Bengaluru, Bangalore, Bengaluru: Imaginations and Their Times

The word Bangalore or Bengaluru evokes different feelings and opinions among different people. While many have lived here and experienced the city first hand but many more by the perception & reputation it has built over the years . I for one belong to the former category and have personally witnessed the massive makeover of the city between 1994 and now. So in that sense a book on the city and its history evinced my interest and I picked it recently.

The 16th century history provides the early backdrop of the city and its founder Kempegowda emerges from the political fog of the Krishnadevaraya’s rule of the period. The early parts of the city, Pete’s (markets) divided on the basis of caste and later the emergence of the British cantonment that heralded the earliest recorded migrations to the city makes for interesting reading. How the early migrations induced language and not class conflicts particularly evokes interest.

Tracing the roots of a city and its various facets spanning a 500 year period is no doubt arduous and this book will disappoint those seeking scholarly depth. However many interesting & informative nuggets on the various aspects of the city can be found here and the book covers in a manner that juggles between documentary, academia, and coffee table reading .

(Other trivia about Bangalore not related to the book)

How did Bengaluru get its name? 

The most famous legend says that Hoysala King Veera Ballala II, on one of his hunting expeditions, stumbled upon an old dwelling where lived an old woman. She served him some boiled beans. Overwhelmed he named the place Benda-kaaluru (the town of boiled beans), which later became Bengaluru when Kempe Gowda-I laid the first stone of the modem city in 1537, starting with the petes, now at the heart of the city. However, facts don't corroborate this story. The Hoysalas ruled between the 10th and the 14th centuries. Kernpegowda lived in the 16th century. But, the very first instance of the name appears in a stone inscription at Begur Nageshwara Temple in South Bengaluru. The stone dates back to 890 AD, the Ganga period. This implies that Bengaluru is at least 1,129 years old. The slab is also proof that a village by such name existed much before the Hoysalas and the Kempegowdas. P V Krishnamurthy, an epigraphist and historian. Says "Kempegowda I is rightly credited for building the infrastructure for Bengaluru and paving the way for today's vibrant cosmopolitan trade town. However, Kern pegowda could not be the founder,"

10 Interesting facts about Bangalore

1. It has the impeccable record of highest growth within a span of 20 years. 

2. Bangalore city has highest number of pubs in Asia. 

3. It has highest number of cigarette smokers in India 

4. Bengaluru  has the highest number of software companies in India - 212, followed by  Hyderabad -108, Pune - 97. Hence called the silicon valley of India. 

5. It has 21 engineering colleges, which is highest in the world in a given city. Bangalore University has 57 engineering colleges affiliated to it, which is highest in the world.

 6. It is the only city in the world to have commercial and defense airport operating from the same strip. 

7. Bangalore has highest number of public sectors and  government organizations in India. 

8. Bangalore University has highest number of students going abroad for higher studies taking the first place from IIT-Kanpur. 

9. The mega city has only 48% of local population (i.e.#Kannadigas). Hence a true cosmopolitan with around 25%  Tamilians, 14%  Telugites, 10% #Keralites, 8%  Europeans, 6% a mixture of all races. 

10. Bangalore  police has the reputation of being second best in India after Delhi. Once a rowdy hub (back in the 1980s) the Bangalore City Police (BCP) have done a remarkable job in cleaning notorious elements like Kotwal Ramachandra, Jairaj, Oil Kumar, Dandupalya Gang among others

20 mind blowing facts about Bangalore a.k.a Bengaluru that you should know

ಕೆಂಪೇಗೌಡ ಕಟ್ಟಿದ ಬೆಂಗಳೂರು the Bengaluru that was built by Kempe Gowda.


1. When Kempegowda presented blue print for constructing Bengaluru city to the Vijayanagara King, impressed with the vision & planning, the king not only approved it, but also gave 50000 gold coins(varahas), & six nearby areas of Bengaluru to be included under the new city.


