Environment

Varthur lake is the second-largest water body in Bengaluru. The 440-acre lake is located on the eastern periphery of the city, surrounded by villages and all the big IT companies. Over the last 20 years, a lot has changed and the lake has become infamous as one of the most polluted lakes in the city. From a pristine water body where people used to fish and bathe, it has now turned into a cesspool that froths and foams. It even catches fire! Concerned by the encroachment and degradation of the lake, residents came around to start a rejuvenation campaign. The…

Tyagaraja was a prolific carnatic composer. As he travelled to different places around Thanjavur he composed songs praising the deities of the local temples. When he visited Lalgudi, he composed five songs collectively known as the Lalgudi Pancharatna Krithis. These five songs are Isa Pahimam in raga Kalyani, Deva Sthree Tapa Thirtha in raga Madhyamavathi, LalitheShri in raga Bhairavi, Mahitha Pravriddha in raga Kambodhi and Gati Nee Vani in raga Thodi. Here is a video of Shri Lalgudi Jayaraman singing Gati Nee Vani in raga Thodi along with his daughter and disciple Lalgudi Vijayalakshmi.   In a collaboration with Ananya based…

Tyagaraja was a prolific carnatic composer. As he travelled to different places around Thanjavur he composed songs praising the deities of the local temples. When he visited Lalgudi, he composed five songs collectively known as the Lalgudi Pancharatna Krithis. These five songs are Isa Pahimam in raga Kalyani, Deva Sthree Tapa Thirtha in raga Madhyamavathi, LalitheShri in raga Bhairavi, Mahitha Pravriddha in raga Kambodhi and Gati Nee Vani in raga Thodi. Here is a video of Shri Lalgudi Jayaraman singing Gati Nee Vani in raga Thodi along with his daughter and disciple Lalgudi Vijayalakshmi.   In a collaboration with Ananya based…

Recently, Bengaluru was in news for the wrong reasons. While a woman brutally flung eight puppies to death earlier this year, more recently a mass grave with over 30 street dogs was found in a dump yard with a single survivor. There have been repeated calls to control Bengaluru’s dog population by “culling”. These incidents are testimony to the contempt for street dogs in the minds of many citizens. Moreover, they threaten to destabilise the ancient fabric of friendship that unites people and their dogs. Credit: Alokparna Sengupta/HSI As in rest of India, free ranging dogs are a ubiquitous part…

Recently, Bengaluru was in news for the wrong reasons. While a woman brutally flung eight puppies to death earlier this year, more recently a mass grave with over 30 street dogs was found in a dump yard with a single survivor. There have been repeated calls to control Bengaluru’s dog population by “culling”. These incidents are testimony to the contempt for street dogs in the minds of many citizens. Moreover, they threaten to destabilise the ancient fabric of friendship that unites people and their dogs. Credit: Alokparna Sengupta/HSI As in rest of India, free ranging dogs are a ubiquitous part…

Pic: Shree D N Diwali or Deepavali, literally a row of lamps, is just round the corner. Spread over five days, it is the biggest festival for our family and our community. The biggest festivities are reserved for amavasya or New Moon day. We look forward to the festival of lights year after year. During my childhood, I used to strongly associate crackers with the festival, but as years passed by, the focus shifted elsewhere. We stopped associating 'firecrackers' as core to Deepavali. Cleaning and white-washing the house, decorating with leaves and flowers, lighting dozens of earthen lamps, performing the puja, preparing traditional cuisines, greeting neighbours, friends and relatives - all of these took centre-stage. In years of reading our scriptures…

Pic: Shree D N Diwali or Deepavali, literally a row of lamps, is just round the corner. Spread over five days, it is the biggest festival for our family and our community. The biggest festivities are reserved for amavasya or New Moon day. We look forward to the festival of lights year after year. During my childhood, I used to strongly associate crackers with the festival, but as years passed by, the focus shifted elsewhere. We stopped associating 'firecrackers' as core to Deepavali. Cleaning and white-washing the house, decorating with leaves and flowers, lighting dozens of earthen lamps, performing the puja, preparing traditional cuisines, greeting neighbours, friends and relatives - all of these took centre-stage. In years of reading our scriptures…

Every city, even giant metropolises like Bengaluru, still have a few patches of green, blue or brown that have managed to survive or at least allay the formidable onslaught of concrete and glass. Look carefully in these oases and you’ll be sure to find a sign of life (or five)! Snakes: Pic: Ashish Par Among the most revered and reviled animals in India, snakes are also very common in our cityscapes. Bengaluru has about 40 species of snakes of which six are venomous. Most snakes, even venomous ones, will flee upon detection. They only stand their ground when provoked or…

Every city, even giant metropolises like Bengaluru, still have a few patches of green, blue or brown that have managed to survive or at least allay the formidable onslaught of concrete and glass. Look carefully in these oases and you’ll be sure to find a sign of life (or five)! Snakes: Pic: Ashish Par Among the most revered and reviled animals in India, snakes are also very common in our cityscapes. Bengaluru has about 40 species of snakes of which six are venomous. Most snakes, even venomous ones, will flee upon detection. They only stand their ground when provoked or…

On the 15th of October, 2016, as my friends and I were returning from a nature and birding trip to Nandi Hills, we saw these Yakshagana artistes on the road back (which is also the road from the airport into the city.) That was the goddess of power, Shakti, herself, stepping out into a city, state and country that had just finished celebrating Her in the form of Navaratri or Dashera.   I realized that I would never know why these people were dressed up, and where they were going...was it for a performance, or something else? Yakshagana is a…