City: Bengaluru

There is joy in making delicate terracotta jewellery or ceramic utility pots. Though pottery is a profession for a few, it is more often one of the most enjoyable hobbies today. “You can be an adult and still play with clay”, says Pavan Sathya of gopni.com who is in his mid 30's. Gopni.com is an organisation for pottery enthusiasts, which conducts pottery and ceramic art classes as well as provides firing and kiln support and related activities. Sathya, who has been a professional potter for over 4 years says it a viable profession provided you have the right contacts and…

Arumugam, 19, is a school dropout. A machine operator at a shoe factory, he has learnt to take photographs. Along with his neighbours Asha, Mani, Saraswathi, Radha and Sita, Arumugam learnt to use a digital camera from Sumeet Malhotra, a volunteer from Association for India's Development (AID).A few technology savvy AID volunteers had transformed a dingy room in the slum of Sudarshan Layout, off Bannerghatta Road as their tuition centre. The Ambedkar Community Computer Centre (AC3) was started almost two years back. They have been equipping the poor children and youth in the nearby area with the basic computer skills,…

Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls and foodies of all ages - It's showtime. In the blue corner, priced between Rs 249-299, claiming to offer "old Dilli" cuisine, please welcome More than Paranthas (MTP). Its challenger, in the red corner, with their Set-Menu priced always at Rs 299 and claiming to offer authentic Mughlai cuisine, put your hands together for Umerkot! Veg Starters at Umerkot. Pic: S K Shivashankar. Round 1 - Decor and DecorumWhile MTP offers a much better lit and aesthetically pleasing decor, it loses out in terms of customer service which is simply not brisk.Round 1 is…

Bengaluru Infinite 2010 is a photo contest organised by InfinityF, a photographers collective.The event is organised in partnership with INTACH, Citizen Matters and Lifeblob. Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH) is a group of volunteers dedicated to conservation of the city's heritage. Lifeblob is a city based startup in the Flickr groups Bangalore Weekend Shoots and Bangalore Photowalks are also lending support.The day long event is to be held on April 25th, from 8 am to 8 pm. The contest is open to all. Participants can photograph any aspect of Bengaluru, in any public space on the…

He refers to himself as a whistle-blower. At 70, his concern is for social justice "especially when local bodies are perpetrators". Meet S Vasudeva, a practicing advocate in the Karnataka High Court, who has filed a number of public interest litigations (PIL) on various issues concerning Bengaluru. 70-year-old S Vasudeva is an advocate with the Karnataka High Court. He has filed over 70 PILs in the city. Pic courtesy: S Vasudeva "Government is meant for welfare of people. If they fail to provide basic neccessities, then who will?", he asks passionately. It is because of this that he filed a…

Gavipura, once possibly a pleasant village of gentle hills, water bodies, fertile fields is one the spots where the modern city of Bangalore has evolved from. Intach Heritage walk The rare cave temple dedicated to Lord Gangadhareshwara, the Kempambudhi tank built around 1540's by Kempegowda I, the watch tower built by Kempegowda II and the adjoining historic area of Sunkenahalli refer to the genesis of a town.Later developments at Harihara gudda, dhobi ghat, wrestling schools, swimming clubs, Maratha colony, social institutions like Udayabhanu Kala Sangha, SVYAAS, Rashtrotthana Parishad, Kala Mandir, Ramakrishna Ashram and such others have contributed to make Gavipura…

Ever heard of a workplace only for individuals with disabilities? Yes, Swayam, a parent support group of the differently-abled adults opened its first sheltered work unit at 4th Block, Koramangala extension on April 1st. There seems to be no time to waste for this group of individuals with challenges as they have already got their first work order. Their first assignment is to decorate marada baganna sets for a wedding to be held in May. Reshmi, a Swayam member with Lalitha Bilgi. Pic credit: Swayam. “Swayam is not an NGO or a non-profit group,” clarifies Lalitha Bilgi, Parent Promoter of…

After almost three months of being launched, the “Dry Waste Management Initiative” project is a huge sucess members of the The Brigade Millennium Cassia Apartment Owners Association say. The project is designed on a holistic perspective, along all the dimensions of reduce, reuse and recycle. In January 2010, the residents of the apartment implemented the project.The Cassia block of the Brigade Millennium complex in South Bangalore’s JP Nagar 7th Phase is a typical community of urban dwellers.  With 195 apartments, spread over 15 floors, this residential building has both, a significant demand on resources as well as a significant footprint…

I am a resident of a quiet neighbourhood at Vijaya Bank Layout, Bannerghatta road since 2007. Most of you might have heard about it. It is very popular for its Ayyappa Temple and its quiet environment. But this harmony was destroyed when I saw my home located in 1st Main road and several other houses  were marked by BBMP officials for the road widening project.I am not the only one , but several hundreds are suffering from the same problem. Most people here have used all their savings to buy this property which costs a fortune just because it has…

Simply put Urban Commons refers to spaces in a city that a broad spectrum of people use and depend upon. Agara Lake located south east of the city is one such space. Like most other lakes in the city, Agara is an irrigation tank that dates back to the 9th century. Apart from irrigation, and water supply the lake is also home to a wide variety of flora and fauna.D’Souza’s study is an attempt to understand the effect of urbanisation on what began as a solution to irrigation of agricultural lands in the area. Agara turned out to be the…