2. Kempegowda had studied 8 years in a Gurukula, in Hesaraghatta before taking the reigns of Yelahanka ruled by his ancestors for decades. Vijayanagar Kings advised Kempegowda to ensure the new city of Bengaluru will be a commercial & dharmic Centre & self sufficient in water requirement.


3. Bhoomi Puja of Bengaluru was done in an area between Domluru & Yelahanka. Havana & Yagna was Conducted by the Gurukula teachers where Kempegowda had studied. Massive Smoke and Vedaghosha had filled the air due to Vedic rituals.


4. East-West line became Chikkapete(retail market), North-South line became Doddapete (wholesale market-current avenue road). Akki,Ragi,Arale & taragu petes for grocery market, ganigara pete for oil, uppara pete for salt, kumbara pete for pottery, Tigalara pete for flower business, Nagarth pete for gold/silver biz, Bale pete for bangles and chain came up.


5. Dharmambudhi lake (bus stand), Kempambudhi lake, Halsuru lake & Yediyuru lake were constructed for mobilizing water for drinking & washing.


6. For Irrigation requirement Kempegowda constructed Sampangi lake (Current indoor stadium).


7. Having studied in Gurukula & being a totally dharmic king, Kempegowda constructed Gavi Gangadhareshwara temple, Basavanagudi’s Big bull -Nandi temple, Doddapete’s Anjaneya temple.


8. Gavi Gangadhareshwara temple, in Gavipura, continues to amaze people with the extraordinary knowledge of astronomy and temple architecture it synthesises to ensure Sun rays fall on the murthy of Lord Shiva on Makarasankranti every year.


9. For protection Kempegowda constructed forts all round Bengaluru. Mahadwaras(main entrances) for these forts were constructed at Yelahanka, Halasuru, Kengeri, & Anekal.


10. Important aspect of Bengaluru, was the design, implementation & interlinking of Raja Kaluves (king canals which exist even today). When a lake was filled with rain water, extra water was fed into other lakes through these King canals, and finally to outside the city.


11. By the quirk of fate, Kempegowda who founded Bengaluru, was arrested and imprisoned at anegondi on charges of treason. The complaints to the Vijayanagar king was given by Channapttana local chieftain. At this time Vijayanagara Kingdom was getting weakened with rebellion.


12. To protect Bengaluru from evil enemies, Kempegowda’s sons constructed watch towers at Lalbagh, Halsuru, Sadashivanagara, and Chamarajapete. It is believed Dharmaraya temples lies at equidistant from these watch towers.


13. Every evening from atop an elevated boulder, bugle sound (KahaLe) was blown to indicate all is well in the city. If the the bugle sound was heard at other times, it indicated threat to the city. This place is today’s Bugle rock in Basavanagudi.


14. King Aliya Ramaraya released Kempegowda from the prison after five years, realising Kempegowda was innocent. Kempegowda returned to Bengaluru on a triumphant note with people giving him a a rousing welcome reception. His popularity had in fact increased after his arrest.


15. Kempegowda was made to sit on a silver swing(vuyyale) & milk abhisheka was performed on him as part of his welcome. The place where this welcome was given to Kempegowda, was called VuyyaLe Kavalu, which in due course has become Vyali Kaval.


16. Kempegowda who was an outstanding visionary, planner, dharmic leader, and a people’s leader whom every Bengalurian must thank, accidentally died in 1569, near Magadi while returning from Kunigal

17. Two of Bengaluru’s famous localities -Basavanagudi and Malleshwaram -were first established as ‘safe, hygienic suburbs’ when the city was affected by the deadly plague in 1898

18. Whitefield was developed as a self-sufficient farming community for Anglo-Indians way back in the year 1880. Today its a bustling IT corridor but in yesteryears had elegant spanish style villa communities. Winston Churchill, the erstwhile Prime Minister of UK, was a regular Visitor at the Waverly Inn in whitefield Bangalore

19. The name 'Bengaluru' was first mentioned in 9th century inscription in a temple in Begur, a small town off the Bangalore-Hosur highway. This was way before the city was discovered by Kempegowda in 1537 AD

20. Bangalore has prehistoric dolmens (miniature stone houses) installed in burial sites to commemorate the dead in areas like Bannerghatta, Devanahalli, and even Lalbagh.

