Two Wheels, Mountain Roads, and an Empty Mind

A group of monkeys are wandering across the road.

The mountains and the valleys are basking in the golden sunlight of the morning.

A swarm of motorised bikes pass by in high speed.

A faraway village beyond a valley seems to be one with the surrounding nature.

I am riding my bicycle on the winding uphill roads. Tiring. Yet so refreshing. 

Sometimes I spend the weekends doing long cycle rides. Memories to cherish for a lifetime.

The Preparation

Here is a list of the materials I assembled for the cycle ride. The materials could be bought. The will to ride a cycle all day on the roads has to be within the person. It can not be bought.

• Two spare tubes of 27.5 with presta value. These are not easy to find in the market.
• One front light (white)
• Two tail lights (red)
• Three charging cables attached to a multi-port charger. On a multi-day cycling trip, you don't want to run around looking for chargers.
• An identity card, a few banknotes, and a passport size photo in a wallet. A plastic pouch in which to keep the wallet
• Three big bottles. A bottle with a wide neck is useful to pour the electrolyte powder in it 
• Two small bottles
• White goggle
• Shaded goggle
• Helmet
• Cap. Wearing a cap beneath the helmet protects the eyes and the helmet from the sweat
• Two pairs of hand gloves
• Two pairs of socks
• Two sets of outdoor clothing. One for each day
• One set of indoor clothing
• A quick dry towel

A backpack that fits all of the above in 80% space and has 20% empty space.  During the ride, this backpack goes in the support vehicle.  I carry only the essentials in a bag attached to the handlebar. During a long cycle ride, having a backpack should be avoided.

An important item not in the above picture is, a few sachets of Cramp A-salt Electrolyte Powder Mix. Probably the best electrolyte powder known to me today.  You could buy this online from Amazon.  

Cycle I have is a Marin San Quentin 1. This is a downhill mountain bike. Broad tires. Wide handlebar. 1x9 gears. Hydraulic brakes. Front suspension fork. Weighs about 16 Kg. Not suitable for long rides on flat roads. Yet, somehow I take this hefty thing on long cycle rides. Everyone else rides a road bike or a hybrid cycle. What a crazy guy to ride a heavy mountain bike in a multi-day cycling trip. The folks think about me.  

Part One - Life is a Highway

Time is 5:30 AM.  We are gathered at the Dwichkrika shop in Warje, Pune.  Everybody is getting ready for the ride.  We gather for a photo while it is still dark outside.  With the headlamps on and the taillamps blinking, we hit the road.

In the first few kilometers, everybody is at the max energy level. 

Traffic on the road is minimum early morning.  The more we go further, the more I lag behind others. I do not follow the "Time vs Speed vs Distance" equation.  I like to ride at my own pace.  I catch up on everybody at the the breakfast place.  The breakfast place is overflowing with crowd.  This means, we are going to have heavy traffic on the road now.

Have you heard the song "Life is a Highway" by Rascal Flatts?  This song is about automobiles.  The vehicles that run on petrol and spit out carbon dioxide.  Yet, I like this song.  "This is the road and these are the hands".

Would you sit at home thinking, How to ride a cycle on a highway flowing with cars and trucks and all sorts of fast moving vehicles. Or get out and hit the road. A lot of times we think a way too much. Switching off the brain and doing the things is rather so easy.

In a tunnel, the horns of the vehicles are 10x louder.

By the time we reach the Khambatki Ghat, a mountain pass, the morning freshness is over. The uphill sections are tiring. I walk along with my cycle for the last few bends.  One rider suffers heavy crams in a leg and has to sit in the support vehicle. In day long exhaustive rides, we tend to focus mainly on riding and dehydration does not get enough attention.  Everybody goes through this at least once. We tend to learn by doing, by experimenting.

The Khambatki Ghat has a long uphill section and a short downhill section. We regroup after the downhill section.  A road construction work is going on. We want to avoid the under construction road and the traffic and the chaos. So we take a detour via a small village road. By the time we reach Wai, a town at the foothills, tiredness has crept in.  Afternoon 11 AM to 3 PM is the most difficult time of the day to ride a cycle on the road.  The sun seems to be scorching like never before. My energy level seems almost drained to nothing. Up ahead is a mountain pass to climb. We halt for some food. The plan was to have lunch at Mahabaleshwar, on top of the mountains. But the fatigue gives in.

Part Two - How Far Can You Go

Have you ever wondered, How far can I go? If you'd never try, how could you possibly find out?

