Monthly Archives: January 2013

Competition with a spiritual touch

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Education

Gospel event

The students of St Joseph’s College of Commerce recently held their annual gospel fest, ‘Revelations’.

The inter-collegiate fest not only gave the students a platform to showcase their talent, but also a chance to get in touch with their spiritual side.

One would assume that a gospel fest would tend to be a bit boring, but the fest was anything but that. There was a lot of healthy competition and fun-filled events, like in any other fest.

There were close to 17 colleges that registered for the various events. While the events revolved around the biblical theme, each had its own fun twist.

The day-long fest had events like ‘ice-breaker’, ‘western music’, ‘vernacular music’, ‘creative writing’, ‘collage’, ‘debate’, ‘Bible quiz’, ‘costume presentation’, treasure hunt’, ‘street play’, ‘Bible punter’, ‘pick and sing’ and many others.

“This fest really aims at bringing out the best in each one of us. Also, it helps us youngsters get in touch with our spiritual side,” says Pilith Pericho, a student of SJCC.

The highlight was the ‘ice breaker’ round, where students from various colleges came up on stage in groups of eight and presented the vision of their college in a unique and funny way. While some sang songs, others danced.

There were also a few who used skits with funny one-liners to introduce their college.
Girls from Bishop Cotton Women’s Christian College put up one of the skits in the round.  Gurneet, a student of the college, says that such fests really help the students get charged up.

“We tried to show the vision of our college in the form of a skit. Such events really help us bond and give us a chance to get to know many others in the student  community,” she adds.

Another highlight was the ‘Bible punter’, where the students were tested on their knowledge of the Bible.

For Adrian Jeffery, a student of SJCC, the best event was the western music competition.
“There is some really good talent here. It is a great platform to show that,” he adds. At the end of the day, Kristu Jayanthi College took the overall trophy and St Joseph’s College of Arts and Science was the runners up.

source: http://www.DeccanHerald.com / Home> Supplements> Metrolife / Wednesday, January 23rd, 2013

Kundapur Bar Association bags Inter-District Cricket Trophy

Sports

Kundapur,22 Jan 2013:

The city Bar Association bagged inter-district cricket trophy for the first time in the history of Kundapur, during the tournament held at St Philomena College, Puttur.

Karnataka Advocate General K M Nataraj inaugurated the tourney.  Over 18 teams of Bar Association from different districts participated in the tourney.

Kundapur team led by its captain lawyer Raghavendra Charana Navada defeated Mangalore B team in the first round.  Vishwanat adjudged man of the match by hitting 4 sixes.  Kundapur team also defeated Udupi team with huge runs.  The captain Raghavendra Charan adjudged man of the match by hitting 2 sixes and top bowling.

Kundapur team defeated strong team of Bantwal to reach the final.  Raghavendra Charan adjudged man of the match by bagging 4 wickets in 1 over.  Kundapur team in finals with Puttur team managed to win the trophy with 10 wickets.

Vishwant was adjudged as top bowler, while Puttur team member Narasimha Prasad adjudged top batsman.

Dakshina Kannada fast-track court judge T G Shivashankar Gowda distributed the trophy at the occasion.

Puttur Bar Association president Devanand K, secretary Jagannat Rai, lawyer T N Poojary, Kundar Bar Association president A B Shetty, lawyer Sasidar Hegde, and others were present at the occasion.

source: http://www.Bellevision.com / Home> News / by Bernard J. D’Costa , Bellevision Media Network / Kundapur, January 22nd, 2013

Musicians of Rudrapatna

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

Rudrapatna is not a forest, a mountain, a trekker’s delight or a water body, although there is one nearby. Rudrapatna is for music lovers and if you love carnatic music, then this place is worth a visit. It is said the village is an abode of Veda, Nada, and Taranga and its music is famous and goes back hundreds of years in time.

Some of the greatest carnatic musicians such as RS Keshavamurthy, RK Srikantan, RK Srinivasamurthy, RK Suryanarayana, RN Thyagarajan and RN Tharanathan (also known as the Rudrapatnam brothers), RK Raghavan, RK Prakash, RK Prasanna Kumar, RK Padmanabha, RS Ramakanth, RN Sreelatha and Rathnamala Prakash  and others had hailed from this village.
The story goes that two groups of people from Tirunelveli district in Tamil Nadu settled in the area. While one group performed rites like yagna and yaga, the other spent their time on music. Many musicians in the state today relate to Rudrapatna. The influence of music is obvious in the village. For example, a temple has been built in the shape of a veena and the garden is filled with artistic works of musical instruments.
A temple at the village built in the shape of a veena

While on a trip to Rudrapatna, one can also visit Ramanathapura, a village on the banks of the Cauvery. Sitting on the banks here while the sun sets is a soothing experience. The fish in the river are an attraction, so much so that vendors sell puffed rice with which visitors feed the fish. Local villagers have converted the area into a ‘fish sanctuary and have banned fishing at this spot. Besides, the fish sanctuary, there are a couple of temples dedicated to Lord Ram. It is believed that Ram had visited this place. The architecture of the temples, located on the banks of the river, is also worth noting.

