First Step in fulfilling the dream to become the Chief Minister of Karnataka:P. And there are more contenders in the queue!

It was sometime back. A sunday. It was great fun. Suddenly in the afternoon I decided to visit the famous Kamat Yatri Nivas Hotel's 4th floor restaurant 'Jowar Bhakri' , GandhiNagar to feast on the famous 'Plaintain Leaf Jowar Roti' or in Kannada 'Bale Ele Jolada Rotti Oota'  meals of North Karnataka and style.  Things are simple here, in the afternoon you get only 'Jowar Roti meals' either 80 Rs or special 100 Rs per meal. Me, my mom and my aunt had to wait for 20mins to get seats. The place just like MTR near lalbaugh is always fast buzzing with activity. As you enter the hotel you are transferred to an entirely new world. North Karnataka style Dhothi and Kurta and topi clad waiters almost running taking orders , serving hungry people is the scene always.



        Coming to the actual meals, here how it is served. Already clean and washed plaintain leafs are laid out. One by one items get served to you at different times by different people. Just when you think that waiters have forgotten your table and you are just about to open your mouth to shout 'Waiter.. next Item', somebody suddenly appears from nowhere and decorates your leaf with next subzi or sweet. Firstly along with two kinds of 'Kosumbaris' and 'subzis' a butter cube and methi leaves are served. Then comes the main course. Hot, very soft and delicious Jowar Rotis served with famous North Karnataka dish 'Badanekaayi Engai'. It is a dilicious spicy curry made with Brinjal or 'egg-palnt, the highlight of the whole meal. Rotis are so yummy and soft it feels like eating with no end. You can have unlimited rotis and there are waiters all around you all the time hoalding a plate full of hot rotis and checking if anyone needs rotis and serving them. There will always be a 'thatha' (old man), hoalding the 'Badanekaayi Engai' bowl carefullly scanning each customer's leafs to voluntrully check himself weather anyone needs the side dish. Once he finds a victim even with still some 'Engai' left on the leaf, he suddenly springs up from nowhere and asks 'Swalpa Badanekaayi Hakla?'.. 'Shall i serve little more Badanekaayi?! Thats too cool!.. I've never seen any waiter in a hotel, who enthusiastically and voluntrilly checks customer's plates and offers to serve more of a side dish! That too he doesnt pour any little amount of Badanekaayi even if u tell only little. He swings the 'sautu' atleast twice/thrice between your leaf and the bowl that has Engai. 



This is the story of the jowar rotis. While burying our stomachs on a downpour of rotis, you will not feel like having rice (the actual main course of any south indian lunch!). So after the highlight of the meal is over, rice is served with Sambar and ghee. I totally had 5 rotis and some rice and even that too was good. So after a warm and hearty meal with out stomach filled to no end we left the place around 3:30. Everytime I come out of YatriNivas I always think they should have had resting area of some sorts to catch up with unbearable sleep one gets after such a wholesome meal:P.

Feast more of Jowar Bhakri here!

Suddenly idea of going to the English play 'Anklet' or 'Shilaapadikaram' splashed in my mind. So i dropped my mom and aunt at a relative's place and went straight to Rangashankara @ JP Nagar. Play was at 7:30 sharp.

Anket or Shilappadikaram is a ancient Tamil story written by a famous writer, poet Ilango Adigal who lived almost 2000 yrs ago.  Its a saga of a brave and strongwilled protagonist woman who fights and avenges for justice. I knew about the legend from the copy of the old Amara Chitra Katha lying at my home which I have read countless times over long time.  'Shilapadikaram' is considered by many as a great Tamil epic, one that gives the strong message of fight for justice, justful revange, faithfulness and strong will.

It is a tragic but inspiring story of the couple Kannagi and Kovalan. Kannagi, a beautiful daughter of a wealthy mearchant is  married to son of another merchant Kovalan in the town of Kavirippattinam. Sometime after marrige Kovalan deserts Kannagi for a charming court dancer Madhavi and throws all his wealth for her. But he returns to the uncomplaining Kannagi devoid of all wealth after learning that Madhavi was faithless to him. Penniless, Kovalan along with Kannagi migarates to the town of Madurai in Pandayn Kingdom in saerch of a better livelyhood. There they stay at a kind Brahmin's house. The only welath they pocess are a pair of anklets given to Kannagi by her parents at the time of her marriage. Kovalan goes to city to sell one of the ankets at Royal Jeweller's place. In the meantime a similar precious anklet belonging to Pandyan queen would have been stolen by the King's Royal Jeweller himself. The cunning jeweller after seeing that Kannagi's anklet exactly matches the stolen one of the queen, hatches a evil plan and reports to King that Kovalan was the thief. Pandyan King beleiving in Jeweller's fraud words without doing much investigation decides the innocent Kovalan as thief and executes him.



