Yesterday we went birding to Manchinabele Reservoir and several of us planned to go to Kommaghatta Lake this morning.

One of us did visit…and found that the lake had…disappeared.

Here’s part of her message:

“sorry for sending bad news your way so early, ….i reached the *erstwhile* kommaghatta lake and found no sign of it… I could hardly believe my eyes… the entire lake is GONE, disappeared, lake bed dredged up and big mounds lying all over the place. walked across the lake bed… i meant to walk the entire stretch but after a point didn’t have the heart to do it…. still can’t get over the anger and the shock….
no cheers,
-g”

The anguish we all feel speaks through those strong words. How DARE BBMP dry up our water bodies like this? Have they no sense? I read last week that BBMP does not want to plant any more trees in Bangalore because “the roots are shallow”. This may be true of the Rain trees and the Spathodeas (which are from Africa) …but what about planting banyan trees, neem trees or mango trees instead? Our old roads and highways had shelter for wayfarers, and sheltered wildlife and birds, and gave welcome shade even to motorized vehiccles.

What on earth is wrong with our present government that they are so extremely shortsighted>

Is there some way we can get the BBMP to account for the disappearance of Kommaghatta Lake?

I am told that Jakku Lake has been similarly drained. I am…truly anguished. Should I stand by and see my city being murdered and literally dried to death in this fashion? NOTHING will bring back the trees and the lakes once they are going. We can just have “Sampangi Tank Road” and “Miller Road Tank Bed” as road signs, that’s all.

click here

to see where Kommaghatta Lake is….was…situated.

Troupe : Dramanon, Bangalore

Playwright : Melissa James Gibson

Director : Sharanya Ramprakash

Venue : Ranga Shankara

Date & Time : August 20th & 21st (7:30 PM) Duration : 90 Mins (No interval) Telebooking No : 9880036611/ 9845017975 Online Booking : www.indianstage.in Play Synopsis:

sic (adv.): thus, so.

[sic] takes place primarily in the doorways and shared hallway of three neighbouring apartments. Meet Theo, the desperate & edgy amusement park ride theme music composer, the struggling and ever-broke writer Babette, and Frank, the queer, happy-go-lucky aspiring auctioneer. See them humorously trudge through the haunting morass of everyday drudgery and the biting emptiness of big city life. Watch, as the three of them come together to discuss, flirt, argue, share their dreams and plan their futures with unequal degrees of deep hopefulness and abject despair.

[sic], chosen as one of the Best American Plays of 2001-2002, is a neurotic, bittersweet comedy about the “quarter-life crisis”, and unfolds as three lives collide in one common corridor.

This is the first exhibition of 3D Lenticular prints in India.
Exhibition:The Virtual Immigrant
Venue: TASVEER , Sua House
Date: Aug 28 – Sept 19, 2009 (Sundays closed)

For more details, visit Tasveer online at

http://www.tasveerarts.com/

contact Tasveer, Bangalore:

Sua House, 26/1 Kasturba Cross Road
Bangalore 560001, India

Contact : Kaajal Gupta
Tel : + 91 99862 84251
+ 91 80 2212 8358

kaajal.tasveer@gmail.com

Matthew’s recent exhibitions include Sepia International, New York City, the RISD Museum, Newark Art Museum, 2009 Guangzhou Biennial of Photography, China, 2006 Noorderlicht Photo Festival in Netherlands and the 2005 Le Mois de la Photo à Montréal Photo Biennale in Canada.

In 2007, Matthew was the first of three artists to be awarded the MacColl Johnson Fellowship in Visual Arts. Among the list of other grants recently supporting Matthew‘s work include the John Gutmann Fellowship, Rhode Island State Council of the Arts Fellowship and the American Institute of Indian Studies Creative Arts fellowship. She was recently an artist in residence at the Yaddo and MacDowell Colonies. Her work can be found in the collection of the George Eastman House, Fogg Museum, Museum of Fine Arts in Houston, Center for Creative Photography, Daimler Art Collection and the RISD Museum among others.

Matthew’s work is included in the book BLINK from Phaidon, that according to the publisher celebrates the quality and vision of today’s 100 most exciting international contemporary photographers and the upcoming book Self-Portraits by Susan Bright.