Images of Bangalore

The Sky (Lab) is Falling

A Fiery Summer: Skylab Hysteria in 1979

In the summer of 1979, a kind of hysteria gripped my neighborhood. For an unassuming 8-year-old like me, it felt like the end of the world. The dramatic, apocalyptic thoughts conjured up were reminiscent of the 2012 doomsday predictions. As a member of a small, motley crew of youngsters, I was particularly impressionable.

For days, our group buzzed with excitement and fear about something called 'Skylab' - a massive monster up in space that was supposedly about to come crashing down to Earth in a fiery ball. The catch? Skylab could potentially fall in India, with my hometown of Belgaum being a prime target.

The hysteria was likely fueled by the fact that, until the final hours, nobody (including the Americans) had a clue where Skylab would eventually fall. Its orbital path included some of the world's most populous areas: the U.S., much of Europe, India, and China.

The 77-ton behemoth did come crashing down, but due to a miscalculation, it landed in Western Australia instead of South Africa. The size of this space station - about nine stories tall - had fueled all kinds of wild stories. This was a period with no 24-hour live television or internet streaming. Word of mouth, or rumor in this case, was a powerful tool. Our group made me believe it was time to pray and say our goodbyes.

It's now estimated that the chances of getting hit by debris weighing up to 90 kg from a falling space satellite are 250,000 times more unlikely than winning the lottery. Yet, back then, it seemed like a real and imminent threat.

As I read about a similar event in the newspaper today - a 6-tonne NASA satellite falling to Earth with an unknown destination - I can't help but chuckle at how it’s now considered a non-event. Perhaps the world is much noisier and more turbulent now, and amidst this deluge of information, an event like this doesn't evoke the same kind of awe and wild imagination as it did in the summer of 1979.

The Untouchables

Early last week I met one of the men behind the explosive report of the Lokayukta Justice Santosh Hegde  on the illegal mining in the state. I was waiting at the Secretariat complex to meet the e-governance head at his office when Vipin Singh ambled by. When I congratulated him, he replied in his characteristic style ‘ Kaahe ka congartulations yaar, itna kharab report niklaa hai’.  Maybe the final report was not satisfactory by his standard but in a short span of time he and his team had uncovered  a large web of illegal activities and their modus operandi  that had robbed the state to the  tune of 13000 odd crores of rupees. What he meant was had they enough time on hand they could have dug deeper like the huge mine  pits that now dot  the landscape  of bellary and the extent of uncovered  loot could have doubled.  But the Ammo on hand was enough for Justice Hegde & he had to fire it before taking the final bow as the Lokayukta.

I had extensively interacted with this career IFS officer during a project execution with the forest dept. At that time he was in Bidar and his territory  was one of the 4 pilot divisions selected for the project. His name then had cropped up several times during my meeting with the Sr officials & I had quickly gathered his  reputation as a sharp no-nonsense IT savvy official in the  dept.  An alumnus of IIT , he had done some excellent work in the e-govenance areas while on deputation, notably setting up the citizen service initiatives like  the BangaloreOne delivery centres.  When I first met him,  I wondered what a guy like him was doing in a far flung place like Bidar ? In his characteristic nonchalant way he replied that it was a conscious decision and he wanted it that way . Maybe  he had opted  to be ‘far from the madding crowd’  after a heavy duty assignment that  had him in the quagmire of  politics ,  and murky administration . ‘Khoon Jalana padta hai’  I recollect he had said about the nature of work. Our interactions over the next couple of days was intensive & meaningful and then I was back in Bangalore. 

