An open letter to the regional party enthusiasts of Karnataka

Congratulations! Namma Karnataka has scored yet another constitutional low in the Indian political diaspora. Karnataka is the center stage of a political crisis which is witnessed never before in an Indian state. We can perhaps tell our grandchildren that we were the mute espies of a shoddy drama that the nation can never forget. This entire event is so appalling that even constitution experts and political whizzes are not able to fathom your party’s conduct. I wouldn’t be wrong if I say that the resolute displayed by your beloved regional party and its members is the heights of contempt that anyone has shown to Indian constitution till date. I would directly accredit this achievement to you, the regional party enthusiast of Karnataka. Well done! Congratulations to you for nurturing a regional party whose family business has successfully ruined the fortune of a vibrant state 

**SLOW CLAPS**

You knew the family business

Just rewind a year and recall the pre-poll state of Karnataka Assembly elections of 2018. You, I and almost everyone; even the state, in itself was in tatters; thanks to an arrogant former CM’s monarchy vibe. For the foreseeable future, it was unimaginable even for you to think that this regional party could win majority and form the government. And yet, you supported the family business blindly. How did you even arrive at the conclusion that your regional party with 30+ seats would acquire greater political space and do good for the state? How tactless could you get?

**SLOW CLAPS**

You knew the party Supremo

“A cat has nine lives, but he has ten” is a famous proverb of sorts opined about your beloved party chief. Time and again, he has proven himself  nothing more than an elite opportunist who has always played his cards wisely to gain political sympathy and use it just to his family’s advantage. You are a fool, if you really believed that he had a vision for the goodwill of Kannadigas. Right from his ministerial days to this day being the chief of your beloved regional party, he has always been an influence peddler and a political graft. His vision is nothing more than just to baptize his family members into ministry. For the records, he betrayed Janatadala and BJP each twice and now Congress too. And you still believed that your chief is a messiah? Whoa! What a shallow thought process you have.

**SLOW CLAPS**

You knew the contestants

Apart from one or two contestants, all the members of your beloved political party are involved in Nepotism, crony capitalism, kickbacks, goondaism, kleptocracy etc. Beyond the party president and family members, there is hardly any second-tier leadership. This makes all the difference in bringing about a change in society. You very well knew it.

And more importantly, you knew precisely well that it was a pre-poll alliance with Congress, whose administration was at its worst for the last five years. And you believed that people with such track record will bring about changes in administration! Whoa! Your idea is dope!

**SLOW CLAPS**

You knew the fate of regional parties

You knew that regional parties of neighboring states have terribly failed at national level and there are ample examples from the other side of the country to back this sentiment. You were precisely aware of the fact that the only regional party of Karnataka which you supported was never capable of polarizing the votes of the regional masses unlike our neighboring states.  How stupid are you to accredit a family business as secular? In what way are they secular?

**SLOW CLAPS**

You knew the myths and facts

There was a time when regional parties fueled the national parties to come to power and a lion’s share of the central funds were also diverted to the regional parties who supported. But this has considerably reduced. The trend now is that one regional party is eating up the vote share of the other regional party, creating rivals within. The result of this is that they are caught in the web which they themselves knit.

The regional parties are indirectly polarizing the votes against themselves and are increasing the vote shares of the national party. The same applies for your beloved party. Even more so because they are the only regional party in Karnataka. If my understanding is right, 20+ states are ruled by national parties. Among them, the major revenue generating states are currently ruled by BJP, again a national party and they all have fared better under the national party rule. So even with numbers, your part does not fare well. You very well know what happened to a regional party's fate whose founder was poised to be the greatest anti-corruption crusader this country has seen after Gandhi and was later reduced to a mere film critic and a wannabe PM candidate. 

In the last few weeks, there is more evidence than ever about the true intentions of your beloved political party. The political drama that has unfolded in the last week has put our state (and of course the nation) to utter shame. On a positive note, it has also strengthened people’s views that your political party is crooked and power hungry. And why not! If they had an ounce of respect for the constitution or the public apathy and had they come together like this to solve public problems instead of saving their seats, Karnataka and Bangalore would be in better position today.