Annu Palakunnathu Matthew is Professor of Art (Photography) at the University of Rhode Island in Kingston, Rhode Island and is represented by Sepia International Inc., New York City & Tasveer, India

More about the show

here

in association with Tranquebar Press

is launching Mridula Koshy’s irst collection of short stories, “If It Is Sweet”,

Mridula’s reading will be followed by a conversation with novelist Usha K R

Venue: Crossword Bookstore, ACR Towers, Ground Floor, 32 Residency Road, Bangalore – 1

Date and time: Thursday, 13 August 2009 at 6.30 pm

Mridula Koshy was born and raised in Delhi till she migrated to the US, where she worked as a union and community organiser. Years went by and she returned to the city that makes her think the hardest. She lives in Delhi with her partner and children. Her short stories have been published widely, both in India and abroad. She is at work on her first novel, set in Kerala, Delhi and other parts of the world. If It Is Sweet is her first book and has won rave reviews and a very wide readership.

Usha K R has been writing fiction in English for over two decades. She began with short fiction, which was published in various magazines and newspapers such as Debonair, Femina, Savvy, New Quest and Deccan Herald. Her novels include: Sojourn (1998); The Chosen (2003); and A Girl and a River (2007), which won the Vodafone Crossword Award for Fiction, 2007. Her next novel is forthcoming from Penguin India in 2010.

Ranga Shankara, in association with Penguin Books India, will play host to a book reading session by author Githa Hariharan on Sun July 26th at 11:00 AM. The session, being held to celebrate the publication of the author’s latest work, “Fugitive Histories”, will begin with an introduction by Lakshmi Krishnamurthy and will be followed by readings from her work by the author and an interaction with the audience.

Fugitive Histories exposes the legacy of prejudice that sometimes covertly, sometimes perceptibly, continues to affect disparate lives in present day India. In prose that is at once elegant, playful and startlingly inventive, Githa Hariharan portrays with remarkable precision the web of human connections that binds as much as it divides.

The entrance for the event, which will be held inside the Ranga Shankara auditorium, is free. For any further details please contact Ranga Shankara on 26493982.

–
Ranga Shankara
36/2, 8th Cross
J P Nagar, II Phase
Bangalore – 560 078
P: 080-26493982 / 26592777
E: rstheatre@gmail.com
W: www.rangashankara.org

Tickets are priced at Rs.350, and are available at Ranga Shankara,

www.rangashankara.org

2659 2777 and 26493982

and at

www.indianstage.in

Click

here

for more details

Eat like the French is a unique multi-dimensional theatrical experience, comprising of a play with food as its central axis, and a post-play food and wine tasting event to complete a tantalising experience. The play ‘12000 little pies and other delicacies’ is an adaptation from the book, The Physiology of Taste by the 19th century writer, epicure and gastronome, Brillat-Savarin.

Sustained by four greedy women, or ‘gourmandise’ from the book, the play attempts to unravel the perception of the French as a some what snobbish and high browed race and their pseudo scientific relationship with the culinary arts. The play is as much about sensuality as it is about food. The enticing narrative is peppered with vivid and humouristic descriptions of exotic recipes, their preparation, and the effect they have on the human spirit, mind and body – and is relayed through a delightful smogasbord of dialogue, costume, music, and imagery.
Set in an era when French society was moving on from the cultural and socio-political chaos and structure of the past, the play offers Brillat-Savarin’s ideas on food preparation and its role in life and philosophy. And in doing so educates the viewer about the true nature of gastronomy, which is essentially the point where food fuses with the fine arts.

The language of the play is eloquent, subtle and titillating with dollops of humour that is compatible with delicacy and promises a feast to the senses unmatched by anything an audience has experienced before.
What is distinctive about the adaptation is the oral transmission of a speech that is addressed more to the senses than the intellect, whilst always maintaining a decorous sensuality. It weighs all the elements that contribute to the pleasure of tasting and all that results from it.

Stimulating the taste buds of the audience by some savoury evocations of delicacies, the ‘gourmandes’ inspire and educate the audience about an art of living, a way to think, and a culture that seeks a greater satisfaction of the senses and the spirit. The momentum built through the play gently unfolds as a palette of feelings inherent to the pleasure of eating and inevitably leads to intimate sharing and conviviality.

In the wake of a series of attacks in Mangalore (the latest one was reported on February 24, 2009), women have been targeted in the name of morality, culture and “public decency”. The attacks in Bangalore seem to be a continuation of those that took place in Mangalore and coastal Karnataka regions – even though the identity of the attackers (and the organizations they belong to) could have differed.

In an attempt to fight against the climate of fear, the Fearless Karnataka collective would like to announce the following activities:
1. A protest march to the office of Dr. Ajai Kumar Singh, DG & IGP, on March 7, 2009.
2. A ‘Take Back the Night’ campaign on March 8, 2009
3. A poster campaign asking bystanders who witness attacks on women to act

There are several other efforts, including signature campaigns, art exhibitions, etc which are happening simultaneously..