Soon  I heard that he was once again recalled to Bangalore to head the state SWAN (state wide area network) initiative. I chuckled at the thought  that hard as wanted to be out of the limelight  it dragged him into it.  Later several times I had passed by his new  office but found it conspicuous by his absence . Strange I felt till the time I saw this recent article in ToI 

It now  emerges that he was one of the 5 people picked by Justice Hegde  to  have a go at the mafia. Exactly the way  Kevin Costner (Eliot Ness) goes about  in the movie ‘the Untouchables’  - a special team of agents handpicked for their courage and incorruptibility, nicknamed by its title. 

And undercover they went about their new assignment while they held to usual official positions on paper . Another official, Bishwajeet Mishra who was a part of this team , and whom I had interacted on few occasions even attended one of my workshop in his official capacity of a DFO . He probed me with some searching questions during the workshop & little did I realize then that he was into something else. 

These officials worked discreetly , put their lives & limbs on the line of fire (and as Justice Hegde mentioned in an interview on NDTV the other day – he even feared for their careers) and away  from the glare & glimmer of limelight.  Unlike Hegde they have not walked into sunset,  they will still be around (for greater things perhaps) but their collective  reputation like the ‘ The Untouchables’  will hopefully be remembered for time to come. 

Predator on the prowl

This year RCB has been propelled by sheer Gayle power. In many a matches of IPL that featured RCB pitch report has been inconsequential, what has mattered is the weather report which many a time has warned about the impending Gayle storm. And struck it has with brute force like in yesterday’s match (against MI) where  the opposition was numbed by the onslaught. 

Yesterday my friend Shaz made a prediction based on numbers (termed  Numbo-Jumbo) that said ‘Prepare for the Gayle-storm on Friday the 27th, a D9C9. His name number adds up to 27, and his tee reads 333'.

By the 5^th over the result had been scripted and as one of the commentators mentioned ‘it was already showing on the body language of the Mumbai Indians’.

Watch this guy closely, when he walks on to the crease along with his partner the difference in physical attributes is not the only thing striking. His imposing frame apart, with the helmet on and his beaded hair streaming out at its sides I cant help but imagine of the Predator in the 1987 flick. In the movie the creature (that looks a bit like horseshoe crab) has a mask on with hair like appendages struck to its skull. This creature is supposed to be ‘a  member of a warrior race which hunts aggressive members of other species for sport’. 

Exactly  what appears to be happening with Gayle vs others in this edition of IPL.

Trudge

A fine Victorian era poet and his soulful lines left an abiding impact in me as I sat reading some of his poetry on a lazy weekend. One of it particularly made sense of my situation 

We cannot kindle when we will

The fire in which the heart resides;

The spirit bloweth and is still,

In mystery our soul abides.

But tasks in hours of insight will’d

Can be through hours of gloom fulfill’d

                                                  -Mathew Arnold

(It is difficult for man to have inspiration at his beck and call. Tasks proposed when inspired shall have to be carried out patiently even when inspiration has passed away  and weariness has prevailed upon man)

Remembering 'Uncle Pai'

Uncle Pai had passed away a month back. I got to know of it when a small postcard invite fell on my doorstep from his  hometown of Mangalore to attend the 12 day ceremony. Another Uncle Pai (of Amar Chitra Katha fame) also passed away almost in the same period. To me these two Uncle Pai’s had something in common; they left a legacy - a body of  work with a lasting imprint on the minds of the elderly & children respectively. 

The Uncle Pai (Kulyadi Madhav Pai) I am referring to is related from Wifi side and I regret I couldn’t attend his last rites due to some commitments.  But the time I spent with him & his memories will be cherished. With a small note he religiously book posted whenever the  newer editions of ‘Kaggokti Sampada’ hit the stands. The Book and its series were an illuminating body of work on decoding one of  the great literary works in Kannada literature by D.V.Gundappa (or DVG as he is popularly referred as) 

DVG was a literary colossus & his Mankuthimmana Kagga is considered a Nobel prize winning material, if it had been written in English. This was followed by  Marula Muniyana Kagga which Uncle Pai had translated . The beauty of this work ( and there lay in it its greatness he used to say)  is that- it makes the reader see himself through the poems, to interpret the thoughts of the poet in his own way. 

