Flora & Fauna ~ Shantiniketan

Living in a mega city, makes you forget the touch of nature... unless you have a garden in your house..

Which is an immposibility, unless you are stinking rich..!!!
All the beautiful 'bagan-baris' with greenary all around are just vanishing....
Some due to the fact that people simply dont have the resourses to maintain such big properties...
Some due to the greed of the 'land sharks' who dangle the carrot of a huge amount of money infront of the owners...
The swiftly changing skyline of Kolkata is playing havoc to the environment...
As the hig-rises apire to meet the sky... the vast, green, fertile cultivable lands vanish...
The trees which provided shade to the weary travellers... home to the birds are felled...
We dont see birds... butterflies...
Our only glimpse of flowers is when we go to a flower shop to buy a bouquet....!!!!
Sad.... But true...

That is why... my trip to Shantiniketan was very rewarding... I lived in the lap of nature... away from the hustle-bustle of a city life.... far from the maddning, cacophonic, existence... I was quite overwhelmed at the profuse riot of colours that welcomed my advent...







Rudra Palash...
Being extremely partial to the colour RED... the bright crimson hue captured my senses...

Hibiscus...
The delicate frilly petals look lovely....

Wild Flowers...
The wild red profusion formed a lacey border

Purple Joy Dahlia...
The pinkish -purple gaint with the yellow centre

Bleeding Heart...
This small delicte concocsion is a perfect creation....

Found this cluster of beauties climbing a broken wall....

Butterfly & the bristles

Rose Bridal Pink...
Utterly girlishly romantic...

Marigold...

Duel toned Dahlia...
Reminded me of the story Snow-white & Rose-red

Dahlia Apricot...

Orange Flames...
I dont know wht flower this was but I liked the bright colour...

Karma Choc Dahlia...

A stripped butterfly...

Carolina Wagemans Dahlia...
Peaches n cream

Checkers Dahlia...
A white tipped Gaint

White & red flowers make a nice picture...

Bonfire Salvia..
Indeed a very firey colour..

Dandelion...

Tiny Blue flowers...

Red Gerbera...
Bold & beautiful

Crysanthimum...

Soft & romantic

Impatiens...
A glorious fusion

A spotted butterfly on cosmos

Pink Whorls...

White edged purple whorls..

Kenora Valentine Dahlia...

Peachish red Gaint

Carmine Gladiolus...

Orange beaked Gladiolus...

Yellow Gladiolus...

A Sweetheart...

Chitals @ deer Park, Ballavpur

Coleus Kong...
Sunlight on leaves

Coleus Kong...
These colours are synonimus with the Football Gaint, Mohan Bagan.

Coleus Kong...

The dotted outlines reminded me of a painting, by Rembrandt Van Rijn that I saw at Rex Museum years back....

Coleus Kong...
Colourful leaves.

Night Dream Dahlia...
A brilliant pink Gaint

Palash...

These delicate red flowers, herald the advent of Spring

A flower that looks like a corn ...

Sunlight filtering through the trees...

A barren tree trunk

Cosmos...
Orange butterfly on a cosmos

Daisy Rudbeckia/Black-Eyed Susan..
The flower, looks glorious even as its days end.

The VIBGYOR-ish hue of God's own creation... touching all the colours of the rainbow, made me feel happy & satisfied that I took this break... thanks to my dearest friend Pragy......