Dr. Cheranda Koushik Ponnanna has been appointed as a Visiting Fellow at the National Institute of Health (NIH), National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK), Phoenix, Arizona.
He will be conducting his Post Doctoral Resarch on the Genetic Basis of Type 2 Diabetes and Obesity. He holds a Ph.D in Genetics from University of Mysore. He is the son of Cheranda Ravi Thimmaiah and Usha from B. Shettigeri, Kodagu.
source: http://www.starofmysore.com / Star of Mysore / Home> In Briefs / August 14th, 2023
The Head of Creative Culinary at ph4 Food and Beverages, which runs The Permit Room and Toit, talks about learning from the expert in traditional Coorgi cuisine: his mother.
Chefs don’t usually get a lot of time at home. I live in a family home in Bengaluru so I am spending a lot of time with my parents. It has given us the time to bond better.
At home, it is traditional Coorgi food that we are cooking. My mom is the expert at making it. I am helping her out, brushing up (my skills) and being hands-on like never before.
My father cooks once in a while. He has his signature dishes, like pork ribs. He has not had the time and we are not getting things very easily. So, we’re trying to cook with what we have and what we saved, instead of trying to go out and buy things.
The most famous staple Coorgi dish is a pork dish called pandi curry which I have been making for a while now. There are also a lot of rice accompaniments that we do that need a little bit of experience to perfect.
There is a flat rice cake called paputtu. It is like idli, but made with coarser grains of broken rice and topped off with freshly grated coconut. We made that for breakfast. Then there is a rice ball, called kadambuttu, which we are making at home.
We had preserved some small mangoes ( sakkare guthi variety) in the freezer. We do that as a family; we get them in season and we keep them for the whole year. So, we made a mango curry with some mustard, curry leaves (just a basic tadka ) with a bit of jaggery and some spices.
Once in a while, I whip up something with what we have at home. The other day I had a packet of instant noodles; I think it was a very mellow-flavoured one. I had some elk sausage in the fridge so that added some depth to the noodles. I had done it once before; it turns out great. I think a friend got the sausages for me from Germany a long time ago. That stuff is nuclear-war proof. Nothing happens to it (laughs).
Akki Roti with eggs and greens
Ingredients
Eggs 2 nos
Cooked rice (day-old is also okay) 1 cup
Rice flour 1/2 cup
Salt to taste
Spinach (can use any local greens) 1/4 bunch
Onion, 1/2 sliced
Dried red chilli 1 nos
A pinch of mustard
Oil 2 table spoons
Chopped cashews 5 nos
Curry leaves a spring
A pinch of mustard
Ghee 2 teaspoons
Preparation
1.For the akki roti : Mix the cooked rice and rice flour (in increments) to make an evenly mixed dough where you can still lightly see the rice grains.
2.Make small rotis using a roti press and cook on a tava and finish on open fire to get the char.
3.For sauteed greens: Heat oil in the pan, saute mustard, onions and chilly. Add the greens, cook till done.
4.To temper: Heat the ghee in a small pan, add the mustard, red chilli and cashews. Heat till cashews turn slightly brown and crispy. Add the Curry leaves and finish.
5.Finally, Make a soft scramble with the eggs, once all the other components are ready. Assemble the greens and scramble on the akki roti and garnish with the cashew tempering.
6.Recipe by chef Kavan Kuttappa
Chef kavan Kuttappa | Photo Credit: Special arrangement
Regarding work, we had just finished trials and were about to launch a new menu at The Permit Room and then this happened. So, what I am doing right now is spending the time documenting. As chefs, we don’t like to really sit down and document recipes but I have been getting more time, so that is what I have been focusing on.
A lot of focus has also been on taking care of the staff, which I feel is very important.
Overall, our company (pH4 Food and Beverages) has about 450 employees. In Bengaluru, The Permit Room has about 50 employees who stay in staff housing and Toit, owned by the same company, has over 100 employees.
The staff stay in accommodation that the company provides. We are cooking meals (rice, dal and vegetables with egg once a week) for them at the restaurant everyday and delivering it. They are not hungry, if nothing else, and they have a roof over their heads. [Ensuring] this has been a major responsibility and task.
In this series, India’s popular chefs and restauteurs share their lockdown cooking habits and recipes with us.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> Food> Recipes / August 10th, 2023
Rumoured couple, Sandalwood actors Harshika Poonachha and Bhuvan Ponnanna are all set to tie their knot on August 24.
Harshika who debuted with ‘PUC’ movie has made a mark of her own in Sandalwood with several movies in her kitty. She has also acted in Hindi, Telugu and other regional languages.
Bhuvan Ponnanna entered Sandalwood with ‘Just Math Mathalli’ movie in 2010. Although, he did appear in several movies, he was shot to fame after he appeared in Bigg Boss Reality TV show.
Interestingly, both Harshika and Bhuvan hail from Kodagu district. They had together carried our several charity works during Lockdown.
It is said that Harshika and Bhuvan will marry in true Kodava style on August 23-24 at Virajpet
source: http://www.mysoorunews.com / Mysooru News / Home> General / by News Desk / August 04th, 2023
Ex-banker Soomanna Mandepanda and his wife, Puja Soomanna set up their startup Humblebean in 2017 to ensure better prices and reach for small coffee farmers and improve every part of the value chain.
For former banker Soomanna Mandepanda, the motivation for setting up Humblebean was not just to sell the best coffees, but more importantly, uplift the small and medium Indian farmers who grow them.
In the process, he is trying to bring about changes at almost each stage of the business — from cultivation and supply chain to research and education.
Founded in 2017 by Soomanna and his wife and former Yahoo executive Puja Soomanna, Bengaluru-based Humblebean works on an omnichannel model: It ties up with small coffee farmers in south India, roasts and grounds supply, provides the beans to roasters, exports its products, operates brew bars, and has an online presence.
