5 Cheapest Destinations For Backpacking in India

Travel can be expensive but you if you want to backpack without spending much, here are the 5 cheapest destination to backpack in India. These 5 locations offer budget accommodations and the food isn't too expensive either.

5. Hampi



Hampi is an ancient temple town in located in Karnataka. It is a  UNESCO World Heritage Site which has some ruins of palaces, temples and many royal buildings.




4. Gokarna













Gokarna is a small town located on western coast of India in the state of Karnataka. It is one of the seven important Hindu pilgrimage site. Gokarna has beautiful and pristine beaches.

3. Spiti














Surrounded by picturesque Himalayan mountain range, Spiti is a remote valley in Himachal Pradesh. Its a good place for trekking and jeep safaris.

2. Jaisalmer














Jaisalmer lies in the heart of Thar desert,in the state of Rajasthan. Known as the Golden city, it stands on yellowish sandstone and is known for the magnificent forts and jain temples.

1. Dharamsala












Dharamsala is the 2nd capital of Himachal Pradesh. It is the perfect destination for nature lovers and also popular with the adventure lovers.

Dilwale is a blockbuster

The Badshah of Bollywood has a habit of emerging as the victor in all battles and so this time when the B-Town Trade Analysts are labelling his new movie Dilwale as an "above-average" film, the critics have used every word in the dictionary to run-down the film and the Right-wing protestors with all their might have opposed the film, King Khan has defeated his opponents yet again. We do not get the whole idea of a film's success just by comparing the box-office numbers with other films, only the analysis of the numbers can only reveal whether the film is a success or not. Below are a few points which clearly suggest that Dilwale is a blockbuster.

Number of screens:

December 18 saw the mighty clash between Superstar Shah Rukh Khan's Dilwale and Sanjay Leela Bhansali's magnum opus Bajirao Mastani. The first battle and the most important was that of the screens, Dilwale is said to be released in 2200 screens and Bajirao Mastani got 2000 screens. SRK's Red Chillies was distributing a film first time that too against a veteran like Eros, but the most intriguing thing was the distribution of the screens. It was obvious that Dilwale should get more single screens and BM should get more multiplexes but it was the other way round. Eros had signed contracts with single screen owners earlier and so BM got more single screens and Dilwale got more multiplexes. No one understood this masterstroke of Eros till second week when Star Wars released in India. Star Wars clearly had a wider release in multiplexes than single screens which led to more decrease in Dilwale's shows than BM. This move by Eros has had a great contribution to BM's lifetime collection.

The first weekend is the most crucial for any film's business. This year's highest grossing top two films were released in over 4000 screens and did superb business in the first weekend itself. Dilwale which only released 2200 screens on a non-festive weekend managed to earn 65Cr in 3 days. This number is huge if you compare it with Bajrangi Bhaijaan and PRDP's per screen collection. Dilwale also lost heavily because many shows were cancelled in 1st week due to protests. Therefore Dilwale did a phenomenal business in 1st week which is clearly the earliest indicator of a successful film.

Critics:

The world knows about the prejudice that critics have against Rohit Shetty films and as expected most critics gave negative reviews to Dilwale. While the audiences clapped,whistled and screamed at every scene and loved the film, the critics bashed the film in every possible way.

Bajirao Mastani is certainly a good film but critics clearly went overboard in their reviews. It is not that the critics were biased but film reviews are crucial when there is clash and movie goers are in dilemma to chose the film for the weekend. On the longer run it is the word of mouth that counts, Dilwale got a thumbs up from the family audiences because it is total entertainer and BM had the approval of critics. Poor reviews wouldn't normally affect such films but in this case of a clash, Dilwale suffered a dent in its collections.

Protests:

From comparing fan made posters of Dilwale with that of a Hollywood film, circulating fake plot of the movie and finally threats to theatre owners, Dilwale came across all type of hurdles. Over 900 shows were cancelled in the first week(most crucial) due to the protests by Right-wing groups and supporters of a major political party. The film had incomplete release in states of Gujarat, Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh and Karnataka. These centres are most important of any film, so Dilwale suffered loses due to this protests. The protests were so intense that a citizen was threatened with rape and murder as she opposed these protestor in Mangalore who protesting Dilwale. This fear prevented many people from going to the theatres. The most shocking thing was the silence of media and film fraternity on this issue. A censor approved filmed should be allowed to release but the governments did not take strict actions against the protestors. Certainly Dilwale is a huge success because it managed to earn 145Cr(3rd week India net.) inspite of the huge loses in key centres.

Final Verdict:

Despite facing such obstacles Dilwale has earned over 340Cr worldwide. Dilwale has smashed every record in UK, Gulf, Malaysia and USA. The film still hasn't released in some countries which have a considerable Hindi film audience. Dilwale earned USD 22.5 in just 17 days, and soon may break many more records. It already is the fastest 100Cr grossing film overseas. No trade analyst can argue against the fact that Dilwale has done stupendous business overseas.

