City: Bengaluru

"We should learn Kannada. No Kannada, no respect" says one white cab driver to another. This is a scene from the recent Kannada blockbuster Super. The movie is set in 2030 with Bangalore as a ultra modern city populated with men wearing Mysore petas and where all the cab drivers are white. Hegemony is maintained through language – English and Hindi are considered to be above Kannada. A person may expect you to learn Hindi while not learning Kannada – this causes resentment among Kannadigas. There are many avenues for learning Kannada. For example, Tamil Sangam holds Kannada classes, or…

Over the last few years, Resident Welfare Associations (RWAs) have become a force to reckon in the city. Bangaloreans have been uniting through their RWAs to speak out not just about local issues like civic amenities and khata issues, but also for macro level policy reforms.But this also seems to have made RWAs fresh targets for politicians. RWAs are supposed to be independent and not have political affiliations. But RWA representatives across the city are raising concerns about the increasing control of local elected representatives – corporators, ward secretaries and MLAs – over RWAs. They say that some representatives have…

There was an extra festive element at the Ranga Shankara Theatre Festival this time, as it fell between Dasara and Deepavali. The Theatre Festival started on October 16 and wound up on October 23. Street play at Ranga Shankara. Pic: H V Venugopal This year's theme was "Political Theatre," a controversial topic that brings out debate, and creativity, in people. Keeping with the theme, there were several contemporary folk theatre performances and documentaries screened, with vigorous discussions at the end. Sadanand Menon's workshop on Theatre and Arts Appreciation was very well-attended, as was the seminar on the same theme. "It…

It is a well known fact that Bangalore which was a city with many lakes has been driven to a state of horror with most of its lakes encroached and depleted.Another lake which is facing a near death crisis is the Dodda Nagamangala Lake, also known as the Rayasandra Lake in the Dodda Nagamangala region near Electronic city. This lake is about 28 acres in size and falls under survey number 64 and is under the Konappa Agrahara Gram Panchayath. The lovely Dodda Nagamangala Lake last year. Pic: Neethu Peter We have witnessed a large number of birds, even migratory…

The papers reported that all fireworks and crackers activities should cease between 10 pm and 6 am. KSPCB and the police were supposed to be doing rounds and enforcing the curfew. It's 11 pm in the night, and near Nagarbhavi, some random crackers keep going off at regular intervals. Dealing with continuous fireworks is one thing, but sudden bursts at random points in time is too much to deal with.The dogs, not accustomed to rackets other than their own, start howling everytime one goes off. Aged parents at home, struggling with flu-like symptoms thanks to the weather, exacerbated by the…

Street play is one of the most basic forms of theatre. It is truly theatre of and for the masses. No special stages, elaborate sets, props, or costumes are required, no time is wasted, no special environment is created, and no fee is paid-yet, street theatre can speak directly to the heart of the viewer. The energy and vitality of performing in a public environment to a public audience also makes street play the perfect vehicle for political protest and propaganda. In India, the name of Safdar Hashmi is synonymous with political street theatre. The Ranga Shankara Theatre Festival 2011,…

Saving fuel is necessary not only to save money but to reduce pollution. Here are few important tips to see how we can save fuel and be more happier as we reduce our spending and remain calm while driving. 1. Fuel at night or early morning: This is a phenomenon we often do not realise. We refuel petrol/diesel when the tank gets to the reserve. Oil expands with the rise in temperature. This expansion causes lesser energy generation, if fueled in hot time of the day. The fuel will burn faster than what you imagine. Best time to fuel the…

The Ranga Shankara Theatre Fest 2011 had a political theme- all the events including seminars, film screenings, plays and platform performances have a political thread running through them. But then, who can get more political than Badal Sircar, the doyen of anti-establishment theatre in our country? Pic Courtesy: Ranga Shankara The Rangshila theatre group from Mumbai staged Sircar's "Teesveen Shatabdi" or "Thirtieth Century," on 21 October, a fascinating play about the moral aspects of the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in World War II. This is one of Sircar's early plays written in 1966. A time when the echoes…

KEB layout in BTM 1st stage has only one park - until about two years ago this park had a play area which catered to children from the layout and surroundings. But the children's park was demolished by the BBMP in January 2009, to build a road through the park. The road was built to aid traffic and parking for a Sai Baba temple opposite the park. There are about 50 children residing in the layout, who mostly play on the roads as their play area in the park was demolished. Pic: Navya P K Children in the layout now…

After dogged perseverance with the BMTC for 17 years, Kuvempunagar (BTM) Resident's Welfare Association (KRWA), finally succeeded in getting a new bus route the area. The route became operational from 6th August this year. The new bus route, 25N, will begin near 14th Corss, 7th Main in 2nd Stage BTM Layout and proceed to Majestic and vice-versa at an average interval of one hour fifteen minutes. A bus stop was constructed by BBMP councillor GNR Babu, to provide shelter for those waiting for the bus. It was inaugurated a few weeks ago. Padmakshi (right) with other committee member of KRWA.…