There is some handy info like basic legal information and precautions to be taken etc. available on baware.in – spread the word around.

Maraa is part of this campaign too and these are the few things it is doing…

• making radio spots for FM channels
• making posters
• street theatre
• making short videos
• website support – updating blog, audio clips etc.
• photography

These things have to happen fast, in large numbers and in a short time. Many hands are needed to implement these actions.

Where do you fit in? How can you help?

• Participate and get others invoilved in the Take Back The Night Campaign on March 8th, at Majestic (call us for more details)
• Know your facts, read press reports everyday
• Come to maraa from 2nd – 7th at 4:00pm to work on above…
• Create a buzz about this around your neighboruhood, office communities, corporate offices, colleges, schools, apartment complexes etc… and inform them about how they can participate
• If you want to express and respond in any way about the current situation, please let them know, you can fit into the larger framework
• If you can translate this information in any language please do – try to make it as local as possible. ALl communication and publicity material can be in Kannada, Tamil, Telegu, Malayalam, Hindi, Urdu, Bengali and the rest.. This is crucial, since there is very little work done in this area
• Any financial contribution will be useful
• Forward this to people you know..

Please try and feed into, connect and link up with the same campaign and initiatives that have already begun.. localise it as much as possible.. Even if you are not from Bangalore, feel free to share your expression, maraa will try and present it at events and gatherings.

Many of us have known Bangalore differently from what it has become now, let’s reclaim our space in it.

Contact Team Maraa on 080-4148-8264

PS: Please spread the word around, blog about it and support and participate. That’s the only way these cowardly folks can be beaten.

More details at here

About Alarms and Excursions:

Alarms and Excursions by Michael Frayn, is both farcical and comic. The play comprises of two playlets that share a central theme: a humorous & critical commentary on disconnection between people. The play explores the obtuse humor in our off the hook, disconnected relationships with ourselves and with each other – and the resulting tragic-comedy of such a set up.

The first playlet “Doubles” involves two couples who check into identical hotel rooms next to each other. Their rooms, which are mirror images of each other, are separated by thin walls. Through the play, we slowly discover that the only thing that eventually separates them is not the physical wall between the rooms, but the invisible walls between each other.

The second playlet “Immobiles,” is an exposé of human disconnection in a world without mobile phones. A frustrated couple tries to coordinate a proper meeting place using an answering machine and coin operated phone booths for their foreign friend when he arrives at the airport. Broken bones and broken hearts are the result of this techno faux pas.

Why Alarms and Excursions:

The Michael Frayn-esque thought process (quirky and comic) is a genre that Dramanon has always found fascinating. And when, 6 months ago, a generous sibling couriered a dusty second hand copy of Alarms and Excursions – BINGO! we had a new production on hand.

The immediate connect we had with the play was its relevance with today’s times – In a world whose borders are shrinking – iPhones, email, sms, social networking sites – in a world that affords every form of communication, we find increasing intolerance, increasing misunderstanding and alienation between people. Our understanding of each other and ourselves, borders dangerously on the superficial – leading to a chilling isolation. Is this because we have grown increasingly dependant on technology to communicate? In our fast paced lives, have we forgotten what it means to be empathetic?

Talking about how the play forces the viewer to critically assess ourselves and our connection with the world, Sharanya Ramprakash, the play’s director says: “A couple I know broke up over an sms… my friend got hired over a telephone interview… my local coffee joint is Wi-Fi enabled… disconnect and wire in seems to be the way to go. Its remarkable how the script unerringly zeroes in on all the disconnection in the connection. Maybe its time to sign off from facebook and get some face time with the people you care about.”

Whatever the reasons, Alarms & Excursions explores, in its inimitable style, the comic potential in such world – and a bit of soul searching in the process!

About Dramanon:

Dramanon (Dramatist Anonymous) was founded in 1991 and originally comprised of student and faculty members from Manipal Academy of Higher Education (MAHE) who shared a passion for theater. A few student alumni of Dramanon, Manipal who are now full-time professionals, helped Dramanon spread its wings by establishing chapters in Bangalore and Hyderabad. Since 2006, Dramanon, Bangalore has frequently staged plays at both the Ranga Shankara and Alliance De Francaise.

Play Details:

Cast & Crew:

Director: Sharanya Ramprakash

Cast: Anshu Bora, Priya Venkatraman, Serena Punch, Deepanjan Dey, Nakul Bhalla, Siddhartha Rao & Payal Chowdhury.

Production: Sridhar Prasad, Rupesh Patange, Karan Shurpalekar, Nishita Vasanth, Mohit Dhir, Suraj Sunder Raj and Harish Shesadri.

