A file photo of the damage caused by the floods in Kodagu. | Photo Credit: G.P. Sampath Kumar
It will expedite rehabilitation and reconstruction works in district
Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy has announced the formation of the Kodagu development authority to enable speedy reconstruction of the district, parts of which were ravaged by floods and landslips this August.
He was interacting with the affected people at Gandhi Maidan in Madikeri on Wednesday. Mr. Kumaraswamy said he received memorandums from the people to constitute a separate authority and found merit in the suggestion. “An authority under the chairmanship of the Chief Minister will be constituted to expedite the relief and rehabilitation work in Kodagu,” said Mr. Kumaraswamy.
The Chief Minister also said the educational expenses of children affected will be entirely borne by the government while emphasis will also be on restoration of schools and colleges that were damaged during the natural calamity.
In addition, emphasis will be on restoration of farm land, including plantations, for which staff from other districts too will be deployed or posted to agriculture and horticulture departments. He said the State government had released ₹127 crore for the rehabilitation works in the district so far.
There were nearly 800 families who had lost their houses and the government will release ₹10,000 per month towards house rentals as a temporary measure. Each family that has been bereft of its property will receive ₹8.53 lakh as compensation and the reconstruction of houses will be taken up quickly, he added.
The objective of the interaction programme was to infuse confidence among the victims and elicit their views and expectations from the authorities. Mr. Kumaraswamy said he will visit the district again to review the rehabilitation.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> States> Karnataka / by Special Correspondent / Mysuru – October 18th, 2018
Top doubles player Ashwini Ponnappa, her partner N Sikki Reddy, and coach Tan Kim Her give us some pro tips to become a better doubles badminton player.
If badminton is rock music, doubles badminton is heavy metal.
Faster, sharper, more chaotic, more emphatic beats per second; the doubles game feels like someone has turned up the volume and energy levels on a badminton court. It’s busy and breathless calling for action and reaction every second.
Unlike doubles in racquet sports like tennis and squash, doubles badminton is a specialist art. Players are meant to be groomed from a young age for doubles badminton. It is rare to see a badminton player compete in both singles and doubles.
To understand exactly what it takes to be a top-level doubles player, we spoke with Ponnappa, N Sikki Reddy and doubles coach Tan Kim Her. Here is what they had to say.
Delight in doubles
Even though doubles is usually seen as a fall back choice in India, it is treated on par with singles around the world. Players are selected when they are 15-16 years of age to be specifically groomed for doubles. India’s doubles coach Tan Kim Her believes that the first step for the country towards becoming an all-round badminton powerhouse is giving doubles badminton the same respect and importance as singles.
“Doubles is also an Olympic event,” says Malaysia’s Tan, who was appointed the doubles coach in 2016. “People don’t understand that if you win an Olympic medal in doubles, it’s still an Olympic medal. We need to change that mindset. And for that to happen, players, coaches and parents all need to sit down and decide to take up doubles at an early age.”
Get out of your comfort zone
The norm around the world is that coaches pair up doubles players. Going against that trend, Indian players usually choose their partners based on whom they are comfortable with rather than who complements them most on the court. While understanding between partners is absolutely critical, players may not be in the best position to objectively pick the right partner for themselves.
“In India, we have grown up thinking, ‘Oh no, I don’t like her. I don’t want to play with her!’” says N Sikki Reddy. Involvement of parents has also been a factor at times. “But for the betterment of the game, I think coaches should pair up players by seeing potential,” adds Reddy.
Serve, receive
In doubles, the first two shots can prove critical. The whole aim of doubles is to keep the shuttle as low as possible. Playing a shot high into the air is a cardinal sin. With doubles being a quick-paced game, the placement of the serve and return can immediately decide if your team wins the point or not. The quicker you force your opponent into a weaker shot, the greater chance you have to attack and win the point.
