Monthly Archives: March 2015

Pick the best heritage buildings in the city for Intach awards

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

Here’s a chance for Bengalureans to pick the best of the old structures in the city. The Indian National Trust for Culture and Heritage (Intach), Bengaluru, is out to crown two heritage buildings – one governmentowned and the other private.It has invited Bengalureans to nominate two buildings of their choice for the Intach Bangalore Heritage Awards. C Aravind, Intach co-coo r d i n a t o r, said this seeks to recognize and bring at and bring attention to Bengaluru’s heritage buildings.
The buildings chosen can be residential, official or religious or even a market. The only condition: it should have been built before Independence. The best preserved structures, judged by a panel of experts, will receive an award and a citation. For details, visit http:www.intachblr.org.The last date for sending nominations is March 15, 2015.

My choice

Naresh V Narasimhan |

Architect: Though there are a number of beautiful heritage buildings in Bengaluru like Town Hall and St Mark’s Cathedral, my choice for the best structures among them would be the Bangalore Club and Seshadri Iyer Memorial Library.Bangalore Club, which belongs to the British period, is very well preserved.It was built as a club. The Seshadri Iyer Memorial Library is an honour to the great man. It is architecturally excellent and the colour (terracotta red) excellently complements the greenery of Cubbon Park where it is located

Mansoor Ali |

Architect I would nominate the Attara Kacheri or the high court building as it is a very good example of colonial architecture. The other point to note is how wonderfully the contractor has executed the work as the building still stands like a monument even after over 100 years. The other great heritage building is the house of Diwan Sir MN Krishna Rao in Basavanagudi. This house is said to be the third oldest in the area. It has many antiques like a 143-year-old Ansonia clock from the US and a Scott’s Radiogram

Poornima Dasharathi |

Founder, unhurried heritage walks: Bangalore was known to be a manufacturing hub during the Maharaja’s rule. I would say it is a good idea to preserve at least one factory and turn it into a museum dedicated to showcasing this heritage and technology, instead of a mall.One of the examples that come to my mind is the Mysore Lamps Factory in Malleswaram. There are many privately owned bungalows still standing today simply because of their owners’ love and their resistance to selling. I want the government to set up a proper local heritage preservation policy and save bungalows

CN Kumar |

Founder, Bygone Bangalore, a group on Facebook: I prefer the high court building, which is more than 100 years old, as my choice for the best. It is very well maintained and designed well. Of course, when it comes to private buildings, there are many, but I feel Bangalore Club is the best of the lot because of its structure

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> City> Bengaluru / TNN / March 12th, 2015

Your old newspapers can fund a poor patient’s dialysis

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Green Initiatives / Environment, Inspiration/ Positive News and Features
C.V. Sundaresh of Arpana Seva Samsthe collecting old newspapers in Bengaluru on Wednesday. The NGO sponsors 1,000 dialysis a year.— Photo: Bhagya Prakash K.
C.V. Sundaresh of Arpana Seva Samsthe collecting old newspapers in Bengaluru on Wednesday. The NGO sponsors 1,000 dialysis a year.— Photo: Bhagya Prakash K.

We were moved by the plight of patients: NGO

A bundle of old newspapers may mean a new lease of life for someone in dire need far away. A group of energetic volunteers are going to apartments, hotels and offices asking not for money, but for old newspapers to mobilise funds for dialysis for poor patients.

Businessman C.V. Sundresh, secretary of Arpana Seva Samsthe, an NGO started in 2008 by a group of philanthropists, said: “Over the years, we were moved by the plight of patients who had asked us for help for dialysis and realised that this was a recurring expenditure. People could not afford dialysis but still had to undergo it twice or thrice a week. So we decided to mobilise funds only to fund dialysis. End-stage renal failure patients have to spend at least Rs. 6,000 a month for dialysis apart from other medication.”

He said, “The money we get from newspaper drives may not be much, but we are spreading awareness on kidney health and the drive also helps us get commitment for individual cases.”

The organisation, which has 40 members and 60 volunteers and sponsors 1,000 dialysis a year, has tied up with Bangalore Kidney Foundation, which shortlists deserving patients.

T.N. Lakshmiprasad (39), who used to work in a private firm, travels five hours, twice a week, from Yagati village in Kadur taluk of Chikkamagaluru district to Bengaluru for his dialysis.

“Private hospitals are expensive and government hospitals are not always equipped with technicians and doctors, which is why I prefer coming to Bengaluru. The organisation, over the past seven years, has funded nearly 100 dialysis,” he said.