To summarise, the SRK-Kajol starrer has successfully overcome every obstacle; it is an All Time Blockbuster overseas and a Super Hit in India. Overall Dilwale is worldwide Blockbuster and King Khan is still invincible!

There are two sides to every coin...

"The highest result of education is tolerance."   -Hellen Keller
"A genuine leader is not a searcher for consensus but a moulder of consensus." - Martin Luther King, Jr.


One morning I woke up and following my routine picked up the morning daily, reading that newspaper was an unpleasant jolt. I was shocked to read a news article that was about parents protesting against the fee hike of the S.N.Kansagra School. The next few weeks this new routine continued. Everyday there would be a new article in the newspaper criticising and maligning the school where I had studied for 13 years. I was angry and frustrated, why were some few parents giving my school a bad name. While reading these articles I would always mumble, "If you have a problem with the school or the fees, just change the school, nobody is forcing you to stay in SNK. As simple as that." 

But everything is not that simple. After the continuous vehement protests by the parents I decided that I should also look at the other side of the coin too. I talked with one of the members of the Parents Association. All his arguments were genuine and correct. Although I personally do not support the means of their protests, but in a democratic country like ours, these kind of protests are common against politicians,actors,cricketers and in this case; a school trustee. This is controversy has been frequently discussed on social media but here I try to place both the perspectives together and discuss every argument point by point. Fortunately there are a few points on which everyone seems to agree upon. 

• The quality of education that TGES provides, the facilities,infrastructure,management etc. are absolutely the best in the region. During the last 33 years, TGES has emerged as the number one educational institute. 
• The above comes at a price, again which no one questions.
• Fee hike is inevitable; just like every other commodities and services, a fee hike is bound to happen.
• The implementation of RTE act by TGES is commendable.

If every one agrees upon the above mentioned points, what are the parents protesting about?

The Parents' Association:

• Explain the need to increase the school fees by more than 10%.The school should come up with actual financial statements so that parents are convinced that the fee hike is genuine.
• The school should explain what happens with the impress deposit money of 8000 thousand students. Where is that money used and what happens with yearly interest.

These are just a couple of points raised by the PA. The deadlock between PA and school management has lead to many other issues regarding uniforms, syllabus etc.

If there is an increase of 10,000 in a student's fee, it amounts to a whooping 8 crore if 8000 students are considered. The parents who are also the stakeholders of TGES have every right to know where this money was spent in the past 1 year. The PA claims that over 2000 parents have joined the association. The management can not afford to ignore the 25% parents who have trusted TGES. 

The TGES Management: 

• The management has always maintained that the fee hike is because of the additional expenses in the past few years. A lot of money has been spent for a world class infrastructure for TGES.
• The management decided that parents who are important stakeholders of TGES, should decide how the institution would be managed in future by a simple process of voting.

I haven't seen any other school that has adopted such democratic and transparent process and given all the decision power to the parents. The TGES call centre has been open to solve all queries that parents may have. The management has also communicated the views of the trustees on its website. Over 33 years, the trustees have managed to run the school smoothly and taken education to a next level. 

The Deadlock:

The Parent's Association is not convinced by the fee hike justification by the management. Kiran Bhalodia who is one of the seven trustees has been the face of TGES all these years. Kiran sir has always explained the TGES mission to all the parents. He is not only the trustee but a role model to all the students. Parents have always trusted Kiran sir and therefore the PA wants to talk to Kiran sir rather than the employees of TGES.
The PA decided not take part in voting because it felt that it had no intention of managing the school or changing the way of management. PA only wants the answers to the numerous questions they had raised. While the PA decided to boycott voting, TGES went ahead and announced the entire voting process. PA went to Gandhinagar and after talks with the government, the government decided to stop the voting process. Subsequently TGES announced that the voting process has been stopped after it received notice from DEO. 

While publishing this article, a new circular has come out stating that the fees could be reduced and the uniform issues will also be addressed.

http://www.tges.org/TGESCircular6JuneAnoteonfeesuniforms.pdf

This entire issue became more controversial as the protests of parents were unacknowledged and hence the media became more active which lead to further outrage and support for TGES. The alumni and students supported the management by their posts on internet while the PA went out on streets raising slogans and sticking posters around the town. When people start taking sides, the rift only widens, one of my motive to write this article is to bridge the gap between the two parties. 

The latest circular from TGES which has been mentioned above seems very promising and looks like the issue will be solved quickly and the new academic year 2015-16 will begin as announced.  

