Frying Pan or Fire?

We have made the move. Out of the campsite and into the wilderness.

Wilderness in the desert = ONE tree

Although, to be specific, we’re nowhere at the moment. We were at the venue for breakfast. Then I had to head back to the campsite because all the laptops at the venue were dead. By lunch, there was a power outage at the campsite. Back to the venue.

Now we’re back at the campsite again to charge our laptops. We’ve given up our tents, though. Our bags are in the Rabbit. We’re at least seventeen of us. There are twelve mattresses. We’ll be dining at the venue. And we’ll be sleeping in the open. That’s as far as I know.

Oh, and loos will be installed at the venue only by tomorrow afternoon.

Fun!

Level III

It is a staircase.

It is a slow and gradual climb. We are nearing level III.

Our ascent began the day the crew arrived. We were in a hotel in Jaisalmer, five minutes from the fort. It was a time of utter chaos. Even the festival venue changed. Nonetheless, the boys did get a lot of paperwork and permissions sorted. That was Level I. Ground floor.

We then climbed higher and moved closer to the venue. At a camp site south of Kanoi. Things got going. Master, Musician, Bumblebee and Bladerunner went on a famous killing spree. Batman too joined the party. The venue was tailored clean for the design team to later add elements. That was Level II.

We now depart for the toughest climb. On site. To our new home, the desert. The business end of the festival awaits with an evil grin on its face. In a few days, there will be another 90 of us working their asses off to get this bitch ready. God only knows what will become of it.

It is a staircase. This is Level III. I call it Pandemonium.

Shifting Stages

“Every time both of them start walking, I get scared,” says Grand Meister. “They’ll come back and say they now want that dune – all the way over there.”

“Sure, sure,” says Deputy H. “Then that dune. And then those trees. We’ll put up a stage on the Pakistan border also.”

Grand Meister laughs. “And we’ll put giant alphabets spelling Ragasthan on those windmills.”

We have been scurrying over the dunes like beetles in heat. It’s been a couple of hours already and the sun is taking a dive. We sit down for a break as well.

Batman and Kaptaan were right here. We were discussing how this dune could be used. Batman asked what this slope could be called. Then they were down the slope and suddenly they were a couple hundred feet away. Five more minutes and they were specks on the horizon.

"Look," says Sheriff. "Vasco da Gama and Columbus."

Vasco da Gama and Columbus have gone looking for Ujalo, the film tent.

What part of 'Get Up And Go' did you not understand?

We’ve been through this quest before. Yesterday, Kaptaan led us into the dunes at around the same time. “Let’s go find Ammara,” he had said. And we had followed like thirsty travellers looking for an oasis.

But locations have still not been marked on the dunes. There’s too much to take into account.

You need enough space between stages so that sound doesn’t travel between them. But even small distances grow larger on the undulating dunes. There’s going to be a lot of walking required.

Toilets need to be placed close enough to the bars and stages on the dunes. But toilets can only be built on solid ground. There’s some solid ground in patches within the dunes. But how do you get water to them?

More maps are scribbled on sand. The Morio stage is now trading places with Olun. Again. Ammara is locked. Batman and Kaptaan return to tell us that Udham and Ujalo have been found.

“And we’re thinking of putting giant alphabets on the windmills,” says Deputy H.

“Hmm,” says Batman and turns eager eyes to the horizon.

“What? No, no,” he sputters. “We’re just joking!”

Madcap Chatter

We have had a day of startling conversations. Here's a few.

1745 hours

On site

Deputy N and Deputy R

What are you doing, dude? You look retarded.

What? It's impossible for me to not play with sand when I am having a sit down. I can't help it, ok.

You can totally help it, OK. Stop having a sit down. That's how.

0110 hours
Tent 04

Back and Batman

Do you even realise how far you've spread out now? People are going to get lost in this vastness.

Well, maybe.

Doesn't that concern you at all? 

It does. But you know what? The kind of vibe that we have, Back, I don't think anybody would mind getting lost. It can be fun too, you know.

0415 hours

Tent 04

Batman and Back

What time is it?

Time for you to go to sleep, dude. Tomorrow will be a long day.

We've got 12 days to do what we need at least 45 for. Trust me, I need every day to be long.

1040 hours

Staff Camp

Sheriff and Deputy V

Which way is Olun facing? Towards the rising sun?

I don't know. I'll have to check.

Which way is Morio facing?

I don't know. I'll have to check.

What? Haven't you been marking everything?

Just the pathways. I am awaiting instructions for the rest. Don't even get me started on how confused I am.

1215 hours

On site

Kaptaan and Deputy V

The pathway has gone wakda, bro. Look at it.

It's the desert. Everything is wakda, no?

Arrey! How are people going to walk like that?

Wakda!

This was fun. I can't wait to do more. 

Meanwhile, Batman and Kaptaan take another walk.

They need to plot each section to absolute perfection, all within the next seven days. Thereafter, the design teams would take over.

Seven days. That's all.

Let's make the best of it.

Last Supper

“This morning, we left at six,” says Deputy S. First it was only him and Deputy V. As they were leaving, Deputy N woke up.

‘Kahaan jaa raha hai?’
‘Site.’
‘Abhi?’

The first tractors arrive at 6:30. Kaptaan needs two deputies to direct them.

‘Wait, I’ll wash my face and join you.’
And then Deputy R was up. ‘I’m coming too.’

The team has been on a mission.

Mission: Demolition

Kaptaan took us on a hike to the centre of the site today. He pointed to faraway landmarks. “See that tree? Those two trees out there? That’s where the Swiss Tents will be.” Hidden away in a colony all their own. Some areas will be tucked away within the dunes. Activities in the centre. Restaurants a couple of hundred metres from there. Hot-air balloon way out there on the other side. So on.

Kaptaan described it all like it will be. All I saw were chalk boxes in lonely clusters on a vast flatland stretching to the dunes.

The plot is now so clean that you have an unobstructed view from one corner to the other. But it is so enormous that you would barely make out what’s out there.

The sheer scale of this setup terrifies me.

Invisible tents. Book now!

At night, Deputy V is wiping his plate clean with rotis, chicken, rice, dal, bread, omelette and churma. “Aaj toh kapde-phaad kaam kiya.”

It’s just the deputies with us at dinner. Kaptaan and Sheriff are spending the night at the site. The first crew tents have come up today. We might be moving there tomorrow.

If so, this is our last supper here.

“Aaj kapde-phaad, aur kal tha palank-tod,” says Deputy N. True story. The bed in their tent broke down the middle last night. There’s no clear answer why.

Perhaps it’s just as well that we’re moving out.

Ragasthan Express 2013

'Next year, I am gonna have a god damn train running to Jaisalmer. From Bangalore perhaps. Via Goa, Pune, Bombay, Baroda, Ahmedabad, Jodhpur and Bikaner. Just for Ragasthan. I might even have one from Delhi. The more the merrier. I want to make the journey to the festival as exciting as the festival itself'.

More than a thousand people travelling to the festival in a train exclusive to them! Sounds sweet.

I gather that the hassles and opportunities of today haven't stopped Batman from looking at the future.

The wasp strikes Back

Back finds a wasp in our tent. It looks mean and intense. He screams like a girl and runs out to the porch. He even warns me against staying in. I don't pay heed. That thing has been here a few days now. It just flies around and makes terrifying sounds. I think I can deal with that.

Back comes back only after dark. He now finds a wasp's nest right under his bed.
He almost shits his pants.