Food: There are no big hotels near Rudrapatna or Ramanathapura, but one can get food either from Holenarasipur or Arkalgud.
How to get there
Hit the Nelamangala Road and head to Channarayapatna and from there to Holenarasipur. From Holenarasipur head to Ramanathapura. Those who plan to visit Shravanabelagola can also visit Rudrapatna. The road is in fairly good condition.
source: http://www.BangaloreMirror.com / Home> Columns> Quick Getaways> Story / by Sridhar Vivan / Wednesday, January 16th, 2013

Sitarist’s strings bridge cultures

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, World Opinion

Bangalore :

Into the sunset of Sunday, arose the strains of a ‘bridge’ across cultures.

Lit candles in the sanctum of St. Andrew’s Church merged with the strings of the sitar, as American musician Paul Livingstone  plunged into the depths of a meditative tune, between the fluidity of bass and treble altitudes.

Internalizing the mellifluousness of raag Jai Jayanti, Livingstone’s soul connected with the heavens in solitary harmony and cascaded into the aura of myriad beating hearts, exploring the communion between heaven and earth.

Keeping the 16-beat pace of the raag, which broke ground and reached sky high, transcending time and space, percussionist Vishwanath Nakod flavoured the range with gentle and powerful finesse.

And into the night’s darkness, candles at the sanctum glowed with acquired intensity, in emotional transcendence with

Livingstone’s alaap swum over the pillars and trusses that have been holding the ancient place of worship steady since the 1860s.

This confluence of music and the magnetic appeal it brought with it reflected the intensity of India’s own music gems — Amiya Dasgupta, Rajeev Taranath and Pandit Ravi Shankar  — under whom Livingstone has trained for over 25 years.

With this Indian connection, Livingstone strummed out of the pages of his own connection to the ‘trinity’ a hymn in raag. “For me, this symbol is about unity and diversity and the love that every person carries for god, no matter what caste or religion,” said Livingstone.

The ‘bridge’ across cultures created a page in the history of spiritual interconnections, as he strummed the strings of the sitar  in an Indian church for the first time ever.

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / Home> City> Bangalore / TNN / January 21st, 2012

Awareness workshop for Women entrepreneurs

Business & Economy

Caption: AIMS Director Ranganath Iyer addressing women entrepreneurs at the MCCI office on Devaraj Urs Road here today as WISE Secretary Rukmini Chandran, MCCI President Sudhakar Shetty, WISE President Gayatri Keshav and Vice-President Vasanthakumari look on. [Pic. by Pragathi Gopalakrishna]

Mysore, Jan. 15

Women in Small Enterprises (WISE), the women’s wing of Mysore Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MCCI), had organised a half-day workshop for women entrepreneurs at MCCI office on Devaraj Urs Road here today.

The workshop was to create an awareness among the women entrepreneurs regarding the ‘10,000 Women Entrepreneurship Development Programme’ to be organised jointly by Iiternationally acclaimed investment bank Goldman Sachs and Business School and the Indian School of Business in association with Acharya Institute of Management and Sciences (AIMS) to be held in Bangalore.

Briefing the gathering of over 50 women entrepreneurs, AIMS Director and Programme Convener Ranganath Iyer said: “The training programme to commence from Feb. 25 will feature 19 days of lectures and interaction with business experts and three months of monitoring by professionals in batches of six days each. The programme will train the women to refine their business modules to face the challenges and complexity in business. To improve communication skills in English, the programme also includes coaching in the language.”

Inaugurating the workshop, MCCI President Sudhakar Shetty pointed out that women entrepreneurs get subsidy up to Rs. 1 crore. He expressed satisfaction that the regional Global Investors Meet held recently in city had evoked good response from women entrepreneurs.

WISE President Gayatri Keshav, Vice-President Vasanthakumari and Secretary Rukmini Chandran were present.

