Category Archives: Arts, Culture & Entertainment

HISS Master’s Voice

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Business & Economy, Science & Technology

Cobra, a leading brand of pepper spray, was created by word of mouth. Customers still call up and speak directly to the brand’s owner.

Fangs ahead Bangalore-based Cobra launched when there was no market for pepper spray_K Murali Kumar / The Hindu
Fangs ahead Bangalore-based Cobra launched when there was no market for pepper spray_K Murali Kumar / The Hindu
In 2002, Cobra pepper spray, from Bangalore-based Aax Global, launched by selling just two units and fetched founder Raana Singh, then just 32, a princely sum of ₹1,000.

It’s not that Singh, the son of a defence officer, had too much of a choice. After setting up a unit that was meant to manufacture industrial paints in canisters, Singh found he was allergic to certain chemicals used in the process. With the equipment idling in his factory, he began researching adjacent categories. The body spray category was crowded. Pesticides were an option too.

But it was a statement from a senior police official in Bangalore, exhorting women to use chilli powder to ward away criminals, that clinched the deal in favour of pepper sprays. A meeting with the commissioner was encouraging. “When we meet the next time, you should come back with the product,” the official reportedly told Singh. With such words of encouragement, there was no looking back, reminisces Singh.

Twelve years later, Cobra is India’s leading pepper spray brand, meant to protect women from anti-social elements. Along the way, the company diversified into riot- and mob-control equipment and recently also signed an agreement with the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) to co-develop non-lethal weapons.

But Cobra did not exactly taste success from the word go. Even as early as 1999, Singh had tried to bring out pepper spray in a lipstick-like container. With a spray range of just 2-3 ft, the product was a non-starter.

Even the later product, with spray range exceeding 8 ft, faced other hurdles. As there was little awareness about pepper sprays, Singh decided to place ads in newspapers. But he got responses from all the wrong people. Anti-social elements started calling up, as they saw the product as a weapon to aid criminal activities.

To counter that problem, in the initial days Singh sold only to consumers who placed orders and the product was delivered to their address. “By doing so, we at least had proof of their residence,” he says. But there were not enough takers. “Customers were not interested.” Gradually the product began selling through word of mouth.

Cobra was available in two versions. One, priced ₹499, for individuals; and a professional version, priced ₹599, for security guards and so on. To give buyers confidence, Singh displayed his mobile phone number on every can — to advise consumers if the product was accidentally sprayed. That move helped increase orders and, soon, corporate bookings started coming in.

Of course, Cobra’s success would have made Singh popular among members of the fairer sex, something that he does not deny. He does get his share of fan mail. But he also recalls a stray instance of someone calling up to threaten him for trying to be a hero to women in distress. Selling nearly two lakh units a year, Cobra might be India’s largest pepper spray brand, but Singh is in no hurry to expand operations. Barring a single office in Bangalore, the company has no other branches. “It was always intended to be that way,” he says. The Cobra will move at its own pace.

source: http://www.thehindubusinessline.com / Business Line / Home> Features / by Prasad Sangameshwaran / March 06th, 2014

‘Tees’ for good thought

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Business & Economy

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Instead of Eminem t-shirts why not sport one supporting a cause for autism. Rather than Levi, UCB or Reebok, why not buy one locally from Cachapa — that would be your contribution to society. This was the aim with which Sundeep Hiremat and Kinjal Bannerjee started Cachapa, an organisation to support social causes through merchandising. They are now the talk of the town and have collected more that `25,000 for charity.

A tedious desk job, which he quit after seven years, Sundeep decided that he wanted to do something that would challenge him on a daily basis. “Working with an IT company proved to be quite taxing and I quit one fine day. After experimenting and exploring my options I began volunteering,” exclaims Sundeep.

Understanding the drawbacks that NGOs and the volunteer sector faces, he formulated a plan that could make it easier for youngsters to contribute. “When I began to talk to my friends about the benefits of social causes, they usually seemed very interested or sceptical. They either did not trust if their donation would be put into good use or did not have the time to invest in. That’s when I came up with Cachapa,” reveals Sundeep.

Cachapa manufactures merchandises which are linked to various charity organisations, their recent one being autism awareness for Asha Foundation in Indiranagar. “It was more about creating a platform where both the volunteer and the NGOs profited. We wanted to crowd source the idea and now we have made good revenue for a few organisations in the city,” says Kinjal Baneerjee.

The t-shirts come in funky colours, each sporting a social message and priced at `399. How do they differ from other charity merchandising companies, we ask “There is transparency which is maintained in each purchase that one has made — every little detail is maintained on the website.