The road from the foothills to the top of the mountain is, obviously, mostly uphill. I have driven a car on this road several times. I like driving in the mountains. Today's is a different story. There is no diesel engine or petrol engine to take us on the mountain top. We are the engines. I and Dr. Sanjay have found a riding mate in each other. We ride for about a kilometer and then take a short break. And repeat. This is the only method we could do on a never ending uphill road. Somewhere in between, we are about to give up. The heat and the exhaustion is doing its role. Sarang senses the situation.  An empty mini truck shows up. Sarang requests the driver for help. The next moment, our cycles are in the truck and we are comfortably siting in the front. This ride takes us past all of our fellow riders. The driver is taking the empty mini truck to Bhilar, a town where lots and lots of strawberry farms are there. This is his daily job. To transport the strawberries from Bhilar to the Pune Airport. He drops us where the detour to Bhilar is. And refuses to take any money. We give blessings to the good fellow. And continue to ride our cycles. 

This region is a dense evergreen forest. The air has a typical smell due to the dense vegetation. I and Dr. Sanjay continue the same strategy. Ride for some two kilometers and take a small break. We are the first to reach Mahabaleshwar, the town on the mountain top. Thanks to the ride in the mini truck.

Pune to Mahabaleshwar Elevation

I live in Bavdhan, a hilly area. Riding uphill is not new for me. But an ascend of some 1500 meters in a day is not I am used to.  The remaining day is for recovery. And loitering around.  Food is extra tasty. Some of us call it a lunch. Some call it a dinner. Here we meet the makers of the Sahyadri Classic cycling race. We are fortunate to meet these legends and listen to their words of wisdom.

Tomorrow we are riding the other side of the mountains.

Part Three - A ride I Wish Goes on Forever

Mine and Sarang's alarms start ringing in sync.  5:00 AM.  We are recharged from the night's sleep.  Today we get to ride the Ambenali ghat. A mountain pass that has far less traffic than on the other side.  Right now we are on the top of the mountain.  This means, we first go downhill. And then climb uphill.

The Marin San Quentin 1 is built for downhill rides. The night's rest has restored power in the legs. We are descending the mountain. This means, some really fast riding. The only traffic on the road are our cycles and the support vehicle. Sunrise is yet to happen. So if a vehicle approaches from the opposite direction, its lights are visible from a far distance. This means, I get to use the entire width of the road. On a downhill winding road, I do not leave the racing line. The support vehicle tells me to slow down. I tell them, "Let me go at my own speed. See you later". This is a ride I wish goes on forever.

The racing line is a concept from the motorsport. The optimal path around a race course. The racing line makes use of the entire width of the track to lengthen the radius of a turn. So you could go fast on the turns.

I see many nice spots for a photograph. But I do not halt. I ride at the optimal speed. When I reach the base of the mountain, I realise I have to stop somewhere. Where? I stop at one place. It is a junction in a village. I have stopped where the road to the village Umrath starts. Road to the birthplace and the ancestral village of Tanaji Malusare, the fearless Maratha warrior and close aide of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj. I came here as if pulled by a magnet.  Do we think that we decide how we live our lives? It is like a misnomer, like a solecism. From our Sanchit Karma, our total karmic debt, we have taken a part to spend, our Prarabdha. We are living what we have taken to live. Some have this awakening, some don't. Do you remember The Oracle telling Neo in The Matrix, "We’re all here to do what we’re all here to do".

I call Sarang and tell him where I am. I have gone ahead of the breakfast place. In the interest of time, he comes here driving the support vehicle and takes me to the breakfast place. The breakfast is slightly unconventional. I am used to the concept, when in the mountains, food is not the same what we get in the city. Lowering the expectations is the formula of happiness, Lao Tzu has once said. Two cats are living at the breakfast place. I give some food to them.

Part Four - We Weren't Born To Follow

The energy level is restored by the breakfast. Now we have to climb this mountain. Distance is some thirty five kilometers. And an ascend of about 1,300 meters. Not for the faint hearted.

I do not know how much time I'd take to reach the top of the mountain. The speedy downhill ride has sapped the energy out of me. Now I ride slow and I have to do short breaks. As time goes by, the golden sunlight of the morning changes to white daylight. Likewise, the heat and the exhaustion grows gradually. When legs give up on cycling, I walk for some distance with the cycle. then ride again. The picturesque spots of the morning have vanished now. The brain must be working differently when in easy path and when in difficult path. Today I am not carrying a lot of water compared to how much I was carrying yesterday. I am taking water and fruits from the support vehicle.

My must to have photo whenever I am in the mountains

I am searching for a spot where I could take a photo in my favorite pose. This is a must to have photo whenever I am in the mountains.

Topography map of the region

I and Mr. Ro are riding almost at the same momentum. When I see him ride the winding uphill roads, I am thinking, "Row, row, row your boat, Gently down the stream".

