A view at Kalyana Mantapa in Mysuru Palace, where Yaduveer Gopal Raj Urs was adopted on Monday. Photo: M.A. Sriram. / The Hindu
Yaduveer Gopal Raj Urs has been rechristened to Yaduveer Krishnadatta Chamaraja Wadiyar
Twenty two-year-old Yaduveer Gopal Raj Urs was, on Monday, formally adopted as the heir to Wadiyar dynasty, the erstwhile rulers of Mysuru.
Yaduveer, grandson of Princess Gayathri Devi, is the eldest daughter of the last Maharaja of Mysuru Sri Jayachamarajendra Wadiyar, is pursing his BA at Boston in United States.
He was rechristened Yaduveer Krishnadatta Chamaraja Wadiyar at the hour-long adoption ceremony, which began at 1.15 p.m. Yaduveer arrived at the specially erected ‘mantapa’ in the Kalyana Mantapa of the Palace accompanied by his parents Tripura Sundari Devi and Swarup Anand Gopal Raj Urs.
Yaduveer Gopal Raj Urs and his family at Mysuru Palace during the adoption ceremony on Monday. Photo: M.A. Sriram. / The Hindu
Yaduveer was wearing a resplendent golden-coloured sherwani and sporting a red coloured turban and a necklace in line with the royal traditions.
A team of priests supervised by Brahmathantra Swatantra Paraka Mutt Swamiji overlooked the adoption rituals conducted by Indrakshi Devi, sister of late Srikantadatta Narasimharaja Wadiyar and monitored by Pramoda Devi Wadiyar.
Ms. Pramoda Devi Wadiyar with the heir of Mysuru royal family, Yaduveer Raj Urs, during the adoption ceremony. Photo: M.A. Sriram. / The Hindu
The adoption ceremony, which was a private affair, was conducted in the presence of the royal family’s friends and relatives.
Apart from Home Minister, K.J. George and Housing Minister, M.H. Ambareesh, a host of senior officials of the district administration including Deputy Commissioner, C. Shikha and City Police Commissioner, M.A. Saleem attended the adoption ceremony.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> National> Karnataka / by Shankar Bennur / Mysuru – February 23rd, 2015
by K. Vijaya Kumar, Former Jt. Director of Information & Publicity
Elder one had left behind ‘Malgudi’; Now, younger one leaves behind ‘Common Man’
I recollect here what R.K. Narayan (RKN) and R.K. Laxman (RKL) have left behind for Karnataka through a Travelogue of the State titled ‘The Emerald Route’ — text by RKN and sketches by RKL — commissioned to produce by the State through my Department of Information and Publicity, which was first published in 1977.
As I was a little close to R.K. Narayan during my long tenure in Mysuru, I took the then Director of the Information Department Chiranjiv Singh to the author. It was Singh’s idea to include sketches by R.K. Laxman who agreed for it and both the brothers travelled across Karnataka to have first-hand experience of the people and places.
Look at the love of brothers towards Mysuru: RKN says, ‘I feel thankful to Heavens for placing me there.’ RKL tells, ‘It is my Mysuru where I was born, brought up and educated.’
Later, I think, I had an occasion to meet R.K. Laxman with T.S. Satyan, who was a close associate of him, at RKN’s residence in Yadavagiri. It was an evening where both the brothers were enjoying sitting outside in the garden and we joined them.
How can I forget that evening in the company of the three eminent personalities. The star attraction was Laxman as he was a continuous conversationalist. Chiranjiv Singh has described him as — ‘He was like a bottle of champagne, bubbling all the time’ (In his tribute).
Getting his autograph for the book: Again it was in 2006, I happened to meet Laxman with T.S. Satyan very briefly at Hotel Metropole. It was a morning and he was just coming out of his room in the wheelchair pushed by his wife Kamala. I just could not see him in that condition (as my memory went back about 20 years ago remembering the time spent with him).
Still he smiled when he saw Satyan for whom he was waiting to go to Chamundi Hill. When I was introduced, he tried to recollect our meeting. I had carried with me my personal copy of ‘The Emerald Route’ and requested to autograph it which he obliged. Satyan quietly asked him to draw a sketch for one of his cartoons collection book which he was carrying (as desired by his wife Rathna). He drew a sketch of Ganapathy within a minute or two. I could see his skilful fingers working even sitting from his wheelchair.
Shobhaa De, the popular writer, who was a family friend of Laxman, has written in her column that the last official cartoon he drew was in Dec. 2014 to commemorate 100 days of MOM in Martian Orbit. The drawing shows the Common Man marching forward holding the tricolor; with the blood-red planet at his feet, like a gigantic football waiting to be kicked.
