Society

Pics: Chitra Iyer. Holy celebrations with friends.Little holi players.Colors and joy.Colour attack.Smears and splashes.Holika‹ › $(document).ready(function(){ $('.carousel .carousel-inner .item').first().attr('class', 'active item');});⊕

Instead of the focus being on the foremost brands in the world, this week, the focus is on the foremost art galleries in the city. Friday the 26th of February saw the inauguration of the five day long “Art Bengaluru 2010”- Bangalore’s contemporary art festival. Art Bengaluru was a five day program with an on going display of work from different galleries in UB city.The inaugurationWomen and high heels and men dressed in suits, browsed the three floors of UB city, wine in hand to see art from the best galleries in Bangalore. Each gallery had a small space to…

About 30 kms from the city, a little off Sarjapur Road is Ananya School, a unique institution for underprivileged children.  Ananya is a part of an effort to bring the benefits of long distance running to its students. Trained electronics engineer and now full time runner, Santhosh Padmanabhan (30) is the brain behind the programme. Padmanabhan is the founder of Runner’s High, a Bangalore-based organisation that aims to promote ultra running and integrate running as an activity into the curriculum of schools for underprivileged children  such as Ananya School. They also coach interested individuals for long distance runs and marathons.…

The three days of music and dance at Brigade MLR Convention centre, JP Nagar was a thorough treat for all music and dance lovers. Hats off to Manasi Prasad (Head - Music Project, Brigade Enterprises) and K N Sashikiran (Founder and Director of Carnatica) who made this event possible.On February 26th evening a grand inaugural concert by Ganesh and Kumaresh (violin) and party marked the beginning of the Utsav. The duo presented a remarkable blend of melody and synchronisation. The theme was "Six seasons". The first Vasantha Rithu in Bilahari Raga was meticulously executed and was followed by Greeshma Rithu…

Whitefield - what kind of images would this name evoke? most likely IT - a glass and steel building, the Technology Park or maybe even the Sai Baba Ashram, anything but a village. Well, Whitefield or rather the old settlement of that name certainly qualifies as a village and a lost one at that.I first visited the old settlement more than a year ago in connection with another research project and was fascinated by its circular planning and wished to know more about its history. My starting point was of course, Lewis Rice's 1887 Mysore Gazette. In it he describes…

Brazilian Jiu Jitsu ( BJJ ) saw its opening in Bangalore this month at a two day workshop, organised by Independent Shootfighters Inc. Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, is among the popular fighting techniques found in the Mixed Martial Arts scene.The seminar was conducted by Amit Bhalla from Los Angeles, who has been training at the Beverly Hills, Jiu Jitsu Club. The two-day seminar, conducted on the 6th and 7th of February covered various self-defence situations and number of ground fighting techniques and principles. Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, is among the popular fighting techniques found in the Mixed Martial Arts scene.Brazilian Jiu Jitsu…

It was a much awaited event for all the climbers in and around Bengaluru. Some participants even travelled from other cities to attend the Rock Climbing fest organised at Turahalli on February 21st, 2010.Turahalli hillock is a place with lot of boulders and wildlife just off Kanakapura road and around 8 kilo-meters from Banashankari Temple in Bangalore South. I had visited Turahalli couple of times before along with my climber friends, but I had not tried much of the climbing at Turahalli. The whole effort was to promote the sport and make more number of people joining the climbing community.…

One fine morning (around 30 years ago), waiting at a bus stop in Madurai, Arjumand Fatehally saw a street child attempting to stick the top of a discarded cigarette box with her saliva – in an attempt to make something. Keenly observing her for a while, Fatehally sat down and tried to help the child make her 'toy'. Of course – she missed her bus. But she says she found her true passion in life - making crafts from 'waste'.Arjumand's enthusiasm, at the age of 79, to continue this work and share it with schools and galleries would put all…

The inaugural Namma Bengaluru awards were held at the Palace Grounds on Saturday, February 27th 2010. An initiative of the Namma Bengaluru Foundation, headed by Rajya Sabha MP Rajeev Chandrasekhar, the ceremony was held to honour Bangalore citizens. From over 4000 nominations, 26 finalists were chosen. Of these, 14 winners were chosen and awarded by Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa and Governer H R Bhardwaj. The winners were awarded Rs 25,001 each, along with a memento.Following are the winners:Private IndividualsAshis K Chand - A neuro-surgeon, he has imparted superior quality healthcare in remote and backward areas of societyDr Sudarshan Ballal…

Janapada Loka located at around 43 kms from Bangalore will make for an ideal visit for those who are who are inquisitive about cultural heritage. Just hop onto a bus, ride on your bike or stop by on the way to Mysore and have a peek at this world steeped in culture and art. Janapada Loka is located on the Bangalore-Mysore highway at about 3 kms from Ramanagaram. Inside Lokamatha Mandira (clockwise from top left): Flower baskets, Bhumanni & Achambli Ritual baskets and storage boxes; Fruit Baskets and Granaries; Vegetable/fish Cutter; Baricoot traps and tools used to pluck areca nuts;…