Cherrapunji

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم

الْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ رَبِّ الْعَالَمِينَ

"Reciting Salawath on our Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) is an activity that will be accepted by Allah, even if we don't have Ikhlas (piety)".

Cherrapunji is a town in East Khasi Hills district in the Indian state of Meghalaya. It is credited as being the wettest place on earth.

The original name for this town was Sohra, pronounced as "Churra" by the British before morphing into the present one. Ironically, despite perennial rain, Cherrapunji faces acute water shortage and the inhabitants often have to trek for miles to obtain potable water. Irrigation is also hampered due to excessive rain washing away the top soil as a result of human encroachment in the forests. Now the Meghalaya State government has decided to rename Cherrapunjee to its local name "Sohra".

Geography

Cherrapunji is located at 25.30° N 91.70° E. It has an average elevation of 1484 metres (4872 feet).

In Monsunasien, Cherrapunji

Map showing greatest Rainfall

Cherrapunji sits on the southern tip of a plateau that looms over Bangladesh. The cliffs of Cherrapunji are the first place hit by moisture that forms over the Bay of Bengal. All the rain lands on arid, deforested, ground. As there is no reservoir to store the rain water, it rapidly runs down the hill towards the plains of Bangladesh.

Climate

Cherrapunji's yearly rainfall average stands at 11,430 mm (450 in). This figure places it behind only nearby Mawsynram, Meghalaya, whose average is 11,873 mm (467 in) and Mount Wai’ale’ale on the Hawaiian island of Kaua’i, whose average is 11,684 mm (460 in).

Cherrapunji receives both the Southwest and Northeast monsoon showers which give it a single monsoon season. Cherrapunji lies at an elevation of 1,370 m (4,500 feet) in the Khasi Hills. It lies in the windward side of these hills to the Bay of Bengal branch of the SW monsoons which enters India through the Ganga delta. Due to orographic rainfall, the rain-bearing clouds are forced to deposit much of their moisture and rain on these hills from June to September.

In the winter months it receives the northeast monsoon showers which travel down the Brahmaputra valley.

a gaint monolith at cherrapunji

It holds two Guinness world records:

• For receiving the maximum amount of rainfall in a single year: 22,987 mm (904.9 inches) of rainfall between August 1860 and July 1861
• For receiving the maximum amount of rainfall in a single month: 9299.96 mm (366.14 inches) in July 1861.

Causes of High Rainfall

Cherrapunjee receives rains from the Bay of Bengal arm of the Indian Summer Monsoon. The monsoon clouds fly unhindered over the plains of Bangladesh for about 400 km. Thereafter, they hit Khasi hills which abruptly erupt out of the plains to reach a height of about 1370 m above MSL within a short distance of 2 to 5 km. The orography of the hills with many deep valleys channels the low flying (150-300 m) moisture laden clouds from a wide area to converge over Cherrapunjee which falls in the middle of the path of this stream. The winds push the rain clouds through these gorges and up the steep slopes. The rapid ascendance of the clouds into the upper atmosphere hastens the cooling and helps vapours to condense. Most of Cherrapunjee's rain is the consequence of air being lifted as a large body of water vapour. Extremely large amount of rainfall at Cherrapunjee is perhaps the most well known feature of orographic rain in northeast India.

Occasionally, cloudbursts can occur in one part of Cherrapunjee whereas other areas may be totally or relatively dry depicting high spatial variability of rainfall. Atmospheric humidity is extremely high during the peak monsoon period.

The major part of the rainfall at Cherrapunjee can be attributed to the orographic features. When the clouds are blown over the hills from the south, they are funneled through the valley. The clouds strike Cherrapunjee in a perpendicular direction and the low flying clouds are pushed up the steep slopes. It is not surprising to find that the heaviest rainfalls occur when the winds blow directly on the Khasi Hills.

