Nashik

Nashik (Marathi: नाशिक Nāśik) is a city in the state of Maharashtra with a population of about 2.3 million people (2023). This is an ancient holy city, also known as the Wine Capital of India, part of the Mumbai - Pune - Nashik so-called "golden triangle of Maharashtra". It is a city of pilgrimage for many Hindus, important for Hindu rituals for the afterlife offerings, and also one of the four locations of the Kumbha Mela festival.

Understand
Nashik is one of the world's holiest Hindu cities. Kumbhmela is held here once in 12 years along with four other cities in India. Lord Rama along with Lakshmana and Sita spent 14 years of his exile at Tapovan near Nashik. The city came under the rule of Mughal in 16th century and was renamed Gulshanabad. Then it comes under Peshwa of Maratha Empire in 1818. City is also noted for its participation in freedom struggle. Freedom fighters like Veer Savarkar and Anant Laxman Kanhere were born in Nashik.

For a long time, the name of the city has changed according to different rulers. Some believe the name "Nashik" was derived after the incident in Ramayana when Lakshman (Sri Ram's brother) chopped off the nose of Surpanakha (Ravan's sister). Another school of thought states that Nashik is a combination of nava shikha - nine summits. It was also named as Gulshnabad by Muslim rulers which was immediately disputed by the residents. It was spelled incorrectly by the British administration, as Nasik but eventually changed to the current Nashik.

Cultural and social
Nashik is well known in India as a gateway city to travel to Shirdi and Trambakeshwar which hosts one of the twelve Jyotirlingas of Lord Shiva.

It is believed that in antiquity, during transport, the drops of Amrit fell into the Brahma-Kund at Trambakeshwar. This makes it one of the most popular religious travel destinations of India. Nashik is also known as a transit station for devotees going to Shirdi, the residence of Sai Baba ( from Nashik).

Living
Nashik is fairly cosmopolitan city. Marathi is the official language of the city. This is the most common language spoken on the streets, most people may partial understand Hindi and English.

Attitudes in Nashik are liberal. The city used to be very traditional and conservative, but now is an open-minded culture and is gradually developing city.

Read and watch
Nashik is known for its art and literature contribution. Nashik has one of the biggest public libraries.

Movie

 * Shri Dadasaheb Phalke - the founder of the Indian film industry comes from Nashik. He started movie making in India with the mythological character “Raja Harishchandra” in 1913. This was the first movie in India. He made 95 movies and 26 short films in the span of 19 years, till 1932 in Nashik.

Music

 * Pt. Vishnu Digambar Paluskar was from Nashik, wrote books on classical Indian music. He reinvented notation system suitable to Indian classical music. He also composed notations for the national song of India, Vande Mataram.

Literature

 * Bahinabai Chaudhary was a poetess who made poems in spoken Marathi. It was a flawless creation in ample. Once her son realised the value of her poems he started writing it down. Her poems is an invaluable treasure of Marathi literature. The poems reflect real day-to-day life in a rural setting describing the beautiful effects of nature on her life. She also state the philosophy of life in simple humble words.
 * V V Shirwadkar alias “Kusumagraj” in a career spanning five decades starting in pre-independence era, he wrote 16 volumes of poems, three novels, eight volumes of short stories, seven volumes of essays, 18 plays and six one-act plays.
 * Vasant Kanetkar was a stage drama writer in Marathi language. He wrote 40 three-act plays, all of which were performed on the professional stage. Many of his plays became commercial successes. He has been credited with rejuvenating the Marathi theatre when it was in decline, the age of Sangeet Natak --stage musicals—having had come to an end.
 * Vinayak Damodar Savarkar re-wrote Indian history from a patriotic point of view. His works are in Marathi language, Saha Soneri Pane (Six golden pages in the History of Hindu Nation) - explaining six Indian empires and their extent. He wrote two books in English named "Hindutwa" and "Hindupadapadshahi" on the history of Marathas. Two of his poems famous are Sagara Pran Talamalala and Jayostute sung by Lata Mangeshkar.