He had suffered two strokes by then, still his agile mind was working, she says and ends her column with this tribute to the genius:
“An uncommon genius has bowed out after a glorious innings. Perhaps he’s busy caricaturing God? Let’s hope God has a better sense of humour than some of Laxman’s subjects on earth. And let’s also hope his host in Heaven stocks premium Scotch.” (He was fond of Scotch).
e-mail: kumarkv59@gmail.com
source: http://www.starofmysore.com / Star of Mysore / Home> Feature Articles / Monday – February 16th, 2015
The caricature of R.K. Laxman, sketched by Star of Mysore cartoonist M.V. Nagendra Babu for this column in 1995, was autographed by the legendary cartoonist when Babu showed the same to Laxman during the National Cartoon Workshop held in Nagpur in 1996. Note Babu’s caricature has all the three important elements R.K. Laxman was famous for — The Times of India where he worked, the common man and the crow.
The legendary Mysuru-based cartoonist R.K. Laxman passed away at age 94 on Jan. 26, 2015, the day when the Nation celebrated its 66th Republic Day with US President Barack Obama as the VVIP chief guest at the Rajpath. Here I reproduce the Abracadabra titled “Hey, that’s Laxman the cartoonist!” published in Star of Mysore dated June 26, 1995, as a tribute to the ‘Common Man.’ Now read on:
Hey, that’s Laxman the Cartoonist !
If it is a Sunday and you suffer from cold, what is the best thing to do? Of course, reading all the Sunday newspapers through the moist eyes, smothering the nose with a handkerchief, sniffing at Vicks or whatever and sipping hot coffee. After that? Well, watching TV is the best thing. It is also more relaxing — less strain on the eyes compared to reading a newspaper in small print. So, after finishing the papers, I did a very best thing yesterday watching TV while nursing a terrible cold.
Thanks to STAR TV. I could watch BBC as well. However, these days, I find our Doordarshan (DD) is not lagging far too behind the STAR TV or Zee TV in providing quality programmes. One such programme I saw on DD was on the famous cartoonist R.K. Laxman. I was glued to the TV watching Laxman speak in a measured, clear tone and language (English, of course) with his buck-teeth not that prominent to be obtrusive. A kind of serenity could be seen pervading Laxman’s personality as he spoke.
I have a special reason to be delighted about Laxman because he started his career from Bombay’s Free Press Journal just as I did much later during late 60s. It was a well-produced programme and the credit indeed should go to the subject of the programme — R.K. Laxman — rather than its producer or director.
It was interesting to learn from Laxman how appointments were made during those early days and how he encountered Bal Thackeray, the Shiv Sena Supremo, at the Free Press Journal. The Editor of this nationalist paper Sadanand without a second thought appointed Laxman and simply asked him to join duty immediately as by then Laxman’s works had been seen by many editors including Sadanand. When Laxman went to occupy his chair, he found another person sitting next to him with a “definite profile,” who asked: Who are you? Laxman told him who he was and in turn asked, Who are you? The reply was: Bal Thackeray, cartoonist.
Later they both went to the canteen for tea and became friends. However, after leaving the Free Press Journal and becoming the Shiv Sena Supremo, Bal Thackeray “went out of my range,” said Laxman and added “but all the same we continued to be friends and hope he still is.”
Another interesting information Laxman gave was about the famous British political cartoonist Sir David Low, who created Colonel Blimp (just as Laxman created his Common Man) whom he had always admired. In fact, the discerning newspaper readers had found the influence of David Low in Laxman’s cartoons. No wonder, Laxman was a great fan of David Low and hoped to meet him one day.
However, as luck would have it, to his great surprise one day when he went to his office, he found a couple sitting in his chamber and Laxman recognising Low (probably from his pictures) spontaneously said: Mr. Low? And the person beamed a smile and said: Yes. You are Laxman. Later, Laxman hired a taxi and took them to Malabar Hills to impress upon the foreigner the beauty of Bombay as seen from the heights of Malabar Hills — the sweep of the Chaupati and the Queen’s necklace, Marine Drive. Laxman also told Low that the latter should not think India was a land of elephants and snake charmers but before Low could react, lo and behold, there he was — a snake charmer ready to entertain the foreigner. Laxman said it was an embarrassing as well as a mysterious moment for him.
