Pune is Maharashtra's second city, which lies close to the Western Ghat Mountains, on the edge of the Deccan plains as they stretch away to the east. Pune is the cultural capital of the Maratha people, which is also known as the "Queen of the Deccan." Pune is a contrast of history and modernism. While it has always been a corporate stopover, Pune has a potpourri of culture which makes for an interesting city! For those into history and architecture, Pune offers a mix of the modern interlaced with the old. Shaniwar Wada, Aga Khan Palace and the Parvati temple are a few attractions without which a visit to the city would be incomplete.

Once upon a time Pune was a very sedate Maharashtrian city... very representative of the Maratha heartland. The arrival of Osho Rajneesh and his flock changed that completely. The Ashram put Pune on the world map and has given this deeply traditional and staid city a strange new and very odd flavour. The migration of plenty of Bombay folk to the town too is increasingly giving the city a more cosmopolitan nature.

Today the top attraction of the city is the Osho Commune International. Located in Koregaon Park, Bhagwan Rajneesh's ashram established in 1987 and now known as the Osho Commune is one of the hot spots in Pune. The ashram contains a spiritual club, a swimming lagoon, waterfall and a commune restaurant.

The commune, 31 acres of meditation space, is described by a Washington Post correspondent as being a mixture between Disney land, a college campus and a. Besides all this, the Nallah Park, made by the Commune, also makes for an interesting visit.
 

SIGHTSEEING

PARVATI TEMPLE
The Parvati Temple was the erstwhile private shrine of the Peshwa rulers. Now it is a popular tourist spot, with the Parvati and Devdeveshwar temples standing atop a hill and also the Parvati Museum which houses replicas of ancient paintings, old manuscripts, weapons and coins.

 

RAJA DINKAR KELKAR MUSEUM
This Rajasthani-style building showcases a one-man collection of some of the most fascinating Indian artifacts one can ever get to see. Among 36 sections full of antiques, carved palace doors, miniatures, the 'Mastani Mahal' is particularly famous. Mastani was the mistress of ‘Peshwa Bajirao’, the Prime Minister of Satara.