Those who want to donate newspapers can call 9845201563.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Bengaluru / by Tanu Kulkarni / Bengaluru – March 12th, 2015

Biriyani that Royalty relishes

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Travel

Created at Sri Kanteerava Narasimharaja Wadiyar Sports Club, Mysuru

Narayan is seen preparing the famous mutton Biryani at Mysore Sports Club
Narayan is seen preparing the famous mutton Biryani at Mysore Sports Club

by S.N. Venkatnag Sobers

In his recent interview to The Sunday Times, Yaduveer Krishnadatta Chamaraja Wadiyar, who has been adopted to the Mysore Royal Family of Wadiyars, when asked about his favourite food said, ‘‘I cannot say I have a favourite. But, if cornered, I would probably have to go with the famous Biryani from the Mysore Sports Club.”

In fact, he is not alone. Thousands of Mysoreans have been relishing the famous mouth-watering mutton biryani at the Mysore Sports Club over the past few decades.

The man behind the famous mutton biryani is Narayan, who has been working at the Mysore Sports Club for the past 32 years. Wanting to discover the man who created a Biryani that satiated the royal palate, Star of Mysore went to Sports Club to talk to this master chef. He is Narayan.

Speaking to Star of Mysore, Narayan said that members of the Royal Family including late Srikanta Datta Narasimharaja Wadiyar, Chaduranga Kantharaj Urs, Gayathri Devi, Yaduveer Krishnadatta Chamaraja Wadiyar and others were fond of the biryani cooked by him.

Mysore Sports Club introduced Mutton Biryani to its guests in 1989 and since then, it has been relished by many. Earlier to this, cooks from outside were invited to prepare biryani during events organised at the club.

Narayan said that he learnt the art cooking biryani through his guru Abdul Sattar, who lived in Mandi Mohalla.

“When I joined the Sports Club as a kitchen assistant, the then Secretaries B.A. Nanaiah and Dr. N.M. Srinivas encouraged me to learn the art of cooking biryani and since then, I have been cooking the delicacy,” he said.

Speaking about his cooking style, Narayan said that he starts preparing for biryani at around 12 noon by marinating mutton and adding necessary masala. Once the mutton is cooked, the half cooked basmati rice is added to mutton and is kept for blending for about one-and-a-half hours. Later, the hot biryani is served to the guests at the Club from 7.15 pm.

Everyday around 15-20 kg mutton biryani is prepared at Mysore Sports Club and not bit of it remains in the end. In fact, the biryani is so famous that even the non-members of Mysore Sports Club do not miss out a chance tickling their taste buds whenever they get an opportunity to visit the club. In fact most of the non-members demand the club members not to book them rooms at the Club but for a parcel of mutton biryani.

Given an opportunity, one must visit the Mysore Sports Club to savour this gastronomic delight.

source:http://www.starofmysore.com / Star of Mysore / Home> Feature Articles / Thursday – March 05th, 2015

MA in Sanskrit at 78

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Education, Inspiration/ Positive News and Features

KrishnappaBF11mar2015

Mysuru :

There was a special award waiting for Krishnappa at the 15th Annual Convocation of KSOU held here on Thursday. Seventy-eight-year-old Krishnappa, a resident of Kanavanaghatta in Channarayapatna taluk of Hassan district had appeared for MA Sanskrit examination and has passed with 57 per cent and also received a cash prize.

A relentless learner, Krishnappa says that his age never hindered him from appearing for the exam and added that he engaged himself in reading spiritual books after his retirement. Krishnappa also said that Sanskrit was an ocean of knowledge and this had inspired him to take up Master’s in the subject.

Krishnappa says that he wanted to attain spiritual knowledge and hence, read a number of books and added that he would continue to read and acquire knowledge till his last breath.

source: http://www.starofmysore.com / Star of Mysore / Home> General News / Thursday – March 05th, 2015

‘Tabla taayi’ has 3,000 instruments to her credit

Arts, Culture & Entertainment

You may have heard of women playing the mridangam, but have seen one making it?

Over the last 45 years, 72-year-old Ashwathamma has made nearly 3,000 tablas and mridangams. She has repaired thousands more. So much so, she is referred to as ‘tabla taayi’.

Her workspace, Shanta Tabla Works on the busy OTC Road near Balepete Circle, is stacked with tabla, mridangam, dholak, dholki, damaruga, nagaari, thamte, khanjari and other percussion instruments.

“Every year, I make more than 50 instruments. Percussion stalwarts like M.L. Veerabhadraiah, A.V. Anand and T.A.S. Mani have vouched for its quality,” she says.