Once Kannagi learns of the incident, shes heart broken. But suddenly she makes her mind hard as a rock and with immense  avengeful rage marches towards the King's palace to demand justice. With her eyes buring red with justful anger asks for a hearing with the King calling him a murderer.  King obliges and asks her what proof she has to say her husband is innocent. Then Kannagi gives the proof in style by showing the other anklet that had dimonds inside it where was queen 's anklet would have pearls. King realizes his folly of executing a innocent and commits suicide to honour justice. Queen too follows him. But Kannagi's anger is still not soothened, she curses the city of Madurai to be burnt. The city blazes in flames and only the good, poor, sick and old people survive. Kannagi is reunited with Kovalan at Heaven.
As a symbol of her glory Kannagi statue stands tall even today at St Marina Beach in Chennai.

Coming to the actual play at Rangashankara, it was directed and performed by a theatre troupe named 'Bangalore Little Theatre ' which promotes mainly Enghlish Theatre in Bangalore. It was two hours of gripping journey through a great Tamil epic.  It was very well directed, enacted by a group of young and talented actors and script was the highlight of the play. But some conversations like when Kovalan returns to Kannagi leaving the court dancer and conversation between Kannagi and the King seemed very very strechy. Everytime when the King screams 'Show the Proof Woman!!'  everyone felt the play had reached the climax where Kannagi tears open her another anklet, Kannagi starts off with one more Philosophical dialogue and the saga continues . One more visible shortcoming of the play was that there was no adress of contemporaryness relevence in the play. Kannagi we saw was a woman who lived 2000 years ago. Some of her actions like meekly accepting an unfaithful husband who had caused her so much suffering look rather submissive and outdated. Instead some aspects in her principles and behaviour should have had the qualities  of a  brave, confident woman of 21st century. But anyway the play is considered as an epic and continues to be adressed with honour.



 Though the role of the Protagonist Kannagi was very well done by the actor, to corrolate and be consistent with the immense justful anger and hardwill for revange that one expects in Kannagi after reading the story, the signs marking those traits were not there in its entirity. Little more anger filled expression would have been good and just. Other actors did a good job, but not perfect though. Sometimes actions looked a lilttle exaggerative and facial expressions not perfectly relevant to the context. But overall it was good show and perfect way to end a weekend evening.                             

A private transport company is soon to introduce these new nice looking double deker buses with a funky open top seating in Bangalore. They look very attractive. They are named 'City Swaps'. Open top sounds really cool. This is new age over the top riding, teasing the village folk in rurals who climb the roof tops of buses and have a deadly ride.



They are just like the 'Tourist friendly Bangalore Darshan' buses KSRTC has, but tickets are a bit costlier at 300 Rs per head. The buses would be frequent and would stop at some designated places.

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Imagine the usual climax scene of Bangalore roads. Hundred Vehicles stranded in a dreadful traffic jam waiting restlessly and hoping against hope that thier 'ticket' to cross the signal will arrive soon. At this moment how many times have we not seen some untruthful, mannerless, selfish drivers riding freely on the footpath like riding in thier bakyard. These rascals find a easy way to bypass all others and cross the signal or reach home faster, than those who are impatiently but honestly waiting on the roads for the traffic to clear. Whenenver i see such people, it feels like they'r 'waving at us with tease' in there minds while moving so freely. These shameless rascals have scant respect for all the traffic rules. And they would least shame in breaking other laws also where ever it might apply.

In the process they put the precious lives of "poor" pedistrians into risk. And infact thier own lives into risk. Cant wholly blame the police for not controlling the illegal footpath enchroachment also, they'r already over burdened controlling the bloody shit traffic. But I have seen couple of times police blowing down hard verbal punishment towards such people.

A gentleman riding shamelessly on the footpath

This hasty practice should be controlled strictly by regulating and imposing hefty fines.

These shameless undignified people remind me of those corrupt buerocrats, politicians and rich buissnessmen this country is filled with who always have a easier bypass way to wealth through influence, bribe, graft, corruption and other unlawful practices. Shamelessly earning wealth through malicious il-pracices can be very easy, right?.. These footpath drivers are no exception, perhaps at a lower end.