The impact that the t-shirts generate comes as feedbacks from each organisation and that gives the buyer trust to come back for more,” effuses Kinjal. Speaking about Bengaluru’s response, “It has been amazing as we have already generated quite a significant amount of funds. We are meeting up with various organisations and doing conferences and trying to involve the corporate sector too,” they share.

source: http://www.deccanchronicle.com / Deccan Chronicle / Home> Lifestyle> Fashion-Beauty / DC / by Nuvena Rajendran / February 24th, 2014

BVB’s village vocational venture

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Education

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For good work to be done, it is important that a person or an institution takes initiative. Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, founded in 1978, has been working on promoting Indian culture and tradition. The latest being the Village Vocational Venture which is held every year at Kollegal in Chamarajanagar district. This weekend’s Star Supplement introduces our readers to the initiative taken by Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan to help students learn about the richness of rural culture.

 

Taking students close to village culture

by S.N. Venkatnag Sobers

Located about 77 kms from Mysore is a town called Kollegal, in Chamarajanagar district. Until 1956, Kollegal was part of the Coimbatore district of the Madras Presidency. The States Reorganisation Act of 1956 moved Kollegal to Karnataka primarily organising it along linguistic lines. Kollegal is a name derived from the names of two hermits namely ‘Kauhala’ and ‘Galava’ who were believed to be have been instrumental in the development of Kollegal.

Kollegal, also called ‘Silk City,’ is famous for its handloom silk saree industry. Some historians believe that Silk was introduced in this part of the State by Tipu Sultan, who learnt the secrets of silk. But there is no evidence to prove the matter. Kollegal also has a very rich forest land with Sandalwood and Teak grown in abundance. The town is surrounded by Siddappana Hills, Edni Hills, Koteboli, Kanchanboli, Mallige Boli, Dupada Boli, Biligiri Rangana Betta and Malaki Betta.

A second range of forests include Gunndal, Daigallu, Bombegallu, Burude Forest, Dodda Sampige range, Chikka Sampige range, Kere Dimba, Nallikadru, Dodda Kallu, Atthi Kane estate, Kadigere, Beduguli Estate, Jodigere, Gaddesala, Dimbam, Thalai Male, Adunmale, Satekhana, Akka Thangi Bole(Sisters Hill), Devargatta, Sebunkube, Havina moole, Ere kadu, Ame Kere, Purane, Kyathadevangudi and Banglekodu.

Kollegal was one of the areas which played host to the activities of Sandalwood brigand Veerappan who also poached elephants for their tusks. The town also plays host to many tourist spots which include Malai Mahadeshwara Hills, Hogenakal falls, Gagana Chukki and Bhara Chukki at Shivanasamudra (also known as Bluff) among many other. Also there is a small hill called ‘Maradi Gudda’ which is located in the heart of the city where the foot prints of the Sri Mahadeshwara Swamy are preserved. It is believed that Lord Mahadeshwara Swamy first stepped at this place above the hills.

Though Kollegal is located in Chamarajanagar district, which is one of the backward districts of Karnataka, it has produced some eminent personalities who have gone on to make a name for themselves in society. Among them are the famous sculptor Shilpi Siddalingaswamy, former AICTE Chairman Ramegowda, former BEML CMD K. Aprameya, former HMT CMD N. Ramanujan, who is now the Chairman of Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, Karnataka among others.

Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan’s presence in Kollegal

Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan (BVB), has gone to become a huge intellectual, cultural and educational movement. The institution was founded by K.M. Munshi, a multi-faceted personality, who was a lawyer, author, constitution-maker, statesman and a social reformer. Now after more than six decades, BVB has become one of the premier institutions in the country and abroad. The institution has been offering education in various subjects which include Sanskrit, Indology, Indian Culture, Indian Classical Music, Dance, Drama, Yoga, Classical Languages, Ancient Scriptures, Arts, Science, Commerce, Modern Management, Mass Communication and Information Technology as well as foreign languages such as French, Spanish, Russian, German and Japanese.

Institutions run by BVB range from Kindergarten to Post Graduate and Research levels. The main objective of BVB is to provide a modern bridge to span the past, present and future built on a strong foundation of the fundamental values of life.

BVB has also set up Centres in London, New York, Lisbon, Mexico City and Durban. There are also plans to start BVB Centres at Geneva, Singapore, Tokyo, Abu Dhabi, Qatar and Kuwait. The institution not only aims at providing quality education with modern facilities to urban students but also to students in rural areas. Besides having a global presence, BVB has also been concentrating on taking quality education to rural areas. A recent endeavour of BVB is the Bhavan’s Geetha Vidyalaya in Kollegal. The School, originally known as ‘Geetha Shishuvihara’ was established in the year 1954 by a team of philanthropists. In the year 1995, A. Krishna Shetty, a philanthropist, donated the site to Geetha Shishuvihara on which the School was constructed.