“I was very good at serving and receiving – which are very important in doubles,” Jwala Gutta had said in 2017. “If you observe all my matches, I used to make sure that I finish it. I could take advantage of my partner’s smash or my partner’s placing. Or I used to place it in such a way that my partner had an advantage.”
For youngsters, according to doubles coach Akshay Dewalkar, the first three strokes make up the bulk of their basic training. “How to serve, where to move, where to play the shuttle, that’s very important,” adds Dewalkar.
Trust and understanding
Trust yourself, trust your partner. That is the foundation of any partnership.
In doubles badminton, the roles of the two players are usually very well defined. While the attacking player hangs back to smash and finish off points, the defensive player stays at the net, controlling the pace and pattern of the rally. Do your job, and trust your partner to do hers.
“I would say focus on your game and what you could bring to your partnership,” says Ponnappa. “Don’t focus on what your partner isn’t doing – look at the positives. Watch and learn from top doubles players. Learn to understand what sort of game you like playing, what sort of game your partner plays. Which is your strong point? It’s very important to understand doubles. There’s a lot of information online on various doubles drills and techniques. In case you don’t have a specialised doubles coach, sit with your coach and watch a few videos and see what drills you could incorporate to improve your doubles game.”
Read between the moves
The coaching manual of the Badminton World Federation counts ‘open skills’ as a pre-requisite for the game. These open skills are defined as: “being able to adapt to the different challenges presented by their opponent’s strokes.” This ability to pick on playing patterns, strengths, and weaknesses quickly is decisive in doubles, since it gives the competitors little breathing space.
Moreover, doubles is a game of power and strength; one that is more suited to the lean, athletic East Asian body structure. That is the reason European and Indian players have often relied on movement and tactics when playing against more adept opponents.
“We are smart on the court,” says Ponnappa. “Strength and speed are important factors – and what a lot of players lack – which makes it difficult to match players from Asia. The Europeans are very good strategically. They play smart and to their advantage.”
Love thy labour
As important as the tweaks in training and tactics are to push you to become a good doubles player, none of it can sustain without absolute dedication to the craft. You have to be disciplined and diligent, push yourself in training and on the court to get the results.
However long it takes.
“Prepare for long rallies, have patience, be strong mentally,” says Sikki Reddy. “Love the game and your practice sessions, and always believe in yourself no matter what.”
Click here to read about Red Bull Shuttle Up – an exclusive women’s doubles-only badminton tournament.
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source: http://www.redbull.com / Redbull.com / Home / by Deepti Patwardhan
We head to where the beans grow in India to discover the country’s nuanced flavours.
Coffee berries left out for dry processing on a farm in Coorg, India. Bloomberg
It is still early in the evening, with a few hours to go before sunset, but all I can see outside is the swirling mist. When I had checked into at my resort a few hours earlier, the view from the balcony of my room was a lush carpet of green. Now, it’s white blanket. But I am not surprised. After all, this is Coorg, in south India, and I’m visiting during monsoon months, when the fog sweeps over as soon as there’s a break in the rain.
The scenery on my way from Bangalore changed dramatically once I entered the area; crowded highways turning into narrow lanes and commercial activity making way first for emerald paddy fields and then undulating hills dotted with seasonal waterfalls and sprawling plantations. It is obvious that Coorg is a blessed land; a variety of spices growing with abandon across this tiny region – pepper, cardamom, nutmeg, clove and even honey. The undisputed star of Coorg, though, is coffee.
Known in the local language as Kodagu, Coorg is part of the region in south India where coffee first arrived in the country. Legend has it that Sufi saint Baba Budan was delighted when he discovered coffee during a pilgrimage to Makkah, sometime in the 17th century. And on his way back, via the port of Yemen, he hid a few beans in the folds of his robes. As celebrated novelist R K Narayan wrote in his book A Storyteller’s World, “The origin of Indian coffee, thus, is saintly. It was not an empire builder or a buccaneer who brought coffee to India but a saint, one who knew what was good for humanity.”