When I reach the junction to the Pratapgad fort, I give up. I find a place to lie down and rest for some time. Traffic on the road is minimal. The support vehicle arrives after some time. I sit in the support vehicle for some time. Then ride again. Then I drive the support vehicle for a short spell. Then ride again.

Strawberry farmers have setup makeshift roadside shops and are selling strawberries. I have no interest in them. The mind is empty. Void of everything. All I know is I am gradually scraping to the mountain top.

This is supposed to be a challenge ride. Not an easy ride. Thank you Sarang and the Dwichkrika folks for arranging this cycle ride in an optimal way.

Do you remember the most memorable cycle ride you have done?

Is a DoS attack similar to Slowloris possible on the layer 3 network protocols? Or a Network interface controller (NIC)?

I have written this article in collaboration with Krishna Bhandarge  

Background

Slowloris is a type of denial of service (DoS) attack which exploits the application‑layer (HTTP) connection handling weaknesses.  The Slowloris is a technique of capitalizing on how web servers keep open partial HTTP requests.

A web server allocates a thread for each incoming request.  Slowloris opens a connection to the target web server and sends partial HTTP headers.  Slowloris holds the connection open as long as possible by sending subsequent HTTP headers, adding to, but never completing the request.  By holding many such connections, Slowloris attempts to exhaust the server's thread / connection pool.  If the affected server keeps the connections open, the maximum concurrent connection pool would get filled completely, eventually denying additional connection attempts from the web clients.

Can the Slowloris attack concept be used to exploit the layer 3 network protocols?  Can the Slowloris attack concept be used to exploit a Network interface controller (NIC)?

A Network interface controller (NIC) operates at Layer 1 (physical layer) and Layer 2 (data link layer).  Slowloris relies entirely on connection handling weaknesses.  Layer 1, layer 2 and layer 3 devices, including NICs, do not maintain a per‑connection state.  Hence, this attack pattern is impossible at Layer 2 and layer 3.

Layer 3 DoS attacks are possible, but they are different from the Slowloris concept.  They are :

- ICMP floods

- Fragmentation floods

- IP packet storms

- Malformed IP packet attacks

These attacks attempt to saturate:

- NIC Rx queues (ring buffers)

- Host CPU network stack processing

- PCIe bandwidth

- Device driver's interrupt-handling capacity

None of these attacks resemble the Slowloris pattern because:

- They do not use partial requests

- They do not require keeping connections open

- They do not exploit HTTP behavior

If a Slowloris attack is happening on a web server, the web server's NIC has no way to detect the attack.  The NIC can not provide any protection.  Here is why.

A Network interface controller (NIC) does not do layer 7 filtering.  A NIC typically provides :

- hardware offloads for TCP

- virtualization support (SR-IOV)

- traffic shaping / QoS

- RDMA (RoCE/iWARP) capabilities

But none of these features prevent Slowloris, because Slowloris is not a bandwidth or packet-rate attack. Slowloris is a protocol resource exhaustion attack.

However, SmartNICs and DPUs are the exception.  Some vendors (NVIDIA BlueField, Intel IPU, AMD Pensando) manufacture SmartNICs or Data Processing Units which can offload Layer 7 logic.

On a side note, here are some ways to prevent a Slowloris attack on a web server.  Layer 7 filtering is typically performed by firewalls, proxies, DPI engines, or service meshes.

Mitigations for Slowloris attack are :

- SYN cookies / TCP stack hardening

- connection rate-limiting via OS firewall

- load balancers or reverse proxies (nginx, Varnish)

How to detect if a candidate is using an AI agent in a job interview

Today is 18 December 2025.  None of us are Neo or Morpheus or Trinity or Link.  Still, the agents are coming.  Not physically.  Metaphorically, if you happen to be an interviewer of a tech company who does a lot of online interviews.

While I was interviewing candidates for the open positions in my company, I came across a candidate who was using an AI agent for answering the questions in real time.  He had passed two rounds and I was conducting the third round.

A colleague brought my attention to ParakeetAI - https://www.parakeet-ai.com/

Then I found ShadeCoder https://www.shadecoder.com/  and  Interview Coder https://www.interviewcoder.co/

Obviously there are many tools and helpers out there.  And some people are going to use those.

Then there is Talview https://www.talview.com/en/  and  Canditech https://www.canditech.io/  and  Fabric https://www.fabrichq.ai/

These are not for free.  I didn't want to go in that direction.

Giving some thought to the situation, I wrote general guidelines for conducting online interviews and circulated them with my colleagues.  Later I gave some more thought to this, and here is what I have so far.