Bar Chart for Cherrapunji

A notable feature of monsoon rain at Cherrapunjee is that most of it falls during the morning hours. This could be partly due to two different air masses coming together. During the monsoon months, the prevailing winds along the Brahmaputra valley generally blow from the east or the northeast. On the other hand, the winds over Meghalaya are from the south. The confluence of these two winds systems usually takes place in the vicinity of the Khasi Hills. Apparently the winds that are trapped in the valley at night begin upward ascent only after they are warmed during the day. This explains partially the frequency of morning rainfall. Apart from orographic features, atmospheric convection plays an important role during the monsoon and the period just preceding it.

Demographics

As of 2001 India census, Cherrapunji had a population of 10,086. Males constitute 49% of the population and females 51%. Cherrapunji has an average literacy rate of 74%, higher than the national average of 59.5%; with male literacy of 74% and female literacy of 74%. 19% of the population is under 6 years of age.

Culture

The locals living in and around Cherrapunjee are known as Khasis. It is a matriarchal culture. After the wedding the husband goes to live with his wife's family and the children take on the surname of the mother.

Many tours run from Shillong, taking visitors to visit Cherrapunji for a day or two. The main method of accessing Cherrapunji proper is by taking a taxi from the Shillong bazaar taxi stand. It costs 900 to 1000 Indian Rupees to hire a taxi to take you to Cherrapunji.

The most convenient railhead and airport for most travellers would be Guwahati, in the state of Assam, where many trains and flights are bound from Kolkata, Delhi and Bangalore. From Guwahati a shared taxi to Shillong costs 100 to 150 Indian Rupees per person and takes around 4 hours. From Shillong taxi stand a taxi may be hired for the remaining 3 hours to Cherrapunji.

On the way to Cherrapunji

Adam (pbuh)

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم

الْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ رَبِّ الْعَالَمِينَ

"Reciting Salawath on our Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) is an activity that will be accepted by Allah, even if we don't have Ikhlas (piety)".

Adam is the first prophet of Islam and mentioned in the Qur'an as the husband of Eve (Hawwa).

Adam in the Qur'an

Adam is mentioned in the Qur'an as the first man created by Allah. A verse in Sura al-Imran states:

The similitude of Jesus before Allah is as that of Adam; He created him from dust, then said to him: "Be". And he was. (3:59)

Eve is not mentioned by name in the Qur'an, but is referred to as Adam's spouse. Islamic tradition refers to her as Hawwa, an etymologically similar name. Muhammad ibn Jarir al-Tabari recounts the tale of her creation, stating that she was named because she was created from a living thing (since the Arabic word meaning "living" is "'hayy'").

Iblis

2:34

وَإِذۡ قُلۡنَا لِلۡمَلَـٰٓٮِٕكَةِ ٱسۡجُدُواْ لِأَدَمَ فَسَجَدُوٓاْ إِلَّآ إِبۡلِيسَ أَبَىٰ وَٱسۡتَكۡبَرَ وَكَانَ مِنَ ٱلۡكَـٰفِرِينَ (٣٤)

And behold, We said to the angels: "Bow down to Adam" and they bowed down. Not so Iblis: he refused and was haughty: He was of those who reject Faith.

7:11 Walaqad khalaqnakum thumma sawwarnakum thumma qulna lilmalaikati osjudoo liadama fasajadoo illa ibleesa lam yakun mina alssajideena

It is We Who created you and gave you shape; then We bade the angels bow down to Adam, and they bowed down; not so Iblis; He refused to be of those who bow down.

15:31

Illa ibleesa aba an yakoona maAAa alssajideena

Not so Iblis: he refused to be among those who prostrated themselves.

15:32 Qala ya ibleesu ma laka alla takoona maAAa alssajideena

((Allah)) said: "O Iblis! what is your reason for not being among those who prostrated themselves?"

38:74 Illa ibleesa istakbara wakana mina alkafireena

Not so Iblis: he was haughty, and became one of those who reject Faith.

38:75 Qala ya ibleesu ma manaAAaka an tasjuda lima khalaqtu biyadayya astakbarta am kunta mina alAAaleena

((Allah)) said: "O Iblis! What prevents thee from prostrating thyself to one whom I have created with my hands? Art thou haughty? Or art thou one of the high (and mighty) ones?"