“Indeed, he did,” I think, as I sip on the frothy brew at the coffee shop of The Tamara resort the next morning. Located within a functioning organic coffee plantation, the property is proof of how easily coffee travelled from Baba Budan’s base in the town of Chikmagalur to nearby Coorg, and how well it flourished in the wet, hilly landscapes there. The Coffee Board of India estimates that more than 70 per cent of the country’s beans are grown in Karnataka, almost entirely in Chikmagalur and Coorg, and are used for both domestic consumption and exports to Europe.
he fresh fruit that bears the beans. Bloomberg
The cup is my reward at the end of a two-hour walk through the coffee estate with Sareesh Kumar, the resident naturalist who seems to know the names and qualities of practically every plant on the trail. The rain has let up for the morning, and I am exhilarated by the hike through a thick canopy of silveroak and rosewood trees with pepper vines snaking around their tall trunks. Sunlight barely filters into the Arabica and Robusta shrubs all along the path, and the air is crisp and refreshing.
Kumar extols the moody nature of the coffee plant that demands great care and attention along with shade, and describes the taste differences between a brew made from Arabica and Robusta beans. I listen to him with half an ear as I lean towards the plump fruit in the vain hope of smelling coffee. He smiles at my enthusiasm, saying the berry has a long way to go before it reveals its true colours, or in this case, aromas and flavours.
And then it’s quiz time: “What does the coffee flower smell like?” he asks me. I know enough by now not to say “coffee” but I take a lame stab at the response anyway. It turns out, it’s jasmine. That’s what the sneaky coffee flower smells and even looks like.
It is an easy walk, with caterpillars and leeches, parakeets and hornbills, waterfalls and streams for company all the way. Before we know it, we fetch up in front of the small cafe that doubles as souvenir shop. It’s time for the “Blossom to brew” lesson. I learn to select, roast and powder my own coffee beans. Ah, finally, that aroma I have been dreaming of. And then I get to make my own drink. The south Indian in me can allow nothing other than local filter kaapi (a strong drip decoction lightened with hot milk and sugar) and I sit back to enjoy what I consider my personal blend.
On my way back home, I take a detour for a slice of Tibet. Bylakuppe is the second-largest hub – after Dharamshala – for Tibetan monks in India who followed in the footsteps of their spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, some 60 years ago.
The cluster of monasteries, stupas and residential areas (divided into old and new Camp) was built in the early 1970s on land given as a gift to the community by the king of Mysore. The most famous of these temples is the Namdroling Monastery with its golden roof (it’s also known as the Golden Temple), that beckons to visitors from a great distance. Turning off the main road, we drive through dusty lanes where the only colour is that of prayer flags fluttering in the morning breeze and the maroon and yellow robes of monks walking in small groups or riding their motorbikes with great style.
A monastery in Bylakuppe, a hub for Tibetan monks in India. Charukesi Ramadurai
While the tourist crowds throng the premises of the temple, taking photographs from all angles, bargaining raucously with local vendors and arguing over where to find the best thukpa and momos in the neighbourhood, it is a completely silent tableau inside. There are three gigantic gilded statues of Buddha, in his states as Shakyamuni, Padmasambhava and Amitayus. On one side of the room, I spot a row of monks poring over their scripture books and chanting in low tones. On my walk around the monastery, I come across another group of monks – young, barely in their teens – engaged in a boisterous game of cricket. I realise then that this Tibetan community here is much like coffee itself: both are settlers from another country who have made Coorg home.
Of course, there is more to Coorg than coffee. History residing in the old temples and ruined forts near the town of Madikeri and adventure that ranges from easy treks to canoe rides all over the region. Then there are the popular picnic spots like the perennial Abbey Falls, the Dubare Elephant Camp and the Talacauvery shrine, from where the River Cauvery (held sacred by locals) originates.