Political inclination is good, as long as they are willing to do good (Like Orissa). But inspite of knowing most of the above facts and of course, the party’s vested interests, you, supporting them is not reasonable. I believe that, in a democratic system like ours, supporting the right political party is aam aadmi’s contribution to the purification of the nation. This purification is a continuous process and when does rightly, it is highly infectious because it necessarily leads to the purification of your own surroundings. Don’t impure your political inclination by means of caste, religion, hate, for self-gain, to conquer your subtle passions. In the longer run, the purer your political inclination is, the more benefits you and your society will reap. It is time you realize in your mind, word and deed that your beloved political party is nothing more than family business. PERIOD! 

Pretentious traffic rules of namma Bengaluru

What defines a city? For some it is a center of a wide area in terms of its length and breadth; and for few others, it is the economy. There are cities defined by their geographies, archaeology, the kind of trade they do and even for its cosmopolitan culture. Do you know there is a city in New Zealand which is demarcated by the Speed of the wind?  There are cities that are defined by the amount of innovation that it has advocated to the world and even by their high-speed expressways. And then, there is our City, which is defined by the magnitude of traffic jams and purest form of assholes giving us nail biting experiences on a day to day basis while we commute. Oh yeah! We are Bangaloreans

Honk

While in your world you honk only to call attention to an accident that may happen, in Bangalore, honking is a way of life. We honk to say Hi, to say Bye. We honk to shift lanes, to jump signals, to notify them that you’re about to break rule, to bully riders, to play tunes of your favorite songs and sometimes even to get attention of the driver who has fallen asleep at the traffic jam. And most importantly, we honk to remind people that the signal has turned green and because our roads are full of high intellectuals who neither understand why the signal turned green nor have patience to wait for a couple of seconds, we honk. Expectations are very high here. As soon as the signal turns green, we expect everyone to take off like supersonic jets within Nano seconds. We are very forward that way.

So we, the sovereign socialist democratic republicans of Bangalore have accepted the pretentious directive that honking for anything is totally conventional and we live with it. God save us!

Bangalore roads - there is neither lane nor discipline

Strategy vs Skills

If you think you know how to drive, that is a myth dude! You’re totally off beam. Just forget all your driving skills. It will anyway be rendered useless. Because what you need is a strategy; a foresight showing a prudent awareness of future possibilities. If a driver/rider is approaching you, you should be able to judge all the odds within no time (except the right one which he never does) and strategize your next move. Remember the CEAT’s “India ke sadkon pe aapko alag alag mahapurush milenge” ad? Every  pedestrian on Bangalore road is a potential “mahapurush” with mobile in hand. Unless you’re a humanoid robot with zettabytes of processing speed, your brain just cannot handle this amount of complexity. That way, Bangalore roads are future ready for robots!

So, we forget all our driving skills and just master the art of prognostication…. To save our lives! 

Pedestrians of Bangalore

Rules

That old “we don’t drive on the left of the road. We drive on what is left on the road” joke is feeble now. Gone are those days where roads were used to dry red chilies, breeding cows and throwing avarekai peel-off on road for a tasty hidkid bele Saaru. Now, six lanes, widened roads, underpass, Metro trains, fly-overs and more importantly BDA’s incredible invention of the century, Magic Box underpass in almost every corner of Bengaluru is a significant example of India’s manifold improvements in the infrastructure front. The only thing which is still awaiting improvement is our motorists’ brain. May be, a holocaust on Bangalore roads is what we are waiting for. I mean it. Excluding a few occasions where we consider abrupt right turns are our birth right and turning left is the only option left, we are following lane discipline. And few surprises by entering the opposite lane is only to educate and prepare you for the unexpected. And overtaking from the left is always cool. No hard feelings there brotha!

On a serious note, haven’t we pretentiously accepted that it is OKAY for someone entering from the wrong lane or one way? What on earth is wrong with us! We make way for wrongdoers and then proceed. Nowhere in the world is driving in the wrong lane, an acceptable behavior. This happens only in Bangalore. Argggghhhhhhh!!!!! 

