Eclipsed Bangalore

i read how Thomas Friedman - the author of Hot, Flat and Crowded found a scene of an inaugural puja done for a flyover in Hyderabad, somewhat amazing.
his amazement was due to the fact that modernity and tradition co-existed without being felt as contradictions.

that is not only in hyderabad.
bangalore, for all the modernity and influence of foreign cultures - thanks to the IT boom - still has not forgotten old convictions.

i see this every time during an eclipse.
Bangaloreans love food. even on days of bandhs, the first establishments to open and do near normal business soon after.

but, eclipse days are different. not only are the food spots empty, so are the streets.
the fear of being exposed to harmful rays keeps people indoors.

the scenes on the 'mini forest' stretch, which is packed on other days, with morning walkers looked like this:

the stretch inside one of the segments that has many walkers looked like this.

the laughter club, very active and very regular also like this:

just reinforces the byline of an old documentary that India is a place where centuries co-exist!