But I ignore all these attractions to stay put in my room, watching the clouds play hide and seek with the green hills.
source: http://www.thenational.ae / The National / Home> Lifestyle> Travel / by Charukesi Ramadurai / October 18th, 2018
Deputy Commissioner P I Sreevidya inaugurates cultural programmes at Gandhi Maidan in Madikeri on account of Dasara celebrations on Friday night.
Heavy music, youth dancing to the tunes of the music, Dashamantapas depicting mythological themes, bhajan, dance, and Kodava traditional music along with a large number of spectators were the highlight of Dasara Shobhayatre which continued till the early hours of Saturday.
After the landslides and flood that ravaged the district in August, organisers of Dasara in Maikeri and Gonikoppa were doubtful of the celebrations.
However, with the efforts of the committees, Dasara was celebrated in a simple manner at Madikeri and Gonikoppa.
Cultural programmes were held in Gonikoppa for few days while in Madikeri, cultural programmes was restricted to Vijayadashami day.
The welcome dance by Kings of Coorg, a bhajan by Ramanjaneya Bhajana Mandali, Kodava dance by Kanoorina Sullimada Gowramma and team, a dance ballet reflecting the culture of Arebhashe language speaking people by Kudekal Santhosh, Kodava dance by Kanoorina Gejjetanda, Ganasude by Samveditha, folk dance by Gandharva in Somwarpet, and Thiruvathira by Malayali Sangha unfolded the cultural diversity of the state.
This year, prizes were not announced for the Dashamantapas (10 tableaux).
Each mantapa was given a sum of Rs 2 lakh. A few mantapas had also given priority to simplicity.
A large number of visitors lined up on the either side of the main streets of the town where the tableaux passed to get a glimpse of the Madikeri Dasara.
Compared to previous years, the number of visitors were less. All the tableaux were disciplined in their performance.
The visitors who had come to take part in Shobhayatre were tired of searching for wine shops as the district administration had prohibited the sale of liquor in a 10-km radius of the town.
A few miscreants who were creating public nuisance before the commencement of the procession of tableaux had to face lathis.
‘Rebuild Kodagu’
Deputy Commissioner P I Sreevidya called upon the people to join hands with the district administration in rebuilding Kodagu district.
Speaking after flagging of cultural programmes organised by Dasara Samithi and the Kannada and Culture Department on Friday, she said, “Dasara was celebrated traditionally in a simple manner.”
SP Suman D Pennekar said, “Dasara represents victory against evil forces. Similarly, we have to keep away bad forces and work towards leading a peaceful life.”
Dasara Samithi President Kaveramma Somanna said, “In the backdrop of the natural calamity, a few programmes were cancelled during Dasara celebrations. Let us pray for the Shakthi Devathas to protect the district in the coming days.”
source: http://www.deccanherald.com / Deccan Herald / Home> State> Districts / by Adithya KA / DH News Service, Madikeri / October 20th, 2018
Foraging has long been a way of life for wild-food loving Coorg
Coffee-picking at an estate in Coorg. Photo: iStock
René Redzepi, the foraging genius who stormed the culinary world with his New Nordic cuisine, would have a lot to smile about in Coorg. Here foraged ingredients don’t just put in an occasional appearance but are the main attraction, making Coorg an interesting region for true-blue wild-food pioneers. The eastern declivities of the Western Ghats that make up Coorg are extensively clothed in forests. Shade-grown coffee plantations offer the ideal habitat for rare flora and fauna to thrive as do sacred groves or devakads, designated as protected forests under the Indian Forest Act.
Against this backdrop is a staggering bounty of indigenous greens, weeds, flowers, fruits, berries, nuts, mushrooms and shoots, many of which play a starring role in the local cuisine.