1. The invitation of the online meeting should _not_ be open to all.  The online meeting should be restricted only to the candidate and the interviewer.

2. After joining the online meeting, if the candidate keeps the camera off, ask the candidate to switch on the camera and be in a well lit place so that the candidate will be clearly visible during the entire interview.  If the candidate refuses to switch on the camera for whatever reason, do not continue with the interview.

3. During the interview, check _where_ the candidate is looking when a question is asked.  Is the candidate taking a pause, looking somewhere for an answer, and then start answering.

4. Check the authenticity of the resume.  Ask the candidate about the things written in the resume.

5. Ask questions that an AI agent won't answer correctly.  For example, when the candidate explains about the project he/she has done, ask "what was the most interesting defect that you fixed", or "what was the most challenging issue that you solved", or "what was the most interesting feature that you worked on".  For questions specific to the candidate's past work, an AI agent gives generic answers which are not specific to any specific project, and hence can be detected.

6. Let's say you asked the candidate to write a piece of code or algorithm, or come up with a solution to some problem, and the candidate has written the code or the algorithm, or verbally explained a solution.  Then ask the candidate to explain the code or the solution step by step.  Or ask the candidate why he/she made certain choices.  What would happen if some other choices are made.

7. Don't let the discussion go in a flow.  Mix the questions.

8. Have open ended discussions, rather than a series of questions that would have known answers.  Check the candidate's responses in the open ended discussions.

9. Show a piece of code that has problems or bugs and ask the candidate to spot those.

10. Focus the discussion around problem-solving, communication, and adaptability of the candidate.

11. A face-to-face interview in a physical presence is preferred, and should be done whenever possible.

If I were to live in The Matrix, I'd definitely be on the side of The Architect.  More specifically, I'd be on the side of A. Smith.  But in the world that we are (apparently) living in, we have to find ways to detect the agents, and be as humanly as possible.

And then there could be a different thought.  During our regular day-to-day work, we are encouraged to use CoPilot.  And using CoPilot is helpful in many situations.  Then why not allow the candidates to use AI during the interviews.

Here is my view on this.

Although we allow supplemental use of CoPilot in our regular work, it is merely a helping hand that makes our job easy in some situations.  It can not be used as the major skill.  The skills and expertise an engineer collects during the course of his/her jobs and education is of value.  That is what we are paying for.  We are not looking for humans who use AI tools to do the jobs without being an expert in the area of work.

If a candidate announces upfront that he/she wants to use AI during the interview, or asks if AI is allowed during the interview, that is an honest way.  Not announcing the use of AI and using it is cheating.

Should the company explicitly mention beforehand, "although using CoPilot on-the-job is encouraged, use of AI tools is 'forbidden' during the interview process"?

I am of the opinion that no such statement is necessary.  We are paying for the skills and expertise of the candidate.  Not the ability to use an AI tool.  So in my view, it is reasonable to reject this candidate for his/her use of AI during the interview.

Selecting the right candidates is the key to having a good team.  Unskilled hires are a big trouble for the company and the rest of the team.  Prevention is better than cure.

A Bicycle Museum in Pune, MH, India

If you are in Pune, what do you do on a weekend when you have a few hours at hand?  Go visit a bicycle museum.

Mr. Vikram Pendse has converted his three storied home into a private collection of bicycle and many other artifacts.  This is a clean and neatly manintained place.  If you are a professional cyclist or an amateur cyclist, you'd love this place.  If you have cycled during your school or college days, this place would remind you of the good old memories.  If you have never ridden a cycle, you may get inspired to buy a cycle.  If your spouse or a family member is a cyclist, visiting this place would help you to understand the person better.  If you are an owner of a motorised two wheeler vehicle, this place would help you appreciate of those who are the engine when they ride their two wheeler on the road.  If you are an owner of a car who has no botheration for the cyclists, this place might mellow you a bit.  For the cellphone addicts, this place could be an hours' escape to the vintage world, because photography and making videos is prohibited here.  If you think giving away 100 rupees to see old cycles and artifacts is way too much, then why bother, stay at home or do something else.

Why do people visit museums?  Reasons could be many.  Education, knwoing the history and the culture, finding inspiration, delving deeper into a specific area, to have a new perspective.

This is a private collection of more than 150 vintage bicycles, tricycles, and pedal cars from the last hundred years or so.  Many spare parts and accessories are also on display.  A replica of a roadside cycle repair shop reminds of the bygone days when a cycle was our primary mode of transport in the city.

Apart from cycles, many ancient artifacts are part of this collection.  Radios, metal locks, lamps, fans, typewriters, stove, oven, phonograph, bioscope, weighing scales, glass bottles, keychains, sewing machine, kitchenware, etc.