Adam in Hadith

Tabari

The early Muslim commentator Tabari adds a number of details to the Torah, based on claimed hadith as well as specific Jewish traditions (so-called isra'iliyyat). Tabari records that when it came time to create Adam, Allah sent Gabriel (Jibril), then Michael (Mika'il), to fetch clay from the earth; but the earth complained, saying I take refuge in Allah from you, if you have come to diminish or deform me, so the angels returned empty-handed. Tabari goes on to state that Allah responded by sending the Angel of Death, who took clay from all regions, hence providing an explanation for the variety of appearances of the different races of mankind.

According to Tabari's account, after receiving the breath of Allah, Adam remained a dry body for 40 days, then gradually came to life from the head downwards, sneezing when he had finished coming to life, saying "Praised be Allah (al-hamd li-allah)". Having been created, Adam, the first man, is described as having been given dominion over all the lower creatures, which he proceeds to name. As one of the people to whom Allah is said to have spoken to directly, Adam is seen as a prophet in Islam.

Bukhari

According to the Sahih Bukhari, Adam was created about thirty meters in height. Since then the stature of human beings is being diminished continuously. (8:74:246)

Other

At this point, Adam takes a prominent role in Islamic traditions concerning the fall of Satan. In these, when Allah announces his intention of creating Adam, some of the angels express dismay, asking why He (Allah) would create a being that would do evil. Teaching Adam the names reassures the angels as to Adam's abilities, though commentators dispute which particular names were involved; various theories say they were the names of all things animate and inanimate, the names of the angels, the names of his own descendants, or the names of Allah.

In the Muslim tradition, Satan (Iblis, Arabic for Lucifer), is regarded as a jinn and made out of fire, rather than an angel made out of light. This supports the Islamic notion of angels being creations that would not be accountable since they lack free will. When Allah commands the angels to bow to Adam, Satan is also present and refuses due to his pride, and is summarily banished from the heavens. Liberal movements within Islam have viewed Allah's commanding the angels to bow before Adam as an exaltation of humanity, and as a means of supporting human rights.

More extended versions of the fall of Satan also exist in works such as that of Tabari, and the Shi'a commentator al-Qummi. In these explanations Iblis is sent against his fellow jinn, who had angered Allah by sin and fighting. In such versions where Satan leads the battle on Allah's behalf, rather than his own, it is the pride and conceit resulting from his victory which results in his expulsion, since pride is seen as a sin. In other accounts this pride is based on Adam's creation itself, which incites Satan's resentment: he was created from fire, while Adam was created from the (lower) substances of sand, dirt, or mud; so Satan refuses to bow in submission to a creation made out of a "lower" substance. Islamic traditions based on the Qur'an further record that, in vengeful anger, Iblis promises Allah that he will lead as many humans astray as he can, to which Allah replies that it is the choice of humans - those who so desire will follow Satan, while those who so desire will follow Allah.

Al-Qummi records the opinion that Eden was not on earth but in heaven. After disobeying Allah, Allah sends Adam and Eve to earth, arriving first at mountain peaks outside Mecca; Adam on Safa, and Eve on Marwa. In this account, Adam remained weeping for 40 days, until he repented, at which point Allah rewarded him by sending down the Kaaba, and teaching him the hajj. Other Islamic traditions hold that Adam was moved to Sri Lanka, as the next best thing to Eden, and, viewing Adam as having been a giant, human size having shrunk drastically before the great flood, Adam's Peak is said to contain his giant footprint.

The Qur'an also describes the two sons of Adam (named Qabil and Habil in Islamic tradition, but not mentioned by name in the Qur'an) that correspond to Cain and Abel. In fact, Qabil and Habil are the Arabic names of Cain and Abel.

Five most challenging movies to remake in 2008

With Vishnuvardharan’s Ajith starred Billa hitting the bull’s eye, it would very well open the floodgates for others to follow and remake some of the classics of Tamil cinema.

