Visakhapatnam :

Their culture and cuisine is very different from that of Vizag and they account for just a small portion of the city’s population. However, the 300-400 Kannadigas, who are mostly concentrated in and around the Gurudwara junction in Vizag, have made the Port City their home.
The Kannadigas are chiefly employed in public sector undertakings such as the steel plant and banks, as well as enterprises such as the Railways and the Navy.

This culturally active community displays its rich traditions and heritage at the Kannada Kala Sangam in the city through programmes such as folk dance and theatre, including Yakshagana and Bhootkala, and also through the celebration of Ganesh Chaturthi and Mosurukudike (Sri Krishna Janmashtami), with the world-famous Carnatic music featuring during festivals. Artistes are also flown in from Karnataka to perform at the Kannada Kala Sangam on special occasions, said Vijaya Kumar, the joint treasurer of the Sangam.

Vishnumurthy Bhat of Udupi in Karnataka, who is in the city for the last seven years and is employed with a nationalised bank, is the secretary of the Kannada Kala Sangam.

“I have extended my stay here by postponing my transfer because my children are studying in the city. Vizag has good schools and hence I’m not in a hurry to rush back to work at my native place,” said Bhat.

The Kannadigas are a floating population here and try to make the most of their stay in the city. “We get everything here except perhaps the Kannada cuisine in restaurants,” he quipped.

That is one of the few things that the Kannadigas, who are in love with the beauty of the city, miss — the cuisine from various parts of Karanataka such as Mangalorian food, Mysore sweets and Bangalore cuisine.

“Each part of Karnataka has its special cuisine, such as the neer dosa (wafer-thin dosa kneaded with water), kori roti (dry rice flakes in chicken gravy), semedaidya and of course the famous Mysore-Pak sweets. There are hardly any authentic Kananda eateries in the city,” lamented Mangalore’s D Deepak, an employee at a corporate house who has been in the city for the last four months.

“The food here is quite different from our part of the country. We use a lot of coconut and banana in our food, including the use of coconut oil. However, overall, I’m enjoying my stay in the city,” he said.

Though the culture and cuisine are vastly different, Kannadiga brother-sister duo B Madhushree and B Srinidhi are all praise for the city and her warm people.

“I could learn Telugu in less than a month because of its affinity with our language and I have many Telugu friends and neighbours who are warm-hearted, soft and polite. I also like the scenic beauty of this tourist place,” said Madhushree, a class eight student of Sri Satya Sai School and a Carnatic classical singer.

For her brother Srinidhi, an intermediate student, it’s the perpetual peace and clam prevailing in the city and non-congested roads that helps Vizag score over other cities. “I’ve been in the city since the fourth standard but have never seen any political unrest or major problems in the city. The city also has good academic institutions. However, the biggest turn-off is the industrial pollution, which is getting worse with each passing year,” said Srinidhi.

source:  http://www.articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / Home> City> Visakhapatnam / by Sulogna Mehta, TNN / March 31st, 2013