this is what happens if you don't do your trip homework properly :( We tried all means to enter but in vain :(  Then all we had was "Taj-Kuteera" ! Taj-Kuteera is a very peaceful place and had descent crowd since it was a public holiday .This place has rooms , a cafe on open terrace ,a restaurant, a small artificial pond, few pets , greenary , a small open are for out door games , a light house kinda structure and a small party hall.Its perfect place for get togathers , re-unions,Corporate outings etc since it is a serene place which unwinds you from the huzzle buzzle of the city life !We had some fries,coffee and Iced tea only as we weren't hungry(also the menu gave a buzz on wallets :D) and left the place around 12:30 pm with a little disappointment of not being able to visit Nrityagram :(

Taj-Kuteera : Artificial Pond

Iced Tea - Taj Kuteera Dine - In

Taj Kuteera - Dine -In

Taj Kuteera - Me on Roof Top cafe :)

Taj Kuteera - Garden
Taj Kuteera - Light House (Kinda :P)

On our way back we were curious to go and peep into what exactly is happening at the shooting spot :D we went to see cranes , cameras , a large crowd and i guess it was some dance scene being shot however did not get to see any super star :P . We rode back on a fast pace and reached MG road at around 2:15 pm quiet disappointed but we were determined to visit the place again(with good planning :D).

Way Back from Taj Kuteera & Nrityagram

Shooting spot : can you see the far off buses etc thats the one :P


It was about 90 kms drive
Kammanahalli - RT Nagar - Yeshwanthpur - Tumkur Road - Hesarghatta -Tumkur Road - Yeshwanthpur - RT - Nagar -  MG Road.

It is a very safe place to visit but remember Nrityagram is closed on Public Holidays!!!
Beware of the ducks at Taj Kuteera because they are very ferocious and can bite !!!

Taj Kuteera : The notorious ducks !! They look so pious but are wild :/


Near by :
You have Hesarghatta lake put its dried up most of the time and all you can see is a good view.
Film Institute and if your are a fan of Kannada film stars and luck you may spot a super star :P
And Nothing else at all :)

Happy Dancing and Resorting :D