It was in 1991 that Geetha Shishuvihara started a primary school and since then it has added one class every academic year. Currently, the institution caters from kindergarten to Class 8. Next academic year, the institution will be starting Class 9 as the Department of Public Instruction has given its nod for the same.

Geetha Shishuvihara was taken over by Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan in the year 2009 and was renamed ‘Bhavan’s Geetha Vidyalaya.’ An important personality responsible for BVB taking over the Shishuvihara was A.S. Devendra Gupta of APS in Kollegal. He was instrumental in running the school for many years. Sadly, he passed away in July 2013, soon after the School laid a foundation stone for the construction of a new building. The School has a separate committee headed by K. Shekar as the Chairman. It also involves members of BVB Mysore, who have been guiding the committee on various issues.

After BVB took over the school administration, the school has seen several changes right from providing quality infrastructure to salaries for staff members. The student strength has also increased over the years and slowly, Bhavan’s Geetha Vidyalaya is becoming one of the most sought after institutions in Kollegal and surrounding villages.

Speaking to Star of Mysore, School Secretary Girirajan, said that the school had seen a lot of improvement since BVB took over. “Student strength has gone up, amenities for the school have improved and staff benefits have also increased. Currently, the school administration has also taken up construction of new building which will provide classrooms for students. Slowly, the existing building will be demolished phase-wise to make way for the new building. We have added a Computer lab, Educomp Smart Class and transportation facilities,” said Girirajan.

Village Vocational Venture (V3)

BVB’s activities in Kollegal doesn’t stop at that. One of the unique features of Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan’s education system is that it provides an opportunity for the students of Bhavan’s Priyamvada Birla Institute of Management to learn and educate themselves on rural system of living. Not many institutions which offer management courses concentrate on taking the students to villages to allow them to learn and get hands-on experience of life at grass-roots level.

Under the initiative Village Vocational Venture (V3), the management students are taken to Kollegal during their academic year and are made to understand different scenarios that villagers encounter in their everyday life. The two days and one night programme involves a batch of 20 students who are introduced to cottage industry, pottery, sericulture farming and jaggery manufacturing unit.

Speaking to Star of Mysore, Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, Karnataka Chairman, N. Ramanujan said that students who are the management executives tomorrow should understand the hardship of the rural people, who work as agriculturists, in rural industries, labourers and also the exploitation meted out to them by the middlemen. This apart, the programme also focuses on making students understand the rural lifestyle, which is filled with healthy food and a care-free life.

“They do a lot of work but at the same time they also enjoy life’s simple pleasures. Students are made to experience rural lifestyle by introducing them to different cultures, traditions and rural sports such as kabbadi, lagori, marakothi and others. This programme is to make students understand that the simple joys that they derive actually originate from villages,” said Ramanujan.

The most interesting and fun part of the entire programme is the stay. Students are accommodated in an ancient house believed to be over 300-years- old. The house is the ancestral property of N. Ramanujan, bought by his great grandfather Narayana Iyengar from Krishnaraja Wadiyar II on April 18, 1760 AD. The sale deed executed by Krishnaraja Wadiyar II is well preserved by Ramanujan, who has now donated it to be used for V3 project. The house is located on Doddamane Narayana Iyengar Street near Lakshmi Narayana Temple.

There are around seven rooms where the students are accommodated during their stay in Kollegal. The pillars of the house are made up of Teakwood which adds to its antique value.

Though the house has been maintained in its original state, a few changes have been made to make the students’ stay comfortable.

During their stay at the house, students get to relish some of the best village food served on a plantain leaf. The scheduled morning walks are a delight for the students, as they get to enjoy sugar-cane juice, tender coconut directly from the nature’s bed. They are also taken to paddy fields, jaggery manufacturing units and are briefed about different business opportunities in villages.

Mahatma Gandhi said, ‘India lives in her villages’ and Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, through its Village Vocational Venture programme, has been successful in introducing the urban students to India’s rich rural culture.

source: http://www.starofmysore.com / Star of Mysore / Home> Feature Articles / March 01st, 2014

Meet the artistic siblings …

Arts, Culture & Entertainment

ArtisticSiblingsBF04mar2014

Mysore :

It is wonderful to possess artistic skills within oneself. But it is all the more wonderful when one gets a chance to turn inventive with a creative sibling alongside. The sisters we are going to introduce to you today are such. From learning to creating and promoting paintings of many varieties that they create, Shubha Alva and Sonia Adappa have done them all together and for almost over a decade now.