Magic Box or Tragic Box - By 10th standard engineers of BDA

Potholes and punishment

Bangalore is probably the only city on this planet which does surveys on number of potholes. NUMBER OF POTHOLES! Yes, you read that right. If you meet with an accident due to potholes, Bangalore city traffic police will book a case against you for negligent driving. I am not kidding! (Read it here). Irony committed suicide. But according to our cops, if you cannot manage driving/riding on city’s roads, with potholes as big as manholes, you are an offender. We have raised the bar to astonishing standards yo! A minister even blocks ambulances on road for his convoy movement. And what happened to the patient inside? He got down from the ambulance and walked to the hospital. (Read it here). Whoa! Bravo. The patient’s pragmatism level=GOD. Imagine a minister in western countries blocking ambulance for his convoy movement. He would be sacked the very next day. On the other side, as usual, namma minister got away with it easily, only because WE have readily accepted that THIS IS OUR FATE! 

Two Ambulances stuck on both lanes in Bangalore

The darkness of not following rules, traffic exorcism by cops, the daily bloodshed that BMTC has inherited to its culture is just growing by the day and we continue to accept the mass traffic violations as a NORM! It makes me sad that instead of learning from mistakes, we just get disparaged and learn to live with it. I have lost hopes that government even cares what is happening to its citizens. If you are waiting for the Government or cops to create magic, it is practically impossible. From my own experience, often, there is always that one asshole who did not follow rule, behind a traffic pile-up. In other cases, hundreds of people are waiting for that one guy to break the rules so that they can follow without taking the ownership of guilt. The least we can do is stop being that asshole. And stop your fellow motorists from being that asshole. Rest all will fall in place. 

You change your thoughts and you change your destiny, if not you continue to get stuck in the same traffic pile up. Until we hesitate to act, until we start to follow rules, until we do not stand up against the mass traffic violations, the journey on namma Bengaluru roads is a saga of pain and frustration; nothing more. And it is here to stay…... Because we are pretentiously "tra-fucked".

Ragi Mudde and the desi food disinclination propaganda

A friend’s post on Facebook about Ragi Mudde being called as Tarta De Millet Balle in one of the uber restaurants of the city made me furious; even more so after learning that they are selling it for 800₹. Not the 800₹ part; Keep it aside. We all know that those deep pocketed fat-cats who don’t mind paying are in abundance. But I was very much agitated by the fact that restaurant owners are trying to capitalize on regional delicacies by changing their names and without giving due credits to the original recipe. The pro arguments that the taste is still the same; and that fact that authentic local cuisines are taken to widespread audience is all good. But the need to give it a funky name and make it sound trendy and jazzy is just not right. It is a pure marketing gimmick.

Authentic Ragi Mudde

Eating is not about taste alone. It is strongly and intensely a social need. From times immemorial, what people eat never showed class differences to a larger extent. But of late, the social phenomenon of eating has taken shape in such a way that people have started identifying themselves with others by eating what elites and the aristocrats consume. Marooned in the mediocrity of social climbing, the blue collar population has started consuming food they find despicable, but cannot avoid because of social generosity. Pizza is a good example. Gradually this also gave rise to a trend that knowledge of foreign cuisines like French and Italian (even if you can read and pronounce the names of the food items) meant the person is more cool and cosmopolitan. Thus the middle class got attracted to foreign gourmet. In doing all these, somewhere in between the social climbing and overlooking our vernacular food, highly nutritious cuisines like #RagiMudde, which has been the staple food of the south karnataka’s middle class, is branded with lower class association.

Sugar Frosted Flakes changed to Frosted flakes of Corn

Now the frequency of even the middle class eating desi gourmet like #RagiMudde has considerably reduced. Just think of your own example: How often do you eat #RagiMudde vs how often do you eat Gobi Manchurian? There are exceptions, but aren’t the numbers are largely inclined towards the latter? The result is that even the desi cuisines are much in demand and hence have attained the luxury status. Now understanding this change in people’s gourmet preferences have benefitted the restaurants in a big way. And the result is amazingly lucrative. But on the other side, just imagine if the restaurant still sells it with the name #RagiMudde; most of us would be largely offended to pay 800 bucks for an austere #RagiMudde. So the only way out is to bridge this gap. This is exactly what the uber restaurants in the city are trying to capitalize on. Changing names of desi food items and putting a hefty price tag and selling it. Ultimately we are the victims.