Play: Alarms & Excursions

Date & Time: February 5th & 6th 2009 (Both days at 7:30 PM)

Venue: Ranga Shankara, Bangalore

Telebooking No: 9845017975

Online Booking: www.indianstage.in

Tickets also available at: Rs 150/-

*

Ranga Shankara
*

KC Das, St Mark’s Road
*

Blossom’s Book House, Church Street

The synopsis of the play goes thus:

Play Synopsis:

On a rainy day which has brought floods, Ila, a Bengali woman living in England, is folding and re-arranging the saris that have accumulated over the years in her wardrobe. Her friend Lipi arrives and they discuss an eclectic range of subjects including the hollowness of academic jargon, the state of women in ancient and modern times and chocolates !

Lip leaves while Ila continues to tidy her saris, and through this act of re-ordering, relives the stages of her own diasporic life while re-visiting her past and the history of her native land. Aspects of Bengal’s social and political history in the mid-twentieth century are evoked as she speaks to figures from her past who emerge from behind her wardrobe.

Her reveries are interrupted by Prabuddho, a doctor who brings the news of a neighbour’s death. In the last scene Ila, her husband Rojot, and Prabuddho are in Calcutta, where on an evening of a bandh, Ila discovers that the house where she had spent crucial years of her childhood has been demolished for the erection of a highrise. Face to face with life’s unexpected losses and uncertainties, chocolates become a symbol of life’s comfort. They conclude with philosophical humour that they must scrounge what comfort they can from such small but precious things.

Here’s a scene from the play:

I spoke to the playwright and found her a very interesting person; here’s the BSSD writeup about her:

Ketaki Kushari Dyson is a bilingual writer of the Indian diaspora who has been based in England since her marriage. She was born in Calcutta in 1940 and was educated first there and then at Oxford. She has degrees from both those universities and a doctorate from Oxford. She writes in both Bengali and English, and is the author of more than thirty titles, covering all genres from poetry, fiction, and drama to essays, criticism, literary translation, and research-based scholarly books, besides authoring a stream of publications in literary magazines, both in print and on the Internet. She came into prominence in the sixties, and is regarded as a major Bengali writer of her generation, with readers in India, Bangladesh, and the global Bengali diaspora. She received the Ananda Puraskar from Calcutta twice, and her translations of Tagore’s poetry received the recommendation of London’s Poetry Book Society. She is well-known for her scholarly researches on Tagore, and also for her translations of the poetry of the post-Tagore poet Buddhadeva Bose.

I went to the play with a lot of expectations;some of them were met. The humour in the play was very real-life and not the forced or slapstick variety; and a gentle vein of humour underlay the whole play.

The stage properties were really excellent, and as women, my friends and I really loved to look at the various sarees that were brought out through the duration of the play! The music, by Kallol, was minimal. The dialogue, for the most part, was very natural, and it felt as if we were watching real-life people on the other side of the footlights.

I also liked the acting of Zulfia Shaikh a lot; she brought an unforced, lifelike quality to the character she portrayed.

The lights (Raghu) were well-handled, so that one did not see the various relatives emerging to the stage, for example. The makeup by Jairaj was excellent, as was the sound by Gylasten. The backstage people, Azia and Hasnain, ensured that things such as changes of costume/sarees were smooth. The coordination by Sankalita Das was also quite good, and that must be a difficult job.

Having said these things, I have to regretfully say that the play, in my opinion, could have been shortened a bit. I could not see a cohesive narrative between the saree-metaphors and incidents, and the neighbour’s death, or the destruction of old buildings in Kolkata. I feel that the play could have closed with the saree incidents alone, but that is probably my subjective opinion. But when you see members of the audience looking at their watches after an hour and twenty minutes have gone by, you feel that the play is dragging on, much as the sarees, one attached to the other, were dragged out by Ila, as she confronted her varied emotions and experiences.

The lack of command over the production also showed in some fumbling of lines and cues. Sambrita Basu as Lipi could, I think, put a little more life into her role; perhaps it’s only that she needs a little more experience with the role. The exchanges between Prabuddho (Nilanjan Chaudhury) and Ila rang true and witty, but I think he had a sore throat while singing the translation of “Majhi Re”.

The meandering of the unconnected incidents of Ila’s life may be true to real life, but it certainly made for a lack of engagement on the part of the audience.

In all, though, it was an evening of fairly enjoyable theatre, with good production values; recommended to be watched. Though the story and the references are Bengali, it is very much an English play, and credit goes to whoever translated it from the original Bengali; I think it probably was Dr Ketaki herself.