Shubha and Sonia are siblings in city for whom art means their world. And so much so that they are trained in and create not just one but many different forms of paintings with ease. Attending classes and art workshops organised by adept artists at various places in Mysore is how they have trained themselves but the instinct actually comes from the family itself where they saw their own mother being a talented artist, say the duo, adding: “Our mother Vimala Rai is an artist too. She used to do oil paintings which was always interesting to watch and seemed inspiring as well. That is where our artistic instincts probably first developed.”

While Shubha is trained in creating the Mysore, Tanjore, Warli, Madubani,Gajifa and Kinhala art forms, Sonia is mostly into painting Madubani and Tanjore arts. “I learnt the Mysore painting by the renowned artist late Ramanarasaiah,”explains Shubha, “after which I attended classed on Ganjifa conducted by his daughter Chandrika followed by classes from well-known artist Ganjifa Raghupati Bhat. He conducted a training programme exclusively for women under a project called Yashaswini where I picked up on my skills of Ganjifa really well and began practicing it. Further, I attended several training classes in art forms like Madhubani, Kinhala and Warli at the Indira Gandhi Rashtirya Manav Sangrahalaya (IGRMS). And I myself taught the Mysore style painting to my sister.”

And having been painting art pieces in all the above mentioned art forms, the ladies say the work keeps them busy all day long. “Whether we have orders or not, dyeing the canvas is what we always do as we love painting to keep ourselves busy and also perfect our skills,” Shubha and Sonia say and Shubha adds, “currently I am working on a Tanjore piece on Yashoda and Lord Krishna, jut to perfect my skills.”

Ask them as to how they manage working on so many varieties and pat comes the reply from Shubha, “It is only when you practice constantly that you can perfect your skills and get more creative. And hence, we are painting something or the other in one or the art forms we know.That helps us master every form.”

The ladies have not stopped at that. Their love for art has also given birth to a boutique, available where are interior décor items, clothes and also the paintings by the siblings. Shubha who has studied interiors concentrates on the interior décor items for home while Sonia gets hand woven sarees from places across India to their boutique in city. “And if the people we meet here are art lovers, they’ll want us to create exclusive art pieces for them too. And we love meeting interesting people that way. Things like that keep us occupied,” the sisters say.

The ladies can be contacted on Mob: 99163-10898.-AN

source: http://www.starofmysore.com / Star of Mysore / Home> Feature Articles / February 27th, 2014

An unfinished episode

About Bangalore(Bengaluru) / Karnataka, Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Historical Links, Pre-Independence, Records, All, Travel

Embark on an adventure with Pheroze Kharegat as he takes us to a place steeped in history and conspiracy. Bara Kaman in Bijapur mesmerises and captivates anyone who looks upon it…

BaraKhambaMPos04mar2014

With an overwhelming number of Mughal monuments in India, we tend to forget that, down South, in Bijapur,Karnataka has a great treasure house of Islamic architecture. Peep into the annals of history and you will be intrigued to know how this obscure  little town in northern Karnataka attracted countless dynasties in its brief thousand years of existence.

Dynasty rules

The mighty Chalukyas led the pack, followed by the Khiljis, the Bahamanis and the Adil Shahis. Bijapur’s ancestry rattles off the veritable who’s who of medieval India. They came here to rule and left their imprints in stone – the Gol Gumbaz unparalleled anywhere in the world, the sombre mausoleums and the lavish mahals.

Of all these, the most mystifying in the unfinished edifice is known as the Bara Kaman, or twelve arches. Arches that are silently crumbling, yet graceful. The unfinished tomb of Ali Adil Shah lies a short distance to the north of the citadel and the Gagan Mahal. The great high basement upon which the building stands is 215 feet square.

The most peculiar characteristic of the building are its arches. They are purely Gothic in outline, being struck from two centres with the curves continued up to the crown. On a raised platform, in the inner enclosure is the tomb of Ali Adil Shah. Standing at a dead end of a lane, located a few km from the present day Bijapur town, the Bara Kaman — as this mausoleum was called, stands in ruins.

There are no domes or pillars; just towering stone walls that curve into arches, built to represent death and immortality, as they tried to reach out to each other. The original plan was to build an edifice of 12 arches arranged both horizontally and vertically around the tomb of the king and his queens. However, barely a couple of arches completed the picture, while the rest of them seemed to have been left undone.
This is the incomplete mausoleum of Ali Adil Shah, Sultan of Bijapur, who ruled from 1656 to 1686. This building is also called as Ali Roza. This is located near to the Bijapur main market.

Family politics

Built in 1672 A D, it was the burial place of Ali Adil Shah II and his queens and members of royalty. But the planning of such a grand monument spelt death for the prince.