KFC advertisement in 1978 said "Kentucky Fried Chicken"

This result of thoughtful menu planning and marketing is pure MBA stuff [which even I have studied to an extent ;)]. They are done by expert gourmet marketing consultants who charge a fortune for the job to be done. Just changing the name of a very healthy desi cuisine which costs only 10 bucks to prepare is fetching them 800 bucks. Imagine the trend. Not only #RagiMudde, There are a number of other examples as well. Kentucky Fried Chicken became KFC because the word “fried” freaked out the fitness aficionados. Sugar frosted Flakes became Frosted corn flakes since sugar was not considered welcome ingredient in breakfast, especially for children. People were not comfortable saying “Rapeseed oil” so it got renamed to “Canola oil” to boost sales.

The same KFC advertisement post 2000

Don’t fall for such mega marketing trends and pay a hefty price for just a name changed local gourmet which is disguised as an international cuisine. If the menu does not describe it enough to understand, call the managers and ask them what it is. I always prefer the local fast food joints who prepare good south Indian to restaurants who call themselves specialized in North Indian, South Indian, Chinese, Tandoor and Continental. Next time you go to a restaurant and see “fermented lentil and rice flour crepe with spiced potato filling”, don’t get carried away. It is nothing but Masala Dosa. If your colleague says I prepared “steamed rice breads with spicy vegetable broth stew”, slap her hard and ask her to call it idly.

And for god’s sake, never ever pay 800 bucks for Tarta De Millet Balle. It is an insult to Raagi mudde.

Image courtesy:
pinterest.com, fontsinuse.com and wikipedia

Sorry Rajni saar... I watched Kabali online

I am really sorry Rajni saar. This time with a saddened spirit, I am telling you that I could not be a part of the “Kabali” extravaganza. I tried hard to resist, but in the end I succumbed to the monetary inflation of movie tickets occurring at an alarmingly high rate in Namma Bengaluru. While my Chennai and Hyderabad friends were doing check-ins with “Kabali Da”statuses on facebook on the very first day of its release, I had no other go but to find solace on torrents. I myself am discouraged, but what to do saar? I am a middle class man who cannot afford to spend 1000 bucks for 2 hours of entertainment.

Kabali Da

Saar, I don’t have to tell you that the "The movie aficionado" inside a true native Bangalorean is not confined to just Kannada movies. If you recall your old days in Bangalore circa 1970s; right from then, we have watched Telugu, Tamil, Hindi, English and even good Malayalam movies in theaters. Post 90s, all your movies have run to packed houses with more than 100 shows a day in namma Bengaluru's theaters. Whoa! We are true cosmopolitan that way saar. Kabali was no different. In fact the Kabali craze was something that I have never seen or witnessed for any of your other movies.

But saar, of late, our movie watching experience in theaters too has seen a radical change.  With the demolishing of old individual theaters and advent of malls and multiplexes, the ticket prices have sky rocketed. This is where the problem is. Multiplexes are sucking the pockets of Bangalore's middle class saar! The engrossing growth that namma Bengaluru has witnessed in the past decade has infused a sense of envy among the neighborhood. But it is never a delight when it comes to movie watching experience for us Bangaloreans. Exorbitant movie ticket prices are haunting us, the middle class movie lovers! Bangalore has become neighbors envy, but not owners pride saar!

Kabali ticket price in Bangalore 450Rs and 500 Rs

Even though the advent of malls and multiplexes is seen in Chennai and Hyderabad, the ticket price has remained almost the same. A movie in Prasad's iMax of Hyderabad is never more than 200 Rs. The same movie in a Bangalore's multiplex costs a whopping 800 Rs. I don’t know why this kolaveri saar. I myself have seen movies in Big cinemas of Chennai for as low as 10 bucks. Yes saar, you read it right. 10 jujubi bucks kanna! But Bangaloreans cannot watch the same movie for less than 500 Rs. This is a double standard no saar? Just log onto bookmyshow, PVR or Inox website. Choose Kabali and plainly compare the ticket prices for Bangalore and other cities. You'll be amazed to see that tickets in Bangalore theaters are exorbitantly high compared to other cities.