Source: http://www.StarofMysore.com / Home> General News / January 15th, 2013

Dr. Raja Ramanna & Kalpana Chwawla awards for Mysoreans

Records, All, Science & Technology

Caption: 1) Prof. Bhyrappa 2) Dr. Shubha

Mysore, Jan. 18

The Karnataka State Council for Science and Research, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, has announced the names of the recipients of various prestigious science awards for 2011:

Among the awardees are two Professors of Mysore University — Prof. K.Byrappa and Dr. Shubha Gopal.

Prof. K. Byrappa, international authority in the field of Hydrothermal Technology, senior Professor of M.Tech in Material Science, University of Mysore and Founder Director of the Internal Quality Assurance Cell of Mysore Varsity, will be awarded Dr. Raja Ramanna Award for Science and Technology.

One of his books “Springer Handbook of Crystal Growth” published by Springer-Verlag, Germany, is the second biggest book ever published by Springer-Verlag which runs to about 1,857 pages. He has published over 200 research papers including 30 invited reviews and book chapters on various aspects of ‘Novel Routes of Solution Processing’ and some of his publications are highly cited.

He had earlier served as the Director of UGC Academic Staff College of Mysore Varsity, besides serving as the Chairman of the Department of Earth Science.

At present, he is the co-ordinator of the Rs. 55 crore project in Mysore University, on Material Science and Nano-technology, under the schemes University with Potential for Excellence and Centre with Potential for Excellence in a particular area.

Dr. Shubha Gopal, Chairperson, Dept. of Microbiology, University of Mysore, has been bestowed with the prestigious Dr. Kalpana Chawla Young Woman Scientist Award for 2011-12 by the Karnataka State Council for Science and Technology for her outstanding contribution in scientific research.

Dr. Shubha’s research focuses on the molecular pathogenesis of Listeria monocytogenes, especially the role of thiol-redox and carbohydrate metabolism, its biofilm formation and gene regulation. Besides, she has also worked on bioprospecting of medicinal plants and reported a novel flavanoid from Leucas aspera (Thumbe plant) which has a potential industrial application.

She has published several research articles in peer-reviewed journals, and presented various research papers in national and international conferences.

Other awardees are: Sir M. Visvesvaraya Senior Scientist Awardees: Prof. Raghavendra Gadagkar of IISc., Prof. K.Muniyappa of IISc. and Dr. K. Siddappa, Hon. Director of JSS Foundation for Science & Society and former VC of Bangalore University.

Dr. Raja Ramanna State Scientist Awardees: Dr. G.K. Narayana Reddy, former VC of Karnatak University, Dharwad; Dr. S.M. Shivaprasad of Intl. Centre for Materials Science, Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research, Bangalore.

Sir C.V. Raman Young Scientist Awardees: Dr. Mohammad Hussain K. Rabinal of Karnatak University; Dr. Michael Rajamathi of St. Joseph’s College, Bangalore; Dr. J. Seetharamappa of Karnatak University; Dr. Y.C. Janardhan Reddy of NIMHANS, Bangalore; Dr. Riaz Mahmood of Kuvempu University, Shimoga.

Prof. Satish Dhawan Young Engineers Awardees: Dr. Subhash C. Yaragal of National Institute of Technology Karnataka, Surathkal; Dr. K. Balakrishna of Manipal Institute of Technology.

Dr. Kalpana Chawla Young Women Scientist Awardees: Dr. Sharada Srinivasan of National Institute of Advanced Studies, IISc.

The award ceremony will take place on Jan.24 at Satish Dhawan Auditorium, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore.

Minister for Science & Technology Anand Vasant Asnotikar will preside over the function and present the awards. Prof. G. Padmanaban, Emeritus Professor and former Director, IISc., will be the chief guest. Prof. P. Balaram, Director, IISc., will be the guest of honour.

source: http://www.StarofMysore.com / Home> General News / January 18th, 2013

A special show for Indian dogs

Arts, Culture & Entertainment

The Mysore Kennel Club, which has entered its 82nd year, will host its 100th dog show at Karnataka Veterinary, Animal & Fisheries Sciences campus, on Saturday.

Briefing reporters, Club President P V Yathinder said: “for the first time, Indian dog speciality show scheduled for Saturday will showcase the canine pride of Karnataka — ‘Mudhol Hound’ along with ‘Pashmi’, both native to the State.” ‘Rajapalayam’ and ‘Chippiparai’, native Tamil Nadu dogs and ‘Caravan’, native to Maharashtra will also be vying for pet lovers’ attention.

