Society

Gandhinagar locality is one of the oldest localities of Bangalore and is the centre of trade, commerce, entertainment and tourism. All the old business streets like Chickpet, Balepet, New Tharagupet, Avenue Road, Cottonpet, Raja Market and so many other hubs are in this locality. It separates Bangalore North and West from Bangalore South and East and hence acts as the main link between these zones. Despite so many important factors, this locality became popular mainly due to a record number of cinema houses that were located on the main road, as well as the surrounding roads. In fact Gandhinagar was…

It has been 11 years since doctors predicted that Saroja Puthran would survive for just three months. She was declared HIV positive. Her husband had died within two years of being infected by HIV. As a homemaker, completely dependent on her family, nothing could have prevented her from collapsing completely. But she fought the disease successfully and works for people infected with the same disease. “I will work for them till my death.” she said with a voice that is not discouraged with bad experience. Saroja Puthran at work. Pic: Sankar C G What do you think about the attitude…

Sriram Iyer has been working in the corporate financial sector for over two and a half decades now. A global Bengalurean i.e. Bengalurean who has lived in different parts of the world gives a tongue in cheek, humorous peek into the corporate world with this book. ‘Musings of a Corporate Voyeur’ is a collection of eleven short stories. The surveys that are supposed to boost employee morale, the ‘bosses’ who are leaders and office gossip - all feature in these stories. Anyone who has been in a corporate environment is sure to relate to the book. Sriram Iyer. Pic courtesy:…

“I did not know that Bangalore has good Hindi rock bands”, remarked Nandan Kamath. He had just listened to two soulful renditions titled Barsaat and Tum Hi Ho by Indi Graffiti, a four year old band based in the city. This was among the unique acts at the Fete de la Musique 2012 (Festival of Music) organised by Alliance Francaise de Bangalore (AFB) from June 21st to June24th. Comprising of vocalists and guitarists Bharat Rajagopalan, Pearl Mukadam and drummer Glenn Joseph, Indi Graffiti has played to cheering audiences across the city. Altered Scales. Pic: Pushpa Achanta A non-ticketed event, it…

S Laxminarayan, 36, a software engineer by profession, is also a part-time urban farmer. He aims to get people started on kitchen gardening. He is a co-founder of Garden City Farmer’s Trust that aims to spread awareness on organic farming. He lives in ISRO layout with his wife Sowmya M, a physiotherapist. S Laxminarayan. Pic: Abhishek Angad Excerpts from his interview.You use a bicycle for commuting while your motorbike and car are covered in dust. Are you a green enthusiast?Well, I am just getting ready for the future. Natural resources are depleting due to use and abuse of it. So…

An engineer by profession, 35-year-old Raghavendra Raju, calls himself an absolute Bangalorean who has lived across the city and knows it well. He now lives in JP Nagar. He is currently heading the marketing team at Indian Institute for Human Settlements (IIHS), Bangalore.Raju brought paintball gaming to India with his venture Yuyutsa. Later, he sold the business, and joined another startup as part of their marketing team.  Raghavendra Raju. Pic: Sathish S Excerpts from the interview. Bangalore has become the paintball capital of India. Do you think there are enough arenas and coaches for the game?Not yet! There is enough…

A real estate lawyer by profession, Vatsala Dhananjay, moved to Bangalore in 1990 from Coimbatore. After completing her law degree in 1993 from SJRC Law College, she got married and moved to Koramangala. She has been a lawyer for nearly two decades now. Vatsala Dhananjay. Pic: Abhishek Angad You been in Koramangala since 1993, how have seen it growing?When we came here it was very quiet and had many vacant plots. It was not even in BBMP limits. Suddenly it was a buzz that koramangala is a good place and lot of commercial activities took place.Did you always know you…

Worried about your city? The Indo-German Urban Mela is hosting a major urban talk and discussion series titled 'our public sphere', 'our house' and 'our city' this Sunday at Palace Grounds. The talks are structured around a survey and practical design of urban development in Indian cities, and especially Bangalore. The talks start at 11am on Sunday July 1st and conclude at 4pm. The programme includes lunch and entry is free. The 10 day-long mela itself is already on with 4 more days to go. It runs from 10 am to 10 pm at Palace Grounds has 16 specially-designed pavilions…

The third edition of Mashable's Social Media Day is being celebrated by social media enthusiasts all across the world on June 30. It  is a day to recognise the digital revolution happening across the world.Bangalore is playing host to a city wide celebration on the day organised by Graffiti Collaborative, a creative agency based out of the city (www.thegraffiti.co). Social Media enthusiasts from across the city are coming together to make the event a fabulous blend of fun and knowledge sharing – truly in the spirit of social media. The celebrations for the day will be span across different media…

Beads of sweat trickle down Rohit Upadhyay’s face as he raises the air pistol and aims for the target at the far end. Concentrating at the target, he steadies his breathing and squeezes the trigger. He hits the target two circles outside the bull’s eye. It is Upadhyay’s first tryst with shooting and he is visibly thrilled. After completing his session, he says, “My experience with shooting had been limited to video games and balloon shooting stalls at fairs. This is intense. I might take it up as a sport,” says Upadhyay, 27, a software engineer and a resident of…