Gazetteer Of Coorg, first published in 1870, devotes reams to Coorg’s jungle bounty: wild pepper, wild ginger, wild cloves, bitter local oranges known as kaipuli, rose apples, jungle mangoes, bastard sago—esteemed for its toddy—hog plums, several kinds of bamboo shoots, and an alphabetical list of over 60 ferns.
Locals keep their eyes open to what’s growing around them, constantly sizing up culinary possibilities. Freshly plucked cape gooseberries go into jams, a tangle of greens are added to stir-fries, and fronds of tender bracken ferns get pickled and ground into chutneys.
Kaveri Ponnapa, author of The Vanishing Kodavas, says in one of her earlier articles on Coorg: “Most women of my mother-in- law’s generation who lived on coffee plantations never set out on a stroll without the equivalent of the Russian avoska, the ‘maybe’ or ‘perhaps’ mesh bag—you never knew what surprise the season would throw your way.”
Several ingredients are unique to these parts. Like kachampuli, the dark vinegar made from the concentrated juice of the garcinia gummi-gutta fruit (called panapuli locally), which adds a sour kick to pork and fish dishes. And the famous Coorg honey, made from wild roses and forest blooms, which locals drizzle on akki ottis or rice rotis, and eat with ghee for breakfast.
Naveen Alvares, executive chef at Evolve Back Chikkana Halli estate, attributes this love of indigenous ingredients to Coorg’s unique geography and culture. “Kodavas, who make up most of the population, are ancestor worshippers and eat what is available off the land. Most have a plantation background or a sacred forest, so the connect with the land is very strong,” he says.
Walking through the resort’s lush plantations, among the oldest in Coorg, I see the coffee-forest symbiosis in full bloom. Coffee bushes sit beneath a canopy of silver oak trees that support festoons of black pepper. Ginger and turmeric, planted for intercropping, dot the forest floor. Jackfruits hang from trees. You can hear red-whiskered bulbuls chirruping.
Several exotic edibles are to be seen, many of them unconventional in the Indian context. As I stop to admire the bizarre artistry of a passionflower, Alvares smiles, “This is what makes Coorg special. It’s wildness.”
Dinner is a knockout pandi curry. The dark colour and complexity of this most iconic of Coorg pork dishes derives from dark roasted spices and kachampuli, a souring agent Alvares clearly loves.
I drive down from Siddapur to Madikeri the next day. The hour-long journey is jawdroppingly scenic. Acre after acre of coffee plantation presents itself, occasionally punctuated by the whoosh of a waterfall or the brilliant blue of a kingfisher.
A treasure trove of mushroom diversity, the Western Ghats are home to 750 species. Edible fungi known as kummu grow wild on Coorg’s hills and are highly prized for their exotic flavour. Vancouver-based blogger Shalini Nanda Nagappa mentions several varieties in her blog, A Cookery Year In Coorg—“feathery, delicate nucchi kummu and kokkalé kummu, succulent aal kummu, the giant nethalé kummu,..and the decidedly meaty pandi kummu.”
Only locals who carry with them an intimate knowledge of when, where and how to harvest the edible varieties can procure them, Nagappa points out. As a result, these treasures rarely make it to local markets and remain confined to the kitchens of plantation owners and local villagers.
‘Pandi curry’ at the Evovle Back resort.
The pleasures of kummu elude me during this visit, but I do feast on other Kodagu treats at Coorg Cuisine, a popular local restaurant in Madikeri. My lunch companion is M.B. Kumar, a Madikeri-based Kodava agriculturist and plantation owner. The wild mango curry, made with small jungle mangoes or kaad maange and black jaggery, is by turns sweet, sour and peppery. It’s unlike anything I’ve ever tasted. Chewing on a mango kernel, it is love at first bite.
The smoked pork, known as chillkana pandi, packs a meaty savouriness, while the freshness of the forest pervades a bowl of lightly fermented and sauteed baimbale or bamboo shoots. There’s pandi curry, of course, intensely flavoured and addictive as always. And akki ottis and kadumbuttus (rice balls) to mop it all up with.