Ali Adil Shah was murdered by his father Ibrahim Adil Shah to prevent him from completing Bara kaman. Ibrahim Adil Shah feared that Bara kaman would lessen the popularity of Gol Gumbaz that he had gotten constructed. Bara Kaman has the tombs of Ali Adil Shah, his wife Chand Bibi, his mistress and his daughters.

The architect Malik Sandal, initially raised solid walls in the form of concentric arches and once the entire wall was erected, the inner arches were toppled off and only the outermost arch was left intact. Also iron rings were used to hold the stones in place. They weren’t cemented together.

If the mausoleum had been completed, it would have definitely rivalled the Gol Gumbaz in Bijapur.

As a visitor enters the place, he is bound to be impressed by the huge symmetrical arches. The pillars are built of stone and stand tall. The architectural skill of those who designed and constructed this monument is noteworthy.

It is a fine example of Islamic architecture which is synonymous with grace, beauty and opulence. There is no roof over the structure, a clear indication that work had to be stopped due to unknown reasons.

Massive pillars, with large stones nicely held together, support the arches, which soar to the sky. The arches are interlinked giving a picture of continuity.

The tombs are simple with no decoration and a hemispherical smooth top. Two of the arches are located on a tiered high platform, at a distance from each other, and have an austere look.

A wall at the back of the monument has a small arched opening as a lookout. The entire monument is bereft of any embellishment.

The garden in front is well maintained and the Archaeological Survey of India is looking after the upkeep of the monument, though no entry fee is charged.

It was rather late in the evening, and the sun’s rays filtered through the towering  arches, radiating a soft glow. The cenotaph just stood there throwing no clues as to why it was incomplete.

The only motive available in history is   pride that came between the father and the son. They both tried to surpass each other in terms of massive mausoleums.

source: http://www.deccanherald.com / Deccan Herald / Home> Supplements> Spectrum / Maharaja Features / March 04th, 2014

Count, count ’n’ there’s more

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Historical Links, Pre-Independence, Inspiration/ Positive News and Features, Records, All

P. Subramanyam Setty has a collection of coins and notes that encapsulate nuggets of history.

TREASURE TROVE My collection is the rarest, says Subramanyam / Photo: Murali Kumar K. / The Hindu
TREASURE TROVE My collection is the rarest, says Subramanyam / Photo: Murali Kumar K. / The Hindu

At the 5th National Numismatic Exhibition that concluded in the city recently, Bangalorean P. Subramanyam Setty, the veteran coin and note collector, was honoured for his impressive collection over the years. At his Vijayanagar residence, heaps of albums with the rarest of notes and coins are neatly arranged and placed in a room that attracts anyone to take a closer look. “At the outset I want you to see the Fancy Number series in my note collection, they are thrilling,” says the septuagenarian, a member of the Karnataka Numismatic Society. The fancy is in the Mahatma Gandhi note series where the denominations from Rs. 1,000 to Rs. 10 bear the numbers 111111 to 999999 and from 100000 – 1000000, — 19 notes in all.

Out of the 136 Star Notes issued by the Reserve Bank of India, Setty has 130 out of them in Rs. 10, 20, 50 and 100. “Star Notes are currency notes issued by RBI for replacement of defectively printed bank notes bearing the star in the number panel for indication. Issued between 2006 and 2014, the present RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan too has issued three Star Notes of Rs.10, and I have many of them issued by former governors, Dr. Y.V. Reddy and D. Subba Rao too,” he explains. Going back to pre-Independence British India Series-1, with a profile portrait of King George VI on the first series of RBI notes issued in 1938 is what Setty cherishes, while his post-Independence Republic India Series – II has a Rs.1000 note issued in 1954 with the Brihadeeshwara Temple of Tanjore depicted on the reverse. “Look at the size, it’s a huge 20 x 13 cms!” exclaims Setty.

“My collection is the rarest. Each of the old and exceptional of the notes costs in thousands to get hold of them. On many occasions we have travelled to the nook and corners to meet people who possess them, and we pay a premium,” says Setty. The Republic of India Ashoka Pillar series with the Chakra depicting the wheel motif of the Konarak Sun Temple issued in 1975 and the Mahatma Gandhi Series issued from 1996 are all available with him. “The one rupee Gandhi series of 1969 and the Rs.2. 5 and 10 issued between 1957 and 1970 stands out in my collection as the RBI stopped one and two rupees in 1995,” he says, the nearly 200 staggering variety with different signatures making up his note collection.

Subramanyam Setty also has an astounding 71 varieties of ‘Commemorative Coins’ up-to-date, issued by the government since 1964. “They are referred to as the uncirculated proof-sets,” he says. While most of these coins are in memory of events or renowned personalities of the country which are mostly in quaternary alloy with 50 per cent of silver along with copper, nickel and zinc, the thousand years of the Brihadeeshwara Temple in Thanjavur is commemorated with a 44 mm thousand rupee coin with 80 per cent of silver in its make-up!