A calabash tree in the courtyard, few ducks quacking around, a strong dog guarding the porch, and garage space full of ancient cars and motorised two wheeler vehicles leaves the final impression on the mind while we leave the premises.

Vikram Pendse Cycle Museum

Address = 22, Harsh, Sahawas Society, Karvenagar, Pune, Maharashtra, India

Timing = 11 AM to 6:30 PM only on Saturday and Sunday.  Closed on weekdays.

Ticket = Rs 100 per person 

Typical duration of visit = 1 hour

Photography and making videos is prohibited.

Parking = Not Available by the museum owner.  However, vehicles could be parked on the nearby roads.

क्रांतिवीर चापेकर बंधू राष्ट्रीय संग्रहालय

देहाकडून देवाकडे जाताना मध्ये देश लागतो आणि या देशाचे आपण देणे लागतो.  -- स्वातंत्र्यवीर विनायक दामोदर सावरकर

देशासाठी आपल्याकडून फार काही करता येत नसले तरी आपला अल्पसा सहभाग दाखवण्याचा दिवस म्हणजे १५ ऑगस्ट.  भारताच्या ७९ व्या स्वातंत्र्य दिनानिमित्त अस्मादिकांनी सकाळी घरामध्ये राष्ट्रध्वज उभारला.  परिसरातील झेंडावंदन समारंभात सहभाग नोंदवला.  ह्या शुभ दिवशी एखादे उचित असे स्थळ पाहण्याचा बेत ठरवला.  क्रांतिवीर चापेकर बंधू राष्ट्रीय संग्रहालय.  ह्या जागेचे एप्रिल २०२५ मध्ये नवीन स्वरूपात उद्घाटन झाले आहे.  ह्या स्थळाला भेटीचा हा वृत्तांत.

पता = ३८५ / १५, प्रभात कॉलनी, चिंचवड गाव, पिंपरी चिंचवड ४११०३३

पाहण्यासाठी लागणारा वेळ = अंदाजे एक तास 

पार्किंग = जागेअभावी उपलब्ध नाही 

तिकीट = माणशी १०० रुपये 

वेळ = सकाळी १० ते संध्याकाळी ५ पर्यंत

दर सोमवारी साप्ताहिक सुट्टी आणि सार्वजनिक सुट्टीच्या दिवशी सुट्टी

एका वेळी दहा ते पंधरा जणांना आत सोडतात.  पुढच्या गटाला साधारण एक तासाने आत पाठवतात.  मधल्या वेळात काय करायचे असा प्रश्न असेल तर जवळच मोरया गोसावी मंदिर आहे.

चापेकर बंधूंना फाशी झाल्यानंतर त्यांच्या कुटुंबीयांची वाहतात झाली.  वाड्याचा नवीन मालक दुर्गुणी होता.  वाड्यात दारू, जुगार, पत्ते वगैरे प्रकार सुरु झाले.  १९७२ साली गिरीश प्रभुणे आणि इतर युवकांनी हे थांबवण्याचा निर्धार करून हे सर्व उद्योग उध्वस्त केले. ज्या वास्तूत क्रांतिवीर चापेकर बंधूंचा जन्म झाला, शिक्षण झाले, त्यांना प्रखर देशभक्तीचे धडे मिळाले, त्या वास्तूची वाताहात थांबवण्याचा गिरीश प्रभुणे आणि इतर युवकांनी निश्चय केला.

१९७२ साली क्रांतिवीर चापेकर स्मारक समितीची स्थापना झाली.  चापेकर वाड्यात व्यायाम शाळा सुरु झाली.  १९९८ साली क्रांतिवीर दामोदर हरी चापेकर यांची स्मृती शताब्दी साजरी झाली.  त्या वेळी चापेकर वाड्यात स्मारक बनवण्याचे काम सुरु झाले.  २००५ साली वाडा जनतेला पाहण्यासाठी खुला करण्यात आला. 

२०१४ साली सरकार बदलले.  करदात्यांचा पैसा मदरसे दर्गे हज सफरी ह्यात न जाता देशासाठी योग्य ठिकाणी खर्च होऊ लागला.  क्रांतिवीर चापेकर बंधू वाडा हे राष्ट्रीय स्मारक अद्यवावत करण्ययात आले.  चापेकर वाड्याच्या मागील बाजूस बहुमजली भव्य संग्रहालय बनवण्याची प्रक्रिया सुरु आहे.

