So here I am back in Panchgani on the 2nd day of 2019. It is warmer than my last two visits, which I am happy about. We are here to film a shampoo commercial and early- early mornings are always a challenge without frigid temperatures to make them worse!

We check into the Ravine Hotel, arguably Panchgani’s best ( arguably). We have over 20 rooms here and five of their glamping tents. You trek down 107 steps into the gully and find a rock garden with pools of water and five rustic cabins. The only tent-ish thing about them is the draped satin ceiling. They are quite interesting. Let’s see what living in one is like.

#lovethisman aka my husband is the Producer in this job , ergo I get to share his fancy tent. I have heard the tent experience is superb and sexy ( hold on, it’s a work trip) so I have decided to stop being so fussy and go with the flow. To that end, I have packed a large suitcase with a lot of very warm layers and whatnots as I am not wholly confident about Indian versions of cold insulation and heating in hotel rooms ( well, we froze in our Kashmir hotel some years ago, and Kashmir knows that it snows each winter but it was as if they were taken by surprise by the December whiteout, and we froze the entire trip, so I really don’t expect Panchgani to be toasty).

As a line producer my motto is always, “Be prepared!”

I am routinely prepared for inclement weather, medical emergencies. traffic jams, panic attacks, bad news, Murphy, hunger pangs and any what-ifs with a Mary Poppins-esque handbag, read valise.

I am still unprepared for my adventure in this tent.

Let me say it’s not a tent!!

If you are imagining one of those sumptuous colonial/Raj style shamianas from Vanya Vilas, you will be disappointed.

My tent is actually a wooden cabin, with an attached bath and a large porch. There is a large rock pool outside with an automatic water fountain that noisily erupts every now and then, waking the placid koi carp.

The furnishings are distinctly antique in a rustic, never-been-modernized way, if you like exposed brass plumbing and darling Raj-era plug points. Thankfully the potty is modern, the plumbing works and there is a fancy room heater.

Minus points? The bed posts are solid and I keep banging my shins on them. The floor is an icky vinyl with not a rug in sight so it radiates waves of cold, winning the battle over the fancy heater who cannot hope to compete with all the bare floors, thin wood and metal doors, tin roof and glass windows. The curtains are dull and not very clean, and there is no hint of cheery colour anywhere. The furniture is clunky. The bedside tables are granite and have terribly sharp edges. There is nowhere to keep toiletries in the loo. There is very little that is cozy and quaint. It could be so much lovelier. Shabby chic glamping or shall we call it sha-mping?!!

The plus points?

The heater is modern, there is hot water ( careful, it runs out really fast, but then the water is freezing). The towels are fluffy and clean. There is a kettle in the room. The view of the hillside is lovely. They have decent room service. And somewhere there is a Gardener who loves his blooms. The entire property is filled with the prettiest flowers all in bloom, and their beauty fills me up with joy.

Would I choose to stay here? For fun with a bunch of friends, yes. Not for work.

Having grown up in Goa where my father ran a boutique hotel from the 1970s, I understand the small hotel business. Our hotel was an old Portuguese bungalow converted into rooms with attached baths and little balcaos, and even 40 years ago, they were minimal but luxurious, with the most sumptuous tiled bathrooms, modern plumbing and green spaces. It doesn’t take much to be more thoughtful and spend a little more on giving the guest a great experience. While personal attention is a bygone word, value for money seems to have vanished. I guess most city slickers are easy to please. I have been disappointed in so many fancy hotel experiences. My favourite has so far been five days spent at the marvelous Kipling Camp in Kanha.

The view from Ravine is rather splendid and sweeping. Each sunset was spectacular, silhouettes of black against glorious tangerine. Made me think of a collage competition I won in school: a single stalk of wheat against a brilliant sunset composed entirely of little bits of newspapers and magazines, painstakingly stuck in mosaic form.

The weather overall was perfect. Not freezing and not warm. The mood was genial on set, everyone was rosy cheeked and bushy tailed and happy to nibble on beautiful strawberries every day.

The food deserves its very own post.

Panchgani still hasn’t lost its charm.

Go, before the weather changes!!

PS all photos #shotononeplus and all entirely shot at the Ravine Hotel. Isn’t that view special?