Society

Did you know that senior citizens are entitled to certain benefits and provisions under the Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens Act 2007? In fact the Act also provides for childless senior citizens who can claim maintenance from their relatives if needed. There are also provisions and procedure for cancellation of documents under which property has been transferred by senior citizens to children. Unfortunately, awareness of the Act and other rights and benefits accorded to senior citizens under the Indian law remains extremely low according to a survey done by HelpAge India. One in five elders is unaware of…

What is Lalbagh flower show? Every year in January and August, a flower show is organised in Lalbagh, the majestic central park in Bengaluru, to celebrate Republic Day and Independence Day. In addition to the thematic display of flowers across the garden, this time the Glass House has been decked up with a floral replica of Gol Gumbaz, the largest dome in India, a monument built by Adil Shah, the erstwhile king of Bijapur. Four lakh roses in four colours would be used for this. There are also dozens of stands with artisan crafts, spices, coffee, books, purses, scarves, seeds,…

At a workshop on gender justice in collaboration with Rutgers University-New Jersey, Visthar and Action Aid. Senior Programme Officer Nandhini from Action Aid recounts such cases and explains why gender equality is basic human issue. Kalyani's (name changed) is one such case, from a upper middle class family with degree in Engineering, she got married and moved to Bangalore. Within a month, her husband asked her to quit her job, not talk to her parents, did not allow her to dress the way she wanted. He took away the sim card of her mobile phone and soon this became regular…

Listen to Chetan, where he speaks about his understanding of gender and sexuality, on being a heterosexual and living his life in an hetero normative society, transphobia in films, need for queer literature in India, the need to support the rights of the LGBTQIA community... these are his inspiration to be a supporter of the community.    

In a fun and fascinating session at the Bengaluru Literature Festival on Saturday afternoon (17 December 2016), Roopa Pai, Bengaluru-based bestselling author of The Gita for Children, convinced kids (and their parents) of the importance of the Bhagawad Gita even in today’s modern world - explaining how it was a math puzzle book, a weight loss book and the oldest self-help book in the world! She briefly ran through the story of the Mahabharata. Through her narrative, she made children laugh out loud by combining humour and references to daily life experiences. The session was highly interactive. Enthusiastic children listened…

We live in an amazing city with rich heritage and a long history. Chennai like other cities of India is going through a critical phase and facing significant developmental challenges. To address these challenges, it's important to understand the strengths of our city. The heritage of our city and its contribution to modern India is one such key strength. The day that went unnoticed August 15th being a national holiday was, as in other years, marked by events remembering India’s "tryst with destiny", but for most of us in the city, another significant date - August 22nd went by unnoticed. This…

WhatsApp is huge in India. It reaches the common man much more than Facebook or Twitter does in India. It’s so big that government authorities in India use WhatsApp for information dissemination or even to get information. For a lot of people in India, WhatsApp has become the window to the Internet. Many in the country now use WhatsApp to get news. Most of them get this news while being part of a big group as ‘forwards’. This makes it a rich medium for any controversial news to go viral. Also a good medium for scammers. Recently, the prime minister of India mentioned…

It’s that time of the year again when Bengaluru revels in literature. Fifth edition of Bengaluru Literature Festival is here again, with a line up of exciting events that are sure to tickle the brains, with many who’s-who in the world of literature attending it as panelists and guests. According to a press note from the organisers, Bangalore Literature Festival is all set for a fifth edition on December 17 and 18 at the Hotel Royal Orchid lawns on Old Airport Road, Bengaluru. Building on the success of over the past four years, this year Bangalore Literature Festival will feature…

River Hope presents 'Open Day by Bangalore Architects' on the 10th and 11th of December 2016, an event that will for the first time, allow the general public to visit the city’s architect studios and learn about their work. Set up by Bangalore based architects Krupa Rajangam and Aparna Shastri in 2013, River Hope is an informal network that conducts an annual event to promote awareness of architecture and built cultural heritage. It has organized three events so far: their first event in 2013 was a heritage walk in Whitefield, in 2014 they conducted design walks and in 2015 presented…

How well do you know Namma Bengaluru? Let me start with a question. Who was the person that personally financed the levelling of a road with the intention of alleviating the pain of bullocks dragging heavy cartloads up a steep slope? If you don’t know, this man was Enayathullah Mekhri, who took notice of the sufferings of bullocks, and decided to act on it. Despite being offered compensation by the king of Mysore for his selfless act, Mekhri refused it. Such was his nature. Therefore, in honour of this gracious act and his willingness to help society at large, the…