Climate
The climate of Nashik is very pleasant. Nashik has three distinct seasons: summer, monsoon and winter. Summers are typically hot with maximum temperatures ranging from 35 to 42°C. The warmest month in Nashik is generally April as compared to the rest of the Deccan Plateau where it is May. November is normally a very pleasant month.

Nashik does not get very hot. Even during the peak of summer, the air is cool and standing under a tree can give respite form the heat. However, as sunlight can be intense leading to skin tan and sun-burn, be sure to carry and use sunscreens (above SPF-30).

The nights in Nashik are significantly cooler than most other parts in this region owing to its high altitude.

The average rainfall is approx 550 mm. The city often receives local and heavy thunder showers with heavy downpours in June, which brings down the temperature. The rainy season can sometimes be gloomy, with cloud cover for days together.

Winters are generally dry and day temperatures can be as low as 24°C and temperatures at night as low as 5°C.

By bus
Nashik is from Mumbai (Bombay). There are frequent buses to Nashik from Dadar in Mumbai. It takes 4 to 5 hours by road. If you are not around Dadar, you can still take buses from Borivali (a key place on Western Railway Line) or Thane (a key place on Central Railway Line). Also, a suburban railway (CR) to Kasara can be taken from few suburban railway stations beyond Dadar (like Kurla, Thane or even beyond). Once at Kasara, there are loads of connecting buses to Nashik and many other places, along with ample number of share-taxis (₹50-60 per adult passenger, but with cramped sitting). (There is no taxi service available in the late night. You can get held up after reaching Kasara Railway Station till the next morning.)

By train
Trains called 'Panchavati Express' and 'Godavari Express' also ply daily between Mumbai and Nashik. Nashik is on Central Railway line and Dadar Station is a sort of junction place for Central Railway and Western Railway, so make sure that you are at right side of the station (that is, east-side for Central Railway). There is also a daily train service between Pune and Nashik.

There are sufficiently frequent services of buses, auto-rickshaws, shared-taxis etc. are available at fairly low fares.

You can also go by local from Kasara.

By car
You can reach Nashik by road through Mumbai-Nashik Expressway (NH 3),  approx.

Get around
A rented car is the best option to move around the city. There is also a Nashik Darshan bus every day which shows you around the important tourist attractions in Nashik otherwise regional public transport service is also quite nice. Get the ticket for Nashik Darshan bus a day in advance to avoid inconvenience. You can akso take cheap and good auto rikshaws.

See

 * Nashik Flower Park.
 * Nashik Flower Park.











Do

 * Trek in the hills near to Nashik.
 * Visit a Stone Age Site - several kilometres from Gangapur village.

Buy
Nashik is famous for its silverware craftsmanship. The old shopping centre of the city lies in the heart of the city at Main Road. If gas a lot of upscale shops. Saraf Bazar is place for silverware and ornaments. Canada corner is always crowded with college going youngsters. Mahatma Gandhi Marg is the hot shopping destination. You'll get brands like Lee Cooper, RBK, Adidas, Woodlands, Van Heusen, Proline, Pepe Jeans, D&G, Levis, Provogue, Biba, Fabindia, Spyker and many more.

Malls

 * Crosswords, Untwadi
 * Nashik Central, Trimbak Naka
 * Pantaloons, Untwadi
 * Pinnacle Mall, Golf Club
 * Reliance Footprints, Untwadi
 * Reliance Living Home, Untwadi
 * Reliance Trends, Untwadi
 * Westside, Untwadi
 * Reliance Trends, Untwadi
 * Westside, Untwadi

And chain stores like Reliance Fresh, Spencer's, Spinach, Subhiksha, more are present all over the city.

