Society

I was recently required to set up a new bank account. The entire process took all of one week and I really didn’t have much to complain about. During that week however, one employee decided to become my self-appointed relationship manager — getting my number off company records and whatsapping me repeatedly after 8 pm at night, with delightful ‘Hi’ texts. Nothing irks me more than a genius who thinks a text that starts and ends with ‘Hi’, makes for a good start to anything. Maybe it was the fact that we were both Malayali and he thought we had…

In the early hours of the morning, (and I really mean ungodly hours), the peace and calm of the locality is only interrupted by the occassional chirping of early birds out to get worms. Or so we've heard. To the residents of the locality of Byrasandra (the place is as unglamourous as it sounds, trust me), this would be a novel concept. One that they would in all probability not even be aware of. In this BBMP-forsaken area, the early hours of the morning are filled with resounding honking, loud enough even to wake the dead. I'm half surprised there…

Yezdi Roadkings at last year's Jawa Day. Pic:Raj Photography Come Sunday, the 13th of July, witness a spectacle that happens only once in a year - the largest gathering of Jawa’s and Yezdi’s in Bengaluru. Manufactured by the Ideal Jawa Company in Mysore until 1996, these 250 cc bikes known for their distinct beats from its twin exhaust, will come back alive on the road to celebrate the 12th International Jawa Yezdi Day. The International Jawa Yezdi Day is an annual celebration held on the second Sunday of every July across the globe to celebrate the power and legacy of…

Cycling enthusiasts attending Cycle Day event at Yelahanka. Directorate of Urban Land Transport (DULT), UDD, Government of Karnataka which is part of Bangalore Coalition for Open Streets (BCOS) along with local partner Yelahanka United Environment Association (YUVA) conducted the ‘Cycle Day’ event in Yelahanka New Town next to the Allalasandra lake. The program was attended by over 3,000 local residents and cyclists from across Bangalore who enthusiastically participated in the cycle day event. S R Vishwanath, MLA Yelahanka, Manjula-Commissioner DULT, Muniraju-Corporator Ward 4, Mr.Virupaksha Mysore-Additional Commissioner, BBMP-Yelahanka zone and S T Tayappa-President, YUVA addressed the participants. Cycle Day has been…

Rajeev Gowda (second from left) submitting the Namma Railu petition to the ex-Railway Minister, Mallikarjun Kharge in February 2014. Pic: twitter.com/rajeevgowda Rajeev Gowda is a well-known face in Bangalore. He is the son of M V Venkatappa, who was a Legislative Assembly Speaker and Chairman of the Legislative Council in Karnataka. An academic, Gowda was a professor of Economic and Social Science at Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore until recently. He is currently a Rajya Sabha MP, elected from Congress party, representing Karnataka, at the upper house of the Parliament. Rajeev Gowda also started a citizen’s movement, Bengaluru Needs You,…

Waterbody near the entrance of Vishranthi. Pic courtesy: Silver Talkies Greenery and a sense of tranquillity invited us in, as we entered the grounds of Vishranthi, a home for seniors located on the outskirts of Bengaluru. The fresh smell of ripened mangoes merged with the cacophony of students and children learning in the background, as part of Vishranthi’s orphanage and vocational training centre. The ‘Pizza Grannies,’ as the founders of Vishranthi —  Padma Srinivasan and Jayalakshmi Srinivasan — are popularly known, are warm and welcoming. As we sipped on mango juice (from their own garden), they began to tell us the story…

Bengaluru has much to offer. That much is clear even to someone who is new to the city. Normally, if you plan to visit all of the major sightseeing locales available, it would take several trips. The Bangalore Rounds bus service makes it easy to condense a planned excursion into a single day-trip for those without much time. It’s the equivalent of marathoning a favorite TV show on Netflix, but instead you can experience sunshine, learn more about the history of the city, and revel in the amazing architectural designs. Although it’s unlikely you’ll be able to visit every landmark…

We were having one of those Saturday nights, where we had a big group of people (from the Quora meetup) who decided to get out for a drink with last minute plans. As expected, we didn't really get a table in most bars and since we were a big group, we were desperate for a bar that seated us. Walking down Church Street in Bengaluru, a friend spotted Alibi, the restobar and it seemed like they had a few tables that would accommodate a large group. My friends and I had a decent time for about the first two hours…

In a symphony of horns and beeps, cars, buses and motorcycles bullet past the populated Springfields apartment complex, the enormous Wipro campus, and the multitude of schools that dot the famous Sarjapur Road. It turns from a mellow street at night into a hub of pandemonium we witness during the day. Narrow and long, it stretches on for kilometers, providing access to thousands of residential complexes and immense corporate offices. Smaller streets branch out of the main spine of Sarjapur Road like tributaries, spreading to Electronic City and Marathahalli. As it trails away from Bangalore city, it dissolves into the…

What does a typical day in Bangalore feel like? One can’t help but think of the traffic, the potholes, the never-ending garbage crisis and the rampant corruption. But there are lovely things about the city too - the trees, the lakes, the melting pot of people from all over, the weather, the work culture... the list is endless. For many old-timers, as well as folks migrating to the city, Bangalore seems to be a near-perfect city. Bangalore is also the state capital, and houses most of the administrative wing of the state. It also has its own municipality - the…