Let us also assure you that it’s not going to be easy. Remaking these yesteryear super hits can be like playing with fire, a good example would be Ramgopal Verma’s Aag, which bit the dust in comparison to its legendary original.

While, some people would argue that leaving these classics untouched would be the best thing to do, well, what is the thrill in being safe?

Ajith and Vijay in Agni Nakshatram

This is a big one. One that will make everyone jumps out of their seats!

Eighteen years back, Prabhu as Gautham and Karthik as Ashok set the screen on fire with their histrionics. Die hard Tamil Cinema fans and lunatic thinkers that we are at Behindwoods, we would give our left hands if the sparks can be rekindled again with two of the biggest Superstars of recent times, Ajith and Vijay.

Ajith as Gautham and Vijay as Ashok would set the cash registers ringing, only if the original is remade by the Master, Mani Ratnam himself. Music has to be A.R.Rahman. Did someone else cross your mind?

Ajith in Sigappu Rojakkal

Psycho thrillers are a rare species in Tamil cinema. There has been no match to Sigappu Rojakkal, directed by Bharatiraja yet. There was not a single soul who was left undaunted after watching the movie for Kamal’s eerie portrayal of the psychic character.

Ajith – who has touched a similar kind of role in Vali – will be a suitable match for the remake of Sigappu Rojakkal.

We leave the direction part to Gautham and the music scene to Harris Jayaraj, whose combination proved time and again that reiterating hits is no tough task.

Vijay and Maddy in Naan Sivappu Manithan

Naan Sivappu Manithan directed by S.A. Chandrasekhar with superstar Rajini in the lead, rewrote box office history for its fast paced screenplay and the ensemble star cast. If you might recollect, Bhagyaraj graced the movie with a cameo role.

We concur that Vijay would fit into Rajini’s part perfectly.

We confer Bhagyaraj’s role on Madhavan and suggest the role to be a bit serious sans the comic element the original one had. Director’s cap? We give it to Murugadoss.

Surya in Thillu Mullu

Thillu Mullu – the evergreen comedy of all times to tickle your senses could be one of the most challenging ones to remake. Rajini proved that he could be a safe bet for comedy as well with this movie directed by Balachander – the badshah of storytelling.

Rajini’s role could be handed down to Surya who proved his comic element with Pithamagan, Mayavi and Peralagan.

Asin could do the role of Madhavi. Yuvan Shankar Raja’s contemporary music would do wonders for Thillu Mullu. Why not a couple of remix songs from the original movie too?

No one better than the Guru, Balachander himself to direct the movie.

Vikram in Nayagan

The trendsetter movie of Tamil cinema Nayagan would be a real big one to remake. Kamal’s portrayal of Velunayakkar in the real life drama was breathtaking in the movie directed by Maniratnam. An intimidating task indeed, our choice to fill the shoes of Kamal for the role would be Vikram. While Sneha will fit the bill perfectly for Saranya’s character, Pasupathi can don the role of Janagaraj.

The director and musician’s role will – without any doubt – be reserved to Maniratnam and Rahman respectively.

THE STAR STUDDED BOX OFFICE TOP 10

It’s the Deepavali stars meeting the Pongal stars at the Box Office this week. We have almost everyone at the box office this week – Vikram, Ajith, Surya, Simbu, Dhanush, Maddy, Cheran & Bharath.

Star studded it is – let’s see who is taking the honors.

The top 10 is a result of research and inputs from theaters across the city on the business each movie has had over the week.

KALLOORI

Cast: Tamanna, Akhil, Balamurugan, Hema

Direction: Balaji Sakthivel

Music: Joshua Sridhar

Production: Shankar

Although he couldn’t repeat the success of Kaadhal, Balaji has managed to receive rave reviews for his Kalloori. Tamanna steals the show among others.

Trade Talk: Kalloori has garnered decent profit.

Public Talk: Down to earth and never seen before portrayal of college life seems to have gone well with the audience.