“There were about 27 native Indian dogs in the country. But, unfortunately, today we have only about seven of them surviving. The Mudhol Hound, also on its way to extinction, has been saved after great efforts,” Yathinder said.

On Sunday, the club will host the All India Championship Dog Show, along with Obedience Trials of Mysore Kennel Club. There will also be a demonstration of agility and skills by dogs on both days.

Best breed

“A total of 48 different breeds of dogs comprising 460 exhibits from all over the country will compete for Best of Breed, Best in Group and Best in Show categories,” he said.

The show will see some rare breeds like ‘African Boer Boal’, ‘Miniature Schnauzer’, ‘Neapolitan Mastiff’, ‘Weimaraner’, ‘Fox Terrier’, ‘Saluki Tzu’  participating. Agus Wardhana from Indonesia, C V Sudarsan (Chennai) and Yashodhara Hemchandra, will be the judges, while Rajendra and Salvi will adjudicate the Obedience Trials.

source: http://www.DeccanHerald.com / Home> City / Bangalore, DHNS / January 16th, 2013

Lalbagh gets ready for annual Republic Day flower show

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Green Initiatives / Environment, Nature

Floral Eiffel Tower highlight of 11-day show beginning January 18

The annual Republic Day flower show, organised by the Department of Horticulture and Mysore Horticultural Society, will open to the public on January 18 and will go on till January 28. Chief Minister Jagadish Shettar is expected to inaugurate the show.

The main attraction at this year’s show will be a 35-foot high floral replica of the Eiffel Tower in Paris. Meant as a floral tribute to Gustave Eiffel, who erected the Eiffel Tower in 1889, the replica will be decorated with more than 2.5 lakh roses and more than 10,000 orchids. It will occupy pride of place at the Glass House. The flower show comprises exhibition of potted plants and cut flowers, Thai art, Jannur, Ikebana, Indian Floral Art, Bonsai and vegetable carving.

Competing teams

The gardening competition will witness teams from the Raj Bhavan, various ministers’ official residences, public sector undertakings, the Indian Institute of Management and gardens on defence properties competing with private sector entities such as Leela Palace, Taj West End, Infosys and Wipro. The organisers have so far received 772 competition entries.

Noted botanical firms such as Florens Flora, Fruit Land and Eden Lora (Bonsai Collections) are also participating.

The dates

While the main show will be inaugurated on January 18, the Ikebana, Indian Floral Art, vegetable carving and Bonsai exhibition will be inaugurated on January 19. Winners of various competitions will be felicitated by Anil Kumble and Javagal Srinath on January 24. The same day has been specially earmarked for school students who have free entry to the exhibition.

Entry fee is Rs.40 for adults and Rs.10 for children.

source: http://www.TheHindu.com / Home> News> Cities> Bangalore / by Staff Reporter / January 16th, 2013

Between the pages!

Arts, Culture & Entertainment

Some are just blessed with a creative streak. And they love exploring and doing something to keep the creative juices flowing. Namrata Navalkar from Sultan Palya, who makes bookmarks out of wedding cards, is one such person.

“With weddings happening all the time, there are always wedding cards lying around. Even if you keep them with you for a month or more, they end up in the waste-bin later on. It was heart-breaking for me to throw these pretty and expensive cards, and that’s how the idea came into being,” says Namrata.

“I’ve always had a creative touch and have been making something or the other from what is considered scrap,” she adds. Namrata, who has learnt the art of paper quilling, and has been using this skill to make bookmarks and other things, says that she started this hobby as she feels the reading habit is still alive in people. “I’m a member of a reading club, and whenever I go for book-reading events, I see a lot of people buying books. Otherwise too, people seem to have got back to reading because of online options.”

She adds with a question, “A pretty bookmark in your book, who wouldn’t want that? It’s much neater than a doggy ear, isn’t it?”

Being a very ‘green person’, Namrata tries to go by the three Rs, which are reduce, reuse and recycle. Explaining further, Namrata says, “I feel I’m reducing the content that goes into the garbage can when I make something out of trash. I am recycling the wedding cards to make these bookmarks.”

From ornate and beautiful bookmarks in different shades of red, blue, black and other colours, each one of them is dear to Namrata. Her collection has now gone up to 100, of which some has been given away to friends and family. Namrata says, “It’s hard for me to part with these, since they’re so dear to me. But I just don’t know what to do with so many of them.”

The raw materials that she uses for these bookmarks include the core materials — the wedding cards, and kundans chosen from either the cards itself, or bought ones. She also uses glitter to add colour, strips from other paper or cards that are leftover, and strings from old rakhis.

