Ross Island in Andamans

Our family trip to Ross Island started in the evening of 25th Jan 2018 from Port Blair. We took a cab from our Hotel Megapode Resort to the Aberdeen jetty. The Aberdeen Jetty is a part of Marina Park near water sport complex of Port Blair, where ferries and boats are available to the Ross and North Bay  Island. There is a proper waiting room for the tourist and the arrival of ferry is announced so that the people are aware about the arrival of their ferry. 

Ross island is situated about 2.5 Km east of Port Blair. Our ferry was MV White Sapphire. It was my first ferry ride but inside the ferry the seats were quite comfortable and ride was very smooth. We hardly felt the movement as the whole catamaran was Air conditioned with tinted glasses. Time taken was around 20 - 25 minutes. Nobody was allowed to go on deck for safety reasons. Only few limited tickets are sold every day for transfers to Ross Island and the light and sound show.

 As soon as you step in to Ross Island you feel transported to an era gone by with the ruins of the erstwhile capital of the British Empire in Andaman Islands. Ross Island served as the administrative capital of Andaman and Nicobar Islands during the British Rule before being abandoned during World War II. Since then it has been uninhabited. In April 1979, the island was handed over to the Indian Navy, which set up a small post, INS Jarawa, named after one of the indigenous tribes of the Andaman group of islands. Navy charges Rs.50 per person on entry to the Ross Island.  

The Ross Island has remains of various colonial buildings which include the chief commissioners building, church, cemetery and barracks. Most of the structures are still intact and provide a first-hand insight into the lives of British’s during the colonial period. A walk through the ruins and the island as such can be very thrilling. There were many rabbits, peacocks and deer to make the atmosphere heavenly. If possible do carry some tit bits to feed the rabbits, which might be a delightful experience. Though there is a beach on the other side, access is prohibited after the Tsunami. The presence of Ross Island prevented the Tsunami from hitting Port Blair thus saving the city from much destruction.                          

MV White Sapphire

  The sight of the calm waters and old dilapidated buildings and overgrown trees gave a surreal feeling to the whole island. Damp night and frosty moon was casting a bluish gleam on the sea. We were walking as if in dream half-awake much tired, but the sound and light show took us into the historical era where everything was happening as if in front of our eyes. I was wide awake by the echoing sound and had goose bumps on my body with such marvelous  acoustic system. Voice was travelling from one corner to other as if people were everywhere and the whole place came alive. It was a great show – worth remembering for long- long time.

Once the sun sets, do stay back to watch the 3 D light and sound show. The script has been composed by Gulzar and he has narrated it, as well (for the Hindi show) and Shabana Azmi (for the English show). It is about the history of Andaman and Nicobar Islands and Ross Island in particular and is worth watching.

Renowned film director and actor Revathi and her team lived in Ross Island for many days to give life to the project. They even learnt about the small electric wires that are to be used for the light and sound show. Using 3D mapping for such a project is one of the first time in India. Each and every minute detail about Bakery Building (See pic below) was studied. According to that, graphics were prepared. 3D mapping, 2D graphics, light, and sound were all brought together to create the amazing Ross Show. The first show started on 7th Dec, 2014. 

Shankar Ehsan Loy has composed the music. Tabi Parekh has done the background score. Graphic artist Aravindan and his team created graphics that had life in them. Topping all that, Resul Pokkutty has done the sound designing for the show. Gulzar's poems and a song have been used for the show in both English and Hindi. In the light and sound show, the sound is as important as the visual. Resul Pookkutty has created a magical world with the best sound designing.  Another specialty is that, it is for the first time that 11.1 Dolby  Surround is being used for outdoors in this Show. The earthquake that happened in Ross Islands in 1941 is shown in Ross show. With his technical skills, Resul Pookutty has created that effect with his sound. 

The rabbits sniffed us in the dark while we were watching the show. They were very friendly compared to Deer. It will be difficult to see Deer and peacock once it gets dark. We had to rush to the waiting Ferry as soon as the show ended,  as we were given a window of just 10 minutes to reach our ferry. This short interval prevented the tourists to wander inside the island in the dark. Each Island in Andaman has its own beauty so my advise, don't miss any.

Bakery Building

Aberdeen Jetty