HERITAGE

I have lived in Bangalore for most of my life. But if you quiz me on anything related to Fraser Town or Cox Town, I would go blank. And yet Bangalore is my home. Home to me was speaking in Kannada, eating South Indian food and visiting the temples (on the eve of exams). And Cantonment? It was as alien to me as London or New York was. The only parts of Cantonment (also called Cantt) area where people from the pete (city) went to were M G Road and Brigade Road. We went to watch English movies at Rex…

‘Ooru-Neeru’, an Urban Space Event, was held by the Bangalore City Project (BCP) in Hessarghatta on 6th July, 2008. Organized for the BCP by S. Vishwanath, it was the fourth in a series such events by the organisation. Vishwanath, who is part of the Rain Water Club and Arghyam (public charitable foundation setup with a personal endowment from Rohini Nilekani and focussing on the water sector), writes extensively on water issues. The BCP is an initiative of the Goethe-Institute, Max Mueller Bhavan, Bangalore. Its objective is to create a platform for art and culture, and to raise awareness of the…

It was the year 1848. Krishnaraja Wodeyar IV was the Maharaja of Mysore. A plague epidemic had hit Bangalore. Perturbed by living conditions in the cramped city area (primarily in and around present day Majestic), the forward-looking Dewan of Mysore, Sheshadri Iyer, initiated the creation of Malleswaram and Basavanagudi. His vision was to create new and clean suburbs to accommodate the city’s burgeoning population. A view of Margosa Road. Pic: Author.I remember going to Malleswaram as a kid tagging along with my mother for shopping sprees. A lot of memories come flooding back - the Malleswaram Circle Jataka (Tonga/horse cart)…

The morning of Sunday, 22 June, saw a motley bunch of people assemble at the entrance to Bangalore Fort. Architects, housewives, techies, photographers, writers and scientists, among others, gathered to learn more about Bangalore's heritage and its past from one of the city's leading historians, Dr S K Aruni. The event was organised by the Bangalore chapter of the Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH) as part of its Parichay (meaning ‘introduction') programme, an initiative aimed at raising awareness of Bangalore's heritage among its citizens. Participants in the INTACH Parichay event at the Bangalore Fort. Pic: MB…

On Sunday, the 27 April, 2008 at 8 AM, a group of eleven people met up in front of the Apsara theatre at K R market and embarked upon what could well be called Bangalore's first ever PhotoWalk. As the name suggests, a PhotoWalk is all about people walking and taking pictures of whatever they find interesting along the way. They walk along as a group and click photographs, while sharing their information related to photography, to the buildings they pass by, or about anything else they find relevant. This concept as first mooted and implemented in Chennai by blogger…

How well do you know your City? Here's your chance to discover what used to be on the outskirts of the City - with the Whitefield Urban Space Event! Event: Whitefield Urban Space Event Date: April 26, 2008 Time: 3.15 p.m. Starting point: Memorial Church, WhitefieldThe event is free and open to all. More details at the Bhavan (080 2520 5305/6/7/8) or on the BCP website: http://bcp.wikidot.com/start. The Bangalore City Project is an initiative of the Goethe-Institut, Max Mueller Bhavan, Bangalore. The Whitefield Urban Space Event will include visits to the Memorial Church, Our Lady of Lourdes Church and Kaolin…

The Lalbagh Botanical Garden is one of the most wellknown parks in this part of the country and is particularly treasured by Bangaloreans. Visit the park early in the morning and you'll see a range of people -- from expert naturalists and amateurs to just plain nature lovers and walkers. Mahesh Srinivas, a Bangalore based amateur photographer has captured a range of pictures of Lalbagh's vibrant wildlife early in the morning. Here's a glimpse. The elusive Golden Oriole on a Peepul Tree, at Lalbagh Gardens. Pond Herons squabbling over fishing rights at the Lalbagh Lake. Checkered Keelback snake breakfasting on…

India is the treasure house of knowledge on medicinal uses of more than 7,500 plant species. But, we are in danger of losing this knowledge through our indifference to these ancient systems unless there is a process of transferring this treasure trove to our future generations. It needs a continuous linkage to these healing plants. A Bangalore based organisation, The Foundation for Revitalization of Local Health Traditions (FRLHT), has been focusing on bringing these systems within reach of households. "Health begins at home" is the concept that FRLHT has been promoting with their "Amruth Home Herbal Gardens" program for citizens…

Kadlekai Parishe (Groundnut festival), one of the city's oldest cultural events, takes place on the last Monday of the karthikaa month on the Bull Temple road in Basavangudi. This year it was held on the 3rd and 4th of December. From Top Left, clockwise: Woman removing the bad groundnuts from the good ones, Groundnuts sold in two measure of one litre and half litre, Piggybanks on sale, A family from Dharmapuri comes every year to practice the art of tattooing - a boy gets his mother’s name inscribed (pics: Rushalini Rajkumar) In the 16th century, it started off as a…

116 years old and Elgin Talkies still stands strong. It all started in 1896 when the Lumiere brothers introduced cinema to India. From there on, there was no looking back. Elgin Talkies (pic: Amoghavarsha) Elgin converted to a talkie in 1930 and was packed to the brim with movie buffs eager to watch Marilyn Monroe or Sophia Loren. Oblivious to the history around them, hundreds of people still throng Elgin, only to watch Hindi films from the nineties, at 20 rupees per ticket. Hidden behind the market chaos is what remains of a grand structure called the Himalaya talkies. One…