One more interesting information that throws light on Laxman’s own philosophy of life and also the courage of his conviction is the manner he left the Free Press Journal. It appears, the Editor Sadanand, who never interfered in Laxman’s work in the past, one day called him and said that he should not make fun of Communists any more in his cartoons. This fiat from the editor surprised Laxman no end and disturbed him also.
Apparently, he could not work with such fetters. Submitting his resignation to the editor on the spot, he walked out of the Free Press Journal hiring a horse-drawn carriage (as there was a taxi strike on that day) straight to ‘The Times of India,’ the old lady of Bori Bunder. Fortunately, it was not a case of walking out of one prison to another or from the palace to the prison. It was a case of walking out of a prison to a palace. The rest is history.
— PUCK
NOTE: Puck was my pen name those days which I gave up on finding the printer’s devil replacing the letter P with F. After all, original is the real thing.—KBG
e-mail: kbg@starofmysore.com
source: http://www.starofmysore.com / Star of Mysore / Home> Abracadabra…Abracadabra / Monday – February 16th, 2015
Dr. B. Suresha, Professor, Department of Mechanical Engineering at the National Institute of Engineering (NIE), Mysuru, has been selected for the Best Research Publication Award instituted by Vision Group on Science and Technology, Department of IT, BT and Science & Technology, Government of Karnataka for the year 2014-15.
His research publication titled ‘Investigation of organo-modified montmorillonite loading effect on the abrasion resistance of hybrid composites’ has bagged the award.
This award is being given to recognise and encourage quality research publications in Science and Engineering by the faculty members serving in University Departments, Colleges and Research Institutions in the State. This award carries a prize money of Rs.25,000 and a citation.
source: http://www.starofmysore.com / Star of Mysore / Home> General News / Monday , February 02nd, 2015
Veena Hegde (48), founder member of the city’s Samatha Adhyayana Kendra, passed away in Bengaluru on Tuesday.
She leaves behind her husband and two children.
An employee of the Forest Department, Veena Hegde was promoted and transferred to Bengaluru two years ago.
Actively associated with Samatha Adhyayana Kendra, she strived to bring together all organisations fighting for the cause of women.
Samatha Adhyayana Kendra has convened a condolence meeting at the residence of the Kendra President M.N. Sumana at Krishnamurthypuram in city at 5 pm on Feb. 7 (Saturday). For more details, contact 94494-89895.
source: http://www.starofmysore.com / Star of Mysore / Home> General News / Thursday, February 05th, 2015
‘We should ask ourselves what we have done to attract youngsters to history’
80-year-old S. Settar has spent half a century researching Indian archaeology, art history, history of religions and philosophy and classical literature.
There are no signs of fatigue or ennui, as he continues to dig deep into history to come up with new gems, with his new area of focus being history of language, script and literature.
As his friends, admirers and students get together to celebrate his life and work on January 29, Prof. Settar is himself busy with three ambitious projects that he hopes will make history accessible to young readers.
The eminent historian, who has held several teaching and non-teaching posts, including Chairman of the Indian Council of Historical Research, and Emeritus Professor at National Institute of Advanced Studies (NIAS) at present, spoke to The Hindu .
Excerpts:
Q. What motivates you to keep at research?
A. There is so much wonderful source material that interests and excites me. I also feel ashamed that it is not being explored. Our conventional ways of reading history has made us ignore much of the rich material.
What historical material have we missed?
We have, for instance, not explored literary classics as tools of reading history and culture, beyond their literary value. The history of the evolution of language and script is another fascinating area that has largely remained unexplored.
What should be the focus of historians?
We should stop advising others and complaining about young people not being interested in history. Instead, we should ask ourselves what we have done to attract the younger generation to history. Much has been done, for example, to make Shakespeare or Socrates accessible to the young, which we have not done.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Bengaluru / by Bageshree S / Bengaluru – January 29th, 2015
Most Rev Bernard Moras, Archbishop of Bengaluru diocese, said let the shrine of Blessed Joseph Vaz satiate the spiritual hunger of those who approach in need of strength.
The Archbishop on Friday unveiled the statue of St Joseph Vaz to mark the end of the three-day celebration of the canonization of the saint at the Miracle Hill shrine. The Archbishop also launched a free meal programme for devotees by pouring rice into a pot. The shrine will provide free meals once a week to devotees on Friday.
The celebrations were a bit dampened after chief minister Siddaramaiah and his cabinet colleagues missed the event due to state mourning announced in the wake of the death of former governor Rameshwar Thakur on Thursday.
This is the first time a priest from the coastal region has been elevated to sainthood.