Kagga is a beautiful and profound collection of 945 poems. Each poem is of four lines. Some of the poems are in old Kannada style (Halegannada). Kagga poems are profound, and poetic and like a bee attracted to the flower Uncle Pai was drawn into it. 

An instance (roughly translated to English):

Life is a Horse driven cart, Fate its driver
You're the horse, Passengers - as allotted by God
Sometimes rides to a marriage, sometimes to a graveyard
When stumbled, there's always the earth - says Manku Thimma

In  his book preface Uncle Pai  writes ‘DVG’s Marula Muniyana Kagga’s   beautiful play of words with profound meaning of life  urged me to interpret in a layman’s language. It was a long journey though, it started when I by-hearted a few kaggas; the meaning of which took some to sink in. I later took some more & the experience was overwhelming. Based on my initial experiences I began to write but was not happy with the outcome.   So I discarded the effort and waited for the next couple of years to truly imbibe the work for an accurate representation’

 

Finally egged on by friends & encouraged by the “Samyukta Karnataka” newspaper he began compiling the works which went into 7 volumes by the time of his death.

R.I.P Uncle Pai

Morgan Stanley & the pursuit of Happyness

Remember Will Smith in the Pursuit of happyness? The first time I saw the movie, the telemarketing tactics adopted by Chris Gardner (played by Will Smith), the intern stockbroker, struck me more than the storyline about his struggle for livelihood.


As a single parent he has to achieve the same results and better in 6 hours where everyone else has 9. He calculates that it would save him 8 minutes a day if he did not put the phone down between prospecting calls. So he keeps the handset up and uses his finger on the button so that he doesn't get distracted. He also doesn't drink much water to avoid wasting excess time in the bathroom.

Why? The company, Dean Witter, where he is earning his spurs has ingrained him with a simple idea: "x number of calls equals x number of prospects, x number of prospects equals x number of customers, xnumber of customers equals x number of dollars."


The movie not only makes a statement of the hyperactive competition of the US Financial markets of the mid 80’s but also how telemarketing became an integral part in the growth of the financial services Industry (in India this phenomenon was observed about 15 years later)


Dean Witter had an interesting tagline "We measure success one investor at a time" and much like the Business it was into i.e, M&A (mergers and acquisitions) it too underwent mergers (with Reynolds) and was finally acquired by Morgan Stanley which adopted its tagline.


Another iconic name is soon set to join the ranks of Dean Witter; Smith & Barney. Ironic for another legacy company whose tagline was “They make money the old fashioned way. They earn it”.


In case you missed the Irony part, it too is being gobbled up by Morgan Stanley whose role in the subprime mortgages & creation of other toxic assets healthily contributed to the US financial crisis.

Snoring in Train: A Surreal Connection to a WWII Spitfire

The train chugged into platform #3 at 9:45 pm. I had a client meeting in Coimbatore and, miracle of miracles, I beat Bangalore traffic and arrived an hour early. Victory dance, anyone?

The beauty of late-night trains is you can hop on, deal with the ticket collector, and then straight to bed. Early evening trains? Ugh. You get the whole circus: tea/coffee vendors, biscuit sellers, dinner caterers, and, of course, the beggars. Not to mention the chatty co-passengers who think they're on a late-night talk show.

Adventures in Railway Berths and Snoring Symphonies

I found my berth in coach B2 and couldn't believe my luck: a lower berth! I was about to give myself an invisible high-five when three Gujarati-speaking ladies entered. The youngest, a cute lady, sweetly asked if I'd swap my lower berth for the middle one so her elderly mother could have my spot. With a smile that could melt butter, I couldn't say no.

