GENRE: Features

Birthdays are not anymore a simple affair with a bunch of friends, cake, balloons and candles. Today, childrens' birthday bashes can be quite a fancy event with everything from bouncing castles to magic shows, all managed by professionals. Pic: Wikimedia commons Hotels/party halls have tie ups with event management companies for the décor and theme of the party though it is optional. "The basic décor starts at Rs 3000, magic show at Rs 2,500, tattooing at Rs 1,500 and caricature at Rs 2,500", says Srinivas N, an event manager. "My five year old son is always excited to go to…

Are you at work place worrying about your pet alone at home? Or having nightmares of seeing your dog caged in with no proper food while you are out on a holiday? Open spaces keep them happy. Pic: Petspace Be it for office-goers or for people planning for a holiday, pet care is a big convern. Most pet owners are left with very few options for their pet safety.However, there are dog care centers in Bengaluru that promise to take good care of your pets while you are away. Some of these centers are started by people who faced similar…

As you walk about in Bengaluru, you might often pass several reptiles without seeing them. Though it is not common to see snakes, they are sometimes sighted, and strike terror into our hearts usually, even if they are non-poisonous. Pic: Deepa mohan But apart from the snakes, lizards are a kind of reptile that we see very often, and which are very helpful in keeping the insect population down. The House Gecko or the lizard in the house, that we don't like to see at all, actually eats cockroaches and other insects. Some of the other reptiles we see are…

Just the other day I was at this store, eager to pick up their weekly fresh organic vegetable produce. I overheard another customer ask the store owner to please cut away the leaves of the cauliflower as she did not know what to do with it. The store owner agreed, adding that she was also unaware. Pic: Vinita I could not resist jumping into this conversation. After all I had recently learnt something interesting about cauliflower leaves and this seemed like the perfect opportunity to share it! Julius Rego, a powerhouse of simple, practical and interesting information on plants and…

"After studies, all I want to do is dance,"says Rohini Prabhath, 19, from Gandhi Bazaar, who is learning Kathak at Abhinava School of Dance for the past 12 years. Rajendra and Nirupama at their dance studio, where classes are conducted. Pic: Deepthi M S The dance school is founded by internationally acclaimed Kathak and Bharathanatyam dancers, Nirupama Rajendra, 41 and TD Rajendra, 44. Abhinava Schools of Dance along with Abhinava Dance Company are initiatives of Abhinava Arts Center, a non-profit Trust in Basavanagudi.Both Nirupama and Rajendra have been trained in Kathak and Bharathanatyam by renowned gurus and are in the…

What shall he do this summer? That's the question I have been asking myself now that March hits the midway mark. The temptation is to answer, ‘nothing.' But who am I kidding? I am not strong enough to withstand the now near compulsory pressure of having to enrol the tyke in a ‘Summer Camp.' River rafting at Frolic Boonies. Pic: Frolic Boonies These days not fixing up a summer camp is almost like denying your child an important developmental milestone. Doing nothing is no longer an option, almost up there in the banned list as sleeping late.Even if you are…

The words 'Scientific Research Foundation' paints a picture of brightly lit, sterile environment filled with scientists in white overcoats doing important but inaccessible work. It doesn't seem like a place where people from outside the science community can be admitted. But the Vittal Mallya Scientific Research Foundation stands out by making this very space accessible to lay people. Participants at the workshop. Pic: Anisha Nair The foundation was set up in BTM Layout in 1987 so that they can communicate with the people easily about their researches and findings and also keep in touch with the residents of Bangalore.The Vittal…

While summer classes are de rigueur today, the last few years have seen a gradual shift from the art and craft classes to exploring wilderness and hands-on science. Absorbed in activity at Hippocampus. There are established players like Rangashankara that specialise in arts and theatre, and conducting classes for nearly eight years which are still popular with parents and children.Uma Bharath, mother of a 10-year-old daughter who is attending Rangashankara classes, believes that workshops which are rooted in the Indian context or are truly multicultural, will help improve her child's understanding of her own country or another's. Many of the…

Kala has a beautiful garden outside her house that she wants to protect from pests. She wants to improve her garden and grow lots of fruits and vegetables out there. She came here to learn this "the Organic way".Like Kala, many other people from Bangalore attended the Organic Terrace Gardening (OTG) workshop held at Vittal Mallya Scientific Research Foundation (VMSRF), in BTM Layout II stage. VMSRF is an organisation dedicated to biotechnology research to generate newer products and processes in the field of health-care and agriculture. Palak grown in Organic terrace garden. Pic: Anisha NairAloe Vera at OTG. Pic: Anisha…

Situated beside the Ramanjaneya Temple in Hanumantha Nagar, this auditorium was gathering dust until three years ago. Today, it is a sought after auditorium for theatre groups. Pic: Deepthi M S A few years ago, P D Sathish Chandra, actor and a part of the theatre group Pradarshana Kala Samsthe (Pra.Ka.Sam.), a non-profit arm unit of Fourth Corner communication consultants, was looking out for a theatre. He had six plays in the pipeline, and needed an auditorium.He then spotted an auditorium built by the BBMP, which was in a bad state, in Hanumantha Nagar. He got BBMP to lease the…