To put pork’s near sacred place in Coorg’s cuisine in context, Kumar narrates a colourful legend. When Parvati expressed a desire to see Arjuna’s back (the great warrior never showed his back—a sign of weakness—during war), Shiva disguised himself as a hunter and shot a wild boar that Arjuna’s arrow had pierced. An altercation followed. As Arjuna fell over his opponent, his back was revealed, granting Parvati’s wish. A shower of flowers fell from the heavens and the pork was distributed as prasad to the hunting party.
The yarn illustrates the extent to which Coorg’s geographical seclusion has shaped its unique cuisine. “While we Coorgs (Kodavas) treat pork as prasad and offer it to our ancestors during rituals, it would be considered blasphemous to go anywhere near pork in neighbouring Mysuru,” Kumar laughs.
As we eat, Kumar draws my attention to the age-old tradition of foraging for monsoon greens, known as thoppus in Coorg’s interiors. The repertoire of seasonal weeds is dazzling. Thatte thoppu has a slightly bitter taste but tastes delicious with akki ottis and a little ghee; kakke thoppu with its purplish-black fruit is effective in deworming; therme thoppu or bracken ferns taste good simply sautéed with onions and pair divinely with eggs.
During mid-monsoon, on the 18th day of a period known as kakkada, Kodavas pick the leaves of a wild plant called madd thoppu and extract its juice to make a payasam.
The bustling Friday market in Madikeri is chock-full of these supergreens and more. Kembe (colocasia leaves) and kaipuli are up for grabs as are spices and meat. Walking around, it becomes abundantly clear that Kodavas are not just master harvesters, they’re also skilled at altering foodstuffs for preservation by yeast and bacteria. A huge assortment of jams and pickles made from the spoils of the land lines the local stores. Everything is home-made and unbranded.
On my last morning in Coorg, I drop in at Coorg’s Progressive Beekeepers Co-op Society store and pick up a bottle of wild honey to take back home. As I make my way to Bengaluru to catch my flight, the resinous, sour-sweet taste of kaad maange lingers on my tongue.
Wild foods, which grow in their natural habitat without fertilizers or pesticides, don’t deplete the earth’s resources. And they taste incredible. What if we, like Kodavas, thought of the forest as our pantry? Let’s tap into our vast underutilized permacultures and support the foragers who gather these ingredients. Let’s showcase our native treasures at the finest restaurants through dishes that startle with their newness and intensity.
Let’s go wild.
source: http://www.livemint.com / Live Mint / Home> Leisure / by Sona Bahadur / October 21st, 2018
A coffee plantation in Kodagu, in the shade of silver oak trees. | Photo Credit: MAIL
Using silver oaks is detrimental for robusta
The exotic silver oak may be coffee growers’ preferred shade tree now, but research shows that it affects carbon sequestration and tree diversity in Kodagu’s agroforest systems.
Kodagu’s coffee farms were created when farmers cleared forest undergrowth and started growing coffee under the shade of giant evergreen trees. This ‘native shade’ coffee is still prevalent in the district, but evergreen trees are quickly losing out to the fast-growing silver oak. Farmers do not need permission from forest officials to lop or cut silver oak; this also contributes to its popularity. However, old forest trees make up a huge portion of carbon stocks here, and carbon stocks matter because the higher the carbon contained in vegetation, the more it helps with mitigating climate change.
Carbon stocks
To find out if carbon stocks change when silver oak takes over, a team including scientist Manjunatha Munishamappa from Bengaluru’s Environmental Management and Policy Research Institute studied a total of 49 native and exotic agroforestry systems – where either robusta (which needs more sunlight) or arabica coffee varieties are grown – near 18 forest patches that fall under both moderate and high rainfall zones. In each plot (all spread across 22 locations along the Cauvery river in Kodagu), the researchers quantified shade tree species diversity and the amount of organic carbon sequestered in the trees by measuring wood, root, litter and soil biomass. Across all plots, the researchers identified a total of 86 native tree species; and the total carbon stocks rose with increasing tree diversity.