तीन मजली चापेकर वाड्यात प्रवेश केल्यावर आपला मार्गदर्शित दौरा (Guided Tour) सुरु होतो.  वाड्यामध्ये फोटो काढले तर चालतात पण विडिओ बनवण्ययास मनाई आहे.  चापेकर कुटुंबाचा आणि त्यांच्या वाड्याचा इतिहास सांगितला जातो.  चिंचवड जवळच्या चापे गावचे चित्पावन ब्राम्हण चापेकर.  क्रांतिवीर चापेकर बंधूंचे वडील हरी विनायक चापेकर निष्णात वैद्य होते.  कीर्तनकार होते.  गावोगावी जाऊन कीर्तन करीत असत.

चापेकर वाडा

तुळशी वृंदावन, गाय वासरू, वाड्याचा प्रत्येक भाग हुबेहूब साकारला आहे.  दृक श्राव्य स्वरूपात वाड्याचा एक एक भाग पाहात आपण पुढे पुढे जातो.  दिवाणखाना, स्वयंपाकघर, धान्य कोठी, कीर्तन सरावाची खोली. 

इयत्ता चौथीच्या इतिहासाच्या पुस्तकाच्या मागच्या पानावर छापले होते ते शिवाजी महाराजांचे चित्र

वाड्याच्या भिंतींवर निवडक ऐतिहासिक प्रसंग, चित्रे लावली आहेत. 

समर्थ रामदास स्वामींचे संभाजी राजांस पत्र

पहिल्या मजल्य्यावर काही ऐतिहासिक प्रसंग उत्तम रीतीने साकारले आहेत.  त्याकाळचे मुद्रणालय.  द्रविड बंधूंचा वध.  येरवडा कारागृहात लोकमान्य टिळक आणि क्रांतिवीर चापेकर ह्यांची भेट.  क्रांतिवीर चापेकर बंधूंना मृत्यूदंडाची शिक्षा झाल्यानंतर भगिनी निवेदिता यांनी त्यांच्या मातेचे सांत्वन करण्यासाठी वाड्यास दिलेली भेट. 

त्याकाळचे मुद्रणालय

१८९६ साली पुण्यामध्ये प्लेगची साथ पसरली.  त्याकाळी पुण्याच्या कॅन्टोन्मेंट परिसरात अनेक इंग्रज सैनिक, अधिकारी, त्यांचे कुटुंब राहात होते.  प्लेगच्या साथीपासून त्यांचे संरक्षण करण्यासाठी इंग्रज सरकारने वॉल्टर रँड ह्याची प्लेग कमिशनर म्हणून नेमणूक केली.  वॉल्टर रँड ह्याने पुण्याच्या जनतेवर अनेक अत्याचार केले.  लोकमान्य टिळकांनी केसरी आणि मराठा ह्या वृत्तपत्रांतून त्याविरोधात आवाज उठवला.  लोकमान्य टिळकांच्या प्रखर राष्ट्रपेमी विचारांनी प्रेरित होऊन क्रांतिवीर चापेकर बंधू व सहकाऱ्यांनी इंग्रज जुलमी अधिकारी वॉल्टर रँड ह्याचा वध करण्याचा बेत आखला. 

वॉल्टर रँडच्या वधाआधी चतुःशृंगीच्या देवीला घातलेले साकडे

इंग्रज जमेल तेवढे जमेल तसे भारतातून लुटून नेट होते.  गरिबी उपासमारी साथीचे रोग इंग्रजी अत्याचार ह्यांनी जनता त्रस्त होती.  तशातच इंग्रजांनी फर्मान काढले, राणी व्हिक्टोरिया हिचा हीरक महोत्सव साजरा करावा.  जो कोणी ह्या महोत्सवाला विरोध करेल त्याला देशद्रोही समजून शिक्षा करण्यात येईल.

राणीचा हीरक महोत्सव साजरा करण्यासाठी सर्व इंग्रज अधिकारी राजभवन येथे जमणार. जुलमी अधिकारी वॉल्टर रँड ह्याचा वध करण्याची हि संधी आहे हे क्रांतिवीर चापेकर बंधूंना लक्षात आले.  गणेशखिंड रस्त्यावर रँडला गाठायचा बेत बनला.  २२ जून १८९७ रोजी राणीचा हीरक महोत्सव साजरा झाला.  रात्रीची वेळ.  रस्त्यावर अंधार.  दामोदर आणि बाळकृष्ण तलवार आणि बंदूक घेऊन गणेशखिंडीत तयार.  बग्गी आल्यावर दामोदराने आवाज दिला, "गोंद्या आला रे आला".  काही अंतरावर बाळकृष्ण लपला होता.  बाळकृष्णाने बग्गीवर चढून अत्याचारी इंग्रज रँड वर गोळी घातली.  पाठोपाठ आणखी एक बग्गी आली.  रँड नक्की कोणत्या बग्गीत हे कळायला मार्ग नाही.  बाळकृष्णाने आलेल्या बग्गीवर चढून आत बसलेल्या इंग्रजाला गोळी घातली.  रँडचा सहाय्यक अधिकारी जागीच ठार झाला. जुलमी अधिकारी वॉल्टर रँड बारा दिवसांनंतर निर्वतला. 

