Z-Blogs

When a movie song becomes a hit with the audience it's a recognition of the singer and the composer's talent. One of the most prolific music composers for south Indian movies M.S.Viswanathan passed away today.  He had composed more than 750 film songs in different languages. He was given the sobriquet Mellisai Mannar (Tamil - king of light music). His songs would carry a range of emotions whether it was the nostalgic Atho Antha Paravai from the Tamil movie Aayarathil Oruvan or the exuberient Inimai Niraintha Ulagam from the Tamil movie Ninaithale Inikkum.   the    He composed a few songs…

A brief summary of some news you might have missed out in the last few days. Applications for jobs, awards and other important stuff that happened in the capital city! Clear 50% or no salary increments BBMP Administrator Vijayabhaskar held a meeting of principals of all government schools and college in BBMP limits on July 6th 2015. He asked them to improve the pass percentage in the schools and colleges, by marking the low-scoring students and giving extra attention to them. If the trend of scoring below 50% continues, the administrator warned that the salary increments of the principals will…

I was standing in awe of a temple carved out of stone, the colour of a sunset in a place in North Karnataka, when my travelling companion approached me. She’d been speaking with the man who gives tickets. “He said it’s Rs 10 each, but Rs 100 for foreigners.” Differential pricing for Indian and foreigners. Pic: Holly Thorpe I grinned. Clever joke, ticket-taker. But when I approached the ticketing window, a cheerful blue sign confirmed the sentiment: “Foreigners: Rs 100.” Grin successfully wiped from my face, I was a little taken aback. Was it really going to cost me ten…

How do I slim thee? Let me count the ways... A while ago, I was getting my then-five-year-old ready for school. It was one of those beautiful and bracingly chill Bengaluru mornings where all you want to do is curl up with a mug of filter coffee sweetened with bella. Alas, the little fellow had school. I wanted him to wear a warm coat. He vetoed the one I laid out and instead, insisted he wanted a thin windcheater.  “The warmer coat will keep you nice and snug,” I pointed out. “No, I look fat in it,” he responded, matter…

Pic courtesy: Information Department, Govt of Karnataka Video conference between courts and jails Acting Chief Justice of Karnataka High Court Justice Subhro Kamal Mukherjee inaugurated the pilot of high definition video conference between courts and jails at Bengaluru as a part of Digital India Week. The pilot launch includes two courts — City Civil Court and 1st Additional Court Bangalore and district court, Mangalore and six district jails, namely, Mysuru, Dharwad, Kalburgi, Belgavi, Vijayapura and Bellary. The project will provide high definition video conferencing facility to all jails and courts in the state of Karnataka, which is perceived to be…

Folk music holds its unique place in India's rich cultural diversity. Folk songs talk about relationships, the challenges encountered by people every day and philosophical questions about life. Let's look at popular folk music genres from different parts of the country. Lavani  The word derived from Lavanya meaning beautiful refers to the popular folk music which originated in Maharashtra. The dance that accompanies the music is known as Tamasha. Here is a famous lavani by Sulochana Chavan Bhavageethe heard in Karnataka is poetry expressed in musical form. Here is a bhavageethe of the famous Kannada poet Kuvempu sung by actor…

Bellandur Buzz… Issue # 39 Date: 3rd July 2015 This newsletter is brought to you by the citizen group bellandur-forum@googlegroups.com  Another reason to vote We all know how important it is to vote. We have cried ourseleves hoarse over the garbage situation, the potholes and the corruption in the ranks of the political class. But these are not good enough reasons to brave the Bangalore traffic on a lazy holiday.What if we give away free tickets to the newly awaited movie ‘the Minions’ to all voters if they make it to the voting station and cast their vote. Minion tickets…

From the moment I stepped off the plane, it became impossible to forget that I was in Bengaluru; the city demanded my attention. The humidity that alighted on my skin and curled my hair, the sound of new languages being spoken around me - it all seemed to say, “Hey! Pay attention! You’re not at home anymore!” As if I could forget. No sense is left untouched. At all times of day, the sounds, sights, and smells of the city surround me. I fall asleep and wake up to a barrage of horns, the howling of dogs, the sound of…

It was any other quite Sunday morning in Malleshwaram. However, for us it was a big day that had dawned. Malleshwaram Parisara, our annual ecofair by Malleshwaram Swabhimanaa Initiative (MSI) was to take place at Hymamshu Jyothi Kala Peeta on June 28th 2015. This time it was a lot bigger than last year, there was a huge turnout which included a larger number of eco-friendly stalls. The fair was inaugurated by our MLA Aswathnarayan, Principal of Hymamshu Jyothi Kala Peetha BVA Rao, Vijayakumar and MSI president Sumathi Rao. There were 30+ stalls in all. Most of the stalls were by…

Anamika * has six cellphones, all the latest smartphone models. Bharat * has a refrigerator and a television set in his bedroom. So what, you wonder. Many of us already do. Anamika is barely six. Bharat is nine. And no they do not have famous or celeb parents. They are not on YouTube (yet), they do not have Instagram accounts dedicated to their lives (just wait a couple of years). They are simply highly privileged children living in your neighbourhood. These two children are what we call the new normal. They are being brought up in enormous wealth and affluence.…