Native trees in coffee estates and forests displayed high and comparable carbon stocks (approximately 193 and 222 megagrams (Mg) of carbon (C) per hectare respectively) as well as tree diversity (around 45 tree species). However, the introduction of silver oak negatively impacted both carbon stock and diversity. Predictably, robusta coffee estates with silver oaks had significantly lower tree diversity (nine species) and lower carbon stocks (up to an average of 65 MgC per hectare) than all other land-use systems in both precipitation zones.
Current trends
Hence, the current trend of replacing native shade trees in coffee estates with silver oaks is detrimental for carbon storage and tree diversity, especially in robusta farms. Current policies do play a role in this change, because the exotics can be cut for timber without prior permission.
“We have submitted two reports to the Karnataka government on these findings, we hope some policy changes will be incorporated,” he said.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> Science / by Aathira Perinchery/ October 20th, 2018
Rohan Bopanna-Divij Sharan clinch Gold in Asian Games Men’s Tennis Doubles
This is the fifth Gold medal for India in the Men‘s Doubles (Tennis) since the Asian Games started.
Indian doubles pair of Rohan Bopanna and Divij Sharan beat Kazakhstan‘s Aleksandr Bublik and Denis Yevseyev in the Men‘s Tennis Doubles on Friday to secure India‘s 6th Gold (22nd Overall) at the Asian Games.
The Indian doubles pair thrashed the Kazakhstan duo 6-3, 6-4 to win the Gold.
Earlier, Bopanna and Sharan got the better of Japan‘s Uesugi K and Shimabukuro S 4-6, 6-3, 10-8 on Thursday after a nervy tie-breaker to reach the finals.
This is the fifth Gold medal for India in the Men‘s Doubles (Tennis) since the Asian Games started.
Previously, the team that won gold for India in Men‘s Doubles (Tennis) were – Gaurav Natekar/Leander Paes (1994, Hiroshima), Mahesh Bhupathi/Leander Paes (2002 Busan), Mahesh Bhupathi, Leander Paes (2006, Doha), and Somdev Devvarman, Sanam Singh (2010, Guangzhou).
On Thursday, Prajnesh Gunneswaran ensured another podium finish for India when he beat Korea’s Soonwoo Kwon 6(2)-7, 6-4, 7-6(8) to enter the semifinals of Tennis Men’s Singles.
In Tennis, Ankita Raina had to settle for a Bronze medal on Thursday after she lost 4-6, 6(6)-7 after a tough tie-breaker against China’s Zhang Shuai.
source: http://www.hermannherald.com / Hermann Herald / Home / October 14th, 2018
‘Karagas’ of ‘Shaktidevata’, the four goddesses, being offered a puja at Pampinakere in Madikeri, as a mark of the commencement of Dasara celebrations on Wednesday.
The traditional Madikeri Dasara kickstarted, though in a sober way, on Wednesday.
As per the age old custom, Madikeri Dasara celebrations commenced by offering puja to the decked up ‘Karagas’ of four ‘Shaktidevata’ Goddesses – ‘Kanchi Kamakshiyamma’, ‘Kote Mariyamma’, ‘Kunduru Chowti Mariyamma’ and ‘Dandina Mariyamma’ at Pampinakere, in the presence of Dasara committee members, elected representatives and devotees.
Special prayers were offered to the deities, seeking protection from natural calamities.
After Karagotsava, a procession was taken out from Pampinakere to Chowdeshwari Temple, through A V School and Mahdevpet Road.
Hundreds of devotees stood beside the road to have a glimpse of the Karagas.
From Thursday, all the four Karagas will visit houses and the devotees will welcome the Goddesses by washing the feet of the persons who carry the Karaga, along with fulfilling their vows, as per the age old custom.
