Dawarka, the 56 steps to the gate of Heaven and then after the darshan coming out from the other side to Moksha. The narrow streets, crowded with little shops, trinkets and temple ware ..

The people inside the temple now .. always warm and welcoming .. policemen with stick not withstanding .. nor the Tourism Secretary beside me !

Praying for some space to move to the deity .. but the affection cannot be wished aside .. these are the masses that make us who we are .. they need that moment of respect and attention ..

Jai Dwarka Dheesh , Jaie Shree Krishna .. offerings of prayer and seeking blessings ..

Moving out to another section, the crowds now more disciplined, the police taking over .. all the blessings around my neck and shoulder ..

And then the real McCoy !! The incessant fan who has followed my look from the previous visit to Kutch .. he had his own fan following too, but I chose not to put that up .. sincere and cute ..

Contemplative by the edge of the sea and the edge of the temple and perhaps the edge of ourselves too .. the wash of the sea and ocean has often done this to us … has it not !!?

Somewhere deep inside the sea in front ~ the ancient city of another Dwarka, submerged yet a symbol of our centuries old culture and existence ..

The heavens almost speak in their formations to us .. the light house the only signal of modern society .. the old and traditional on the left , the other on the right …

And the reason I am there … beckoning and inviting the tourist to breathe in a bit of Gujarat !

The Gomti River ending its long journey by ending up in the sea. On the left the island in the middle of the river and the sea .. unique. There is more to it to follow .. the island is called panchkuin or 5 wells - panch means five, kuin comes from kuon meaning a well. On this island another quality. There are 5 sweet water wells around a temple built at the far end. Sweet water by the sea, of salt .. Hmmm ..

The river again flowing along to its natural end when it meets the Arabian Sea … the bathing ghats to the right - not as vast and colorful and historic as the ones in Varanasi, Benaras, but significant all the same .. bathe here and then proceed to 56 steps .. so they say .. The temple at the far end is the edge of the land mass ..

Inside the small little temple at the edge where a saint sat in prayer and meditation … and there in the middle a ‘floating rock’ !!

Dwarka .. the main Temple and the intricacy of the stone work .. where Oh where did they get the concept and idea to build something like this, to visual it, to put it together .. we have missed so many important eras of our existence  …

The lovely ladies in their traditional dress for the temple … love the similarity in their necklaces and the cheerfulness in their smiles ..

Back home by the early morning after driving 3 hours to Jamnagar and taking a flight out. Rain and monsoon rigid and continuous. But good to be back within family and familiar environs, with some nostalgia about Gujarat .. strangely I miss it !

The talk and buzz about this campaign now becoming very loud and our creative head Mr Piyush Pandey is surprised by this. For the first time there is complimentary talk of a campaign even before it is aired to the public .. not a very normal occurrence in the field and the world of Advts.,

Its been long and weary .. but never enough to connect with you ..

Amitabh Bachchan