“I try my best not to waste even a bit of cut paper in the house. My maid has been strictly ordered to let me know if she sees paper around, before sweeping them off to the bin,” says Namrata.

She adds, “My bookmarks are on an average of 4 cm x 16 cm in size. I first cut the wedding card into the respective size, and colour co-ordinate it. Then I paste them together to make the bookmark, punch the hole in, and string the thread in. With the adding of colours or kundans and the finishing touches, the bookmark is ready. This process also includes feedback from my daughter and husband.”

Namrata’s daughter who is her best critic and inspiration, has talked about her mom’s creativity to her friends, and they love to come home, to pick up some tricks to make bookmarks and more. “I would love to teach this art to anyone who is interested and pass it along. It also helps spread the concept of recycling and being eco-friendly,” Namrata is quick to add.

She often retrieves Ganeshas from these invitations and uses them to make bookmarks. “On a personal note, I believe that remembering Ganesha before doing anything helps a lot. A bookmark with the Ganesha symbol makes the reading of the book more special.”

Namrata, who is an MBA graduate, does counselling for teenagers who are involved in drug addiction and other such issues. She feels that this hobby helps her to unwind. “Since I handle a lot of pressure at work, making these bookmarks helps to relax and bring the stability I need,” she says.

“I started this hobby by chance, and there was no external inspiration behind it, but now it has turned into a passion,” she adds.

source: http://www.DeccanHerald.com / Home> Supplements> Metro Life / by Tini Sara Anien / DHNS, January 07th, 2013

They are adaptable, good at switching roles

Business & Economy, Science & Technology

He loves playing golf. She hates it; believes it’s a total waste of time. She loves books and music — often borrows heavy metal and hard rock stuff from her sons. He loves Tamil movies; she can’t stand them. He loves to talk at home; she prefers to do things. He loves to cook. She would rather spruce up the interiors of their home.

There’s one thing that they have in common though – the industry they work for. And this husband and wife head big companies, which make them a rare couple. Akila Krishnakumar is the India head of SunGard, a $5-billion US company that provides software to the education, financial services  and public sector organizations. Krishnakumar Natarajan, or KK as he’s fondly known, is the CEO and MD of IT services firm Mindtree .

Managing extremely demanding global jobs – involving constant inter-continental travel — raising two kids, and supporting their extended families has not been easy for the couple. Ask them about the recipe for peace, happiness and success in life and work, Akila says: “We are sensitive to each other. We treat every day as a fresh day. We do not carry old baggage.”

Akila joined  Wipro  in 1982 as a marketing executive after passing out from BITS Pilani. KK was in Wipro then, heading a marketing function. Theirs was not a love marriage. It came as a surprise to them that their parents were seeking an alliance without realizing that their children were working in the same department at Wipro.

KK quit Wipro in 1999 to co-found Mindtree. He was asked to work out   of  North America , and he had to leave Akila and their sons behind in Bangalore. A decade before that, in 1989, Akila too had taken a similar career decision, when she was posted in London and had to leave her little son in the hands of her in-laws. “I was in a dilemma. But KK’s family was fully supportive,” Akila says.

On one occasion, she had to fly from Delhi to Pune to leave her son with her mother there before she could take a flight for Bhopal  for a customer meet.

Akila quit Wipro to float an entrepreneurial venture in 1993. The firm, Exeter Systems, offered IT solutions for universities. In 1999, Exeter was acquired by Sallie Mae Solutions, which in turn was acquired by SCT Corporation. In 2004, SunGard acquired SCT. “So in a way I have been with the same company since 1993. I have seen it in various phases of growth and change.”

KK says it has been extremely challenging for the family. “But we have been adaptable, creative and been consciously finding ways to resolve every hurdle. We are also good at switching roles,” he says.

KK has been a large pillar of support, says Akila fondly. “He totally lived up to anything he was put into…be it looking after the kids, keeping the home clean or cooking for the family.”

KK and Akila are now busy creating an exclusive family hub. They are relocating both their parents and siblings from Chennai and Pune close to their weekend home on the outskirts of Bangalore. “We love our independence. At the same time we also want to be closer to our families when we grow older,” says Akila.

Travel is a common passion for the family. But aligning their calendars to vacation together is tough. “The last long vacation the four of us had was in 2007 in New Zealand. So instead of waiting and planning, we do quick, short and doable trips like the one we did recently to Chikmagalur,” says KK.

source: http://www.articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / Home> City> Bangalore / by Mini Joseph Tejaswi, TNN / January 14th, 2013