Chilling in Kasauli

D id you visit Kasauli for one of those long weekends this summer? According to the locals, at least 500 cars went to Kasauli during the weekend ending August 15 and people had to sleep in their cars because there weren't enough rooms for everybody.

Some tourists would have found this exciting, others disappointing, but the trend is certainly disturbing for the locals who value their peace.

"Let the pristine beauty of Kasauli remain unruffled," says a retired army official who chose to settle in Kasauli 15 years ago. He has a point. This little place does not even have the typical features of a weekend getaway"" fast food joints, a lake, pony rides or candyfloss shops.

The residents feel Kasauli can't sustain a huge influx of tourists and most of them are not even interested in turning their property into profit-making making motels. Besides, local laws and the fact that Kasuali is a cantonment make sure that it does not get overcrowded.

Yet what drives people to go to Kasauli these days is its proximity to Chandigarh (only 65 km) and that it is being talked about in movies like Maya Memsaab and Koi Mil Gaya "" although while Maya Memsaab was genuinely shot in Kasauli (or parts of it) Koi Mil Gaya's so-called Kasauli is somewhere in Canada and western Europe.

The real Kasauli is very basic. The four shops "" a studio, a provision store, a clothes and accessories shop and a fruit and vegetable shop "" more or less take care of the needs of all the locals.

Once famous for its sanatorium to treat tuberculosis patients, and a hideout for writers, actors and creative people, there has been an element of tranquillity associated with the city, and it can be disappointing as a weekend getaway.

"I have heard so many people say there is nothing to see in Kasauli. I have seen Kasauli like this for the last 40 years and will hate it if it becomes commercialised," says a senior executive with a multinational company, who works in Delhi but runs to Kasauli the first opportunity she gets. She has a family home there.

Some, like 70-something MP Jain, who has been running J Jakki Mull & Co since the 1930s, miss the dense snowfall that Kasuali used to get.

"These days it snows only during December and January, thanks to vehicular traffic in the cantonment area and because of tourists. Earlier, it snowed for much longer."

He started as a contractor of khakhis to British soldiers, and later got into fancy clothes and accessories. "Most of us are happy the way we are," says his neighbour who runs a store that supplies provisions to a whole lot of Kasauliites.

So what keeps the citizens so happy? "Breathtaking scenic beauty, quietness and camaraderie," says Jain. One government and one convent school, a hospital, a church and a few temples are enough to take care of other needs.

The compact nature of the city also helps concretise initiatives taken by local bodies. For instance, while Delhi has only just been coming out with laws against use of plastic bags, Kasauli has already implemented them.

And creative people like Ketan Mehta, Madhoor Kapur and Khushwant Singh finish their incomplete projects there. Actor Rahul Bose says, "Whenever I am in Delhi and am able to snatch some time, I go to Kasauli. It's one place I can call home." His father has a house there.

Although modern hotels like the Kasauli Resort and the Baikunth Resort have come up, they also will enchant those who love nature. The Baikunth Resort, which is five km away from Kasauli, has essentially retained that ambience.

So what does one look for in Kasauli? Simply, long walks, a morning breeze and quiet evenings.