Every proud Bengalurean worth their salt has at some point made their way up the 1,478 metre ascent to Nandi Hills. It’s a given, almost taken for granted, a must-do. Every time a new café opens up in the vicinity of this often-visited near-urban quick getaway, everyone’s interest is piqued again and trips are planned in a frenzy, almost immediately. Some people even choose to hike to the summit and make a wonderful picnic out of whole experience; while others head there for a lazy weekend ride, taking in the beauty that the environs of the area always deliver and ensuring Instagram is filled with posts and stories capable of giving FOMO to even the most stoic nihilist.
The recent-most exciting news that we’d come across about the region, however, was the reviving of the Nandi Hills rail stop, a heritage structure that was being rebuilt and would be thrown up to the public viewing and use soon. That is, of course, till we came across this brand new luxury property that has just opened at the foothills of this much-adored and loved hill range — Mulberry Shades Bengaluru Nandi Hills, a Tribute Portfolio Resort.
We didn’t have to be told twice and in no time, we were packed and ready — on our way — eager to discover the property for ourselves. A one-hour drive from Bengaluru city and 30 minutes from Kempegowda International Airport, Mulberry Shades is one of the few Tribute Portfolio Resorts from the Marriott group in India today. Enjoy boutique-style stays in thoughtful accommodation with pet-friendly hotel rooms and suites, styled as cottages and with views of the majestic Nandi Hills from almost every room.
Beautifully laid out, in such a way that all public spaces and rooms face vistas of the hill-station and offer a breathtaking spectacle every morning — as you watch clouds roll over the hills before the sun finally reaches its zenith — do not be surprised if you were also unaware that Nandi Hills had such magical scenery on offer, till social media took over our lives. We were clueless too! Same pinch.
But we get ahead of ourselves. Check-in was an absolute pleasure and we were led to an individual cottage, which was to be our abode for this staycation. The room was an adorable mix of traditional styles and modern amenities and our balcony opened up into a view of the central swimming pool area, while our door gave us views of the verdant hills.
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We had already built up quite the appetite and so we wasted no time to go and try the sumptuous offerings at Terra, their all-day restaurant. With a limited menu, but beautifully put together, we were spoilt for choice with offerings from local delicacies to cuisines from all across the world. What first crossed our mind was that this restaurant, being the only one on the property, was not going to make us miss having more options. We ordered a soup and some pasta and post-lunch decided to laze away for the rest of the evening. With several manicured gardens with ample seating options, one’s own open balcony included, it wasn’t too hard to find a quiet spot and immerse oneself in a book — just stopping for occasional breath-taking glances of Nandi Hills in her full splendour. It was sunset before we knew it and watching the sun disappear behind the silhouettes of these rocky hills was out of a dream. The oranges, reds giving in to purples, dark blues and eventually the black of night… it’s something that will stay with us for years to come. We had to be peeled away from this view, a few hours later, as we had planned to eat an early dinner and call it an early night. Dinner was as expected — wholesome, delicious and warming — just what we needed for a good night of sleep.
We woke up before the sun, the next day. We’d been told enough about the magical morning sky, but believe us, we weren’t prepared for what we eventually saw. As glimmers of light from a inconspicuous sun filled the early morning sky, the view in front of us was out of a dream. Waves of pristine white clouds lifted themselves up, forming from nothing and rolled across the length and breadth of the near-flat plateau table-top peaks of these hills. And just like they rolled up and along, they also rolled-off, falling and dissipating into the morning sky. From nothing to nothing.
We’d never seen anything like this before and felt that all-encompassing humility one often feels when in audience of the overpowering brilliance of nature. The silence of the morning also almost made one believe that an ephemeral song could be heard. An ancient song that hasn’t stopped, every single day, since these hills first appeared — risen from the rubble, shaped by time into these majestic mammoths of rock that exist today. A song so primordial that one needs to experience it in person, to even begin to understand it. Needless to say, we were in tears — tears of joy. When the sun fully arose that morning, we were already spent — physically and mentally — and decided to go sleep-off this heady experience; waking up, we hoped, only in time for brunch. And that’s what we did. By the time we awoke that afternoon, it was a hot Sunday and what we needed more was to hydrate rather than binge. We first jumped into the main pool right in the centre of the property for a quick swim and made full use of the pool bar, Asri, where we were served garden-to-glass cocktails made with handpicked, locally sourced ingredients. It was almost 3 pm by the time we decided to finally have brunch and the warm and light offerings at Terra were the perfect choice. Some of us preferred an early evening tea too and so we marched off to Kokoon, the on-property delicatessen and coffee house, just beyond the pool for more bingeing. Stuffing our faces with delicious baked treats as we gulped down copious amounts of coffee — this was already turning into an absolutely amazing day.
We then realised we’d booked a Turkish hammam appointment and so the bingeing had to stop. We had to give ourselves at least two hours before we visited Ksema, the on-property spa for the experience we booked. Ksema features six treatment rooms, a hammam — one of the only ones in Bengaluru, a whirlpool spa and steam-sauna rooms. From massages to facials, the spa has everything you need to rejuvenate while on holiday. We were ready for our first-ever hammam experience two hours later and were wowed from the moment the therapy began.
Washed clean by two attendants as we were sat on a stool, the masseuses then proceed to massage and exfoliate us in several repeated cycles and with different cleansing products with short breaks inside preheated steam sauna rooms. By the end of the whole process, one feels relaxed, rejuvenated and several kilos lighter! However, while it is a great experience, we do not suggest it for the shy in nature. One has to let go a lot of inhibitions to enjoy this exotic exfoliation exercise. We needed a small snooze before we attempted to have dinner after that rub-down and so we headed back to our room for a small nap.
Waking up just in time for dinner, we quickly had a hot shower and headed to Terra to have a long leisurely several-course relaxed dinner that proved to us that the food is an equally good reason to visit Mulberry Shades. A long walk around the property post-dinner left us exhausted enough to sleep soundly that night and we woke up feeling like a million bucks. Breakfast was light — as we like it — and a few cups of coffee later, we headed out, knowing fully well that we’d be back here as soon as our schedules allowed. We were yet to check out the much-recommended jacuzzi, after all!
INR 14,000 onwards. At Kemathimmanahalli Village, Kundane Hobli, Devanahally.
Email: romal@newindianexpress.com
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