There are times when we seek solace and peace in memories of the days gone by. Chief had often told me about his childhood days when he would go out on road trips with his family, goodies wrapped in a picnic basket, to nearby nature spots. Captain on the other hand shared how he would stealthily sneak out as a teenager with his father’s new car and have a blast with his friends or cousins, exploring new roads and discovering places. Probably, at some point, their ideas converged, and thus we hit upon our next Drive Out destination – Massanjore, the most sought-after weekend destination of yesteryears, still as beautiful as can be.

Route
Realising that the drive time to Massanjore would be nothing less than 6 hours, Team WHEELS started early and reached Vidyasagar Setu by 8:30 am. The car trip meter was set to 0.0 km and we zipped along the Kona Expressway. The traffic was reasonably thin. At the end of the Kona Expressway, we took the flyover and continued to drive on NH-19 (NH-2). We crossed Dankuni Toll Plaza and reached our regular highway restaurant for breakfast at about 9:30 am. By 10:30, we had resumed our journey on NH-19 (NH-2).

Thereafter, we continued to drive without any further halt, crossing Bardhaman to reach the newly constructed Panagarh Flyover. At midway on the flyover we took the service lane on the extreme left indicating ‘Ilambazar’ and ‘Darjeeling Morh’ to enter the Panagarh-Morgram Highway (SH-14) on right that leads to Ilambazar and Suri. Driving straight on this highway (SH-14), we went over a bridge on River Ajoy, reached Ilambazar Toll Plaza. From the traffic island at Ilambazar, we took the left towards Dubrajpur and Suri.

From Ilambazar till Dubrajpur, we enjoyed driving on the smooth tarmac, admiring the beautiful engulfing fields, and the lush green forests on either side of the road. However, the road from Bakreswar Thermal Power Station for 12 km was under repair, hence the surface condition was terrible. So much so that our car was soon covered with dust. (A word of caution: If you plan to ply on this road while travelling to or from Massanjore, try to avoid driving on this stretch after dark).

Bypassing Suri Town following Morgram Highway (SH-14) at trip 226.7 km we reached Lambodarpur Crossing at the end of Suri Town bypass. From here, we turned left into the Suri-Dumka Highway leading towards Massanjore. From Lambodarpur Crossing, there was a dramatic difference in the topography as we crossed the Bengal Border and entered Jharkhand. The road here, though reasonably good, was narrow. Various shades of green on the rolling meadows and distant hills soothed our jaded souls.

The place abounds in date-palm trees. Driving for nearly 34 km, at the last stretch, as the Massanjore Dam appeared on our left, we began a 4 km climb over a picturesque hill. We reached our destination, Mayurakshee Resort at Massanjore at 2:30 pm, where our host, Milanjay Mahato, the Manager, gave us a warm welcome. A quick round of formalities and we were ushered into our rooms.
 

Perched amidst hills, Mayurakshee Resort, with its sprawling facade and beautifully manicured garden had a calming effect on us. The view of the Massanjore Dam from the hotel was splendid.

The rooms were large and boasted contemporary decor. There was a spacious balcony at the rear end of each room and a common corridor faced the huge garden and hilly road at the front.
 

After a quick cleanup, famished, we gathered at the dining hall to relish the oven-fresh lunch. We had a standard chicken and fish meal, as per choice. The food here was a little spicy for our palate, but the preparation, nonetheless, was good.

Massanjore Dam
Massanjore Dam, in Dumka district of Jharkhand, is built across River Mayurakshi. Commissioned in 1955, it was formally inaugurated by Lester B. Pearson, Foreign Minister of Canada, and constructed with Canadian aid. Hence, the dam is also called Canada Dam or Pearson Dam. Massanjore Dam is 155 ft high from its base and is 2170 ft long and the reservoir spreads across an area of 16,650 acres. The dam generates hydroelectricity for the state of West Bengal and is also used for irrigation.

That evening we went for a stroll along the dam. The wonderful weather coupled with the view of the sunset from the dam was magical. Chords of soft light speared down from above, bathing the surface in ruby red. The water glinted with tiny sparkles, like a thousand rubies glowing with an inner fire. How long we stood there, even after the sun had shied away behind the hills and blanketed us in the darkness of the night I do not know.

On one side of the dam stood the vast water reservoir with lofty hills forming the backdrop - a scene bathed in tranquility. A few islands accentuated the beauty of the waterbody. On the other side of the dam, deep down, was the roaring water gushing out of the dam, a great friendly monster that generates the hydel power.
 

We spoke to some of the locals who said that during the construction of the dam, more than 140 villages were sacrificed and drowned. The villagers, who were offered compensation, were compelled to settle in a village near Massanjore called Raghunathpur. Having lost their land, with agriculture as their main occupation, the migrants of Raghunathpur became jobless and suffered a great deal economically. And the far off islands on the reservoir that we had admired were none other than the remnants of those villages that had been washed away during the construction of the dam.
 

Coming out of the dam, we found some local snacks and tea stalls at the entrance. A lady stood selling beautiful cane baskets at throwaway prices. We bought a couple of these intricate weaves. The nearby marketplace offers local flavours – also worth checking out. We next took a spin around Jhajhapara, the area around our hotel that was enchanting.
 

In the dark of the evening, traversing the smooth undulated roads, provided a wonderful view of the reservoir from various levels of elevation.

Back at our hotel, Milanjay, the manager, saw the baskets in our hands and promised to guide us to his village the next morning where the primary occupation of the villagers is basket weaving.
We enjoyed the room-served dinner, with soup, salad, chicken kebabs, rice, dal and kadai chicken with ice cream to finish. Post dinner, we took a walk in the lovely garden with fountains – before retiring for the day.

