bangalore heritage.

The Fort High School in Chamarajpet, built in 1907, has lain dilapidated for years. Its alumni include freedom fighter H S Doresamy, cricketer G R Vishwanath, and even the former King of Mysore Jayachamarajendra Wadiyar. Sometime back, authorities even "repaired" the school in places with vitrified tiles, completely ignoring its importance as a heritage structure. Last year, the non-profit INTACH (Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage) took up a project to restore the building to its original state. It took about eight years for INTACH to document the building, get permission from DPI (Department of Public Instruction) to…

Bengaḷūru, today, is bursting at its seams trying to provide for a population well beyond the capacity of its infrastructure. One would assume any proposed remedy would refer to planning methods adopted in the early settlements and respond to the city’s unique topography. Instead, the authorities concerned seem to have divorced themselves from local wisdom as they go about creating land parcels catering to commercial, and opportunistic interests, ignoring heritage and ecology. A few years ago, when I started my research on Bengaḷūru, the journey took me to the oldest labyrinths of the city, the past reached out across the…

A recent news report about the iconic Russell market in Bangalore likely to make way for a swanky new market as part of "Smart city" plan, triggered a flood of memories and resulted in me penning down this account. The family Ambassador would gently amble past glorious St Mary's Basilica and park in the square in front of the market. Finding a parking spot was a no-brainer back then. We kids (siblings and I) would tumble out of the car in earnest with big baskets in hand, with an elder or two keeping a watchful eye on us. We would…

Have you ever wondered how and why Bengaluru was established? What was it like? Did you know that the name 'Bengaluru' could have been derived from either a form of granite or the 'Honge' tree (Indian beech)? According to Yashaswini, based on inscriptions found, Bengaluru was established as a trading town during 537 AD by Kempegowda. Listen in to this interview in the series, to learn more about the history of Bengaluru and its various petes and people.

Mysore Bank at the Mysore Bank Circle is a thing of past - it's going to be just State Bank henceforth! Pic: Malempati Ravi/ Google Local Guides After 104 years, the name State Bank of Mysore was relegated to history. “Mysore Bank” which held a place of pride among Bengalureans no longer exists. There won’t be any boards dotting the city with the blue symbol. And like with many establishments, the name will continue to live on in Bengaluru, hiding in plain sight among other spots of history – in the city’s bus stops and junctions. The latter cannot be…

To read part I of the series, click here: How C V Raman came to Bangalore The house of Tatas had always hoped to have an Indian director for the institute one day, which was not very feasible in the colonised country. But the opportunity to economise on the weight carried by Raman’s international reputation, by his knighthood and the Nobel Prize, was quickly seized by the Tatas, and for the first time ever since its inception in 1909, an Indian was appointed as the director of IISc in 1933. Many nationalists at that time harboured a feeling that the…

C V Raman in his classroom. Pic courtesy: Oldindianphotos.in November 2015 marks the 127th birthday, and the 45th year of demise, of Chandrasekhar Venkata Raman, one of the greatest minds produced in the twentieth century. Bengaluru was home to this great mind, nobel laureate who is popular as Sir C V Raman. The city bears many landmarks and institutions in his memory,  such as Raman Research Institute,  Panchavati - C V Raman’s home in Malleshwaram where he lived, and C V Raman Nagar. Born in Thiruvanaikaval near Trichinopoly to Chandrashekar Iyer and Parvathi Ammal on November 7, 1888, Raman was…

“Sekaaaaaaarrr ... Go to the market and get me kottamalli for four annas,” amma called. Kottamalli is coriander, you know. Living near the Yediyur lake, the Lake Titicaca (so called because of all the caca that used to flow into it whenever it rained—I kid you not, that was a limnologist's, if that's the word I want, dream lake!) of Jayanagar, Bangalore, had many advantages. It's all geography, hon. We were right by the main road on which the various vegetable vendors from the south of Bangalore carried their fresh produce from the previous afternoon to the Krishna Rajendra Market—a.k.a.…

It's a tale of a boy who started a dance school at the age of just 17. Anil Iyer now a 21-year-old is the proud owner of a classical Tanjore style, Bharathanatyam dance institute in Jayanagar 9th Block, ‘Shivoham School of Performing Arts. Shiva's aananda tandava Iyer says he does not want to add more than 40 students, as he believes in quality and flawless teaching. "I teach to propagate this art form, I love teaching. I wish to give some artists back to the divine field of art, " he explains.Iyer's dance journey started when he was just 10,…

"The National Seminar on Urban Growth of Bangalore with special reference to Bangalore Cantonment (1809-2009)" was held at Christ University from February 18th to 20th. This seminar was organised by the department of History, Christ University, Bangalore along with the Indian Council for Historic Research (ICHR), New Delhi. There was also a photography exhibition that featured numerous archival photographs of buildings of Cantonment. Swati Ramanathan. Pic: Mathew Prasad Idiculla. Swati Ramanathan, co-founder of Janaagraha, in her inaugural speech spoke of the how effective urban planning and urban governance can work together to provide a better city administration system. She also…