इंग्रज जुलमी अधिकारी वॉल्टर रँड ह्याचा वध

इंग्रज जुलमी अधिकारी वॉल्टर रँड ह्याचा वध कोणी केला हे द्रविड बंधूंना माहित होते.  त्याकाळच्या वीस हजार रुपयांसाठी द्रविड बंधूनी चापेकर बंधूची माहिती ब्रिटिशांना दिली.  हे कळल्यानंतर क्रांतिवीर वासुदेव हरी चापेकर, महादेव विनायक रानडे, व खंडो विष्णू साठे यांनी फितूर द्रविड बंधूंना ठार केले.  हा प्रसंग जिथे घडला तो पुण्यातला खुन्या मुरलीधर.

द्रविड बंधूंचा वध

क्रांतिवीर चापेकर बंधूंना फाशी होण्याच्या आदल्या रात्री लोकमान्य टिळकांनी येरवडा कारागृहात त्यांची भेट घेतली.

येरवडा कारागृहात लोकमान्य टिळक आणि क्रांतिवीर चापेकर ह्यांची भेट

बाळकृष्ण हरी चापेकर, वासुदेव हरी चापेकर, व महादेव विनायक रानडे ह्यांनी १८९९ साली देशासाठी बलिदान दिले. 

सर्व पुतळे जिवंत वाटावेत इतके हुबेहूब बनवले आहेत.  उत्कृष्ट वेशभूषा, प्रकाश योजना, आणि नेपथ्य यामुळे सर्व प्रसंग समोर घडत आहेत असे वाटतात.  दुसऱ्या मजल्यावर वॉल्टर रँड ह्याचा वधाचा प्रसंग कळस गाठतो.  त्यानंतर आपण ह्या राष्ट्रीय स्मारकातून बाहेर पडतो.  रोजच्या जीवनाला तोंड देण्यासाठी एक नवीन वेगळी ऊर्जा घेऊन.

आज आपण जे काही स्वातंत्र्य उपभोगतो आहोत ते अशाच क्रांतिकारक आणि स्वातंत्र्यसैनिकांमुळे.  स्वातंत्र्य म्हणजे नक्की काय आणि त्याचा दुरुपयोग का आणि कसा करू नये हे समजण्यासाठी काही दिवस शेजारच्या बांगलादेश किंवा लष्करी राजवटीच्या म्यानमार मध्ये काही दिवस व्यतीत करावे.

केल्याने देशाटन - पाबळ

"अनुगच्छतु प्रवाह" हे आम्ही शालेय जीवनात शिकलो नाही.  शिकलो असतो तर आज चित्र वेगळं दिसलं असतं.  असो.  एका सुट्टीच्या आदल्या दिवशी घरात फर्मान निघाले कि उद्या आपल्याला अबकड ह्या नातलगांना भेटायला जायचे आहे.  अनुगच्छतु प्रवाह ह्या सूत्रानुसार अस्मादिकांनी मिळालेली भूमिका दिवसभर जमेल तशी पार पाडली.  ठिकाण होते कान्हुर मेसाई.  पाबळ गावाच्या शेजारचे गाव.  पाबळ गावातली मस्तानीची समाधी बघता येईल का ह्या विनंतीला मान देऊन आमच्या स्नेह्यांनी ह्या ठिकाणाची भेट घडवून आणली. 

कोण होती मस्तानी?

थोरले बाजीराव पेशवे ह्यांच्या दोन पत्नींपैकी एक होती मस्तानी.

जन्म : २९ ऑगस्ट १६९९ 

जन्म स्थळ : पन्ना राज्य, बुंदेलखंड

वडील : महाराजा छत्रसाल बुंदेला 

पती : थोरले बाजीराव पेशवे

अपत्ये : समशेर बहादुर ऊर्फ कृष्णराव

मृत्यू ठिकाण : पाबळ, तालुका शिरूर, जिल्हा पुणे 

पन्ना राज्याचे राजे महाराजा छत्रसाल बुंदेला ह्यांनी १७२० साली दिल्ली च्या मुसलमान सत्तेविरुद्ध स्वातंत्र्य घोषित केले आणि आठ वर्ष यशस्वी लढा दिला.  मुहम्मद खान बंगेश ह्याने जेव्हा त्याच्या सैन्यासह हल्ला केला तेव्हा महाराजा छत्रसाल बुंदेला ७९ वर्ष्याचे होते. घनघोर युद्धात पराभव झाल्यावर महाराजा छत्रसाल बुंदेला जैतपूरच्या किल्ल्यात आश्रयाला गेले. मुसलमान हल्लेखोरांनी त्यांचे बहुतेक सर्व राज्य काबीज करून लुटले.  महाराजा छत्रसाल बुंदेला ह्यांनी थोरले बाजीराव पेशवे ह्यांच्याकडे मदत मागितली. 

