PEOPLE

On the  5th of February, Bangaloreans were privileged to watch how the funds and grants, that India Foundation for the Arts (IFA) disburses to encourage the fine arts, are being utilized.Two puppeteers, Anurupa and Varun, showed the audience, with the help of audio-visuals and demonstrations, how they have developed a new idiom in puppetry.Anurupa and her group have produced a full-length play, "About Ram" and she said that it was amazing to see how different age groups related to the puppetry show on different levels. The children responded to the action sequences, and the adults to the characters and their…

Many of us have been complaining about the increasing "facelessness" of the new Bangalore. Neighbour does not know neighbour, and we all seem impersonal cogs in the machinery...But I didn't realize that even the Railways felt the same way!The Cantonment station proclaims, "Bangalore Anon"...Anonymous, indeed, are the passengers who pour in and out through this station every day.Or, who knows...like Al-Anon (Alchoholics Anonymous), Bangalore Anon is going to get rid of its problems and set itself right..was that the message? I wonder. ⊕

On the  5th of February, Bangaloreans were privileged to watch how the funds and grants, that India Foundation for the Arts (IFA) disburses to encourage the fine arts, are being utilized.Two puppeteers, Anurupa and Varun, showed the audience, with the help of audio-visuals and demonstrations, how they have developed a new idiom in puppetry.Anurupa and her group have produced a full-length play, "About Ram" and she said that it was amazing to see how different age groups related to the puppetry show on different levels. The children responded to the action sequences, and the adults to the characters and their…

Often, I find that public spaces like roads and footpaths are used as if they are there for our own convenience.I passed this plot of land being readied for construction a couple of days ago:That was a footpath before this all started!Why has all the debris been thrown on the pavement? There is now no space for anyone to walk, and the debris extends to the road, too.We are not aware, either, how we should protest when such a civic-unfriendly act occurs; so we feel helpless, and keep quiet, and bemoan the lack of civic sense in our city....Does anyone…

Often, I find that public spaces like roads and footpaths are used as if they are there for our own convenience.I passed this plot of land being readied for construction a couple of days ago:That was a footpath before this all started!Why has all the debris been thrown on the pavement? There is now no space for anyone to walk, and the debris extends to the road, too.We are not aware, either, how we should protest when such a civic-unfriendly act occurs; so we feel helpless, and keep quiet, and bemoan the lack of civic sense in our city....Does anyone…

For the past few years, Chitra Kala Parishath (CKP) has been organizing an annual art event, Chitra Santhe (Art Fair) in and around the CKP campus and its environs. It has become a fairly important event in the art scene of the city.This year, the gate of CKP was beautifully decorated as usual:The slogan of the Santhe highlighted the symbiotic relationship between artists and their patrons....CKP also used the opportunity to hightlight some of the other initiatives they are carrying out, such as ICKPAC, the art conservation effort:The range of geographical locations represented at the Santhe was phenomenal, and there…

For the past few years, Chitra Kala Parishath (CKP) has been organizing an annual art event, Chitra Santhe (Art Fair) in and around the CKP campus and its environs. It has become a fairly important event in the art scene of the city.This year, the gate of CKP was beautifully decorated as usual:The slogan of the Santhe highlighted the symbiotic relationship between artists and their patrons....CKP also used the opportunity to hightlight some of the other initiatives they are carrying out, such as ICKPAC, the art conservation effort:The range of geographical locations represented at the Santhe was phenomenal, and there…

I went to M G Road on work for Clean and Green today, and decided to visit India Coffee House as well....This part of Bangalore heritage seems doomed to go into the history pages soon. Here's a waiter in the familiar uniform, that I have seen in both Kolkata and here:Several of the waiters have been working in this co-operative for many years, and the chances of their finding another job seem bleak. Bangalore will be the poorer for losing out such parts of what it has been, in the name of commercial development. I still see the demolished top…

I went to M G Road on work for Clean and Green today, and decided to visit India Coffee House as well....This part of Bangalore heritage seems doomed to go into the history pages soon. Here's a waiter in the familiar uniform, that I have seen in both Kolkata and here:Several of the waiters have been working in this co-operative for many years, and the chances of their finding another job seem bleak. Bangalore will be the poorer for losing out such parts of what it has been, in the name of commercial development. I still see the demolished top…

We were participating the Bangalore Bird Race, and had gone to Madivala Lake right at the end to see what water birds we could spot; but a "kite" (not a Black or Brahminy Kite!) caught my eye....The backlit kite, soaring above everyday cares, while yet tethered to the ground, against the liquid gold of the evening sky, seemed a metaphor for all of us in this city...we are tied down to our commitments and our various problems, but once in a while, we can fly above them and enjoy our place in the sun....And it was lovely to see that…