The Platinum Jubilee dedicatory coin of the RBI released in 2010 is a Rs.75 denomination with the RBI monogram of the Tiger. “I am still waiting for the Motilal Nehru and Sant Tukaram coins, it takes six months to one year and we book a year in advance,” says Setty. “I also treasure the Mahatma Basaveshwara coin that I possess.” Born in Andhra Pradesh and settled in Bangalore with an agarbathi business, Setty’s son Sharath Babu and daughter Sharmila are captivated to be part of the note and coin fold, while his other son Varaprasad, a central excise employee, has received several awards for his postal stamp collection.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> Features> MetroPlus> Society / by Ranjani Govind / Bangalore – March 03rd, 2014

Two-day workshop on endangered tribal languages in city

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Historical Links, Pre-Independence, Records, All

CIIL to document these languages; Dictionaries to be brought out and ethnic knowledge system to be recorded.

(from left) L. Ramamoorthy, Head, Linguistic Data Consortium for Indian Languages, CIIL; P.K. Misra, President, Anthropological Association; C.R. Satyanarayana, Deputy Director & Head, Anthropological Survey of India and Lawrence Surendra, Senior Fellow, ICSSR, at the workshop.
(from left) L. Ramamoorthy, Head, Linguistic Data Consortium for Indian Languages, CIIL; P.K. Misra, President, Anthropological Association; C.R. Satyanarayana, Deputy Director & Head, Anthropological Survey of India and Lawrence Surendra, Senior Fellow, ICSSR, at the workshop.

Mysore :

Anthropological Survey of India (ASI) in collaboration with Central Institute of Indian Languages (CIIL) has organised a two-day workshop on ‘Endangered tribal languages in South India’ at ASI’s Manav Bhavan in Bogadi II Stage here since yesterday.

CIIL will take up a mega project under which it will document nearly 500 endangered languages in the country, each spoken by less than 10,000 people. The project has got its nod in principle by the Ministry of HRD and CIIL will collaborate with Universities and Institutes in carrying out the project.

Speaking to media persons, L. Rama- moorthy, Head, Linguistic Data Consortium for Indian Languages, CIIL, said that the work would be taken up under a scheme to preserve and protect endangered languages.

“The objective is to bring out dictionaries and also document and preserve the ethnic knowledge system enshrined in the languages, including folklore. It would also extend to frame grammar rules. Also, experts would give suggestions for revitalisation of these languages. The project would be carried out phase-wise. About 70 languages from different parts of the country would be studied in the first phase and 500 words would be taken up in a span of 10 years,” said Ramamoorthy and added that the study and documentation of each language would cost Rs. 6 lakh to Rs. 8 lakh.

Earlier, P.K. Misra, President, Anthropological Association, Mysore, inaugurated the workshop on ‘Endangered tribal languages-Initiatives from CIIL.’ Speaking on the occasion, he said “Language is embedded in society and culture. It is an important tool to identify people belonging to different communities. The region, inhabited by Jenu Kuruba community, is also home to other communities like Betta Kuruba, Soliga, Yerawa and others,” and added, “The status of language should be understood in the context of society and culture which were not static but under constant change. Even the changing external environmental factors have affected the traditional lifestyle of the tribal people.”

Ramamoorthy, during the workshop, quoting a survey, said that there was no consensus on the status of endangered languages. “While the Census of India 2001 fixed the number as 122, Anthropological Survey of India put it at 323, while a UNESCO report said 196 Indian languages were endangered,” he said and added, “Language is a complex phenomenon and its use is also complex due to the onset of globalisation. We get to know one’s culture through the clan’s name of the community to which they belong. In fact, many languages are known through their communities.” He hoped that the workshop could work out parameters and tools to identify an endangered language.

Lawrence Surendra, Senior Fellow, Indian Council of Social Science Research (ICSSR), who delivered a special lecture on ‘Endangered tribal languages and cultures’ said, “There is a link between language and bio-diversity as they reinforce each other. Language represents knowledge. Endangerment of language is far more serious than that of culture because with the extinction of language, the entire encyclopaedia of knowledge enshrined in that language would be lost forever.”