The statue of Blessed Joseph Vaz was brought to the shrine in a procession from Panir to Mudipu in a decorated vehicle on January 9, in the run-up to the event. Pope Francis on January 14 raised Blessed Joseph Vaz, who performed miracles on the hill of Mudipu, to the altar of sainthood in Sri Lanka.
Earlier during the mass, Mangaluru Bishop Aloysius Paul D’Souza, Msgr Denis Moras Prabhu, PRO Fr William Menezes, and others took part. In his homily, Moras said Blessed Vaz brought more people near God with his work and dedication. Bishop Aloysius Paul D’Souza said apart from his missionary work, his service to society in helping the needy was exemplary.
Who’s the saint:
Joseph Vaz was born on April 21, 1651, in Benaulim, Goa. He was the third son of Christopher Vaz and Miranda. He became a priest in 1676 and served in different parishes of Goa till 1681. Later, he was sent to Canara. Fr Joseph Vaz travelled from Goa barefoot. He served in Honnavar, Basrur, Kundapur, Gangolli, Mulki, Mangaluru and Panir. He was miraculously saved from an attempt on his life in 1684 while serving as the parish priest of Panir Church.
source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> City> Mangaluru / TNN / January 17th, 2015
Today is the birth centenary of K.S. Narasimhaswamy, a poet known for a language and style that was simple and quintessentially Old Mysore
The notion of love and its expression may have changed over a generation, but K.S. Narasimhaswamy holds his place in the Kannada literary canon as the ultimate “poet of love”. His best known workMysooru Mallige, published in 1942, still is fresh and fragrant.
Monday marks the birth centenary of K.S.Na., born on January 26, 1915.
A poet known for a language and style that was simple and quintessentially Old Mysore, K.S.Na’s early poetry (including the iconic Mysooru Mallige) celebrated conjugal love and portrayed images of middle-class life.
It’s a world of ordinary men and women with their simple pleasure, but not devoid of tensions and strife. His early poetry won him a great fan following, but proponents of the ‘Navya’ (modern) tradition also mocked him as ‘pushpa kavi’, implying that he was too romantic and incapable of “more serious” preoccupations.
Though K.S.Na’s great popularity still rests on his image as a ‘love poet’, his later poetry proved his detractors wrong. Poems like ‘Tereda Baagilu’ and ‘Gadiyaradangadiya Munde’ are testimony to his poetic genius that far surpassed his image. This was acknowledged by firebrand journalist and critic late P. Lankesh, who was once scathing on K.S.Na’s ‘romanticism’.
Writer and critic Narahalli Balasubrahamanya argues that Mysooru Mallige’s popularity overshadowed the “real potential” of K.S.Na. He read moderns like Ezra Pound and T.S. Elliot and was influenced by Robert Burns. The native Kannada idiom and poetry of 16th Century poet Ratnakaravarni shaped his sensibility, Mr. Balasubrahmanya said.
Poet H.S. Venkateshamurthy says that though family remained the central metaphor of K.S.Na’s poetry, the definition of family itself grew and evolved to include the whole world, taking on a metaphysical dimension.
Describing his oeuvre in a nutshell, critic G.S. Amur describes K.S.Na as “a poet of the earth, its joys and sorrows, its beauty and ugliness”.
Poetic inspiration
K.S. Narasimhaswamy’s collection of poems Mysooru Mallige, published in 1942, has seen more than 32 reprints and was long regarded as an ideal gift for newly-married couples in Karnataka. National award-winning director T.S. Nagabharana made a film based on the poems, popularised by Sugama Sangeeta (light music) singers of the State. This was the first such film in Kannada where a story was written with the framework provided by poems. K.S.Na’s poems have been used by various film directors, including Chaduranga and N.C. Rajan, in their movies.
KSNa on Peotry
“What is a poem? I have no idea. Eyes are boats as tiny as shells, but the view is a beast as vast as the ocean. I grope for an answer as I write.”
“I have worked for long as a clerk in government offices. I have been through many hardships of life. All that pain has metamorphosed into the fragrance of poetry, giving me equanimity.”
January 26, 1915: Born in Kikkeri in Mandya district
1977: Conferred Sahitya Akademi Award for Tereda Bagilu
1995: Awarded Pampa Prashasti
1991: Presides over 60th Kannada Sahitya Sammelan, Mysuru
1996: Named Fellow of Sahitya Akademi
December 27, 2003: Passes away in Bengaluru
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Bengaluru / by Muralidhara Khajane and Bageshree S. / Bengaluru – January 26th, 2015
Sarojini Mahishi (fourth from left) at the first State-level conference of women writers in Bangalore on March 16, 1985.— file photo: T.L. PRABHAKAR
Sarojini Mahishi, former Union Minister, passed away in New Delhi on Sunday
The name of Sarojini Mahishi, former Union Minister who passed away in Delhi on Sunday, is referred to every time the question of representation to locals in jobs comes up.
