Lure of Bhadraj

The Battle of Mahabharata was about to begin. The antagonists, Kauravas and Pandavas, were leaving no stone unturned to enlist the support of mighty warriors of that time and their kingdoms. The Mahabharata was billed as a war of Dharma versus Adharma. Lord Krishna had chosen to side with the Pandavas to establish Dharma on this Earth. Everyone was looking at Lord Balram, wondering which side he would join. Duryodhana of the Kuru clan and Bhima of the Pandava clan were disciples of Balram, who held them in great esteem. Both had learned the art of warfare, especially mace fighting, from Balram. Mace is also known as Gada. Bhima and Duryodhana approached Balram at the same time and touched the feet of their Guru in reverence.

Balram was known for his fiery temper. Both pleaded with Balram to join their side in the war. He looked at both with disgust and said, "You two want me to join an unholy war where brothers would fight brothers for the sake of a kingdom?" "No," he said, "I will not take part in this war. I have decided to stay neutral." With these words, he left both Bhima and Duryodhana in disgust and stormed off towards Bhadraj Hill, near west of Mussoorie. He found the place perfect for penance and settled there for meditation.

The Bhadraj Temple is dedicated to Lord Bal Bhadra (also known as Balram), brother of Sri Krishna. Bhadraj Temple is situated at the hilltop at a height of about 7500 feet. Every year, the Bhadraj Temple Fair or Bhadraj Mela is held during mid-August at the peak of Bhadraj hills. One can experience jaw-dropping views, amazing trails, awesome weather, and, obviously, the fair which has small stalls selling different things. I visited Bhadraj Temple and Dhudali village, along with my entire family, in the second week of June 2025. Before this visit, I had never even heard of either Bhadraj Temple or Dhudali village. There are just two Balram temples in India.

The other one is in Vrindavan, Krishna’s Nagri. Perhaps I think we were destined to visit Bhadraj Hill and pay our obeisance to the elder brother of Krishna, whom he always referred to as Dau. In Hindi, 'dau' means elder brother.

Let me narrate the sequence of events from the beginning. My son, Dr. Ankur Segon, who is settled in America, visits us every year for about a fortnight. We always book accommodation, mostly in the hills, where the entire family meets. This time, we zeroed in on Landour and Mussoorie. We booked La Villa Bethany, a 100-year-old British property in Landour, for four days, and in Mussoorie, Hotel Lemon Tree for another four days. We first checked in at La Villa Bethany and fell in love with it at first sight.

We had booked an entire floor as we were six people: myself, my wife Uma, daughter Shafina, son Ankur, and our two grandsons, Rishabh and Rohan. As we walked up the stairs, there was a sunroom, made of glass, with spectacular views of the hills and vibrant fauna and flora. It was full of plants with colourful flowers and leaves of various hues. There were three bedrooms, a drawing room, and a living room with an attached balcony. This property belongs to Sunita and Amarjeet Kuldey.

Next morning, Sunita met us at the breakfast table, shook hands with me, and said, "Segon Sahib, you could finally make it to La Bethany after six years." "Yes, it is like a dream fulfilled," was my reply. I had booked La Villa Bethany at that time. But then, the deadly Covid pandemic struck. I was one of its victims and was hospitalised. I had to cancel this booking. I told Sunita that my son is fascinated by this place and asked, "Could we extend this booking for another four days?" Sunita deliberated for a while and said, "Look, this property is fully booked. But there is another property coming up 15 kilometres away from this place. Its inauguration is scheduled for October this year. But if you were interested, I could accommodate you there." T

he name of the property is ‘Cedar Breeze Villas,’ and its location is Dhudali, west of Mussoorie. We looked at each other and were not sure whether to say yes or no. Sunita saw a look of uncertainty on our faces and said, "Believe me, if you liked Bethany, you are sure to fall in love with Cedar Breeze. Okay, I will offer you a four-bedroom villa there at the same price I gave you a three-bedroom villa here." We grabbed the offer, booked Cedar Breeze, and cancelled Lemon Tree at Mussoorie.

This is when Sunita told us the story of Bhadraj Temple and Dhudali Gaon. Lord Balram belonged to the Yadava clan, who were basically cowherds. Dhudali is a village of cowherds who supply milk to Mussoorie every morning. This is how the village got the name Dhudali. The route from Dhudali to Mussoorie has been named ‘Milkman’s Trail.’ How interesting!

There are multiple trails around this village and several camping grounds and adventure sports parks for mountain lovers. The most famous among them all is the Bhadraj Hill trek. It is a modest, well-balanced trek for beginners. One of the best weekend treks in Mussoorie, it can be completed in one or two days. All along the ridge, Gangetic plains slope down on either side, while Himalayan ranges sit snug in the distance. Believe me, nothing can match that wonderful feeling of trekking in the hills, more so, at the foothills of the Himalayas.

