Articles by Pushpa Achanta

"I brought my younger daughter to the park as she has her summer holidays and was keen to find out what this event is all about. My older girl is in doing well in high school", beamed Rafiq Ahmed (name changed) who visits Bangalore regularly from Tumkur. He was one of the eager members of the audience that swelled after the annual Global Walk for India's Missing Girls that started outside the Haji Ismail Sait mosque in Frazer Town reached Coles Park around 4 pm on Saturday, May-5, 2012. The motivation behind the Global Walk (which has been conducted in over…

India has different varities of millets and is the largest producer of these foodgrains in the world. The country is apparently the top exporter of small millets which feed pet birds in American and European homes.But we are yet to completely understand the ability of millets to manage diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, fibromyalgia, backaches and other chronic diseases. This weekend offers a great opportunity to learn about the health benefits of millets and interact with nutrition, processing technology and cultivation experts at the Millets Mela. Grameena Natural, a Bangalore based shop for natural foods and earth360 Eco Ventures Private Limited from…

Enjoy these visual glimpses of the programme held at United Theological College (UTC) on Millers Road, to mark International Women's Day (IWD) 2012. Shahina K K, a popular mediaperson, highlights caste, class, religious and gender discrimination that surfaces during natural disaster relief efforts Veteran journalist Ammu Joseph discusses skewed representation of women in Indian news media LesBiT, a support forum for gender minorities staged an aesthetic and meaningful multilingual performance on the different kinds of social exclusion prevalent in India, currently An image of one of the posters from Our Pictures, Our Words by Laxmi Murthy and Rajashri Dasgupta, (publisher:…

"Uncle Sam, put on back your pants" a line from one of the compositions of Jamaican-Canadian-African dub poet D'bi Young Anitafrika is one that rings in my head on a regular basis. It works as an essential reminder of the number of soulless 'uncles' who abuse children sexually. But according to Young who performed at the Jaaga Creative Common Ground in Bengaluru on 28th January 2012, it is also a metaphor for how selfish capitalists continue to rape and ravage life on earth without sparing a thought about the adverse impact of their actions. Well, if they take the good…

‘Varna Mythri - Centenary Retrospective 2011' was launched in December 2011 to commemorate the birth centennial of artist Rumale Chennabasaviah. The retrospective is being held by National Gallery of Modern Art NGMA, Benglauru. Play of light, High Court, c 1960 - oil on canvas. Pic courtesy: NGMA The programme was to end on 31 January but the date has been now extended. "By popular demand, the last date for viewing has been extended until 19 February 2012", shared Shoba Nambisan, the director of NGMA.The programme included insightful weekly discussions by artists and art historians on Rumale's paintings, landscape art and…

Goa. The name evokes images of beaches, Konkani and Portugese heritage and the good life. And perhaps of drug peddling, sex trafficking and other vices. However, over the last few years, the state has been in the news for the rampant unlawful mining of low grade iron ore that is exported to China. (It is important to note that iron ore mining dates back to the period of Portugese rule in India). The consequent damage to the water bodies, indigenous communities and biodiversity in the state have been brought to the forefront thanks to the relentless efforts of people such…

We wanted a home mate But could not confine dogs, birds or fish to the indoors So we consoled ourselves Observing neigbours' pets Watching stray creatures And recalling childhood companions Until Ms. Columbidae came visiting We chased her away And wanted to 'grill' her out But she returned And: Built her nest Laid two eggs Warmed them well Hatched the squabs Who pecked at her crop And chirped, jumped and pooped As they grew Mr. Dove helped too And one fine day Away they flew All within a month   She's back in our balcony Or is she someone else?…

As a young girl growing up in Chennai (then Madras), I always enjoyed school excursions and day trips with friends and family to Mahabalipuram also referred to as Mamallapuram. En route to this seat of splendid ancient heritage of the Pallava dynasty that ruled parts of southern India, is the well known Cholamandal Artists' Village. It is believed to be the largest artists' commune in this country, I remember it as a place filled with artists, craftspersons and visitors. Although Cholamandal always attracted my attention, I never got an opportunity to spend too much time there. So, meeting with and…

When we come across a unique not for profit organisation, social campaign or initiative, we may be interested in knowing more about its regular activities and achievements. But do we try to find out why and how it started? Irrespective of their size and successes, many civil society organisations (CSO's) or non-governmental organisations (NGO's) have a distinct personal story behind them. Some organisations like Sangama (helps sexual minorities) or the Association of People with Disabilities (APD - supports disabled persons) were started to highlight and counter the challenges or discrimination that an individual or a community experiences and assist them.…

   Around mid August this year, 21 volunteers from 14 countries arrived in southern India to work and learn from marginalized communities about their challenges pertinent to health and sanitation. They were part of "Health on Stage", a six week project where they learnt to use forum theatre to initiate simultaneous dialogues on public health in low income areas of Bangalore, Mysore and Chennai. And on 30th September, the 3 groups of participants, their trainers and faciliators gathered in Bangalore to share their experiences with healthcare professionals, media persons and theatre artists.It is well known that water related illnesses are…