C.R. Satyanarayana, Deputy Director & Head, Anthropological Survey of India, Southern Regional Centre, subject experts from different Universities and Institutes are attending the workshop which concludes today.

source: http://www.starofmysore.com / Star of Mysore / Home> General News / February 25th, 2014

Felicitation marks 28th death anniversary of freedom fighter R.S. Naidu

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Historical Links, Pre-Independence, Leaders, Records, All

 

RSN Memorial awardees (sitting from left) Senior Advocate M.A. Sampath Iyengar, Sri Kumara Nijaguna Swamiji of Kollegal and Star of Mysore Editor-in-Chief K.B. Ganapathy are seen with (standing from left) artist Dr. Jamuna Rani V. Mirle, District Kannada Sahitya Parishat President M. Chandrashekar, sculptor L. Shivalingappa, KSOU VC Prof. M.G. Krishnan and N.K. Ramesh of RSN Trust.
RSN Memorial awardees (sitting from left) Senior Advocate M.A. Sampath Iyengar, Sri Kumara Nijaguna Swamiji of Kollegal and Star of Mysore Editor-in-Chief K.B. Ganapathy are seen with (standing from left) artist Dr. Jamuna Rani V. Mirle, District Kannada Sahitya Parishat President M. Chandrashekar, sculptor L. Shivalingappa, KSOU VC Prof. M.G. Krishnan and N.K. Ramesh of RSN Trust.

Mysore :

“R.S. Naidu was a multi-faceted person excelling in every field,” opined Prof. M.G. Krishnan, Vice-Chancellor, Karnataka State Open University (KSOU).

He was speaking after inaugurating a programme organised by R.S. Naidu Art and Cultural Welfare Trust at Nadabrahma Sangeetha Sabha on JLB Road here yesterday to mark the 28th death anniversary of Freedom Fighter and Sculptor R.S. Naidu.

Krishnan said that Naidu joined Youth Congress and worked for its unification. He added that Naidu was also an art patron and a good sculptor.

On the occasion, RSN Memorial award was presented to Senior Advocate M.A. Sampath Iyengar, Sri Kumara Nijaguna Swamiji of Kollegal and Star of Mysore Editor-in-Chief K.B. Ganapathy.

Addressing the gathering, Ganapathy said that Naidu after having worked hard for the society turned a loner towards the end probably upset over the value deficit in society.

He said that though many leaders fought for nation’s freedom only a few are being remembered. Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, for example, is hardly remembered despite his great contribution for country’s unity. He also lauded the services of R.S. Naidu Trust.

Mysore Art Gallery President and sculptor L. Shivalingappa presided. District Kannada Sahitya Parishat President M. Chandrashekar was present.

Later, a cultural programme was presented by Mahathi Orchestra and M-Modal troupe.

source: http://www.starofmysore.com / Star of Mysore / Home> General News / February 25th, 2014

‘Stories Come Directly to Doctors’

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Leaders

Litterateurs go in search of a story while stories come directly to medical litterateurs (Vaidya Sahitis), said noted litterateur Na D’Souza.

After inaugurating a state-level medical litterateurs conference organised jointly by the Kannada Vaidya Sahitya Parishat and Indian Medical Association, Shimoga branch on Sunday, litterateur Na D’Souza said not many litterateurs have the opportunity to look at life closely like doctors. The experience as a doctor is enough for  literary activities, he said.

“Literature brings recognition to the  writer through the reader. Medicine is a profession while literature is a hobby. Doctors who enjoy both will become a litterateur in their own field,” he said. D’Souza stressed the need to record daily activities and experiences that would help in preserving ideas and knowledge of a medical profession which in the later years might help in the formation of a literary work.

Litterateur cum doctor K A Ashok Pai said more than 300 doctors in the state have contributed to the literary field and Shimoga district stands differently as it has produced more number of doctors cum litterateurs.

Presiding over the function, president of Shimoga branch of Kannada Vaidya Sahitya Parishat C G Keshavamurthy felt the need for the construction of a building for Kannada Vaidya Sahitya Parishat either at Bangalore or at Shimoga .

source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> States> Karnataka / by  Express News Service – Shimoga / February 24th, 2014

Sangeetha Kalanidhis of Mysore

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Historical Links, Pre-Independence, Leaders

KalanidhisBF02mar2014

by M.L. Krishnaswamy

The Madras (Chennai) Music Academy is one of the oldest Music Sabhas or organisations catering to the South Indian or Karnatak style of music in the whole of South India. It’s deliberations or festivals celebrating music in all its variety and glory are conducted in the December month of each year, sometimes reaching out to early January also.

Each year the festival starts in the morning and goes through the day, culminating in a concert in the evening by a senior musician of the day. Each year they have made it a practice to invite a very senior Vidwan or Musician of the day to preside over a function, deliberating on the discussions and nuances of the Karnatak style of music and on the last day, he or she will be conferred with the title “Sangeetha Kalanidhi,” the highest award to be given to any musician of the region comprising the four major States of Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Kerala and Karnataka.

