Hostale

11/01/2018

It is always great when your awards can speak for you. Thank you guests for your reviews. One of the top Reviewed property of Varanasi!

19/11/2017

Saturday night be like 🍻🍻

15/10/2017

As this day comes to an end so does our very first edition of Stories of Serenity. A 3-day adventurous journey of trying to catch a glimpse of life into the city of death. With its narrow alleys, carefree attitude and the mystical charm, this city of banaras didn't fail to impress our guests.

With multitude of activities such as Subah-e-Banaras, World famous Ganga Aarti, the sunrise and the sunset and a boatride across the river, Satvik food, Traditional Akhadas, Banarasi Pan and many more, that covers the stories and serenity and Hostale that covered your stay, we tried to contain the essence of this city for you.

We hope everyone had a good time for we surely did and for those who missed it, better luck next time. We thank you all for making this possible.

15/10/2017

15/10/2017

03/10/2017

The wait is over and winners have been announced. See you all in the own city of gods for an experience

P.S. - All the winners will be communicated through email for further instructions. Stay Updated.

02/10/2017

Stories of Serenity
Entry #29 - Surya Prakash Sharma | Delhi

A student from DCAC, DU. I am a photographer based in Delhi and have been doing photography since 2 years now. I have learned everything about photography from youtube.
I mostly like to travel and am a travel photographer. I also like to try different genre of phtogoraphy and Candids & conceptuals are one of my favorite.
I have won around a dozen photography & videography competitions in 2017 alone.

02/10/2017

Stories of Serenity
Entry #28 - Kumar Surya | Varanasi

02/10/2017

Stories of Serenity
Entry #27 - Aishwarya Verma | Varanasi

I am Aishwarya Verma,and I belong to the holy city of Varanasi,but there is a different side to it which I am more in love with.At present,I am pursuing MPMIR from Banaras Hindu University after completing my bachelors in Journalism and Mass Communication.My name starts with the alphabet A and the word artistic describes me the best,which also implies that I attempt and enjoy various forms of art,be it writing,reading,craft work,music,documentaries and ad making,dance and theatre.
I have a different perspective to view mundane situations of everyday life and believe in delivering my best at whatever I do.
I am creative,friendly,fun loving and workaholic.

I feel,if Varanasi decided to personify itself in the form of a woman,this is what it would look like..And I have described her in these lines.. "I halted as she beamed, on the banks of the turquoise Ganges, Adorned with bijouterie from the box of golden heritage Draped in the saffron silk of tradition, The calm on her face sang a soulful melody, Her kohl black eyes were the door to salvation, And that skittish smile Oh!, fleeted the playful side of hers “MY CITY PERSONIFIED”, stood on the banks of the Holy Ganges.."

It's a montage of images,describing what I found when I looked for "Life in the city of death".The description goes as follows: "The chat and Kachori, the paan with gilori, Every tongue tastes life, every eye flashes life, The city of elevation, of death and salvation Whenever opens its mouth, only speaks of life..." Melody of subah e banaras, the saffron clad sadhus on the ghats,the tranquil flow of Ganges,scent of flowers mixed with incense sticks in the ancient temples,threads of Gold zaris in the handloom of the banarasi saris,the bangles and accessories, mouthwatering sweets and savouries, Brewed cappuccino in the artistic roof top cafés, the narrow streets and the Chaotic markets.. Life emanates through every stone, every nook and corner of this city.. If you hear closely, even the pyres of wood, smoke filled sky and the burning corpses whisper life, because, the spinning cycle of soul sings,"Death is the beginning of life.." And here we send, a few snaps, which give glimpses of "vividly glistening life in the city of death" , like the "stars twinkling in the dark,on the canvas of night sky.."

02/10/2017

Stories of Serenity
Entry #26 - Spondon Nath

When I was a kid, I had a toy film camera and used to pretend clicking photos with it without any film in it. In 2009, I got my first digital camera. It was a Kodak. I had lot of fun learning to click photos with it. Quickly I got upgraded to a Nikon point & shoot. Slowly I started to discover various fields of photography and tried my hands on in macro and street photography. In 2015, I got a DSLR and this was a big break for me. I got more devoted in photography and developed my interest in Nature, Landscape and Street photography.
Now I'm 18 and learning still, as well as exploring new places and stories with my camera.

Instagram- Instagram.com/Spondon ATH

02/10/2017

Stories of Serenity
Entry #25 - Ankit Sakhiya | Gujrat

Hola guys my name is ankit sakhiya
Im from gujrat im a writer,filmmaker, my youtube channel is fkmaker. Now about the pictures, this is own experiences.I see story in every picture.I named this story as "My Green Journey".