Moments later, the same lady made a similar request to the other guy with a lower berth, this time for her aunt who had the upper berth. The guy looked crestfallen and mentioned some vague nasal problem but agreed to swap with me. So, two swaps later, I was promoted to the upper berth, with Mr. Nasal Problem right below me.

Nasal Nightmares: When Snoring Sounds Like a Spitfire

Nothing unusual about this guy, except for a flap of skin behind his head that looked like a dog ear. He quickly hit the sack and began making deep guttural sounds. His "nasal problem" was an understatement; it sounded like a WWII Spitfire engine on its last legs.

Being right above him, I experienced the full acoustic effect. It was like being in a dogfight, with this guy creating turbulence below me. I reached for my Philips GoGear MP3 player, only to find I had no earplugs. Desperate, I considered cotton buds, but that was like holding an umbrella in a thunderstorm.

His snores varied in rhythm and pitch, making it impossible to ignore. Each minute felt like an eternity. I stepped out of the AC cabin, hoping the TC (ticket collector) was still around. By some miracle, he was. I explained my predicament, and he muttered something in Tamil while scanning the reservation chart.

"B51 is available," he finally said. I almost hugged him. I quickly grabbed my stuff and navigated the cold, dark railway bogey, which now resembled a morgue with bodies wrapped in white sheets. I found B51, another upper berth. Relief was short-lived, though - this section had not one but two snorers already in full swing!

I landed in Coimbatore the next morning, bleary-eyed and sleepless, feeling like I had survived a night in a snoring symphony orchestra

Aero India

admitation

 

IMITATION IS THE SINCEREST FORM OF FLATTERY -  a phrase usually said ( ironically though)  when someone tries to gain attention by copying someone else's original ideas. I am not sure whether this highway restaurant guy (whom I encountered recently) got the right attention or not but his copying of the ‘ No Admission ’ with a twist was certainly flattering .

Banking by design. Architectural Tales of India's Banking Bastions

Embark with me on a journey through the bustling streets of Bangalore and Mangalore, where the facades of financial fortresses tell tales of contrast and character. This isn't just a tale of my recent visits to various bank headquarters; it's a story of how architecture and design whisper the silent yet potent language of brand identity.

Let's start with the public sector banks, where time seems to have paused, holding on to the charm of yesteryears. Public sector banks have this - no frill, sedate & dull almost to the point of boring you to death types of receptions. One (Canara Bank) resembled a check-in counter at the airport, complete with uniformed staff manning a X-ray baggage checking machine next to the receptionist. Another (Vijaya Bank) had large showcases of what appeared to be several large trophies & awards around its reception area. I don’t know where & how they won so many but it certainly reminded me of my school & college receptions. Corporation Bank had this wooden box like reception area that resembled a ticketing counter of a 70 era cinema theater.

In stark contrast, the private sector banks were like stepping into the future. ING Vysya's entrance boasted revolving glass doors that ushered me into a world where art and commerce met—a giant steel sculpture hanging like a modern chandelier, a testament to the bank's sophistication and contemporary vision.

Essentially the style and substance in presentation speaks a lot of the banks, and it seems only the private sector banks used it as a calling card and a sophisticated way of differentiating from peers. Given the bad reputation and some stigma facing the industry it made a lot of sense for banks to trade goodwill and reputations through their corporate front offices.

Years back when I was working with ICICI Bank I used to marvel at its BKC headquarters, a place for our frequent visits and meetings. It appeared as jewel-de-paragon on the Bandra-kurla complex which during the initial years of its completion stood out against the monolithic blocks of concrete buildings as one entered the complex from Bandra side. I couldn’t differentiate these buildings from the fort (some called it residence named Matoshree) of the rabble rouser politician Bal Thackeray) who lived on the other side of the road. Several other organizations sprung around ICICI Bank later each trying to outdo the other in architectural splendor.