Nobody wants this controversy to continue but if still the issue remains unsolved, then the parties would have to solve this matter in court. We all hope that this issue is not dragged to the judiciary but if it is then 'Truth Alone Triumph' . #BeWithTGES or #SupportThePA ........ #SatyamevJayate 

The Importance of Indian Captains in IPL

There is a reason why IPL is spelt with an 'I'. The big stars are roped in, the celebrities make an entry and the cheerleaders try their best to drag our attention away from the action. At its core though, it still is a platform to let local players mingle with the big stars from other countries. India's international commitments have made it impossible for their top players to participate in the Ranji Trophy. The IPL ensures that local players get to share the dressing room with their idols - cricketers whose posters have adorned their walls in their formative years. An Indian captain for each IPL franchise would have been the icing on the cake. That hasn't quite transpired, though.

Rajasthan Royals, because of their lack of resources, handed the reins to Shane Warne, a tactical genius, an astute student of the game and a charmer. Soon, Kings XI Punjab followed suit, handing Kumar Sangakkara the baton, a move that perhaps adversely impacted Yuvraj Singh's returns in the IPL.

IPL 2013 has an interesting mix. Chennai, Rajasthan, Kolkata and Bangalore went for Indian captains. Delhi, Pune, Hyderabad, Mumbai and Punjab went for foreign options. The message was loud and clear from the team owners: local players don't possess the tactical nous and ability of the foreign players. Interestingly, the Indian captains have outperformed their foreign counterparts. Mumbai Indians turned it around midway with Ricky Ponting dropping himself, allowing Rohit Sharma to take over. Coincidentally, the team has responded with three wins in four games. Delhi, Pune and Punjab are languishing on the wrong side of the table. The results perhaps don't say much about the abilities of the respective captains, but there are a few points worth delving into.

One reason why captaincy is an important consideration is the mix of players - four foreigners and seven Indians per XI. Most squads have a huge Indian contingent, so you'd expect communication channels to work far more smoothly with an Indian at the helm. Given the professional grounding that the foreign players already have, they would find it easier to work with an Indian captain compared to local players having to deal with foreign captains. Players will always respond better to a captain who can pronounce their names perfectly, no offence given or taken.

All the teams have huge contingents for man management and planning. In such a scenario, the captain's job doesn't really imitate the pressure-cooker situation of international cricket. The IPL is a great opportunity to groom leaders, and a wonderful testing ground of their maturity. Bangalore did that by handing Virat Kohli the captaincy, instead of taking the easier option of going with AB de Villiers. Perhaps, a lesson was learnt when Anil Kumble swung their fortunes around after a disastrous start to the 2009 campaign under Kevin Pietersen. Kohli commands the respect of his team on the strength of his batting and fielding. What he lacks in experience, he makes up in flair and passion. De Villiers and Chris Gayle aren't too far for a quick word either. Surely in years to come, the heir-apparent to Indian captaincy will ruminate upon the lessons learnt in the IPL.

Mumbai took a bold step with Rohit at a crucial juncture and it seems to have paid off. Had Ponting been more successful with the bat, we wouldn't have seen Rohit in this role. Mumbai have got into a winning run under him, and Rohit's batting has also blossomed.

With Shikhar Dhawan back from injury, perhaps the Sunrisers should've considered him as a captain. Neither Cameron White nor Kumar Sangakkara has consistently figured in the playing XI. With Angelo Matthews standing down as Pune captain, it might be a good idea to give Yuvraj another run to see if he can rediscover his batting touch. Of all the teams, Delhi is the only one that probably has no choice, Virender Sehwag being reluctant to lead.

The IPL is at an interesting point in its evolution. The third auction will initiate a new round of shuffling, with players changing colours and loyalties. What the IPL has lacked so far is the long-term fan loyalty that is seen in football. Chennai and Mumbai have the most loyal fan following - helped by the fact that they retained more players than any of the other franchises in the first reshuffle. Perhaps there's a message there for the other franchises.

An Indian captain will find it easier to get the best out of the Indian contingent, and will also get the crowds going. Additionally, he will definitely fuel fan loyalty. Even if one wants to be a die-hard fan of the Delhi, for example, it is hard to not support RCB led by a Delhi lad when pitted against Jayawardene's Daredevils.Krish Sripada, India

Why the IPL can't be much more than a launch pad?

In recent days I have had the opportunity to watch Ashish Reddy, Hanuma Vihari, Manan Vohra, Rahul Shukla and some others whose existence television only sporadically acknowledges. If you've looked at scorecards of domestic cricket, you know the names, but you probably only know them merely by the numbers they generate. The IPL allows you to see them, it gives them a platform, and that is one of the reasons I look forward to it every year.

A couple of years ago Saurabh Tiwary told me that he scored a lot of runs for Jharkhand but nobody knew him. He made a couple of thirties for Mumbai Indians and suddenly he was being talked about. It put him in the Indian squad and in the IPL auction. He may have had a financial windfall but it didn't do too much for his future in Indian cricket; he remains, at best, a fringe player. At least at this stage. It tells you a bit about the IPL.