Kabali ticket price in Chennai - 120 Rs and 10 Rs

Not just power cuts and traffic snarls; political apathy in Karnataka has hit the entertainment too. Unlike AP, Telangana or TN, there is no government intervention in regulating the prices of movie tickets here. So the multiplexes like PVR and Inox are selling the movie tickets at exorbitant prices and naming it "Gold Class". But why the same PVR does not offer "gold class" in Hyderabad or Chennai? No answers from them saar. Why the movie tickets in the neighboring states are not above 250 for any show, any movie? The government is also to be blamed. Our government takes examples of neighboring states while increasing prices of milk and other consumer goods. Why not for movie tickets?

Kabali ticket price in Hyderabad (Prasad iMax) - 150 Rs

When a new movie is released, an average Bangalorean talks about downloading the pirated version than going to theater. Let us consider my own case, which is also the case of lakhs of other Bangaloreans. Being a movie fanatic and considering that I watch Bollywood, Hollywood, Telugu, Tamil and Kannada movies too, I end up watching a minimum of 3-4 movies a month. I spend an average of 2500-3000 Rs a month on movies. The figure is way too high if I include my family. It is of course a burden on my pocket. So I’ve set-up a Raspberry Pi streaming network on my PC so that I can download movies from pirated sites and watch it directly on my home theater TV.

The home entertainment has seen a radical make-over with advent of torrents and file sharing apps. Firstly, it is "almost" theater experience for me. Thanks to HD content availability as soon as a movie is released. Secondly and importantly, savings of 2000 bucks straight. Thirdly, having to pay a hefty surcharge by yenna rascala service providers like bookmyshow (they charge 45-50 Rs as surcharge for 2 tickets) has worn off the hypothetical family of four. They claim to have so many offers. But I have not found even one kanna who has been able to make use of it saar. Lastly, movies at home are advertisement free. So many ads in between a movie are so annoying. People who are little less tech savvy than me are buying the pirated DVDs in open markets. People with smart phones are watching and sharing movies on their mobile and tabs. Things like these are working wonders for middle class family in keeping them away from theaters.

I still remember watching some of your movies saar. I think it was Baba and Padayappa in Nataraj Theater. With your entry, people shouting “Thalaiva, Thalaiva” in unison and doing Abhishekam from Nandini milk packets, throwing coins from back…. Oh! The bliss. It was worth every penny! It is only sad that middle class people like me cannot afford it anymore.

Unless our government wakes up from sleep, nothing happens and also you can’t do much. So forget it saar. I just wanted to tell you that I also can’t do much other than being apologetic only. I wish you reach even greater heights of your stardom. I’m signing off secretly wishing that piracy flourishes until someone does something about it. Good night saar!

Image courtesy – ibtimes.co.in and in.bookmyshow.com

Tourist in my own city-5: Naaganatheswara temple

Every day I travel from Bangalore city to electronics city (pun intended). You’ve no idea how exasperating it is to cross silk board junction, if you haven’t experienced it by yourself. I have vented out my frustration on silk board traffic by means of innumerable Facebook status and tweets. But yesterday was different. I had not envisaged that a day will come where I’ll be all excited about crossing silk board. The reason: I was visiting a small village alongside Hosur road called “Begur” which had made it to the headlines. Thanks to the excavation of an old inscription on a piece of rock in the 1000 year old “Naganatheswara” temple. Etched on the inscription is the phrase which caught my attention.

“Bengaluru kalaghadhol buttana setti sattam” (In kannada “ಬೆಂಗಳೂರು ಕಾಳಗಧೊಳ್ ಬುಟ್ಟಣ ಶೆಟ್ಟಿ ಸತ್ತಂ”) ^*1 It translates to English as “In the Battle of Bangalore, Buttana Setti died”.

