Society

He is leading a retired life but spends most of his time and energy in bringing necessary improvement to the community. He is affable, determined, disgruntled with the official apathy yet hopeful. He is the 'military man' of HSR Layout, meet Brigadier R S Murthy, 68, Vice President, Federation of Residents Welfare Associations in HSR layout. Brig Murthy with his wife Lalitha. Pic: Deepthi M S He lives with his wife Lalitha Murthy, 61, who is a teacher. Learning to use the Internet seems to be their latest pursuit. With Brigadier's transfers to various parts of the country, Lalitha says…

"Uncle Sam, put on back your pants" a line from one of the compositions of Jamaican-Canadian-African dub poet D'bi Young Anitafrika is one that rings in my head on a regular basis. It works as an essential reminder of the number of soulless 'uncles' who abuse children sexually. But according to Young who performed at the Jaaga Creative Common Ground in Bengaluru on 28th January 2012, it is also a metaphor for how selfish capitalists continue to rape and ravage life on earth without sparing a thought about the adverse impact of their actions. Well, if they take the good…

Pawan Kumar the director of the successful film Lifeu Ishtene might just show ‘Gandhinagar' that pedigree and stars don't matter. He plans to produce his second film Lucia using crowd funding. He had earlier expressed his frustration about no takers for his second film. His fans and friends on Facebook and reacted to it and many suggestions started coming his way. In his own words "was bombarded with emails, smses, pings, chat posts etc etc. Everyone coming together to pour in ideas and solutions. Majority of them have suggested to open a public funding and produce the film with the…

For most of us, the first thoughts on Japan would be fast cars, sushi and karate. These facets are complemented by the elaborate culture of the country. The Japan Habba 2012 showcased many such cultural and popular features of Japan. Over one thousand visitors attended the Indo- Japan cultural exchange programme at the  Jnana Jyoti Auditorium, Central College. Aptly named "Kizuna" which means camaraderie, this festival aims for Japanese in Bangalore to learn about India and similarly for Bangaloreans to get a better glimpse of Japanese culture.Toward late afternoon, the auditorium reverberated with popular Indian songs, only difference was that…

Everybody has been talking about Ms. Meena. Every time the play comes to Bangalore, somebody is always telling someone else why they should not miss Ms. Meena (pun unintended). Why, even Citizen Matters has already reviewed the play! At long last, I stood in line, and a long line it was, to watch our darling Ms. Meena. A scene from the play. Pic courtesy: Perch CDs of the play were being sold, and anywhere you looked, all that you could see was a Tamil Maami straight out of a 70s edition of Ananda Vikatan (a magazine). The poster also said…

By writing this post, I am going to make loads of enemies! I did contemplate for a long time whether I should write this or not, and now I have made up my mind to say this publicly, so that I can move on and find a solution!At least five times a day, I have someone asking me - What happened to Lucia? When is it starting? Who is it starring? I feel like I am being stabbed whenever someone asks this question. The update is that Lucia is a completed script. It has come out beautifully and I don't…

The Concerned for Working Children (CWC), a Bangalore-based NGO, has been nominated for this year's Nobel Peace prize by Norwegian Parliamentarians. Nandana Reddy, founder and Director of Development at CWC. Pic: CWC video still. CWC is known for its pioneering efforts that led to the Karnataka state government making children's grama sabhas mandatory in rural local governments. The nomination is for CWC's work in promoting child rights, emphasising on children's right to participate in decision-making.CWC was nominated by three members of Norwegian parliament - Linda Hofstad Helleland, Gunn Karin Gjul and Andre Oktay Dahlt. They have also nominated two other…

Lekhana, a literary weekend organised by Sangam House, Desha Kala, Reading Hour, National Gallery of Modern Art and TOTO funds for the arts came to an end on Sunday, 12 February. The event included panel discussions, readings and performances.The uniqueness of the event lay in the fact that it was not only about Indian writing in English but brought together creative writers from regional languages as well-they were read directly and were translated in English as well. On day one, 10 February, the panel on ‘City in Literature' saw some free-spirited and open discussions amongst five eminent writers, Anjum Hassab,…

Batman and Superman can fly but have you seen a fish or a Ben 10 fly? Sunday morning sky at the Koramangala 3rd block, play ground was dotted with kites of all hues and shapes. More than 250 people from across Bangalore had gathered on 12 February to try their hands at kite flying, traditional games like pagade and chowkabara. The Gaalipata time was organised by Citizen Matters in association with Namma Bengaluru Foundation (NBF) to celebrate three years in print in South Bangalore. The event was also co-sponsored by Bulldog Sportz and Printo.NBF is an organisation working towards making…

The Japan Habba is a tradition which began in 2005. Every year, Japanese citizens living in Bangalore and the city's Japan enthusiasts get together and celebrate each other's culture. A colourful display of various arts, the Habba promises to be an experience worth waiting for. This year the Habba will be on February 19th at Jnana Jyothi auditorium, Palace Road. A preview of this festival was organized by Sakura-kai - an association of Japanese women - to give the media and the public a taste of what was to come.The day began with the serene tea ceremony known as Sado -…