bangalore

Since the beginning of May, my life has taken a turn. Late evenings which would have been typically spent as a sloth, are now reserved for exercising at Namma Crossfit. To call it addictive is an understatement. It also helps that I go with a bunch of my closest friends, each of us in varying degrees of fitness; it really is super-fun. The days that I don’t go, I feel miserable. There have been times where I have worked out at home and have had to mop the floor soon after, to ensure I don’t slip on my sweat. For…

Missing: 95-year-old Shankar Prasad Mishra. My friend Preeti Mishra's 95-year-old grandfather,  whom she lovingly calls Nanu, is missing. He went missing from Babusapalya in Kalyanagar on August 25. Nanu or Shankar Prasad Mishra, is much more than a grandparent for Preeti. He is a fellow foodie, and her companion-in-fun. He is also her rock, her safe place. Preeti is an ardent Bangalorean, blogger and writer. I can only imagine what she and her family are going through right now. No, actually I can empathise, because it has happened to me too--when my father went missing three years ago. The worst…

If you ask people about their local RWA or apartment association, they'll tell you a lot of uncharitable things. Words like 'bickering,' 'clueless,' 'no communication' etc. will dominate the response. And if you stop to think about it, you'll realise that there are a lot of parallels between this and how they think about politics and governance of the country itself. What's going on? First, solving public problems isn't the responsibility of a few people. For legal and practical reasons we have formed these things - RWAs, industry associations, religious trusts, ward committees, city councils, state legislatures, parliament - but…

The questions: ‘what is art for?’ Or, ‘why man creates?’ have been asked before and answered many times in many different ways. And yet, I want to ask again. It is like the question ‘what is the meaning of life?’ and the only answer to that question that makes sense to me is “forty-two” – the answer that the science fiction writer Douglas Adams brings to us in his book ‘The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy’. Perhaps, it means that there is no answer, or at least no meaningful answer. Here, I am sharing photographs of the two kinds of…

Facts as outlined by Police on Vibgyor High school case: "Alleged act on July 2nd. Complaint received on 14th. Full co-operation by School during investigation. Two people in custody as of 16th. Investigation at 80% completion and they are likely to conclude by 18th." It implied they were very close to conclusion. July 17th: On request from Vibgyor parents and in a gesture of solidarity for the victim, Whitefield Rising requested all on the group to support a protest meeting organised by the parents. Their objective was to get Mr Rustam to answer the many questions they had. They had…

Sincere thanks to Rotary Bangalore South Parade for the citation presented to PNLIT.         In you we find a crusader in saving the environment and water bodies in Bangalore.  Against all odds you have relentlessly worked to revive a dead lake and brought Puttenahalli lake to full life with water, flora fauna, fish and birds.   We the President, Board of Directors and Members of Rotary Bangalore South Parade on this day of July 4 2014 recognize your contribution to the residents of Bangalore City for enhancing the quality of life.    Usha and Nupur represented PNLIT…

That afternoon, we had been looking for the Durga Book Store in Shivajinagar. I had been told that it might still be there, a bookstore where residents of Frazer town and Benson town had shopped in the 50s as had others from the city. There were many who had memories of going there during their school days. It had been the popular bookstore at that time. We found it. It was still there. Just across the road from Russell market. In a little lane off the Noronha road, right at the corner. When we went in there, it was in…

    Read about the efforts at Vibhutipura Lake in an earlier post here.  

This is a series of photographs that documents the visual evidence of territoriality at the morning flower market in Bangalore. Within this periodic marketplace, a metal fence appears repeatedly at various locations demarcating vehicular and pedestrian zones. The flower vendors seem to use the yellow fence to both mark and defend their territory. The fence is randomly positioned - sometimes to place flower garlands and sometimes to create small enclosures within the large expanse of this urban space.  The boundaries are both physical and non-physical drawn both by the vendors as they sell flowers and by the public as they…

Join the Begur Environment & Development Trust (BEDT) and Begur /Singasandra residents (BBMP Ward 192) for a massive tree plantation drive. Date: 22nd June 2014 (Sunday)Time: 9:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.Venue: Begur Lake entrance next to Lake Point Tower Apartment (Opposite Subhash Nagar Main road), South Bangalore Planned schedule:9:30 a.m.      –  Assembly10:00 a.m.    –  Welcome and Introduction10:05 a.m.    –  Begur History (addressing about the culture)10:15 a.m.    –  Post card distribution (sending letters to BDA commissioner)10:20 a.m.    –  Lake rejuvenation and protection awareness10:30 a.m.    –  Unveiling of Citizen Centric Begur Lake Development Plan10:35 a.m.    –  Tree Plantating11:30 a.m.    –  Vote of Thanks For any clarifications/assistance, please feel free to call:Prasad 9845014801, Shaji 94498 14441 (MC Road area), Prashanth…