Articles by Poornima Dasharathi

 After mindlessly surfing the networking world, I finally thought I'll write something. What then shall I write about? The current hot topics are Women's Reservation Bill & IPL.Forget IPL, everyone wants to write about it - whether it concerns cricket or not. The women's reservation bill - well, I don't like reservation of any kind. But that's another story altogether.So what do I want to write about? Well, there's the BBMP election. An election that has been postponed so much that I'm not too sure it'll happen until the D-day. The ward I live in has a SC, W category.…

I had heard of private antique collectors. However, I hadn’t met one before or fathom the reasons why people have a penchant for collecting old things. Until I met Ramprasad. Holding a beautiful hand crafted vase, Ramprasad explains, “this is a very rare Chinese vase. The style of work is called Cloisonne. It’s more than 200 years old.” Pic: Poornima Dasharathi. Ramprasad has a mechanical engineering background and works in Bosch, India. He has travelled to other countries especially Germany on work. He lives in a middle class colony in Chamarajpet. The house from outside looks like any other cement…

This centuries-old, elegant but small, temple in Begur is a place where Lord Shiva is worshipped. Begur temple is about 3.6 kms down Begur Road from the Bommanahalli junction on Hosur Road. People visit the temple to perform pujas or just a weekly ritual. I visited the place as part of a heritage walk organised by INTACH, Bangalore and the Bangalore City Project, on a bright Sunday morning, last month. Begur Temple Begur Temple from the side. Pic: Meera K. The domes of the twin temple are built in typical Dravidian style. The floor is raised slightly higher than the…

“Parikrma does not have an ‘a’ before ‘m’ akka”, Phalitha corrected me. Sitting between seven school children who kept a watchful eye over my notes, I forgot that I was the one who should ask the questions. An eight-member-student team from Parikrma participated in the recent TEDIndia conference held at Infosys' Mysore Campus. Pic: Poornima Dasharathi. Phalitha G A, Soumya N, Vinod C, Vignesh S, Nikhil G, Manohar J Achar, Sreenivas and Nehminlen Haokip (“he’s from the north-east akka”) – all studying in 8th and 9th standards were a part of eight-member-student team that participated in the recent TEDIndia conference…

This audio programme traces Cubbon Park’s history, walks you through some famous and not-so-famous monuments and buildings in the park, and doles out general trivia that will make your next walk in the park more than just a walk in the park! Citizen Matters Podcasts Download Podcast What are Podcasts?Podcasts are audio files you can listen to whenever you want. You can subscribe to our podcast feed using a jukebox tool (like Apple's iTunes) so that your computer automatically downloads it when we release a new programme which you can then listen to on your computer or mp3 players.What is…

“Places I like”, a photo exhibition that captures the various facets of Bangalore is currently ongoing at Max Mueller Bhavan. It is an outcome of a 3-week workshop conducted in the city by German photographer Stefan Koppelkamm. The objective of the workshop is  to define the personal criteria that determine the “quality of life” in a city with  focus on ‘routine’ and ‘normal’ rather than the unusual. Many city-based amateur and professional photographers are participating in this exhibition. Eagle's eye of the exhibition. Pic: Venkatesan Perumal. “When I first got down at Bangalore’s Kalasipalyam bus stand, it was very unlike…

A detachable platform with giant wheels. A circular kiosk constructed with collapsible column. A school on wheels using recyclable materials. A mobile garden unit that also sells terrace garden plants, built using bill board structuresThese and some more are the result of a collaborative effort of architects from all over the globe who responded to an open invitation sent by Prayas Abhinav, a talented artist based in Bangalore.Abinav, 27, post graduate from CEMA (Center for Experimental Media Arts) and Srishti, lives and works in Bangalore. A man of many interests from writing to art and film making, he has won…

I sat on a plastic chair at the party office, waiting for the MLA at the BJP’s temporary office during campaigning at Yelahanka New Town. In the portico outside, under the shamiana there were some party workers clad in the traditional white, friends of the MLA waiting for him,  and a ubiquitous chai-wallah.  When the MLA came, he was surrounded by a horde of workers, colleagues and well wishers. It looked like he had a busy schedule and I was doubtful of getting any questions answered. However, he was courteous, prompt and gave pertinent answers. S R Vishwanath is a…

The photo speaks for itself.   ⊕

“For men may come and men may goBut I go on for ever”.In the spacious library in the basement of St Joseph’s College on Langford road, I read these lines of Lord Tennyson’s poem that aptly captured the spirit of St. Joseph’s educational institutions, which have been in existence for more than a century. However, in May this year a piece of history was lost for ever; the 84 year-old magnificent gothic building that housed St Joseph’s Arts and Science College on Residency Road was brought down.A few years back, while working out of one of the glass and chrome…