Dehna – A Bucolic Escape From Mumbai
A village never fails to satisfy your roving soul. Dehna, a small village in the Shahpur district of Maharashtra, is your bucolic escape from Mumbai. And, it’s quite pocket-friendly, too! You may either go to some fancy resort around your city, or you may garner some mellow and meaningful experiences in a village. So, here I bring to you Dehna – a village straight out a ‘R. K. Narayan’ novel. You get to take in the familiar atmosphere of afternoon lulls, unruffled porticoes and unaffected people.
I experienced Dehna with Grassroutes, who’s an eco-tourism company that focuses on promoting rural tourism in India. It’s a great initiative on their part to create employment for rural dwellers by making them open their homes for travelers. As they say, the real India resides in its villages; you should care to explore the rural India to experience it in the most authentic fashion.
When is the good time to visit Dehna?
Dehna is definitely one of the places to visit from Mumbai on a weekend. Of course, it’s quite hot during the summer. Therefore, the ideal time to visit Dehna is during the rains or post rains – September to February. There is no planning required. It’s a three-hour drive from Mumbai. You just have to set out and reach this beautiful village, which is looked after by the domineering Ajoba hills.
Dehna is painted with different colors during different seasons. If you’d want to witness its lush beauty, plan a visit during the monsoons or post-monsoon; if you’d like to see its ‘brown grass’ beauty, which is fascinating, you should plan a trip after October.
I really think that more and more people should visit villages for various reasons. In today’s time and age when travel is so easy and accessible, it’s extremely important that we plan our travels wisely, consciously and responsibly. Thus, rural tourism is a great idea.
Experience Dehna, one of the rural hideaways of Maharashtra
Immerse into the authentic village life
I have experienced rural travel so many times, but Dehna was totally different – it had me stay in a village home, literally. To be honest, the moment I reached Dehna and was ushered towards Dashrath’s home, I had no idea what would unfold. I was welcomed quite warmly by my host Dashrath and his family with a traditional tika followed by tea and biscuits. I was also introduced to my guide Dhananjay, who lived in another home. So, after the initial exchange of pleasantries, I headed to have my breakfast at Dhananjay’s place (I had all my meals at his place).
Also read: Indulge In An Idyllic Farm Life Near Nagpur
Staying in a village home, sleeping on the floor, and watching Television with the kids was the true way of immersing into the ‘village’ life.
Also read: Waking Up In Dilaram Village (Darjeeling)
It was nice to know that they have Anganwadi for the little children, and all the village children go to school, at least till the 8th standard. For higher studies, they have to go to some school or college, which is typically 50-60km away. Apparently, they do not have frequent buses to commute.
Learn about the tribal way of life
Besides the village where I stayed, I got to take a tour of a tribal village called Chinchwadi also. It was interesting to learn about their way of life, which was different from Dehna. While Dehna is quite developed, Chinchwadi is still quite primitive in many ways. The women have a certain way of dressing, the Marathi they speak is also their own, and they primarily depend on fishing and hunting for their food. I also got to see the pig-hunting weapon that they use. I was told that the entire village runs after a pig to hunt it down. And, I got to know about a very unique fishing technique – they make powder of Supli tree leaves and drop it into the river water for the fish to have it and die.
There are a couple of other tribal villages also, namely, Kukrichiwadi and Kamatwadi, which you can visit.
Also read: Get Mesmerized By The Monpas (Arunachal Pradesh)
Savor the mountain landscapes
Being a mountain lover, gazing the mountains was one of my favorite experiences of Dehna. The village overlooks the Ajoba Hills, which look absolutely stunning, especially in the morning glow of sunlight. The landscapes around Dehna look amazing! So yes, the village isn’t just about rustic experiences, but there’s scenic beauty to delight your eyes, too.
Enjoy beautiful sunrises and sunsets
Dehna is a place of beautiful sunrises and sunsets. I think if you miss the first two hours of morning or the last two hours of the evening, you miss ‘Dehna’ altogether. The golden hours are like magic in Dehna. The soft beam of sun in the early morning and towards the evening makes this place awe-inspiring. I made sure to sit at the Grassroutes’ camp site, which has a perfect sunset view, with my tea and snacks. It was lovely to see the village kids on their bicycles making the most of the open fields.
Also read: Pali – A Peaceful Jewel Of Rajasthan
Spend time meditating, reading or just being
Dehna is such a quiet and peaceful place that it will inspire you to spend some quality time with yourself. It will make you introspect and meditate. Life isn’t in a rush the way it is in our cities. It’s your place to just be and do nothing. It can be your reading retreat, too. If you enjoy reading, make sure you bring lots of books along to spend those lazy afternoons constructively.
Go for long walks, enjoy sitting by the riverside
Dhananjay took me to a riverside on my first day in Dehna. It was a beautiful river called Shahi. As we descended towards the river, it was quite a wobbly walk on the pebbles and stones to reach a spot where we could settle down and watch the sun set. So yes, River Shahi is one of the ‘sunset’ spots in Dehna.
The best part about exploring Dehna is that it encourages you to go for strolls of your own. You can hike up to Valmiki Ashram, which is at a certain height. It would take 2 hours or so to reach the top, where you can spend some quiet time in the midst of trees.
Coming back to long walks, I have to say that it’s wise not to get carried away and go astray. I’d suggest that you finish your walk while it’s still day. I ended up walking a little farther than my village vicinity after it had got dark. I did manage to return to the village, but it’s better to avoid such situations.
Also read: Pench, The Perfect Abode For Nature Enthusiasts
Relish meals prepared with organically grown produce
The folks at Dehna are mainly into agriculture. Rice is the main yield, which is why you get to eat a lot of Bhakri (chapatis made of rice flour) and rice, and it’s delicious. They also grow some vegetables. But, they are unable to cultivate much because of lack of water. Apparently, there’s no provision to store rainwater.
The food was simple and nice. The most gracious part was that it’s served with a lot of love. I was fortunate to relish meals prepared by Aayi, the old granny of Dhananjay. It was extremely sweet of her to walk up to me with her bent back every day while I would have my food, just to ask if I liked the taste and flavor of the food. And, it would make her immensely happy to learn that I enjoyed the food. Such hospitality is priceless.
Spend a night under the stars, enjoy stargazing
It was after a long time that I got to see stars in the sky! Stargazing is one of the prime activities of Dehna. People visit Dehna for camping and to spend a night sleeping under the stars. You can stay at Grassroutes’ campsite, which would allow you to have a close rendezvous with the galaxy.
Also read: My ‘Slow Travel’ Indulgences In Bhamaria, Gujarat
Play your part towards controlling over-tourism
I believe vacationing in a village is your contribution towards combatting over-tourism. But, it has to be done cautiously. You have to be a conscious traveler and not harm the natural environment and local way of living of the place. The idea is to soak in the village life, the natural surroundings and the simplicity of the people.
Does the ‘village life’ fascinate you?
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