थोरले बाजीराव पेशवे सैन्यासह चाल करून गेले आणि त्यांनी मुसलमान हल्लेखोरांचा पराभव केला.  महाराजा छत्रसाल बुंदेला ह्यांनी थोरले बाजीराव पेशवे ह्यांना झाशी प्रांत दिला तसेच त्यांची मुलगी मस्तानी बाजीरावास दिली.  बुंदेल्यांचे व मराठ्यांचे रक्तसंबध जुळावे हा या मागचा हेतू होता.

पाबळ हा पर्जन्यछायेचा प्रदेश आहे.  दुष्काळी किंवा अर्ध दुष्काळी भाग म्हणा.  या ठिकाणी मस्तानीला मुद्दामून राहायला पाठवण्यात आले किंवा अन्य काही कारण होते हे अस्मादिकांस माहित नाही.

The wolf never performs in the circus

The lion and the tiger are stronger, but the wolf never performs in the circus.  All species have adapted in certain ways for their survival.  Wolves are probably the most resilient and independent.

Nearly twenty thousand years ago, some less aggressive wolves started scavenging near the human settlements.  Some of them got friendly with the humans.  Over a longer period of time, the domesticated wolves were known to be the dogs.  Some of them were kept by humans as pets.  Some continued as stray.  For so many years, dogs are living with the human settlements.  In the villages and in the cities.  They must have adopted to live with the humans.  Otherwise why would the co-existence continue for a thousands of years.

Today, when a garbage collecting van goes around collecting garbage in the city, a bunch of dogs run behind it, in the hope of getting some food.  I am unhappy from this usual sight.  Why the man's best friend has to run after a garbage van in search of food.  I used to think that I was being a part of the problem.  I wanted to be a part of a solution.  A stray dog named Shaggy lived in front of our building.  We usually had leftover chapati and rice after the dinner.  We prefer to eat freshly cooked food every day.  I mixed some cat food with the chapati and rice, and gave it to the stray dog Shaggy.  This solved two problems.  No leftover food in the home.  And I am a part of a solution.  I could not solve the problem of the entire city.  But I solved the problem in my own world.

Along with Shaggy, his young brother Sheru and their mother Kaluli came to eat food.  When monsoon arrived and the rains started, the trio had no shelter.  When they were sick, they suffered on their own.  One step at a time, I was solving the problems.  Then I came to know a 70+ young uncle staying nearby who gives food to many dogs in the neighborhood.  And a lady operates a van giving food to may be lots of dogs in the vicinity.  Why?  They want to be a part of the solution and not part of the problem.

By nature, dogs are scavengers.  They eat whatever they find around.  In the cities, they usually eat whatever edible they find in the roadside garbage thrown by humans.  In doing so, sometimes dogs eat non-edible things and they vomit.  Sometimes they get hurt by the sharp objects in the garbage.  Sometimes dogs and cats are run over by the vehicles on the road.  They die instantly or are left to die.  Sometimes they are deliberately hurt by humans.  The number of humans attacked or killed by the dogs are negligible as compared to the number of dogs attacked or killed by the humans. 

What if a dog does not get to eat anything for a few days?  Would it not search for food all the time - the basic instinct of survival.  And what if a group of dogs had nothing to eat for a few days?  Would they not try to hunt for an easy food - the basic instinct of survival amplified in the group.  A solution for this problem is - if the dogs do not starve for a few days, they won't hunt.

In my neighborhood, those who are part of the solution have formed an organization, BARC - Bavdhan Animal Rescue Community.  I am happy to be a part of it.  What does BARC do?

• Vaccinating the stray dogs
• Neutering the stray dogs
• Medical treatment of the stray dogs and cats that are ill or met with accidents
• Arranging adoption for the stray dogs that are abandoned by humans

The wolf never performs in the circus.  But the dogs have learned to live along with the humans.  Have you learned to live along with the dogs?  Have the humans in your neighborhood learned to live along with the dogs and cats in your neighborhood?