Kaner Retreat - An ode to a childhood spent in the Thar desert

 

I spent my childhood on a small farm in the Thar desert.

It is not easy for things to grow and blossom in the desert.  

You have to wait for everything in the desert. Tiny seeds stay dormant for most of the year, waiting for the perfect day to break into roots and shoots. A small shrub may take 20 years to become a tree. Flowers blossom once a year. 

 

And, the longest wait is for “Meh’ or the monsoon. 

It is the reason why peacocks dance, women sing songs on the swings, and saffron and cardamom infused delicacies are created to celebrate the arrival of the monsoon or “Sawan”. The air gets heavy with the smell of Petrichor and everyone seems to be dancing on the short-lived verdant carpet of grass. 

 

My life back then was connected with the plants, animals and the culture. The folk music and the language weaved it all into words to be etched in my mind forever.

 

Then I moved away, first to Delhi and then to London covering stories as an international journalist. It was like a plant of the desert was planted into different habitats, and on some days I yearned for the days of my childhood. Those carefree, delicious days when one was drunk on joy and laughter. 

 

With Kaner, I want to retrace my childhood days and make the guests experience the beautiful life and heart warming hospitality of the Thar desert. There are desert plants to welcome you. Your big villa has a courtyard garden filled with scented flowers. Each villa showcases the best of commissioned botanical art. The plant-based cuisine digs deep into the local and contemporary cuisine.

There are activities and experiences to introduce you to the culture of the place that I call home.

 

Please do join me on this journey and allow me to end with the cliché “ Padharo, mhare desh” (Welcome to my land)

 

Sapna Bhatia