HERITAGE

It was an initiative that was long overdue; Nandi Hills, a scenic spot, was slowly being overrun by plastic trash thrown carelessly by visitors. Several civic-minded citizens got together and decided that instead of just complaining about the plastic litter, they would take positive action to clean up the trash, and more importantly, try to raise the awareness among tourists about the importance of keeping this beautiful place clean. Clean and Green Nandi Hills Campaign sign (Pic: Deepa Mohan)Yahoo, the sponsor for the event, has an internal team called ‘Purple Green’ 6 7 mths... (‘purple’ being the Yahoo corporate colour,…

“Magadi! Where is it?” remarked my friend when I told him of the plan to visit the town. Only when I mentioned Savandurga, one of the popular trekking spots in Magadi, did he show a flicker of recognition. Once a bastion of Kempegowda clan, Magadi town is now a sleepy hamlet, situated 49 kilometres from Bangalore. In the days of yore, it would have taken Kempegowda and his men a couple of days to reach the town from Bangalore on horseback. Today, one has to drive along the Magadi Road (starting at Vijayanagar Toll Gate junction) for an hour to…

This is a son’s tribute to a great lady who would have been 100 years old this year- a well known social worker of Bangalore in the last century. Jayalakshamma was born in Hassan 100 years ago, the youngest in a family of four. She was pretty, dark and short. At the age of 12, she was married off to an idealistic youth, P R Ramiaya who had run away from Mysore to Benares when he was in school. He was about to complete his Master’s in Chemistry when the pied piper from Porbandar called upon the youth of the…

Called Kalpavriksha (‘the wish-fulfilling tree’) in Sanskrit (and also Ashwattha Vriksha), the Banyan tree is given a holy status in our culture, with Lord Krishna himself declaring “Among trees, I am the Ashwattha” in the Bhagavad Gita. In India, it is revered as a holy tree that enhances fertility. The Banyan symbolises eternal life due to its ability to support the extending canopy by its prop roots. Big Banyan Tree (Pic: Poornima Dasharathi)The word ‘Banyan’ is said to be derived from the word ‘Bania’, referring to the Indian traders who used to conduct their everyday business under the shade of…

I spent a very pleasant morning at Lalbagh today....I started at the Glass House, where the floral exhibits for Independence Day are taking shape, and this Anthurium exhibit was stunning....As I walked around, both cultivated and "grow-on-the=tree" flowers caught my eye.Here's an insect pollinating one flower:The Seeta Ashoka tree still has some flowers, though it's strictly not the season:The water lilies on the lake are breathtakingly beautiful...The spider lilies, aptly named for their shape, bloom along the shores of the water bodies:But I couldn't identify this tree, which had such beautiful flowers:I walked past the old pavilion; what tales it…

‘.. in a democracy such as ours, people make their own meanings of urban space, in both physical-material and mental-imaginative ways.’ ‘…negotiations contribute to the production of space in the city and any understanding in the changes of urban morphology goes well beyond, or below, the two dimensionality of the map.’– Janaki Nair, in The Promise of the Metropolis: Bangalore’s Twentieth Century.The Bangalore City Corporation (1949) is the result of a union between Bangalore City (the present old city area or pete which was founded in the 16th century) and Cantonment (which was established in the 20th century under the…

Though Independence Day is only on August 15th, the preparations for one of the two annual flower shows that this City has, has already begun.I went to Lalbagh early this morning, and the Glass House area was agog with activity. Several vans and lorries had been parked close by and flowering plants were being "downloaded"....Flowering Plants downloaded from Lorry (Pic: Deepa Mohan)Some of the tables required were also being brought in.Officials were busy discussing how to put up the displays:Officials discussing about the Displays (Pic: Deepa Mohan)The staff were busy with the work:Staff busy with Flower Show work arrangements (Pic:…

‘Kote Katti Merdavrella Yenadaru?’ (‘What became of those famous persons who established forts?’) – lines of a popular yesteryear Kannada film song rang in my mind as I glided on the smooth Bellary road towards Devanahalli. Much as I tried to throw it out, the ditty rang louder and I was on the verge of humming it aloud. To my relief, I reached Devanahalli town limits. Tipu Sultan's birthplace. Pic: PD.As you enter the town from Bellary Road, one has to take the first left to reach the fort. Alternatively, cruise down a kilometre ahead on Bellary Road and take…

The Udayabhanu Kala Sangha located in Kempegowda Nagar (Basavangudi) is a volunteer-based literary, cultural and social organisation. Founded in 1965 by L Venkatappa and M Narasimha (who also serves as secretary), the 43-year-old organisation had its beginnings in a small reading room. Says Founder-Secretary M Narasimha, “The Sangha started in a small 10X10 rented space, as a public reading room that stocked works of renowned Kannada litterateurs.” Some of these writers like Dr U R Ananthamurthy and Professor Vinayaka Krishna Gokak went on to become future Jnanapeeth awardees and regular contributors to the Sangha’s innumerable publications. Secretary M Narasimha. Pic:…

Colville's Glory is one of the many picture perfect trees in Lalbagh. The tree is named after Sir Charles Colville who was Army Commander-in-chief in Bombay from 1819 to 1825 and subsequently Governor of Mauritius from 1828 to 1834. Colville's Glory tree Pic: MS. Colville's Glory flowers. Pic: MS. Squirrel on flowers of Colville's Glory. Pic: MS. Bojer, an Austrian Botanist, first found a single cultivated tree in 1824 in Madagascar when he mounted a specimen collecting expedition from Mauritius. Further, he described, in 1829, the flamboyant (Delonix regia or Gulmohur) which also he found in Madagascar. Eight of the…