This highly distinctive title — something akin to the ‘Tansen Samman’ in the North has been conferred on four senior musicians of Mysore namely, all late K. Vasudevacharya, T. Chowdaiah, Mysore V. Doreswamy Iyengar and R.K. Srikantan.

This is a great honour for Mysoreans and all of us should justly be proud of the four stalwarts mentioned above. I will write about these four gentlemen in my subsequent series. In fact, the latter two of the above four have been honoured with the Padma Bhushan.

Let me now deviate from the above for a while and write about another forgotten aspect of our heritage city and what our present day Mysoreans’ contributions should be to make Mysore truly befitting to earn that epithet. In this connection, Raga Vaibhav — a nearly decade old — had organised a musical discourse on Saint Thyagaraja last month by the well-known Vidushi Vishaka Hari of Chennai, who gave a splendid performance to a crowded audience of connoisseurs. She exhorted that Mysore should build beautiful Bhavans or Auditoria in the names of the above mentioned four stalwarts.

My suggestion in this connection are as follows:

(i) Purandaradasa, Kanakadasa and Basavanna are the three stellar names in the field of Music and Vachana in pure Kannada language. The former two created what is called ‘Dasa Sahitya’ while the third one created ‘Vachana Sahitya,’ both rich in literary content and philosophical output. We have to commemorate their rich legacy by constructing a beautiful memorial structure in the form of a central circle with three outshoots at 120° apart, each being dedicated to each of the above saints, as is indicated roughly below: and depicting and displaying the photographs, historical evidence and their voluminous contributions to the rich legacy of Kannada literature and music. The central circular building will have a small auditorium with a capacity of 100-200 to stage concerts relating to the above luminaries. The way they have enhanced the content of the Kannada culture is by all means fantastic and the above mentioned structure will be a display-edifice of

their works. This will truly be a notable addition to the heritage title of the city and the discerning tourists, both local and foreign will have a good time visiting this architectural marvel and savo- uring the music and songs of the trio in a compact place with facilities made available accordingly. In course of time, such a centre should become a veritable source of guidance and teaching to young artistes in the field. Audio & video and other adjunct facilities should also be made available in these structures.

(ii) How to fund the above effort?

There are many leading industrial houses in Mysore such as Infosys, Larson & Toubro, N.R. Group and many others who should be persuaded to fund such ventures in a big way on appeals made by the Kannada and Culture Department and Tourism Development Corporation on the Government side and other philanthropic minded connoisseurs of Mysore. As regards the contributions of Basavanna, the Suttur Mutt can be persuaded or requested to associate itself in such a venture in a big way. I am sure Sri Shivaratri Deshikendra Swamiji, the presiding pontiff of the Mutt will not say ‘NO’ to such an appeal. The Departments are focal point to float the idea and should enlist support from the culturally oriented citizens of Mysore. These edifices would surely attract a large number of tourists also.

In this connection, I have to regretfully mention about the tardy progress made by the Government as regards the house of late R.K. Narayan, an English language Novelist of Mysore, who had made a great name in the literary field. Will the authorities wake up now and complete the project?

The Chief Minister of Karnataka is from Mysore and it is not out of place if an appeal is made to him in this respect to launch this project and make necessary budgetary provisions after envisaging the support of the private enterprises as mentioned above. A kick-start can be made and the ball set in motion.

It is very interesting to note here that the three luminaries namely— Purandaradasa (a Nayaka community born by name Krishnappa Nayaka in an earlier avatar before his enlightenment and evolution); Kanakadasa (a Kuruba community man, who strode into limelight after his enlightenment and JagaJyothi Basavanna (a Brahmin by birth, who shunned his sub-caste and founded a new religious order namely, Veerashaivism). The contributions of all the three to Kannada literature and philosophical thought are immense. It is impossible to imagine that how in their absence, the Kannada literary and cultural world would have been poorer in substance and content. It is only proper that the heritage city of Mysore should honour these stalwarts with appropriate memorials.

At this juncture it would not be out of place if, to the list of three persons above mentioned, another name is added: D.V. Gundappa, whose ‘Manku Thimmana Kagga’, a classic by itself and, if it had been translated into English, it would have perhaps hit the portals of the Nobel Committee meriting a prize along with ‘Geethanjali,’ Rabindranath Tagore’s masterly classic which brought him the Nobel Prize for Literature.

Note: We already have three such auditoria named as ‘Vasudevacharya Bhavana’, ‘Veena Sheshanna Bhavana’ and ‘Bidaram Krishnappa Ramamandira,’ all named after three musical greats of Mysore.

source: http://www.starofmysore.com / Star of Mysore / Home> Feature Articles / February 24th, 2014