Trekking on the outskirts of Mussoorie through luscious oak forests, with mild sunshine and a pleasant breeze is every bit as romantic as it sounds. It is pure magic. Throughout the trail, mountain ranges lie calmly around you – prominent in the forefront and fading into a blue-grey haze towards the horizon. The 15-kilometre long Bhadraj Hill trek begins from the Library end in Mussoorie. It is a five-and-a-half-kilometre trek up to Cloud End Resort and another seven and a half kilometres from there up to Bhadraj Temple.

We had a lovely stay at Dhudali. We were a party of eight people now as our daughter-in-law, Dr. Yogita, also joined us. Sunita Kudle was right. Cedar Breeze has everything a visitor to the hills desires. One gesture of Sunita really touched my heart. La Villa Bethany has a good library. She asked me what I was doing these days, and my answer was, "Most of my time goes into writing short stories. I have written three books, and a fourth one is in the pipeline." She asked me if I would like to have my books in her library. My answer was, "Why not!" I ordered my three books titled, Treasures of My Heart, My Karmic Soul Connection, and Sunheri Yadein through Amazon online. By the time the books arrived, we had moved to Cedar Breeze Villas. One fine evening, Sunita arrived there carrying my three books. She got them autographed by me and said with a smile, "Now your books are ready to be part of my library."

Landour has always been close to my heart. When my wife and I visited Landour eight years ago, it was an oasis of peace. But now, it was bursting at the seams with the peak summer rush in June. Earlier, parking of four-wheelers was not allowed in Landour, except the parking area near Char Dukaan. The local municipal board has committed the sin of allowing parking of four-wheelers all around Gol Chakkar, the circular path starting from Char Dukaan towards Lal Tibba and again from Lal Tibba up to Languages School. All the walking space in Landour is now a parking area.

Sure, the municipal board will make a lot of money, but in the bargain, Landour has lost its charm. On the circular path of Landour, a board hanging on a tree ironically announces: ‘If we liked noise we wouldn’t live here, if you like noise you shouldn’t be here.’ But, sadly, that was the past.

A joke doing the rounds among locals is that Landour has a new temple. Its name is Landour Bake House in Sister’s Bazaar, and tourists start queuing up before it since morning. The confectionery selection at Landour Bakehouse is fantastic. From buttery croissants to rich cakes, cookies, cinnamon rolls, and pastries, everything is baked to perfection with a homemade touch. The aroma of freshly baked goods fills the air, creating an inviting and mouthwatering experience.

Our grandchildren, Rishabh and Rohan, had a great time in Landour. Grandma would slip money into their pockets, and they would make a beeline either for the Bake House or Char Dukaan. They always came back happy. Both know English only, and how they managed to communicate with shopkeepers is a mystery. Once, they even managed to get a 20 percent discount on their food bill.

Landour, just four kilometres away from Mussoorie, is situated at a height of about 7770 feet. It has a unique identity of its own. Landour is perhaps one of the tiniest mountain getaways in India. There are just 24 houses and four shops here. As someone rightly put it, 'Choubis Makaan aur Char Dukaan - Itna hi hai Landour.' And here's something remarkable: There hasn't been any chopping of trees or clearing of forests here for the past hundred years.

Landour has always been a part of the military area, and a rule from 1924 said all the trees and plants there belonged to the military.

About 1200 people live in this local area. No new buildings are allowed. There aren't many hotels or guesthouses in Landour, a charming small place. It's only 4 kilometres away from Mussoorie, known as the "Queen of Hill Stations." But Mussoorie has changed a lot. It's become too busy, crowded, and full of traffic. It used to be a beautiful old place, but now it's all about business. The trees are gone, and the traffic is a mess.

If you go to Landour in winter and luck is with you, you might see something amazing: the Winter Line. This special natural event only happens in two places globally. The other place is Switzerland. The Winter Line is a rare thing that happens in the sky when warm air gets trapped under cold air. We were unable to witness this phenomenon during our visit. The whole western sky turns yellow, red, and purple.

Landour offers stunning views of the Garhwal Himalayas that you can see up to 200 kilometres away on a clear day. You'll be able to spot peaks like Yamunotri, Gangotri, Kedarnath, Badrinath, and even Nanda Devi. Tibet is relatively close, about 110 kilometres away in a straight line.

The variety of birds you can see here is amazing. More than 350 kinds of birds can be spotted at different heights throughout the year. Some of these birds are special to this area, while others come from places like Tibet, Siberia, and Central Asia.

Let us hope and pray that good sense will prevail and the order allowing parking of vehicles on the circular road will be withdrawn. Landour, once again, will be a piece of little heaven on this Earth.