Shockingly this is what a reckless lawbreaking footpath driver himself says proudly and shamelessly in a blogpost

"Bangalore traffic is real fun if you are not gonna be there for long. I had the privilege of getting stuck in the traffic a few months before. My friend who was riding the bike all of sudden rode onto the footpath and started driving on the pavements.. it was a safer traffic free ride and was fun to keep moving and seeing a lot of vehicles waiting in the road. Kudos.."

oh God!! these people just make me sick! sick! sick!

Promise those reading this take a oath "I will never ride on the footpath /again" . And those reading this, who have ridden on the footpath regularly "Please spank your butt once ""Ride and let others walk"

The game of traffic in bangalore is like this..

'All the players of all the sides are cunning, unsportive, impatient, dishonest and highly selfish which ends up in everyside losing the match and everybody is a loser. I wonder if all players were sportive, patient, honest then every side would have won and everyone would have been a winner. This seams so simple and highly effective since 'everyone wins right?!' yet it is so impossible!'

And this largely applies to our society life as well.  

Bob Hoekstra, the CEO of Philips Software(PSC), Bangalore, India is leaving Philips this month and with that leaving India too. A farewell had been organized at our campus today. He is getting retired from active corporate life, after a illastrious stay with Philips in various designations for the last 37 years. He was the chief architect in building Philips Softwares from being a start-up( in India)  in 1999 into a software powerhouse comprising of 1500 odd competent engineers in a short span of 6 years.



He was a very strong personality with a good sense of humour. During his stay in India, he was not just known for being the CEO of Philips Software. He was a notable  Bangalorean, made India his second home. He kept himself actively involved in various social, environmental issues affecting Bangalore and the state. He was known for his weekend cycle rides to Nandi hills.  He  was a strong voice of Indian IT. He accounts his experience and relationship with Bangalore and India in his two books 'An exemplary family in Bangalore and other short stories' and 'Our India'.

I will miss you Bob. Thanks for the memories. Good bye..        

Last week it was all Kailasam. 'Antaranga' had organized Kailasam theatre festival from 27Th december to 1st Jan everyevening at Rangashankara. Many troupes took part in it. Well choosen, the most comic of all Kailsam's plays were staged. Amongst them 'Bandavalavillada Badayi'. Patu-Satu Tourmane, 'Huttadalli Hutta' drew more attention and laughter.



It was flocked to full houses all days. Kailasam is a genius playwright who gave a new dimension to comedy. His plays filled with a humorous storyline having lengthy dialogues in 'Kanglish'(kannada+English) that explain every small and big situation in a way giving ampful links and turns, filled with many new words from his own literature, filled with amazingly thrilling rhyming words and comparisons is a huge hit amongst readers and theatre lovers of all genres even today.

Finally new titles to my blogsite's and friend page's are a influence of this fever. Iam planning to buy all his plays and read many many times!

Its was very sad and disturbing to hear about the shootings in IISc resulting in the unfortunate death of a innocent scintist. But it should not be percieved as a huge shock or something difficult to explain. Allways there were intellegent reports stating the presence terrorists in the south during the last 3-4 years. In view of it security had been tightened in all major Govt and political establishments. Unfortunately security issues at non-political and other Educational institutes was taken lightly. Since terrorists found the security at the former establishments tougher to break through, attacked a educational institute a easy target.

So many times we see in India a critical solution gets in place only after the disaster has struck. May it be a less critical problem like traffic or something as critical as terrorism. The saying 'Prevention is better than cure' needs a urgent application. No matter how well you do disaster management nothing is better than preventing the disaster itself. No matter how well you compensate for the incident the scars and the afterscars stay for a long time. We need more preventive farsightedness in our governing system.

Some people would ask 'What the heck these bloody terrorists gain by killing innocent people'. Answer is simple. They just want to achive what they want, and the method is im-material. May be it bombing the govt or bombing innocent people. They want to spread terror and make the opponent conceed to it.
These people claim they are freedom fighters fighting to achive freedom for Kashmir. The only diffference between these rascals and the great revolutionaries who fought for Indian freedom is 'They saw the enemy as a inhuman beast unworthy of life and they saw the innocents as innocents worthy of thier lives'. In contrast these people 'See both the enemy and the innnocents as valueless objects that come in thier way and hence give no value for thier lives'. Hence these people are a bunch of selfish motive driven roughes.

Attacking a Govt establishment like the parliment attack can spread a lot terror and result in de-stability. When they find thats difficult to do, they choose innocent civilians as they are easy targets. This infact can work hugely in thier favour from many angles. Such attacks on major buissness, IT, educational can spread a fear feeling among ordinary citizens that 'Nothing or now place is safe now' and also destabilize the economy. So urgent security/corrective measures needed to destroy thier presence from the root.