The much-quoted report submitted by a committee headed by her in 1986, which recommended job reservation to locals, however, has remained on paper.
Though she is remembered mostly in the context of her unimplemented report, Ms. Mahishi was a force to reckon with in politics in her heyday. She was elected to the third Lok Sabha in 1962, making her the first woman from Karnataka to achieve this distinction. Ms. Mahishi had bagged 71.68 per cent of polled votes from Dharwad North on Congress ticket. She was one of three women from across the country to have bagged more than 70 per cent votes that year.
When this correspondent had contacted the octogenarian ahead of the 2014 elections, she had said with pride, “I did not lobby for a ticket. I spent less than Rs. 10,000 for the election then.”
A lawyer and writer, it was her interest in social service that had drawn her into politics. Ms. Mahishi won the next three elections and served as Minister in the Cabinet of the late Indira Gandhi.
She translated Indira Gandhi’s speeches from Hindi to Kannada during her campaigns in Karnataka. Ms. Mahishi was a votary for more representation for women in politics. “Not just 33 per cent, women should have 50 per cent presence in the Lok Sabha and the State Assemblies,” she had told The Hindu .
Women’s role
She believed that women can play a role in “cleansing politics” and had said she “wouldn’t mind” contesting elections again for the cause, if given a ticket.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> National> Andhra Pradesh / by Bageshree S. / Bengaluru – January 26th, 2015
——————————————————————————————————————-
WHEN SAROJINI MAHISHI MET MYSORE MAHARAJA…
Sir,
Karnataka has lost a distinguished Kannadati, an early woman Parliamentarian, a multi-lingual literary figure and a protector of Kannadigas’ job quota, in the death of Sarojini Mahishi. While I was serving in Mysore, I had to fix a meeting of her with Maharaja Jayachamaraja Wadiyar and his Huzur Secretary M. Narayanaswamy had arranged for it at the Summer Palace. She had come with her advocate-sister Hemalata Mahishi.
When we reached the Palace, there was already Prof. S.K. Ramachandra Rao and another Philosophy Professor waiting for an evening discussion with the Maharaja on his request. We were first taken inside by Narayanaswamy who introduced us.
I still remember the very delicious Mysore masala dosa and coffee served to us and then a very scholarly discussion began when Sarojini’s sister and myself came out. But before leaving, I could make out their deep knowledge of the subjects they started discussing.
When we were waiting outside, Maharaja’s close aid Dharanipal was very eager to show Hemalata Mahishi around the Summer Palace describing how the Maharaja spends his daily schedule there for his physical training in the gym there and later held discussions with the scholars. But Hemalata was more eager to spend time with the waiting Professors whose eminence she knew.
Later, when Sarojini Mahishi came out, Narayanaswamy told me aside what a scholarly discussion they had and the Maharaja was greatly impressed with the high scholarship of Mahishi. While returning I heard her describing to her sister how rich and valuable their hour-long discussion was. She was also repeatedly praising the Maharaja’s deep knowledge of all the topics they discussed.
—K.Vijaya Kumar
V.V.Mohalla
29.1.2015
ource: http://www.starofmysore.com / Star of Mysore / Home> Voice of the Reader / Friday – January 30th, 2015
Plant breeder and geneticist H. Shivanna was on Friday appointed vice-chancellor of the University of Agricultural Sciences-Bengaluru. He is the first Dalit vice-chancellor of any agricultural university in the State.
A search committee had recommended three names, including that of Mr. Shivanna (62).
Mr. Shivanna will have a three-year term as vice-chancellor. At present, he is working as Dean of Agriculture in the UAS-B. He has already held important posts, such as research director and dean of post-graduate studies in UAS-B.
The post of the VC had been vacant since June 2014 after the retirement of the then vice-chancellor K. Narayana Gowda.
The UAS-B has jurisdiction over 10 districts: Kolar, Bëngaluru Urban and Rural, Chickballapur, Tumkur, Ramanagaram, Chamarajanagar, Mandya, Mysore and Hassan.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Bengaluru / by B.S. Satish Kumar /Bengaluru – January 24th, 2015