Jewellers

 * Adgaonkar Saraf, Saraf Bazar, Nashik
 * A K Gems - Agni, Nashik Road
 * Bafna Jewellers, Tilakwadi, Nashik
 * Chnaya Jewellers Prop. Jitendra Mutha, Mob. 9850046531, Old agra road, pimpalgaon baswant.
 * Diamond Galaxy - Tanishq, Canada Corner, Nashik
 * Govind Dande & Sons, Nashik Road
 * Maind Saraf, Saraf Bajar Nashik.
 * Mayur Alankar, Saraf Bazar, Gangapur Road, Nashik.
 * Mirajkar Jwellers, Saraf Bazar, Trimurti Chowk, Madhli holi Nashik.
 * Parekh Jewels, College Road, Nashik
 * P.R. Vaishampayan & Sons working under the brand name Sonchafa.
 * Rajmal Lakhichand Jewllers, Nashik
 * Significant Moments, Nashik
 * Surana Jewellers, Canada Corner, Nashik.
 * Takle Bandhu, Saraf Bazar, Nashik
 * Tanishq Showroom, Samarth Nagar, Nashik.
 * Waman Vishnu Throat, Saraf Bazar, Nashik.

Multiplexes

 * Cinemax, City Centre Mall
 * PVR Cinemas, College Road
 * Cinemax Regimental, Nashik Road
 * Big Cinemas, New Nashik (Cidco)
 * INOX, Nashik Road
 * SRS Cinemas, Nashik Road

Eat
There are good restaurants all over the city. Coffee Shops/Cafes on College Road: Bliss Juice Bar, Cafe Bollywood , 12 to 12 , Friendship , Cafe Coffee Day. 12 to 12 is good restaurant for western cuisines.


 * The most amazing dining experiences at Nashik are at Emerald Park Hotel. Jharoka serves some amazing Indian food comparable to the best in the country, Dhruva is the roof top barbecue and grill and also has a 24-hour cafe.
 * Bhagvati's Chat: A famous chat joint near Kulkarni Garden on Sharanpur Road
 * Bikaneri Bhujiawalla on College Road.
 * Bon Appétit Restaurant - Pathardi Phata, Nashik
 * Kondaji Chivda very famous from Nashik.
 * Modern Cafe (formerly named as Parth) has good Marathi fare.
 * Rolls & Keema
 * Sachin Foods, near Raviwar Karanja, famous for samosa and chat.
 * Salim's Tea at the corner of BYK Commerce College is a favourite hang-out of college students.
 * Kondaji Chivda very famous from Nashik.
 * Modern Cafe (formerly named as Parth) has good Marathi fare.
 * Rolls & Keema
 * Sachin Foods, near Raviwar Karanja, famous for samosa and chat.
 * Salim's Tea at the corner of BYK Commerce College is a favourite hang-out of college students.
 * Kondaji Chivda very famous from Nashik.
 * Modern Cafe (formerly named as Parth) has good Marathi fare.
 * Rolls & Keema
 * Sachin Foods, near Raviwar Karanja, famous for samosa and chat.
 * Salim's Tea at the corner of BYK Commerce College is a favourite hang-out of college students.
 * Modern Cafe (formerly named as Parth) has good Marathi fare.
 * Rolls & Keema
 * Sachin Foods, near Raviwar Karanja, famous for samosa and chat.
 * Salim's Tea at the corner of BYK Commerce College is a favourite hang-out of college students.
 * Modern Cafe (formerly named as Parth) has good Marathi fare.
 * Rolls & Keema
 * Sachin Foods, near Raviwar Karanja, famous for samosa and chat.
 * Salim's Tea at the corner of BYK Commerce College is a favourite hang-out of college students.
 * Rolls & Keema
 * Sachin Foods, near Raviwar Karanja, famous for samosa and chat.
 * Salim's Tea at the corner of BYK Commerce College is a favourite hang-out of college students.
 * Sachin Foods, near Raviwar Karanja, famous for samosa and chat.
 * Salim's Tea at the corner of BYK Commerce College is a favourite hang-out of college students.
 * Salim's Tea at the corner of BYK Commerce College is a favourite hang-out of college students.
 * Salim's Tea at the corner of BYK Commerce College is a favourite hang-out of college students.