Exploring Massanjore
Early in the morning, a pleasurable experience involved a walk down to the village church visible from our resort and which was merely 200 m away. It was a rather nondescript church with a sloping roof and a rustic feel. We went a little inside and then decided to go down to the adjoining tribal village.
 

During winter, it is a good idea to drive out to the countryside early in the morning for the famous date-palm juice (khajur ras) – which tastes out of this world.
 

After a filling breakfast with toast, eggs, and coffee, we began to explore the picturesque countryside around Massanjore. As we drove by the dam, we saw a few boats anchored by the reservoir. On enquiring, we learnt that there is a provision for boating on the water. However, owing to the current pandemic situation, boating has been temporarily withdrawn for tourists.

The countryside
To explore the countryside, we retreated and drove till we reached Ranibahal Morh and took the right. Rolling deep inside, we passed through vast fields with beautiful hills as the backdrop. Driving for another 2.5 km we took a left from Sijua, a developing village with newly constructed houses dotting the landscape, and reached Banskuli, going over Siddheswari Bridge. We took a right turn to plunge into the vast stretches of land with various shades of green and burbling rivers flowing beneath the bridges set against the hilly terrain that made for a picture-perfect frame.
 

We went in deeper to get a feel of the local life. As the road gradually proceeded towards the Massanjore Dam through villages, it narrowed down with several earthen speed-breakers at short intervals – difficult to negotiate. Yet our thirsty adventurous souls wanted more – and we penetrated deeper. Gradually, the frequency of the bumps increased and grew steeper – difficult to negotiate. Finally, we were left with no choice but to turn back.

Bilkandi village
From Banskuli, we went straight and followed the road going over Mayurakhshi Bridge till we reached Bilkandi (about 5.5 km from Sijua) – the village of the basket weavers.
 

Parking at a distance we went forward to meet the locals who received us with a warm welcome. Most of the villagers here speak Bengali. However, they are equally comfortable in Hindi. We also saw some tribals, the Bauris, who live in harmony along with the Bengalis.
 

As we explored the village, we came upon tribal women painting the exterior of their houses. This gave the walls the desired bright red finish we see in the photograph.
One of the villagers led us to a clearing under shady trees in front of a school. From the locals, we learnt that this was the Dom para, whose inhabitants are engaged in basket weaving. Soon we were joined by the men and women weavers with smiling faces.

Subodh Dom, a basket weaver, told us that they wove baskets and various other household materials from palm reeds, which they call bet. He himself specialised in weaving modas. Shokha Dom, on the other hand, wove mostly hand-fans, flower baskets and husking baskets. In fact they were a community of 15-20 houses who weave articles of the cane as their main occupation round the year.
 

The villagers are also professional badyakar (musicians). While most of the time they weave regular utility items, occasionally, they also play various instruments – especially during weddings and pujas that includes the drum, bugle, clarinet, brass, flute, and percussion. During the Durga Puja or Kali Puja, they are invited to play the dhak at different localities. We bought a few articles made of palm reed before we drove back to our hotel.

Accommodation
Massanjore does not have too many properties to boast of. Mayurakshi Bhavan, the age-old guest house run by the Irrigation Department, West Bengal Government, is located on the dam with an excellent view, but owing to the cumbersome booking procedure and poor service and suspicious room condition, we do not recommend the property.
Another place on a hilltop is the Youth Hostel. It has a very basic infrastructure with modest rooms and operates in a self-service model – mainly meant for campers.
 

The ideal property to put up at Massanjore is undoubtedly Mayurakshee Resort – further up the hill. The resort was originally constructed by the Jharkhand Tourism and later leased out to a private hotelier.

Mayurakshee Resort
Mayurakshee Resort spreads across a whopping 20 acres on a hill. This huge property with a sprawling facade and exceptionally well-maintained garden is a sheer delight at Massanjore.
 

The view of the Massanjore Dam from the balconies of the floors is spectacular. The wide stairways and lavish settings are ideal for maintaining the current requisites of social distance. The large lounge and vast banquet hall are ideal for holding conferences and gatherings. Added to this is the spacious restaurant with an adjoining terrace.
 

The size of the hotel rooms is impressive. The decor of the rooms is quite contemporary. The bathrooms while basic, are nevertheless equipped with the required gadgets. All rooms open onto a private balcony at its rear that provides a view of the hillock at the back of the hotel.

Strikingly, in such a huge property, there are only nine guest rooms available for accommodation. The service of Mayurakshee Resort is good and the staff well-groomed. Tourists who put up at other places visit the restaurant for meals.
 

It was nearly 4 pm when we started for Kolkata, late by usual standards. It was as if we were reluctant to leave this paradise on earth. On our way back, since we wanted to avoid the Panagarh-Morgram Highway (SH-14) we drove straight from Lambodarpur and crossed over SH-14 to enter Suri Town to reach Bolpur. But this Suri-Bolpur Road through Suri Town turned out to be worse. With the highly congested town and extremely chaotic traffic, negotiating the town was a major challenge. Added to this was the construction of a new flyover over the railway gates at Suri that created a traffic impasse over an undulating track leading us to waste nothing less than 45 min to an hour. The rest of the drive was reasonably trouble-free.

Back at home, when I heard my parents talk about going to Massanjore during their heydays – I now know why they still reminisce about Massanjore. This was a trip I would recommend strongly to my heart-weary and soul-sore brethren who look to travel-drives to find succour. When the world is in a state of flux and turbulence, this is one place where you can find a quiet escape. The Massanjore Dam will absorb your pain, then teach you how to heal...