DIARY

Sarfaraz Sheikh is a techie, as the term goes, who, over the past year, has come to be a good friend, even with his being just about half my age. I first got to know him through his posts in the mailing list of our Save Koramangala group. Later, common interests brought us together. I have always marveled at his resourcefulness. Hoysala patrol vehicles (pic courtesy: Bangalore City Police) Generally, it's people of my age group who bother with civic issues. But, that's beginning to change, personified by the likes of Sarfy (as he is commonly known), and perhaps that's…

Early in the morning a Paurakarmika stands near my gate and calls. I peep out. "Amma, coffeeg enadru kodtheera?" (Will you give something for coffee?). She asks. I bend over the gate and show her the foot path and the drain. "Idanella yaar clean madowru? Regularag clean madidre enadru kodbahudu." (Who is supposed to clean all this? If you do this work then I could give you something). I say. "Mori clean madowru berevru barthaare." She says. I feel a bit annoyed. She pushes all the muck that is on the foot path into the drain and walks away sulking.…

"How was the week-end?" I was faced with the routine start-of-the-week question. "Pretty good! My wife and I went to MG road on Sunday", I replied. "Cool, I hope you had fun shopping", the colleague responded. Surprisingly, it was true; but few would have guessed that we shopped at Namma Jathre - an exhibition cum fair organised by groups (mostly) working on community development, held in Cubbon Park's Bal Bhavan on 30 December. For those unfamiliar with the local language (like me), Namma Jathre translates to English as "Our Festival". Namma Jathre was started under the theme of 'Festival of…

At first glance, K Raja, 26, a resident of Bull Temple Road in Basavangudi and David Moszkowicz, 34, a native of Lyon, France would seem to have nothing in common. In fact, if one were to try and apply the six degrees of separation rule on these two individuals, it is quite a high possibility that, under normal circumstances, the number of links to connect them would be much greater than the standard six. Raja the Tavil player engaged in a jugalbandi with Pavan Kumar at the New Year eve celebration. Pic: Shreya Dasgupta. Mild mannered David looks every bit…

The name itself summons up visions of many of us, dressed in goatee beards, flowing white robes with burnouses, lined up with those thick leather gloves and magnificient-looking, keen-glanced birds of prey, racing them. It also conjures up fancies of some of us, astride birds with tiny reins and tinier saddles, flying through the air competitively, driving our birds on with worms dangled before their beaks.  A Black-Shouldered Kite, handsome in the monsoon wind. Pic: Deepa Mohan. Source: INW gallery. Wake up, wake up. This is a bird-watching race, actually. People should form teams of four and they will be…

Civilisations have seen the rise and fall of great empires and cities. In the times of yore, areas of mass congregation were seen mainly in close proximity to water bodies - oceans and rivers, which made navigation and trade and communication possible, like the Harappan civilisation. In recent times though, with the advancement of technology and communication, a completely a different set of factors determine why people move from one city to another. Every large city has distinct characteristics that set it apart from any other concrete jungle no matter how uniform they may seem otherwise. On the face of…

For many of the urban poor, education is a luxury. Even as many private schools become unaffordable in Bangalore, quality of government schools are not very impressive. Children from the lower economic background, who attend schools (mostly government schools) are unable to learn much due to poor infrastructure and teaching methodologies. Many of them are scared of subjects like English, Science and Mathematics. One initiative which hopes to tackle this problem is the ‘Evening School Centre’ run by the volunteer group, AID (Association for India's Development, Bangalore Chapter). These are centres found in slums and neighbourhoods populated by the lower…

With hardware prices falling, more and more people are buying computers. However proprietary software can be expensive, so many people opt to install pirated or illegal copies of such software. The Free Software movement addresses this issue. For example, GNU software is a complete set of free software packages to have your PC/Laptop fully operational. ‘Free’ here doesn't just refer to the cost, which is usually zero or negligible. It is free as in FREEDOM. That is, FSF talks about the freedom to use the software, to understand it, to distribute it and modify it. Some of the important free…

Till about a year back, many residents of Jayanagar used to be troubled by the spot adjacent to 3rd Block post office being used as a public urinal. Even though there is a Nirmala Shouchalaya right next to it, people would relieve themselves right in the open, as they were unwilling to shell out a rupee to use the clean facility next door. Many commercial establishments like fast food joints, garment stores, offices, grocers, chemists etc. are located within a few yards of this place. Before: a public nuisance (pic: Hamsa) This is typical of many places in Bangalore; yet…

Ever thought of a Bangalore without Cubbon Park and Lalbagh? What if M.G.Road disappeared one day? Or what if you woke up to headlines that read you would never be able to see another Gulmohur or Asoka tree in the city again? Thankfully, none of the above seem to be happening yet. However, going by recent developments, there is a strong chance that the Hebbal Lake will soon become a thing of the past. For in a few months from now a swank, new 'floating restaurant' may sit in its place. If you've been past the lake recently, you may…