There was a time when everyone advised her to roll incense sticks, rather than make mridangams, which requires “manly strength”. She argues that making percussion instruments is more of skill than strength. “It takes a week to make a pair of tablas and 10 days for a mridangam.”

Ms. Ashwathamma was married at 15 to Anantharamaiah, who played tabla at the Anjaneya Swamy temple in Rajaghatta near Doddaballapur. They moved to Bengaluru in 1965 seeking jobs as makers and repairers of instruments. Ashwathamma began assisting her husband and then made it her own vocation. “My passion to learn is my accomplishment. Now I want my son to take forward the family profession,” she says.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Bengaluru / by Ranjani Govind / Bengaluru – March 10th, 2015

‘RSN Memorial Award’ for Freedom Fighter

Uncategorized

Ramashesh and Sanjhi Artist Huseni

Zoo Authority of Karnataka (ZAK) Chairperson Rehana Banu is seen delivering inaugural address during the award function organised by R.S. Naidu Art and Cultural Welfare Trust in memory of Freedom Fighter R.S. Naidu at Nadabrahma Sangeetha Sabha in city recently as Sanjhi Artist S.F. Huseni, Freedom Fighter M.R. Ramashesh, Brahmana Association Chairman Raghuram and R.S. Naidu Trust President P.Y. Venkatadri look on.
Zoo Authority of Karnataka (ZAK) Chairperson Rehana Banu is seen delivering inaugural address during the award function organised by R.S. Naidu Art and Cultural Welfare Trust in memory of Freedom Fighter R.S. Naidu at Nadabrahma Sangeetha Sabha in city recently as Sanjhi Artist S.F. Huseni, Freedom Fighter M.R. Ramashesh, Brahmana Association Chairman Raghuram and R.S. Naidu Trust President P.Y. Venkatadri look on.

 

Mysuru :

Freedom fighter M.R. Ramashesh and Sanjhi Artist S.F. Huseni were conferred with ‘RSN Memorial Award’ at a programme organised by R.S. Naidu Art and Cultural Welfare Trust in memory of freedom fighter R.S. Naidu at Nadabrahma Sangeetha Sabha in city recently.

Speaking after inaugurating the programme, Zoo Authority of Karnataka (ZAK) Chairperson Rehana Banu said, “Many artists across the country have contributed in their respective fields despite lack of encouragement and recognition. They should be lauded for their commitment and passion. We should encourage the artists through felicitation programmes.”

After the award function, Indu Shekhar and Troupe presented a musical programme.

Renowned artists of Mysuru and Bengaluru sang the old film songs sung by P.B. Sreenivas, S.P. Balasubramanyam, P. Susheela, S. Janaki and others. They even sang the songs from the movies of Dr. Rajkumar, Dr. Vishnuvardhan and Puttanna Kanagal.

The following songs were sung on the occasion: ‘Hindusthanu endu mareyada…’ from the movie Amrutha Ghalige, ‘Snehada kadalalli…’, ‘Aseya bhava olavina jeeva’, ‘Karunada thayi’, ‘Haadu haleyadaadarenu’, ‘Jeeva veene needu midithada sangeetha’, which made the audience to travel down the memory lane.

Mike Chandru compered the musical programme.

Singers including Indrani Anantharam, CFTRI Krishnamurthy, KEB Gangadhar, Srinivas Hemanth, Vijayanand, Joyce Peters, Anantharam, Kiran Kumar, Geethalakshmi Keni, Vijay Manasa and others took part in the function.

R.S. Naidu Art and Cultural Welfare Trust President P.Y. Venkatadri and Trustee M.K. Ramesh; K. Raghuram, Chairman, Brahmana Association; Mysuru Anand and Parthasarathy were present on the occasion.

source: http://www.starofmysore.com / Star of Mysore / Home> General News / Wednesday – March 04th, 2015

Raghuttama Putty dedicated his entire life to painting : Writer

Arts, Culture & Entertainment
Prof. Kalegowda Nagawara (second from left) is seen taking a look at the painting on display as Veda Putty and others look on.
Prof. Kalegowda Nagawara (second from left) is seen taking a look at the painting on display as Veda Putty and others look on.

Mysuru :

“Artist Raghuttama Putty dedicated his entire life to the world of painting and he must be emulated by the arts fraternity,” opined renowned litterateur Prof. Kalegowda Nagawara.