About the temple

This Shiva temple with two gopuras (monumental towers) is said to be at least 1100 years old. It is constructed during the reign of Cholas. The main sanctum sanctorum has a shivalinga idol inside and a Nandi outside, as it is seen all the other Shiva temples of yesteryears. Localites worship Shiva with the name Nageshwara and/or Naganatheshwara.

Two gopuras - View from east

Interestingly the design and architecture of this thousand year old “Naganatheshwara temple” is entirely synonymous with the architecture of Gangaikonda Cholapuram, a small town in Tamil nadu, the then Capital of Cholas. Apparently, the Cholas ruled south India during 11^th century AD and the inscription found in the Naganatheshwara temple in Begur also dates back to around same time period, according to epigraphists.

Bengaluru war

One of the hero stones found at the temple site, veeragallu, as we call it in the vernacular language has the inscription in which the reference to “Bangalore War” is made in old kannada (haLeGannada). According to epigraphist R Narasimhachar, the inscription dates back to circa 890 AD ^*2. The inscription is also entered into the “Epigraphia Carnatica” a book on epigraphy on old Mysore (now Karnataka) regions written by B L Rice.

What it means to Bangalore

Until now, the evidence of the existence of a place called “Bengaluru” was available only with the onset of ruler Kempegowda II in early 1500s. But with this inscription, the earliest existence of namma Bengaluru dates back to 890 AD. Not only this, this inscription has also raised questions on the authenticity of the theories that describe how Bengaluru got its name. Historians are revisiting the “Benda-Kalooru”, “bengaval-ooru” theories. Although the complete history of Bengaluru city is still nondescript, excavations like this has helped give a new past to namma Bengaluru. Historians and archaeologists are working on extricating the city’s history.

On one hand, with so much of political apathy, bad governance and millions of uninviting civic problems, Bangalore’s future looks dismal. On the other hand, with such excavations, Bangalore’s past is getting more enriching and enthralling. In a classical sense, the past is giving Bangalore its true identity. Let us hope that future will hold on to it.

*1 – Article on Hindu Newspaper http://www.thehindu.com/features/friday-review/history-and-culture/a-citys-secrets-etched-in-stone/article3254183.ece

* 2 – Nagesvara temple in Belur - Wikipedia 

This article originally appeared on Huffingtonpost. Read it here

Tourist in my own city-4: Nagrath Pete

My gastronomical expedition has no bounds. And that is exactly what brings me and thousands of other Bangaloreans to Nagarath Pete. Although I’m slightly inclined towards a healthy and hygienic diet of late, I’ve never really gone very far from it. I’ve always believed that authentic taste of a certain locality can never be mastered by the wannabe intercontinental chefs. Also since it is equally about namma Bengaluru, I’ve kept my acidity apprehension at bay and come here to give my taste buds a royal treat.

Of late, there is streetfood uprising seen in namma Bengaluru. There’s one in Shivajinagar, Rajajinagar and so many other areas. But other than VVpuram Food Street, the one which has managed to remain in the spotlight for ages is the Nagarath pete street food. Some even say that Nagarath pete street food is older than VV Puram.

Anyone who is familiar with Pete area knows that to get there on a car is almost impossible. And I’ve done my route homework properly for it is so easy lose track and get lost in the gullies of Pete area even when you are taking a walk. After many criss cross junctions, we finally arrive at the Nagarath Pete Food Street.

The constellation of people surrounding Mani’s cart is increasing every minute. As I take pictures, Mani smiles, shies away and gets busy with his chores. I take just a couple of pics and realize that I cannot wait anymore to gobble the refreshments on his cart. I quickly keep the camera inside and order “Ond Masale Dose” as it is called. The tawa is filled with dosa batter swiftly and pure ghee from Nandini refill pack is spouted on top of dosa from a distance. With more people waiting to taste the dosas, the cycle repeats with better speed and better accuracy.

Mani - a very busy man

The guy next to me is worried about his Brand new Hyundai Elantra being parked in one of the gullies of Avenue road. His girlfriend is consoling him that right now satisfying your hunger pangs is more important. I chuckle mildly contemplating that a Bangalorean’s love for food is beyond the social stratification dimensions. Surprisingly to me, looking at a diet fanatic lady like my wife gourmanding on Idlies and ghee rich dosas back to back speak volumes about the palate of Nagrath pete Food Street. I start off with spongy soft idly and spicy chutney, repeat it and then move on to Masala Dosa and idly again.

