Bekal Fort

You remember Bekal Fort, don’t you ? that’s the spot so soulfully captured in a monsoon blue-grey wash by Mani Ratnam in the film Bombay, the ultimate trysting place where the here Arvind Swamy used to meet the Burqa-clad heroine Manisha Koirala. The 300-years old circular structure of red laterite. Tinged black by the battering elements stands on a 35 acre headland, 130 ft above sea level, the wind-lashed icy ocean ceaselessly mounting a barrage far below. Controlled by powers as varied as the Vijayanagar Kings, Tipu Sultan and the British Now the fort seems Controlled by the elements.

Ramparts peep-holes beautifully built up steps leading to a cove, all make for the ideal spot to picnic to navel-gaze to chill out, to shoot a movie to read a book. Oh and to catch a brilliantly dramatic crimson-and-gold setting of the sun a truly unforgettable experience I did warn you about these clichés. Bekal Fort is the cherry atop the pasty. All around lie miles and miles of palm groves, a long stretch of beachfront, pristine sands unspoilt \by people plastic and bottles. Long may it remain so. On the golden grassy knolls of the fort sit the Magazine, steps leading to an Observation Tower and score of picturesque peepholes.

Within the fortOn the golden grassy knolls of the fort sit the Magazine, steps leading to an Observation Tower and score of picturesque peepholes. There is an ancient Anjaneya Temple, a newly renovated mosque, a sea bastion and several underground passages that invite your curiosity. Bekal today still bears traces of being a sleepy little Kasaragode villge, flanked by the forest-covered western ghats in the east and the Arabian Sea in the west, with the Talapadi and Trikaripur rivers flowing in the vicinity. But not for much longer not if the Bekal Resort Development Corporation ( BRDC ) has its way. Plans are afoot to make Bekal On R Major Resort. Sixteen resort and hotels ( and we are talking five and seven star luxury here ) are to came up in idyllic spots that have been identified and acquired by the BRDC. Keeping eco-tourism firmly in mind the Corporation has planned Water management and waste disposal methods.Ancillary area development a road network and eventually a golf course convention centre swimming pool and clubhouse. It ought to be on stream by 2005. Bekal Fort Beach To one side of the imposing fort lies the shallow beach, quite the lotus-eater’s delight over run as it is with shells of all sizes and colours vast colonies of bashful crabs drink though because the little peti kada ( tea stall ) stocks just the bare rudimentaries of refreshment

Where to stay and eat.

Hotel City Tower

Phone No : 04994 – 230562 / 64

Tariff : 215 – 1035

Hotel Apsara Regency

Phone No : 04994 – 230124 / 220424.

Tariff – 250 - 650

Bekal International

Phone No : 04997 – 7202017

Tariff – Rs 125 - 700