My pictures with their little stories

Life in Darjeeling as seen from Darjeeling Himalayan Railway - 1 They may have seen this train pass by a thousand times, but each passage of the train is worth looking it. Their dog is no exception.  ( shot from Darjeeling Himalayan Railway , Darjeeling , 2017 ) See more pictures from this series

Romance of Steam Steam, smoke and sound - together they make a heady cocktail. From my childhood, I have looked with great admiration every loco driver that came by. Steam locos have had a special place. These drivers have been my heroes. Would never miss an opportunity to chat up with this special tribe.  (Coonoor, 2007)  ‪

Nilgiri Mountain Railway with steam locomotive Some amount of walking around and climbing gives you the vantage points you have been looking for. The steam locomotive puffing with full force on the gradient on this lovely route of Nilgiri Mountain Railway that passes through dense forest and the Nilgiri mountains . At a spot like this, it is all very quiet and the sound of approaching steam engine gets you in a state of high alert and excitement no less than what was felt by the brother-sister duo in the film Pather Panchali by Satyajit Ray , when they heard the whistle of the steam locomotive from a distance and ran through the fields to catch a glimpse of the approaching beauty - one of the most enchanting cinematographic sequences ever filmed. (somewhere near Lovedale , 2007) Here is my blog post on Nilgiri Mountain Railway

Black Beauty up close The X class steam locomotives that power trains between the stretch of Coonoor to Mettupalayam of Nilgiri Mountain Railway are wonderful machines which are kept running by equally wonderful technicians of Indian Railways who work diligently at the steam loco workshop at Coonoor. Unlike the Light and Sound shows at various archaeological sites, watching these beauties is a Sight and Sound show. Mechanical engineering at its best ! Any youngster who watches these Swiss origin machines up close is bound to be inspired to be a fine mechanical engineer or a technician. (2007)                        Here is my blog post on Nilgiri Mountain Railway

The Man and The Machine It is the love, care and dedication of the technicians at the steam loco workshop at Coonoor that has kept these beautiful X class vintage steam locomotives running on the Nilgiri Mountain Railway . Whoever I spoke to at this workshop - the technicians as well as the engine drivers, they were all proud of the fact nowhere in the world you can find such relics from the past up and running. (2007) Here is my blog post on Nilgiri Mountain Railway

Steam locomotive at Coonoor Loco Workshop I spent several hours on the Nilgiri Mountain Railway. While everything about this route is romantic, nothing beats the raw steam power of the vintage steam locomotives still in operation.  The loco workshop at Coonoor must be having a bunch of passionate magicians who keep very old steam locomotives up and running.                     Here is my blog post on Nilgiri Mountain Railway