Idly and dosas, mouth watering chutney

My stomach is more than full now but the creamy Badam milk container is attracting me towards Murthy Kashi’s cart. It is too hard to resist. Before I say anything, my wife orders for all of us and the Badam milk with malai, cashew and badam topping is served hot. The creamy flavour of Badam is felt in every sip. Murthy kashi says he has been doing this for living from past 21 years. He also serves other varieties of sweet savouries but my stomach has already thrown “No space left on the disk” error.

Murthy Kashi's Badam milk with Kesar topping

I’m more than contented that this long pending visit has finally worked out. But the other side of me is not satisfied that I couldn’t try the Chitranna (lemon rice), Fafda, Jalebi, Bombay Sandwich, Vada Pav and so many other delicacies. I convince myself that I’ll come back soon again and force myself out of Nagrath Pete. As I take a turn to reach Avenue Road, a famous Spanish Proverb reverberates in my mind.

“A full stomach makes a happy heart”

This article originally appeared on Huffingtonpost. For complete article click here

Tourist in my own city-3: Lal Bagh

The wreckage that has happened to namma Bengaluru’s green cover is a misadventure. The media swapping the city’s tag to “Garbage city” is heartbreaking. Today, it is hard for my friends to believe when I say that just a decade ago summer in Bangalore used to be a warm 30 degree Celsius. It was not out of blues that Bangalore once was called as “garden City”; there were a thousand reasons for it. But the primary reason could be absolutely nothing other than this two century old abode of flora called Lal bagh.

It was after a decade that I walked inside Lalbagh with a camera in hand, clicked pictures and came back home. But I had no idea of its exuberance, its history, its chronicles and great human beings who made Lalbagh happen, until I started exploring its past. I’m sure most of us, just like I did, think of Lalbagh as just a century old huge green park. Here’s my attempt to get to the roots and provide substantiation, which I feel, every true Bangalorean definitely deserve to know.

Origin

Lalbagh is of royal origin. Hyder Ali, having the Moghul taste for gardens, is acknowledged to be the founder of Lalbagh. But very few know that Hyder Ali planned Lalbagh at Bangalore principally on the model of “Khan Bagh”, an impressive garden in Sira (near Tumkur), developed by Dilawar Khan, the Moghul emperor’s south representative. Dr. Francis Buchanan, in his book ^*1 has written that the taste of Hyder Ali accorded more with English. His evening walks alongside the Cypress trees were wider and he enjoyed it. It is also said that before it was named as Lalbagh, it was called as the “Cypress Garden” ^*2

*2 View of LalBagh, painted by Robert Home

Development

Somewhere in 1760s, Hyder Ali chose 34 acres of land on the east of the Kempegowda tower. He procured seeds and plants from varied places like Kabul, Persia, Turkey, Lahore and Multan. Tamil speaking gardeners from the community of “Thigalars” were brought from the neighborhood to look after the gardens. This explains why we find the “Thigalar” community people in abundance in Bangalore today.

After Hyder Ali, Tippu Sultan extended the garden by acquiring more land. Tippu imported Pine and oak plants from Cape of Good Hope^*3 and other exotic plants and seeds from Mauritius and Africa. Two old mango tress said to have been planted during his time is still seen in Lal Bagh. He also appointed Mohammed Ali and Abdul Khader as Daroga (Chief Gardner). Tippu improved the gardens to a greater extent even as late as in 1798; he obtained plants and seeds from the Isle of France. Thus Lal Bagh grew to be a house of rare tropical and sub-tropical plants.

After British invasion, Lal Bagh became a property of East India Company. On 27^th February 1836, Sir. Mark Cubbon transferred its ownership to the Agri horticultural society, Mysore. By August 1856, Lal Bagh became a government botanical garden and in 1881, it was passed into the hands of Maharaja of Mysore. Under the state government, the garden area was more than doubled. 22 acres in 1888, 8 acres in 1890 and again in 1889-90, 30 acres of land were purchased. By the end of the century, Lal Bagh was a whopping 120 acres of mesmerizing Fauna!

