Prati Balaji Temple Pune

Prati Balaji Temple at Ketkawale near Narayanpur is a modern day replica of the famous Tirupati Balaji temple. Since this temple is built in modern times, this temple does not have any history like the Chikka Tirupati Temple near Bangalore. It is located just off the Pune Bangalore highway near Kapurhol. Once at Kapurhol, take the left turn and the road should take you to the temple.

There is ample parking space available. Vehicle parking is free and they provide you a token once you park your vehicle. Due to strict security measures, people are not allowed to take any kind of luggage or bags for that instance to the temple. There is a provision provided to safely deposit your luggage and bags. Photography is not allowed inside temple and hence one has to deposit camera phones and camera for that matter before entering the temple. Photography is allowed outside the temples main premises.

I have not been to the actual Tirupati temple and hence cannot compare this temple with the Tirupati Balaji Temple. Inside, the temple is quite colourful. Prasad is distributed quite generously and is free. As with all the temples there was a queue to enter the main premises and take darshan. It took 20 minutes in the queue for darshan. On our way out we were given prasad which was quite filling.

After clicking few snaps around, myself and my wife went ahead to check another building in the temple premises. This was the building where they were serving lunch. Although I was full I could not resist having a meal. The food served was free and it was being served generously. Inside the temple premises there was sufficient security and housekeeping staff to keep the premises secure and clean.

A beautiful and peaceful place to visit.


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Siddhagiri Museum, Kolhapur

The Siddhagiri Gramjivan Wax Museum at Kaneri, near Kolhapur, Maharashtra, is a one of kind wax museum. The main aim of this museum is to depict rural Indian life. The museum refreshes the 'Bara Balutedar' System a servant-cum-caste system that existed in Maharashtra.

There is an entrance fee to enter the museum and photography is strictly prohibited.The place is well maintained.
Once inside the museum you would be surprised to see the details of every exhibit. The artists have taken pain to keep in mind the most minute details to make the exhibit beautiful and impressive. To move around the museum there is a predefined path which you have to follow. As one moves along this path one can see the various exhibits. One would be surprised to see the sheer number of exhibits. The exhibits kept in the enclosed area are mostly of mythological characters. These exhibits do appear to be made of wax. However the exhibits that are kept in open definitely do not appear to be that of wax. It will be impossible to describe the whole scenario without any pictures.

The most magnificent exhibit which I found was that of a procession where more than dozen villagers are pulling along a temple rath. The way these artists have managed to create such magnificent statues with the realistic expressions is just mind blowing. This place is definitely worth a visit. It is strange though, that photography is not allowed inside the museum. The photos of these exhibits would have been a feast for the eyes. Imagine the publicity this place would get with the photos of this place.

It takes about two hours to see this place. One should definitely avoid a bright sunny day as this would make the experience uncomfortable.
The museum itself is part of land belonging to Kaneri Math. The surrounding area is also very nice and clean with trees all around. There is a big Shiva statue near the temple.

The places is around 15 km from Kolhapur. To reach here continue on the Bangalore highway until you reach the MIDC area. Once here take the right turn towards Kaneri lake and continue on this road. On this road you would see a big statue of cow and a calf. When we visited this place, work was in progress in this area, could be another temple or a new project coming up.

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No photos of the museum exhibits as photography strictly prohibited.
The below pics are of the area surrounding museum where photography was allowed.

Just before reaching the museum

Entrance of Kaneri Math

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Bedse Caves, Kamshet

One of the three buddhist caves in the maval region, the Bedse or Bedusa caves is the least known and hence less crowded. The above quality adds to the destinations beauty.

To reach these caves from Pune, take the old Mumbai-Pune highway. At the Kamshet town junction take the left turn and keep on heading on the same road till you cross the Mum-Pune expressway underpass.
Right after this under pass, keep a lookout for a board indicating the direction for Bedse. It is about 2kms from the underpass where you need to take a right turn. This leads to a small narrow road leadign up to the stairs for Bedse caves. There is no shop or stall near the base and it is better to carry water or food.
The climb up the stairs is pretty easy and early morning visits will be a bliss. One can enjoy the beautiful view from top and also gaze at the wonderful rock cut caves.


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Neelkantheshwar Temple

Amid the lush green areas of Khadakwasla Dam and Panshet dam lies the less known Shiv Temple called Neelkantheshwar. The temple was established by Sarjemama a former forest ranger and spiritual leader after he found a Shivling on top of this hill. The location provides a very scenic view of the Panshet dam and the nearby areas. The intriguing feature of this place is not the main temple but the hundreds of statues of gods and goddesses, enactments of events from Hindu mythology.

An interesting thing that I observed here was a statue of Jesus. In fact this is the only temple I have seen having a statue of Jesus. The place is very placid and free from heavy crowds. A perfect place to feel relieved from stressful city life.

The place is very close to Pune. To reach this place there are two approach roads as shown in the route map. I have been to this place twice but on these two occassions have traveled along the route A shown below. Travel on to Sinhagad road and just before you reach Khadakwasla Dam, there is a diversion. The road through the village is one way and a separate by-pass road is available but most of the traffic goes through this no-entry. Take the road to left that is the by-pass road and this road ends up joining the main road after about 1.5kms. While joining the main road, do not take a left to go but travel straight and cross the Khadakwasla dam to the other side. Once on the other side, take a left and continue on this road. There are certain landmarks on the way like the Peacock Bay and Lakewood resort. Continue on this road till you cross Sangrun Phata. After this there is a left turn for Neelkantheshwar. There is a board  indicating 'Shetra Neelkantheshwar'. This is the left turn which will lead to the temple road. Once this road touches the main road, again take a left and continue on this road till you reach junction where a uphill road shows sign for the temple. Take this uphill road. Few people opt to park their cars just about a km from the start of uphill and walk all the way up. But you can drive ahead up to the base. The climb is pretty steep and during monsoon can be muddy and slippery.Once to the base, there is a parking place, an open are and the village panchayat has a fee of Rs.10 per four wheeler and Rs.5 per two-wheeler.

From this base, one has to walk all the way up. For the initial few meters there are stairs provided, but there onward is a dirt road all the way to the temple. During monsoon the road become slippery with mud all around. Also the steep gradient add to the efforts. For fit individual it should take 20-30 mins to walk all the way to the top. Children and the elderly would find it a bit tasking and should avoid this climb. There is no other alternative available as vehicle are not allowed right to the top. My latest visit was in Jan 2013 and till then, no vehicles were allowed to the top. Better carry water at hand. There are locals selling fresh buttermilk and lemon juice on the way up but not always. During my monsoon visit the place was pretty isolated.
The climb uphill to the temple would be a bit tiring but the first glance of the main entrance should be equally rewarding. This is where you can start counting the statues. The whole temple surrounding is full of these. Also there was work in progress on the adjacent side of the temple with another set of hundreds of statues being mounted there. The main temple is right in the centre and is very calm. Found some village folks meditating in the main hall. Was a very soothing place. On my visit I also found one of the sculptor creating a statue with complete dedciation. I did ask him about the total number and the answer was a staggerring 500+ then. From the top one can get a magnificient view of Panshet Dam . The beautiful surrounding is just mesmerizing. The temple surrounding a very clean mostly because of less number of visitors and I do hope that as the visitors do increase people do keep in mind the beauty and tranquility of this place and keep it as clean and beautiful as it is.

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View from top of Neelkantheshwar shot in Jan 2013:

Some of the click during my visit in June 2012:

Route Map:

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