No. Weeks Completed: 7

No. Shows in Chennai over this weekend: 12

Average Theatre Occupancy over this weekend: 40 %

Collection over this weekend in Chennai: Rs.51,852

Total collections in Chennai by end of the eighth weekend: Rs.99 lakhs

Verdict: Average

POLLADHAVAN

Cast: Dhanush, Divya

Direction: Vettrimaran

Music: G V Prakash Kumar

Production: Kathiresan

Much discussed, written, and raved about, Polladhavan is showing signs of slowing down from the charts. Well, it’s been quite a long time, hasn’t it?

Trade Talk: Polladhavan has sent the buyers laughing all the way to the(ir) bank.

Public Talk: Finally Dhanush has figured what works for him.

No. Weeks Completed: 11

No. Shows in Chennai over this weekend: 18

Average Theatre Occupancy over this weekend: 45 %

Collection over this weekend in Chennai: Rs.80,284

Total collections in Chennai by end of the twelth weekend: Rs.2.07 Crore

Verdict: Hit

VEL

Cast: Surya, Asin, Vadivelu, Lakshmi

Direction: Hari

Music: Yuvan Shankar Raja

Production: M Chintamani

Seasons have come and gone, but, Hari’s formula fare Vel hasn’t yet descended from the charts.

Trade Talk: Hit, they branded it.

Public Talk: But why isn’t Asin in Surya’s next venture?

No. Weeks Completed: 11

No. Shows in Chennai over this weekend: 24

Average Theatre Occupancy over this weekend: 45 %

Collection over this weekend in Chennai: Rs.1,65,672

Total collections in Chennai by end of the twelth weekend: Rs.2.15 Crore

Verdict: Hit

PIDICHIRUKKU

Cast: Ashok, Visaka, Ganja Karuppu

Direction: Kanagu

Music: Manu Ramesan

Production: Senbagakumar

Pidichirukku could have worked despite having a whole bunch of debutants and lesser known artistes had the director focused on the script that has already been tried-tested-succeeded-and-failed.

Trade Talk: None, whatsoever.

Public Talk: Oh well, there isn’t any either.

No. Weeks Completed: 2

No. Shows in Chennai over this weekend: 27

Average Theatre Occupancy over this weekend: 50 %

Collection over this weekend in Chennai: Rs.1,79,166

Total collections in Chennai by end of the third weekend: Rs.9 lakhs

Verdict: Below average

VAZHTHUKKAL

Cast: Madhavan, Bhavana

Direction: Seeman

Music: Yuvan Shankar Raja

Production: T. Shiva

One can’t help but call it a case of Madhavan’s bipolar career disorder after watching the actor carry off his serious role with élan for Evano Oruvan and the dud of a role for Vazhthukal subsequently. May be he prefers to call it a case of doing lighter roles with a history of chocolate romance in his career profile. However, that does not just seem to work with Vazhthukkal, blame it on the outdated script that seems contrived of all the other things.

Trade Talk: With two weeks in theaters and an average opening, Vazhthukkal’s fate is predictable by far.

Public Talk: None so far. None expected.

No. Weeks Completed: 2

No. Shows in Chennai over this weekend: 24

Average Theatre Occupancy over this weekend: 45 %

Collection over this Pongal week in Chennai: Rs.2,12,772

Total collections in Chennai by end of the third weekend: Rs.32 lakhs

Verdict: Below average

PAZHANI

Cast: Bharath, Kajal Agarwal, Kushboo

Direction: Perarasu

Music: Srikanth Deva

Production: Sakthi Chidambaram

Bharath’s desperation to shed off his boy-next-door image is an apparent disaster. Perarasu’s mix of sentiments, love, action, and tear-jerking sequences seems to have few takers.

Trade Talk: Dismal. The target B & C centers are also turning out to be being let downs.

Public Talk: Are we seriously ready yet to watch Bharath bashing up dozen burly goons, let alone hurling catchy one-liners at them?

