Society

Bengaluru is home to Sandalwood, the Kannada film Industry. The industry produces 120-130 movies an year and has about 10% success rate like other major film industries of India. Unfortunately, unlike other film industries, Sandalwood is known for banning dubbing of content to Kannada. This unofficial ban on dubbing content effectively isolates Kannadigas who know only Kannada (approximately there are 2.5 to 3 crore Kannadigas who know only Kannada and no other language) from the sea of knowledge and entertainment that exists in other languages. A poster of Titanic, dubbed into Telugu. Pic courtesy: harithehero.blogspot.com We must note that the…

Around 9am on Sunday morning as I walked to my nearby slum where I teach yoga to superbly enthusiastic kids every week, I saw a poster hanging at its entrance. Rajnikanth’s smiling face jumped out of the poster. Alongside were two words in English: Happy Birthday. It  was a small poster, about A3 size, strung up casually, hanging in the air, tilted. The poster had more love than execution (Wish I had taken a picture, but I usually don’t take my phone to the class). Representative purpose only Before the class began, I asked the kids who put it there and…

December 22 is National Mathematics Day in India, in honour of the great Mathematician Srinivasa Ramanujan who was born in Erode on 22 December 1887. In his short lifespan of 32 years, Ramanujan discovered and rediscovered (things unknown in India at that time, but known in other countries) about 3900 theorems and equations that have mostly been proven correct, and have been the basis for new research around the world. One of his more known magical revelations was that the number 1729 is the smallest number that can be expressed as the cube of two numbers in two different ways.…

With the recent examples of harassment charges against journalist Tarun Tejpal and supreme court retired judge A K Ganguly, the issue that most companies choose to ignore has come to the fore. Even in Namma Bengaluru, there are hundreds of such cases that go unreported for various reasons. These are high profile personalities - but what about the millions of others working in various offices across cities, towns and villages in India? Are they aware of their rights? What constitutes sexual harassment at the workplace? Are they aware that there are clear work and personal boundaries? How can a woman…

LGBT rights activists protesting against the Supreme Court verdict, in Bangalore. Pic: Nikita Malusare They all had planned for a gala celebration. But the Supreme Court’s judgement on consensual sex between homosexuals drove them into a rebellious mood. “I am very disappointed, unhappy and feel voiceless. If not the Supreme Court, then whom should one go to?” said Akkai Padmashali, associated with Sangama - an NGO that is working to protect the rights of the Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender (LGBT) community and sex workers since 1999. Members of Coalition of Sex Workers and Sexual Minorities Rights and Human Rights Activists…

Born and brought up in Bengaluru, I love this city a little too much! I love it so much that two years ago, I decided to say goodbye to the US to come back and settle here. I was always too proud of being a Bangalorean. I remember the days when the roads were more pedestrian-friendly and when people were concerned about one another and came out to help whenever they saw someone in need. As a child, I was brought up by my neighbours, as my parents had to juggle between work and us, their kids. I remember walking…

“Happiness is infectious, when you feel happy; people around you will surely be infected. Infect more people and make the world a happy home.” – Kemmy Nola One of the most stressful places to be in Bengaluru is at a traffic signal - bumper-to-bumper traffic, road rage, and to top it all, a bumpy ride, considering the state of the roads. Everybody is impatient; everybody wants to just get to their destination on time. Tempers flare, horns blare and there is a prevailing state of tension. Can anything be done to diffuse this tension? Good news Bangalore – there’s a bunch…

Road was filled with children playing various games. Pic courtesy: ESAF Bangalore FB page ESAF and HealthBridge in association with Kasturi Nagar Mahila Samaj celebrated children’s day by reclaiming street on 3rd Cross Street, Kasturi Nagar on 17/11/2013, Sunday between 11am – 1pm. Under the leadership and support of Vimala Gowda, President, Kasturi Nagar Mahila Samaj members utilised this opportunity to teach children about the games they played on street when they were children. Traditional games such as Kunte Pillai, Chowka Bhara, Chinese checkers, Chess, Ayuthu mane, pakida atta, cycling and running race were organised by members of ESAF. ESAF,…

Have you ever been into an argument when you wished - I wish I can prove why you are so wrong? Have you ever heard or read something that you instinctively knew to be incorrect yet you were unable to explain it how? You know that the world is not what it ought to be, but you do not know how to address it in an informed manner. You are frequently getting disillusioned by the quality of debate on television and are looking for avenues which can provide meaningful information. Are you interested in human rights, good governance, environmentalism, equality…

What is it -A city, town or village?'Twas a pensioners' paradise it seemsHaving a colonial hangoverAmidst MEG, BEL, HMT, ITIUsurped by the silicon dumpWith its Nagars, Towns and hallis'Tis an escape no moreFrom the heat of HyderabadOr the sweat of MadrasOh, it's not the Bangalore of yore!