Magnificent as was it from outside contrast the reception where loud and bawdy Marathi speaking manoos’es who many a times doubled up as security and receptionists undid most of sophistication that Kamath had tried to portray as a dynamic universal Bank.

Years later, I found myself at Centurion Bank of Punjab in Mahalakshmi, where an old mill had been transformed into a corporate haven. Staying in Belvedre Court and walking to the office next door was the envy of my colleagues who knew a thing or two about Mumbai commuting. While on the exterior, the building exuded some charm of a heritage building the interiors were all glass and gloss. There was one small glitch though, a secretarial college rubbed shoulders with CBoP as its neighbor in the same complex.

Finally to understand how size can be one’s own undoing one can visit the head offices of NABARD in Mumbai. You will be reminded of how it would have been like while being swallowed by a 10000 pound dinosaur.

Journeying Through Nature and Serendipity: Reflections on a Memorable Break

I'm sharing my thoughts with you after a refreshing two-week break that took me to some fantastic natural destinations: a stunning nature park near Madikeri and the crystal-clear Maravanthe beach in the Karavali district. During this time, I managed to blend a bit of business with pleasure. I addressed a gathering of government officials in Mysore, made a few business calls in Mangalore, and followed up on some matters in Dharwar. The journey covered a total of 1650 kilometers, and despite the demanding driving and the toll it took on my body, I returned to Bengaluru just yesterday.

It was an eventful trip, but nothing could have prepared me for the unfortunate incident in Mysore where I lost my mobile phone. I mistakenly believed I was in a secure location - a sprawling old government bungalow that serves as the official guest house of the Forest Department, complete with high walls and a security post at the gates. While enjoying the evening on the vast veranda overlooking a well-manicured garden, I left my mobile phone on a chair, only to discover it missing the next morning. I'll spare you the details of my frustrating experience with Vodafone customer service after the incident, as that could fill another article.

Following my schedule in Mysore, I drove to Kushalnagar, where I spent a day at Nisargadhama, a nature park managed by the Karnataka Forest Department. The Forest Officer of Mercara had kindly invited me to stay there before my visit to their Mercara offices. Nisargadhama, located on an island in the heart of the Cauvery River, is a tranquil and picturesque place. Tourists can also stay in one of the few cottages at a very reasonable price (I stayed for free as the official guest of the Karnataka Forest Department). To access the island, you cross a rope bridge, and once there, we were led to the "Kannika" cottage. After a brief nap in the afternoon amid the distant sounds of visitors, the park fell into a serene silence after closing time at 6 in the evening. This is when Nisargadhama truly comes to life. Sitting by the riverside, surrounded by a symphony of natural sounds, I composed the following lines to capture the experience:

A  drooping  cottage by the river

Stands high on a pile of bamboo pillars

Perched on its banks, its small veranda

Reaching out to kiss the river

Water by the side , in a haze of light green

Whispers as she flows through the rocks

Bamboo stocks, aplenty

Crackle  sporadically  in mystified voices

In between the  chitter chatter of the thickly wooded park

Telling us something , about  nature’s  benign voice

As do the fishes, playfully  whipping up  the surface of the river

Birds in the surrounding woods , do the real tweets

Oh!....Nature trails are so sweet.

On Christmas Eve, I found myself in Udupi, where we managed to visit one of the town's churches on the 25th. However, all the grand celebrations had already concluded the previous evening, leaving the church empty on Christmas Day.

As for New Year's, it greeted us at the historic Deccan Gymkhana Club in Dharwar town. Right next to it, the sprawling KC (Kittur Channamma) Park featured two colorful water fountains that randomly sprung to life, displaying shades of green, blue, and red, symbolically reminding us of the hope, joys, and challenges that lay ahead in 2011.

I extend my warmest wishes to all my readers for a Happy and Prosperous New Year.