Other

 * Chinese : Seble Hotel, Trimbak road, Carnival College Road, 21st century, Sharanpur Road
 * One Should not miss the famous Krushnai Vada Pav (an Indian burger served with chillies) at the Circle Cinema, The Shop located at Ashok Stumbh
 * Other Family Dining: Patang, and Purohit.
 * Missal: Vihar at Gangapur naka, A tapri near Raviwar Karanja (next to Pethe High School),Tushar on college road, Ambika near Panchvati Karanja, Sham-sundar Satpur MIDC (see below)
 * Other Thali Hotels: Purohit, Rajdhani
 * Traditional Marathi Cuisine: Saheba, Mumbai Naka

Famous Missal Joints
Missal is a hot and tasty curry dish from Maharashtra. Missal literally means 'Mix'. It is served with Pav (Indian name for baked bread). There are lots of variations to the cooking and the way it is served. It is mostly hot in taste.


 * Sadhana Restaurant - Chulivarachi Misal, Survey No 71, Gangapur-Satpur Link Road, Bardan Phata, Nashik,
 * Hotel Bhagwati, Panchawati Karanja
 * Hotel Shamsunder, B Road, Satpur MIDC
 * Hotel Sheetal, Old taxi Stand, CBS
 * Hotel Sudarshan, Makhamalabad, Nashik.
 * Hotel Tuljai, Opp college, College Road.
 * Hotel Tushar, Malaria Stop, College Road.
 * Hotel Vihar, Near K.V.N.Naik College, Gangapur Naka.
 * Maharashtra Hotel, Bytco Point, Nashik Road.
 * Nehru Garden, Near Sarda School.
 * Om Tea House, Near Bhadrakali Karanja, Bhadrakali.
 * Raswanti Missal, Panchavati Karanja
 * Shelke Missal, Ravivar Karanja, opp Chandi Ganpati Mandir.
 * Pravin missal Panchvati Nashik.
 * Pravin missal Panchvati Nashik.

Ice cream parlours

 * Cream Zone, College Road
 * Eskimozs Pot Ice Cream, Canada corner
 * Pastongi, MG Road
 * Razzmatazz, College Road
 * S K Ice cream Parlour, nashik road
 * Razzmatazz, College Road
 * S K Ice cream Parlour, nashik road

Budget
(Inspect the room before you book)



Go next

 * Anjaneri - the birthplace of Lord Hanuman. located on Trimbak road, from Nashik.
 * Bhagur - Small village, important as the birthplace of Veer Savarkar, one of the famous freedom fighters, about from Nashik Road.
 * Igatpuri - On Nashik - Mumbai Highway. Located about from Nashik. There are multiple resorts available for a weekend getaway.
 * Nanduri - Saptashringi Goddess - located from Nashik.According to Hindu tradition, the goddess Saptashrungi Nivasini dwells within the seven mountain peaks. (Sapta means seven and shrung means peaks.) It is located in Nanduri, Tal:-Kalwan a small village near Nashik in India
 * Sangamner - About from Nashik, along the Nashik-Pune highway. Has an engineering college, a medical college, a well-developed market, and historical places to see.
 * Shirdi - Famous the world over for Sai Baba, but you have to have patience, as the queues can be infinitely long. About from Nashik. Frequent Volvo and MSRTC buses are available.
 * Sinnar - About from Nashik on the Nashik-Pune highway (NO 50). In the Yadava period (11 AD)  Gondeshwar Shiva temple has interesting architecture and stone carvings.
 *  Yeola: from Nashik, between Nashik and Aurangabad. Famous for hand-woven Patina saris (traditional sari), Yeola is a major handloom weaving centre and the silk saris, shalus and Paithanis woven here find a prominent place in Indian and foreign markets. It is also famous for gold and silver wire. Places of interest include the Muralidhar Temple and the Parshvanath Temple.