GENRE: Voices

First it was Aindrita Ray, who was crying on television accusing a veteran director of slapping her and touching her inappropriately. Then it was a seasoned and veteran actress Ramya, weeping on small screen to get her money from a producer who had not paid her dues. Then it was another super actress, Pooja Gandhi who threatened to take a producer to court and complained about harassment and threats to her life from another person in the industry. And more recently Nikitha Thukral, although was not seen crying in public, must have shed plenty of tears in private after receiving…

The world is a small one, in today's age of jet travel, but not many of us can claim to have visited the Poles. Of the two polar regions, Antarctica (the south Pole) still remains largely inaccessible to the whole of mankind. So when the first woman from Bangalore, Priya Venkatesh, visited Antarctica, her trip made for an interesting conversation. Priya, 36, lives in Jayanagar and works for a training company. She is a keen amateur naturalist, and an excellent photographer. Priya Venkatesh in Antartica. Pic courtesy: Priya Venkatesh Why Antarctica?"In school, I used to see the little strip of…

We, the grieving family of Arjun Hari Nair, are writing to set the record straight. My brother, was killed in a hit and run incident at Mekhri Circle. Nothing hurts a family that the suffering and death of a family member could have been prevented and unfortunately, we have confirmation from various sources including the police that his death was not instantaneous. Arjun was a young businessman who was killed in a hit and run case, last month. Pic Courtesy: Mrinalini Nair On Thursday morning, September 15th, Arjun Hair Nair, 28 years old, left a friend's house in Sadashivanagar, and…

That smoking kills is no news. That smoking can cause death to your near and dear ones is also perhaps known to most. That one out of two tobacco users is destined to die is something most of smokers would not wish to know or accept. Yet, this is what World Health organisation says. Out of the six million people who die because of tobacco use, 5 million are users and ex users. Six lakh are those who die of gift of smoke (Second hand smoking) from their near and dear ones. Almost 40 % of children breathe smoke polluted…

"Next question, so why are we celebrating a Spanish festival in the first place? To foster bilateral relations with Spain? Definitely not; because it is loads of tangy fun. The whole idea of the Tomatina festival has been popularised by the Bollywood movie 'Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara'. Haven't you watched it? The next thing you know you'll be asked to leave the country! Go catch it first thing this evening. The movie of course was immensely popular but even more fame was garnered by the sequence of the tomato festival where the three main leads of the movie; Hrithik Roshan,…

The waiting was over! .. after three long years, I boarded the British Airways flight, back home to Namma Bengaluru.  My thoughts now raced to the urban transformation that would welcome me home. Three years is not a long time to expect sea-changes in one's neighbourhood.  But, from what I had heard, I expected to view a few more concrete, ornamental, apartment blocks amidst some marvellous temple towers in modern day Malleswaram.I began to visualise my home city as a ‘motor-driven', ‘rock-king' place, heralding the 21st century charm as well.On the very second day I landed, I couldn't wait, but…

Kannada Actor Darshan's act of domestic violence has been in the news for the past few days. Yes it has not been proven, yes his wife has taken back the case. But the fact is his wife is in a bad shape and is attending court cases with her hand in a cast. The case is pending before the Magistrate. Initial Police inquiry suggests that he attacked her in a moving car. The driver said he didn't see or hear anything because the partition is sound proof. What would you have done had you witnessed this happening while you drove…

In the midst of Anna Hazare anti-corruption movement, an event of significant importance went unnoticed by citizens of Bangalore. The Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) presented the much delayed annual budget for the fiscal year 2011-12. A cursory look at the budget suggests that BBMP is in as much a mess as Satyam Computers was at the time of confession of fraud by its founder. Little wonder even after three weeks of release of the budget, it cannot be found on Palike website. Ramalinga Raju the founder CEO of Satyam Computers booked fictitious revenue to inflate profits of his company.…

"Be the change you want to see in the world" - M K Gandhi A friend of mine, talking about corruption once said, "India is like this only, we just have to flow with the tide... who has the time to spend... it's just not worth it". Another friend, a senior manager in a reputed company, talking as if corruption was a commodity, once said, "This is the going rate... what's wrong in paying?". Attempts to refute these statements and questions were resulting in long debates and at the end of it, strained relationships... so I breathed deeply and let…

In principle, your rights evolve from the principles of equity and justice, the principle of respecting your autonomy, your dignity, and right to your privacy and confidentiality. Rights of a patient You have the right to be informed of your disease as diagnosed by the doctor, proposed medical care and the risks involved in treatment whether medical or surgical. You cannot be discriminated against on the basis of your caste, creed, religion or race. You are entitled to respect for privacy and confidentiality of your identity and your medical condition. You have the right to refuse any treatment which may…