1. Some journeys lead us where we never imagined of going. This is my green journey that i came across. A beautiful morning started,i sat daringly in the car with a frend of mine. On my way to the the destination i stared out of the window hopefully towards the road and saw how gently the path began to bend away from the city dust. Well! Who does not like to go away away from the molecules that just pollutes the air as well as our inner self.

2. To some distance our car's engine broke down but we were not terrified as we were in a good place and helpful people they helped us getting our car being done. A few group of people sat on a hut kind of place seeing something that maybe cheered thier inner selves so we went there to see wat exactly it was. three kids enjoying in a way that could bring glitter in the people who would just watch them. I being brought up in the city lights was for a while lost in the memories of my childhood.my foot carried to me some distance following the kids n then the goddess book of beauty was in front of me. Actually there was somwthing in the wind that took away all my stress and worries.

3. going further i saw a perfect dream house.i saw kids helping thier mother.while their mother was busy carring burden of grass and hopes and walked on the road of surving her purpose.i was more a stonished to see her ride a bike on her and setting a perfect example of women not being dependent on a man.

4. But the tym came when i had to leave this beautiful place as i had to reach my destination on my car was also ready.and today i believed in the thought that its not about the destination its all about the path.i learmed a lot of things here.

Moral of the story

WITH THE ENDING OF MY JOURNEY i compared the whole land with the town.there are many uneven and diffrent trees similar to the uneven and diffrent people of the town. the but the thing that is similar is that they stood all together and served thier purpose on earth

02/10/2017

Stories of Serenity
Entry #24 - Dushyant Vyas | Gujarat

Hello all my name is Dushyant Vyas.. currently pursuing B.tech in Gujarat.. An amature photographer also running a production called " No budget film production" in which we write, direct and shoot our own ideas into short films you can have a look at our work on our YouTube channel "Fkmaker".
Now about the pictures, these are some beautiful frames of the town in which i live right now..its truely amazing when a picture speaks its own story.. m not a professional photographer but frames have always took a special part in my heart.. Every place has its own beauty in itself so with these 5 frames i tried to capture some of its part in my own way.

02/10/2017

Stories of Serenity
Entry #23 - Spondon Nath | Guwahati

When I was a kid, I had a toy film camera and used to pretend clicking photos with it without any film in it. In 2009, I got my first digital camera. It was a Kodak. I had lot of fun learning to click photos with it. Quickly I got upgraded to a Nikon point & shoot. Slowly I started to discover various fields of photography and tried my hands on in macro and street photography. In 2015, I got a DSLR and this was a big break for me. I got more devoted in photography and developed my interest in Nature, Landscape and Street photography.
Now I'm 18 and learning still, as well as exploring new places and stories with my camera.

02/10/2017

Stories of Serenity
Entry #22 - Abhinav Singh | San Francisco

Hi all, myself Abhinav, a proud resident of Varanasi, India. Currently based in San Francisco, California. I am not a professional photographer but I enjoy capturing the moments through my phone. I love travelling to places of cultural and historic importance, maybe because I am born and brought up in Varanasi :). My affection with photography dates back to the days when I was chosen as the preferred photographer amongst 18 other siblings for our family functions (I was in 6th standard back then). Those were the days of reeled photography with a limit of 36 photos in each reel. This taught me to take efficient photos in limited attempts. But modern photography attracts me too. You have the freedom of capturing every small moment.
Happily, I still hold the my crown and continue to be my family's photographer ranging from mundans to vidai :D

02/10/2017

Guys please provide your mail id? (All participants)
Comment or Inbox

29/09/2017

Stories of Serenity
Last date of submission : 1 Oct. 2017

29/09/2017

Entry #21 Mannat - New Delhi

Hi
I am Mannat Bhogal, delhi based photographer. I am currently studying MA(J&MC) from Amity,Noida. I have been freelancing as a photographer for 3 years now. Photography came to me as a saving grace while i was pursing my graduation degree in B.Sc IT.
Photography for me is like a blessing, when ever i pick the camera i try and make the picture speak for itself. With the camera in my hand it just feels i am lost in my own world of imagination. Everytime i look through my viewfinder my perspective changes towards life and it is like a rush of positivity.
Keep clicking everyone 📷

29/09/2017

Entry #20 Harkirat -New Delhi

Harkirat Kaur(Graduate), an amateur photographer who's been doing photography since 1.5 years now. My journey as a photographer started in 2015 after I cleared my graduation exams. I always liked the sound of the shutter but I fell in love with it when I started learning photography. For me, it started as a hobby turned into passion and now trying to turn it into my career. My work has been featured on some social media platforms. My favorite genre of photography is Street, Travel and Wildlife but I also do Baby Photography, Fashion Photography, Maternity Shoots, etc to fulfill my love for Street, Travel and Wildlife.