Zoo at Lal Bagh

There were also proposals to make Lal Bagh, a combination of Zoo and Garden to increase the number of visitors. In 1862, it had a Black Panther, a couple of bird species, a few tigers and Kangaroos. Few hundreds of deers were also brought into the zoo. It is also said that an Orangutan was quite popular @ the Lal Bagh’s Zoo.  A pigeon house with 100 pair of pigeons was built. The plague of 1899 had a very bad effect on the Menagerie and the aviary. By 1900, the number of animals and birds was reduced to 60 and all these were later transferred to the Mysore Zoo.

The Glass-House

Flower shows were conducted by the Agri-Horticultural society right from the beginning. Flower shows at Lal Bagh dates back to 1867. In 1888, John Cameron, the then superintendent of Government gardens, proposed for the construction of Glass House for the purpose of holding horticultural shows. Designed originally on the lines of Crystal palace in England, it was completed in 1890 at a cost of 75000 Rs. Crystal palace was burnt to ashes in a fire accident, but the “Glass House” has remained a marvelous structure, symbolizing the development of Horticulture and reminding the Englishmen of their lost monumental glory.

Glass House @ Dusk

Lal Bagh rock and Lake

The great plate of south India is called as “Gondwana land”, which is one of the oldest formations on earth. Dating back to about 3000 million years! A rare exposure of this antiquity can be seen at the Lal Bagh, in the form of a rock hill. The geologists term this rock as peninsular gneiss. Perched on top of this rock is one of the four cardinal towers, as border of namma Bengaluru city built by Kempegowda in 1537.

Tower of Bangalore on top of The LalBagh rock

People who made “Garden City”

Today, Bangalore and it’s amazing green cover is what it is because of a numerous gentlemen who nurtured it with love, passion and care. I’ve tried really hard to collect the details of some of the key men who are remembered for their below mentioned deeds, without which this post would’ve been incomplete.

John Cameron – enriched the plant wealth of Lal Bagh by giving it a numerous exotic plant species, many of which later assumed the status of commercial crops. The famous Bangalore Blue Grapes, Gauva, Mulberry are just a few. Glass house is his brain child

G H Krumbiegal – was requested by Krishnaraja Wodeyar, as a successor to John Cameron, to raise the reputation of Lal Bagh, by introducing economic farming, methodic development of horticulture on commercial scale from Lal bagh. It is also noteworthy that Brindavan garden at KRS was established during his time.

H C Javaraya – Rao Bahaddur HC JAvaraya, an able successor to Krumbigal, is credited with the development of Bangalore city as “Garden city”. The full credit of starting a fruit orchard @ Lal Bagh, erecting the eastern wing of the Glass house, Lotus pond, Government Fruit research station at Hessarghatta are some of his achievements

Dr. M H Marigowda – A key man in the horticulture department of Karnataka. A Ph. D in Botany from Harvard, started as many as 380 farms and nurseries in Bangalore. He also set up soil testing and seed testing labs @ Lal Bagh, also introduced exotic species of Flora to Lal Bagh and elevated Karnataka to a “Horticultural” rich state.

Flower show inside the Glass house

For over a century, this elegant garden is standing as a symbol and testimony of floral richness. From 34 acres to a present 240 acres of roaring green cover, every acre has its own story to tell. To me, the fact that it is in the very heart of namma Bengaluru makes it even merrier. I wish that the long cherished legacy of Lal Bagh will continue forever and bring further prosperity and happiness to namma Bengaluru’s feat!

*1 – Book “A Journey from Madras: Through the Countries of Mysore, Canara, and Malabar by Dr. Francis Buchanan

*2 – Painted by Robert Home, British oil portrait painter. Found in British Library website

*3 – The early long history of Lal Bagh – By Dr. Suryanath U Kamath – Former Chief Editor: Karnataka Gazetteer

Above all, special thanks to some of colleagues of Horticultural department, for understanding my inevitabilities and catering to thousands of my inquiries wholeheartedly.

Photo credits: Thamizh Ezhil Murali, Wiki and of course myself J