What the tournament does give you, and give you better than anything else in international cricket at the moment, is a stage and an opportunity. It doesn't give you too much more, but if you are a young man, you should be willing to give anything for that much. Some take the opportunity, others don't. Some believe the opportunity is the pinnacle of all they ever wanted to do, others think it is the beginning of life in another world. But it doesn't guarantee you anything, often not even a spot in the Ranji Trophy, as Paul Valthaty and Manvinder Bisla discovered. And as Tiwary now knows, the reputation you acquire in the IPL doesn't count for too much in the Ranji Trophy either.

And an IPL match is like an episode in a long-running soap. You don't want to miss the action as it unfolds, but people remember only bits and pieces thereafter. You can therefore trend on Twitter for a day, maybe be talked about for another week, but that is it. Arun Karthik knows it well. A six off the last ball for the Royal Challengers in the Champions League made him an overnight hero but that was it. It isn't like being in a feature film, where a blockbuster performance is remembered for years - that is the equivalent of a Test hundred.

The reason I am saying this is that people either give the IPL way too much importance or seek to get noticed by trying to knock it off its pedestal. Neither is right. The IPL is not a certificate of performance in other forms of cricket. We saw that with Swapnil Asnodkar, with Valthaty, with Manpreet Singh Gony, with Siddharth Trivedi. It is merely an opportunity that you have to take again and again. It doesn't make you a good first-class cricketer - that is a different game. It makes people look out for you, but that is about the only advantage, even if a significant one.

It helped cricketers liked R Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja, because they used the stage to draw attention towards themselves. They didn't make it in first-class cricket, and thereafter in Test cricket, because they were good in the IPL. They did it because they bowled hundreds of overs when very few people were watching, and perfected their craft. They became ready elsewhere and used the IPL as an opportunity to announce themselves to the world.

That is how I believe the IPL must be seen. As an event that celebrates a specific ability and at a specific moment in time. People who cannot, or are unwilling to, put in the hard yards in four-day or five-day cricket remain IPL specialists. This isn't only true of those like Mayank Agarwal or Bisla but of others like Tirumalasetti Suman, and for that matter, Munaf Patel.

As the IPL gets a greater share of national sporting attention, and as sponsors eye the various price points available to them to claim association, I hope young players don't look at it as the only cricket in their lives. They could do that if, like European football leagues, the IPL ran for six months. But it doesn't and so I hope they use it to draw attention to their skills. If they play four-day cricket, I believe they will extend their T20 career. If the shortest form is all they play, it could lead to a short career.

-Harsha Bhogle for ESPN

Mr Cricket-N Srinivasan

Well,I'm not talking about MSD, Mr.Cricket here is referred to Narayanswami Srinivasan, the President of the BCCI(Board of Control for Cricket in India), and also the owner of India Cements which owns the most successful team in IPL.After Srini was appointed the President,Within seven months, the BCCI constitution was amended to change the clause that had stipulated that no administration or member should have any commercial activities of the board..Chennai Super Kings has performed exceptionally well in the past tournaments, 4 of India's National team also represent CSK.The captain of the indian team is the vice president of india cements. The owner of CSK and the President of BCCI is the same person,this makes the scenario smell fishy.

Tamil Nadu Government has banned SriLankan cricketers in Chennai.So instead of moving home games away from Chennai, no SL player will play in Chennai.Chennai have just two SL players who are not their lead players, but for other teams SL Players are very important.
No Malinga vs MI, No Mahela vs DD, No Dilshan vs RCB, chennai will have pretty easy home games.This decision will affect other franchises more than Csk.Let us not forget, the actual problem is of CSK but other teams will suffer. This is pure injustice and maybe it is the Srinivasan effect?

Chennai Super Kings out of IPL 6 ?

The most successful team of the Indian Premier League - Chennai Super Kings has many Srilankan cricketers(Nuwan Kulasekra,Akila Danajaya) and the other teams too have Srilankans in their sqauds.The inhuman treatment to Tamils in Sri Lanka has caused great protests in Tamil Nadu agaisnt Sri Lanka.The DMK MPs have resigned from the UPA Government.The protesters are wanting to stop the entry of SriLankans in Chennai and have asked the BCCI to prevent the entry of Srilankas in Chennai or the CSK's home matches could turn violent.BCCI is thinking to change the venue from Chennai to Ahmadabad and Rajkot.But the insiders say that the CSK team is reluctant to change its home ground.If there is deadlock between CSK and BCCI, we may not see Dhoni and his Boys on the field, which is very unlikely because President of BCCI is the owner of CSK.There has already been the controversy between Rajasthan Royals and The Rajasthan Cricket Association, and other controversy regarding the name of the Pune Stadium. IPL6 is controversial even before its grand start on 3rd April at Kolkata.