He was speaking after inaugurating the two-day Raghuttama Putty birth centenary celebrations organised under the aegis of Karnataka Lalithakala Academy at Kalaniketana School of Arts, Vijayanagar this morning.

Stating that artists, musicians, litterateurs and journalists play a vital role in building a better society, Prof. Kalegowda observed that painting had no language, unlike literature which has one.

Bemoaning that modern day painters were after money, the writer pointed out that painters of the past era, although less educated, came up with great works which remained in the minds of people for long.

Pointing out that art works has a global presence, he cautioned the artists against losing their honour and dignity for the sake of money and other allurements.

Prof. Kalegowda also inaugurated a painting camp titled ‘Nisarga Chitrakala Shibira’ to mark the occasion.

Karnataka Lalithakala Academy Chairman Dr. M.S. Murthy, who presided, announced that the Academy was celebrating its Golden Jubilee this year.

Giving a brief on the programmes and events to be launched by the Academy as part of Golden Jubilee celebrations, Dr. Murthy said a programme titled ‘Santhe Jatre Kala Yatre,’ in which works of 100 select artists will be documented, will be launched shortly.

Noting that the messages of drawings and paintings will live long in the memory of people, he called upon the students to effectively present the richness of rural customs and practices in their art works.

Nearly 100 art students and artists are taking part in this 2-day event, which features seminars on arts and related subjects, with experts and resource persons delivering lectures.

Corporator D. Nagabushan, School Principal K.C. Mahadevashetty, Karnataka Lalithakala Academy Registrar K.Sudhindra, members C. Chikkanna and C. Rajashekhar, late Putty’s grand-daughter Veda Putty and others were present on the occasion.

source: http://www.starofmysore.com / Star of Mysore / Home> General News / Tuesday, March 03rd, 2015

Sommer House: Tales from the jazz age

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Records, All, Travel

SommerHouseBF09mar2015

Bengaluru: 

Back in the 1950s, when Bangalore was like something out of a F. Scott Fitzgerald bok, Whitefield was a small township on the outskirts of the city. On arriving at the railway station, one took a horse-drawn carriage home through the small, winding streets. It wasn’t long, however, before development put paid to much of that old world charm.

The Sommer House, a colonial bungalow that has been restored to its former beauty by long-time resident Sulaiman Jamal, aims to recreate some of that old world charm. Thrown open to the public on Monday evening, as a community center that gives senior citizens and retired army officials that long lost society whirl, Jamal, whose association with the area began when he set up his factory there said: “We have lived in Whitefield for ten years now, but when I first visited, it was a pretty wild place,  Every six months, another bungalow would be torn down.”

The two-bedroom gabled roof Sommer House, bought two years ago by Jamal, replete with antique furniture, is home to a piano that belonged, back in the day, to the Defence Services Cinema. The cottage, sits surrounded by a garden, with restored vintage cars dotting the property.

Jamal would like the House to host programmes like piano nights, dancing, catered dinners and plays. Most importantly, it will also have a free catered dinner every month for senior citizens.
Beth Chapman, Pre­sident, Overseas Women’s Club, has helped put Sulaiman’s ideas in motion.

“I’m always looking for old bungalows and the stories that surround them,” she said.
“The house is opposite Forum Value Mall and people expected a superstructure here,” Sulaiman explained. “They wonder what the catch is, but there is none. We want the people of Whitefield to feel a sense of belonging with what is now a community center.”

source: http://www.deccanchronicle.com / Deccan Chronicle / Home> News> Current Affairs / DC / Darshana Ramdev / June 18th, 2013

For the Love of Fabric

Business & Economy, Inspiration/ Positive News and Features

VanithaBF08mar2015

by Sujata Rajpal

Those who believe that early marriage puts a spoke in the wheel of a woman’s professional growth and sounds a death-knell for her career should think again. The city-based designer and entrepreneur Vanitha Santosh is one such woman who not only started her career from scratch after marriage but also followed her heart by turning her passion into a full-fledged business.

She is one amongst 10,000 women entrepreneurs in the world who were selected to undergo Goldman Sachs 10,000 Women Entrepreneurs Certificate Programme. Conducted by Indian School of Business (ISB) in collaboration with Goldman Sachs, the 16-week programme provided world-class education to selected women entrepreneurs with 3 weeks of classroom sessions and 13 weeks of mentoring support on the job.

“This programme is an equivalent to MBA and I am considered as an alumnus of ISB,” Vanitha chuckles. The curriculum comprised structured way to do business, time management, prioritisation, focus, defining one’s targets in business and multitasking, which is so very important for women.