History of Karagotsava
Karagotsava, observed as a part of Navarathri celebrations in Madikeri, has an interesting background.
The religious leaders had sought a divine intervention when the whole district was affected with an epidemic. As per the suggestion of the priests, it was decided to carry out ‘Karaga puja’ to appease the four ‘Shaktidevata’ and accordingly, the spread of epidemic was contained. The tradition has been continuing ever since then.
However, Madikeri Dasara is being observed in a simple way, owing to the massive floods in the district.
No rejoicing
Though the state government has released a grant of Rs 50 lakh, people are in no mood to rejoice. No festivity is in the air, except the flexes and banners wishing people for Navarathri festivity.
As the fear of floods and landslides still haunts tourists, the district is likely to see poor footfall during the Madikeri Dasara celebrations.
The resort and homestay owners have been campaigning to promote tourism, after the recent floods had a cascading impact on the tourism sector.
Inspiration drawn from fashion capitals like Paris or Japan in the business of design is routine. However, when you hear of a handbag collection that is inspired by the Kodagu district of Karnataka, the offbeat element is intriguing. Bengaluru-based luxury handbag label, Aranyani, has launched a line of totes, hobos and clutches that narrate design influenced by Kodagu’s landscape and culture.
“This collection tells the story of Kodagu, its flora and fauna, and culture seen through the eyes of its princess Victoria Gowramma, the first Indian royal to have landed in Britain in 1952. The bags are made with goat’s leather and handloom from Salem,” said CEO Haresh Mirpuri, who launched the label a year ago.
“Kodagu is known for its 250 species of birds like peacocks and birds of paradise that have translated into our design story in the form of motifs and colour schemes. The waterfalls of the mountain province, the nari-mangala or tiger wedding culture and medallions worn by brides at their wedding have been woven into the collection story,” he explained.
Interestingly, Mirpuri was stranded in flood-stricken Kodagu while working on this collection. “My brand draws inspiration from nature for all our lines. Stranded in Kodagu during its recent heavy monsoon and witnessing the devastation first-hand made me realize that we need to be serious and champion the cause of nature,” he said.
The Bengaluru brand has a celebrity client list that includes names like Hollywood singer Vanessa Williams and Bollywood actor Chitrangada Singh and comes in the price range of Rs 8000-75000.
Currently, it is retailed at flagship stores in Bengaluru, Surat and New York. Soon, they will expand to Delhi and Bali.
source: http://www.economictimes.indiatimes.com / The Economic Times / Home> Panache / by Smita Balram, Economic Times Bureau / October 11th, 2018
Gulshan Devaiah, who is set to experiment with a Bihari avatar in the web series Smoke, says he prefers challenging roles over those he can do easily. “Challenges attract me.
Roles that are difficult and that need work are ones that interest me. Roles I feel I can sleepwalk in don’t attract me. I give these roles everything I possibly can and then it’s for the audience to enjoy it or not,” Gulshan said.
Be it the Maharashtrian Mandar Ponkshe in Hunterrr or Kutchi Bhavani in Ram-Leela, Chittappa Gowda from That Girl in Yellow Boots or the Goan Ricky in Dum Maaro Dum, Gulshan has displayed his versatility in his projects.
Smoke is being touted as a gritty and dark crime drama set in the underbelly of Goa. It will premiere at the global entertainment content market MIPCOM 2018 in Cannes under the ‘Made in India Originals’ category on October 15.
According to a source, Gulshan kept his Bihari accent on and off the set throughout the duration of the shoot of Smoke, which will release digitally on October 26.
He will also be seen in a double role in Mard Ko Dard Nahi Hota and as a parallel lead with Vidyut Jammwal in Commando 3.
source: http://www.ahmedabadmirror.indiatimes.com / Ahmedabad Mirror / Home> Entertainment> Bollywood / IANS / October 11th, 2018
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