The recent chilling and traumatic stories of the dastardly attack and macabre killings of unarmed tourists by terrorists in Pahalgam, Kashmir sent shock waves across the entire country, yet side by side, like soothing balm to the survivors and terror-stricken tourists were acts of courage, sacrifice and humanitarianism, far above and beyond call of duty shown by local Kashmiri service providers, horse-walas, taxi drivers & shop-keepers. In glowing terms they’ve spoken of many ‘Good Samaritans’ all extending a helping hand.
This reminds us of our travel story that’s ten years old and fortunately didn’t have any mishaps or setbacks but remains memorable for the yeoman services of one man. We’d undertaken a ‘Rajasthan’ trip in 2015 (to Udaipur & Kumbalgarh), & the travel agent arranged for a vehicle and driver to be with us from Kota throughout, to show us around the important sites and history and heritage of the place ! The driver, a frail looking man met us early morning at the Kota Station. Little did we know, in next few days he’d show exemplary commitment and spirit like a ‘star player’, beyond our expectations.
As he expertly took us around, the grand history of the picturesque Lake City of Udaipur resoundingly came alive with the relics, artifacts, pictures, paintings in the Rana Pratap Memorial and amazing City Palace museum in the Old City. Our driver was keen that we must cover the most famous ancient temples of Eklinga and of Srinathji (Lord Krishna) in Nathdwara & made arrangements for a wonderful darshan there, all in a span of four hours to and from Udaipur ! Evening stroll around the Fateh Sagar Lake trying out the chat stalls was awesome ! It was followed next day by a drive up the hills to see the exquisite Jain temple in Ranakpur about 100 kms from Udaipur & inside deep forests.
Next on our travel plan was the impregnable and massive Kumbalgarh Fort built by the great Rajput King, Rana Kumbha, ruler of the Mewar dynasty. The arduous climb to the top of the fort needed great determination but our driver kept egging us on ! The final lap of our journey was the drive to Chittorgarh Fort, the capital and centre of the Mewar ascendency from the 7th to the mid 16th century. Our driver then wanted us to also see the 7 wonders (their replicas) on the beautiful lake in Kota, buy city’s famous Kachauris, shop for exclusive Kota saris and have Rajasthani cuisine at Umaid Palace Hotel ! This done, he safely drove us to the station to board the train back and was reluctant to accept any reward. On reaching back, I got his call inquiring about our safe journey !
I haven’t mentioned his name – ‘Farooq Khan’ from Kota city. Not as charming as the late actor Farooq (Shaikh) or as flamboyant as King (Shahrukh) Khan, but to us he has remained a real star alright ! His kind of selfless service and devotion exhibited in doing his professional duties is rarely seen today. The Kashmiri locals have proved they do exist !
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