Vanitha was married off at the age of 18 immediately after her plus two exam. After marriage, she not only started her own venture but also studied B.Com through Open University. She recalls fondly how she was up on her feet visiting clients just two weeks after delivering a baby and would carry her eighteen-month-old son for meetings.

The seeds for entrepreneurship were sown in her when she was still in middle school. “I was the first grandchild in a big joint family. Though I was pampered, I had to run errands for everyone in the family, which taught me many life-skills required in a business and gave me an idea of pricing, negotiations and much more,” tells Vanitha.

Colours, designs and fabric fascinated Vanitha even as a child. She loved to give a new look to the fabric by mix and match. She got her first break at the age of 15 from a French Company to design kids’ summer collection for six seasons. It provided a great learning platform and the beginning of many more opportunities.

“I got married early but still I have managed to do what I had always wanted to. I don’t believe in complaining. Instead, I strongly believe in making the best use of the circumstances. I have always been a go-getter without being blatantly aggressive,” tells Vanitha with a constant smile playing on her lips.

Vanitha kick-started her venture with Mangalgiri Mix-and- Match kurtas which she exhibited at Rotary Needs in 1999. This was her first taste of success. The enterprising woman has come a long way since then. She has added various verticals in her business, which includes customised uniforms for hospitals, industry and hospitality sector, clothes for new borns, block printing, redoing old sarees, designer blouses. Out of all the verticals, redoing old sarees and giving a new look to the six yards is her favourite as there is a lot of sentimental value attached to old sarees.

Twelve years ago when Vanitha had just started her venture of customised uniforms, she met with an accident, which made her immobile for almost a year. She didn’t want to close the unit which had just taken off. At that time, her husband Santosh gave up his business of computer consumables and joined his better half. Since then the husband and wife have been working as a team.

“Though it is one business, we have our own independent clients and have divided our responsibilities,” says Vanitha candidly.

Aligning with her people’s person image, Vanitha prefers the front end jobs like marketing and designing whereas Santosh takes care of manufacturing and operations. The couple has an unwritten rule of not discussing work at home. The husband and wife take turns to ensure that one of the parents is always around when their two school-going boys, Aditya and Chaitanya, are at home. Vanitha resides at Sankalp Central Park, Yadavagiri and her store-cum-workshop Hidden Store is located on Kalidasa Road.

“Being a woman, I had to face many challenges. When I approached an organisation for soliciting orders for uniforms, they shooed me away thinking what can a woman do but when my husband approached the same organisation, they readily gave him the order. What saddens me the most is the attitude of people towards a woman entrepreneur,” tells Vanitha. “Mysuru is still not open to women entrepreneurs.”

There is more to Vanitha than a successful entrepreneur. She is a self-taught classical singer. A few years ago, she received an opportunity to perform at the Amba Vilas Palace during Dasara in front of a large audience. “One day I would want to find out time to learn classical singing,” she says dreamily.

e-mail: vanitha27santosh@gmail.com

source: http://www.starofmysore.com / Star of Mysore / Home> Features Articles / Monday – March 02nd, 2015

Dr. N. Muthukumar is new CII Chairman

Business & Economy, Leaders

Arjun Ranga Vice-Chairman

CIIbf08mar2015

Mysuru :

Dr. N. Muthukumar, Sr. VP and Whole Time Director, Automotive Axles Ltd., has been nominated as the Chairman of Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), Mysuru, for the year 2015-16 while Arjun Ranga, Partner, NR Group, has been nomi- nated as the Vice- Chairman. This was announced at the CII Mysuru Annual Day held in city recently.

Dr. Muthukumar, who has rich experience of more than 25 years in the Automobile and Pharmaceutical sector, is the driving force to implement, sustain and improve World Class Performance Elements like Productivity, Quality, Cost, Delivery, Safety, Morale, Environment and Innovation at Automotive Axles Ltd.

He did his Ph.D in ‘Operations Management’ from Annamalai University and MBA in International Marketing and is a Gold Medalist in PG Studies.

Arjun Ranga is responsible for managing ‘Cycle Pure Agarbathies,’ which is India’s largest brand of Agarbathies. His enterprising and innovative skill sets have helped Cycle Pure Agarbathies to achieve growth figures which are rarely seen in mature FMCG categories in the Indian market.

He holds an engineering degree from SJCE, Mysuru and an MBA from Thunderbird, USA, with focus in Marketing and Strategy.

source: http://www.starofmysore.com / Star of Mysore / Home> General News / Monday – March 02nd, 2015