No. Weeks Completed: 2

No. Shows in Chennai over this weekend: 78

Average Theatre Occupancy over this weekend: 60 %

Collection over this weekend in Chennai: Rs.8,67,445.2

Total collections in Chennai by end of the third weekend: Rs.40 lakhs

Verdict: Average

PIRIVOM SANDHIPOM

Cast: Cheran, Sneha, Jeyaram

Direction: Karu Pazhaniappan

Music: Vidyasagar

Production: Gnanam Films

Karu Palaniappan – Cheran team’s tale of celebrating family bonds and values, Pirivom Sandipom, might as well be the only dark horse in the otherwise predictable Pongal race. With a whole bunch of ensemble star cast and Sneha in the lead, Pirivom seems to be catching up among the family audiences.

Trade Talk: With no big stars to bank on, the movie has opened to only average houses. However, positive word of mouth seems to do the rounds that could do wonders for the business.

Public Talk: The turn out is still low and is catching up at the counters.

No. Weeks Completed: 2

No. Shows in Chennai over this weekend: 81

Average Theatre Occupancy over this weekend: 65 %

Collection over this weekend in Chennai: Rs.10,01,760

Total collections in Chennai by end of the third weekend: Rs.43 lakhs

Verdict: Below average

BILLA

Cast: Ajith, Nayantara, Namitha, Prabhu

Direction: Vishnuvardhan

Music: Yuvanshankar Raja

Production: L.Suresh

With remixes having pronounced the order of the day, Billa has reiterated that old-wine-in-new-bottle scripts can sell with classy presentation tactics. Adding to the fact is that fans can’t seem to get enough of Ajith’s accomplice eye candies Nayanthara and Namitha.

Trade Talk: The only savior of producer’s pennies at the box office, Billa is already declared a hit with 6 weeks in contention and promising returns.

Public Talk: Decent support from the movie-going public has kept Billa’s sustenance intact.

No. Weeks Completed: 6

No. Shows in Chennai over this weekend: 75

Average Theatre Occupancy over this weekend: 65 %

Collection over this weekend in Chennai: Rs.10,27,242

Total collections in Chennai by end of the seventh weekend: Rs.4.07 Crore

Verdict: Hit

KAALAI

Cast: Silambarasan, Vedhika, Sangeetha, Nila

Direction: Tarun Gopi

Music: G V. Prakash

Production: NIC Arts Chakravarthy

Kaalai clearly reinstated one thing - the super talented Simbhu will be undoing all his abilities if he doesn’t pay attention to the script.

Trade Talk: No great shakes and there is no hope that word of mouth will help, since there is none.

Public Talk: Certain things are better left unsaid, aren’t they?

No. Weeks Completed: 2

No. Shows in Chennai over this weekend: 84

Average Theatre Occupancy over this weekend: 60 %

Collection over this weekend in Chennai: Rs.10,28,696

Total collections in Chennai by end of the third weekend: Rs.80 lakhs

Verdict: Below average

BHEEMA

Cast: Vikram, Trisha, Prakash Raj, Raguvaran

Direction: Linguswamy

Music: Harris Jayaraj

Production: A M Rathnam

Vikram’s much-awaited-and-hyped extravaganza proves to be just that. Extravagant. Vikram’s stylish and well crafted one man act seems not to help much either. Not to mention the other pluses Harris Jeyaraj, Lingusamy, Prakash Raj, and of course Trisha haven’t had an impact on fans.

Trade Talk: It’s still much early to write off the movie’s success that had opened to full houses and sustained during the two weeks in its run. Mixed reactions from fans and critics haven’t stopped the cash from coming in.

Public Talk: Songs and only the songs that impeccably capture Vikram – Trisha’s onscreen chemistry for the second time in a row (remember, Saami?).

No. Weeks Completed: 2

No. Shows in Chennai over this weekend: 151

Average Theatre Occupancy over this weekend: 75 %

Collection over this weekend in Chennai: Rs.35,07,171

Total collections in Chennai by end of the third weekend: Rs.1.59 Crore

Verdict: Average