A responsible way to grow coffee
The coffee drinking experience has been gaining traction in India, with the market for the brew expected to record a compound annual growth rate of 7.2 percent during 2021-25, according to a January 2021 Statista report.
Startups including Sleepy Owl, The Flying Squirrel, and Coffeeza, as well as shops such as Third Wave Coffee Roasters are making their presence felt in the market.
India is the world’s sixth-largest producer of coffee and fifth in terms of exports; in fact, 70 percent of its production is exported, says a January 2021 report by the India Brand Equity Foundation. Yet, Soomanna says, “a lot of small and medium farmers and farms aren’t getting the kind of business and reach they should”.
Soomanna would know: he spent most of his childhood on the coffee estates of Coorg and was a small farmer before moving to the world of finance and banking for 13 years. One way to correct the imbalance, he says, is by “making great biodiverse coffee that farms in India are already poised to do”.
According to him, 80-90 percent of coffee farms in India are held by small and medium farmers, whose secondary income comes from crops such as jackfruit, avocado, pepper, and orange that are part of the same farms.
Cultivating other crops alongside coffee “ensures automatic carbon sequestration, top soil replenishment, and lesser need to feed chemicals unlike commercial crops grown in other countries”, says Soomanna. “The mining of the minerals is automatic and you become carbon neutral.”
Puja Soomanna
Advocating farmer-friendly norms
Increasingly popular among young consumers are organic, speciality, and Rainforest Alliance coffees that respectively employ natural methods of cultivation dispensing with harmful chemicals, are of the highest grade being derived from a single origin or single estate, and protect the environment as well as worker rights.
However, in India these certified varieties are grown largely on rich estates; most small and medium farmers cannot afford the costly certifications and grades.
Coffee cultivation and the business are still quite unorganised in India, the certifications cost a lot of money, and need constant follow-ups, says Soomanna.
“The norms are difficult to adhere to for most small farmers. It is a replication of an American model.”
______________________
He says most large corporations in India export to Europe. “The small companies in Hassan, Chikmagalur, etc. certify about 150 estates and add the tags. But the farmer doesn’t get the price because the better prices are still being fetched with the local trader. The local traders are important, but the real traceability is lost.”
As farmers don’t get better prices, there is little driving them to improve their produce, he says. “Speciality coffee is something few farmers can afford to grow.”
Hence, the need to bring in farmer-friendly rules, he says.
The Humblebean coffee
Promoting social value investing
Given the largely unorganised state of affairs, Humblebean focused on getting farmers on board. The team collected random samples, tasted them, and guided farmers on growing the beans in a better way.
By 2018, the team had got 50-60 farmers on board and given them assessment reports free of cost. Until then, the startup was in its pre-revenue stages, bootstrapped with funds from family and friends.
The team then focused on getting roasters to directly buy from farmers. For this, it adopted the idea of social value investing, in which everyone who is part of the value chain comes together to solve a problem and there is money in it for all.
_______________________
“Once we got the farmers on board, we decided to tie up with brands and introduce them to the new portfolios of coffees,” says Soomanna. “We incubated close to four different brands in India from scratch to start a unique brand with a different blend. The idea was to bring in multiple partnerships and inclusiveness in the farming community on one platform.”
Most of the speciality coffee firms have restricted names and types of beans grown on particular estates. “The idea is to bring in more brands that can access different estates, work with them, and encourage the farmers,” says Soomanna.
Humblebean also fulfils the complete roast and ground process for such brands and even gives them a credit facility, he says.
Quality comes with education
Towards the end of 2018 and early 2019, the Humblebean team found that coffees served at most star hotels weren’t up to the mark.
One of the reasons for this, Soomanna says, is that coffee as education is lacking in hotel management schools: one has to go to Italy to learn more about its nuances. The Coffee Board of India mostly takes care of the functionality, he says.
___________________________
“We met a few management schools and after some discussions it was decided that the colleges would look at it as part of the curriculum,” says Soomanna.
Brewing innovative Indian blends
Even as Humblebean works to improve every part of the value chain, it is trying to offer consumers a very Indian coffee drinking experience.
To that end, the startup opened its first Brew Bar in the food experience section of a workspace on Bengaluru’s Residency Road in 2019. Humblebean was one of the early members of that workspace set up by a Singapore-based company.
Puja, who conceptualised Brew Bar, spent time innovating the blends with the use of Indian robustas.
“We don’t serve a single cup of speciality coffee; we wanted to make sure through the brewing methods can small and medium farmers come into mainstream brewing?” says Soomanna.
_______________________
He says these Indian blends “aren’t being used by a single new-age speciality coffee company” as they are considered “harsh and used as a filler across the world. But they are unique and you need great expertise and experience to make a robusta out of them”.
Following research and development, the startup has also come up with its own set of products. Together with B2B partners, it has launched these products online and will soon sell them at other marketplaces. The range is priced at Rs 220-350 for 250 gm for limited editions and depending on the roast.
“Indian coffees can have a global impact,” says Soomanna. “The idea is to be farmer-friendly and also not cause too much environmental damage. We want to bring an amazing cup of coffee from the farms the way it should be drunk.”
Edited by Lena Saha
source: http://www.yourstory.com / YourStory / Home> / by Sindhu Kashyaap / edited by Lena Saha / February 07th, 2021
The Rainforest Challenge India is among the top five toughest motor spots in the world and the rally was held from July 22 to July 29.
Chethan Chengappa teamed up as a co-driver with rallyist Anand V Manjooran and finished second overall. (Photo|Special arrangement)
Madikeri :
A spirited rallyist from Kodagu has finished second overall in the Rainforest Challenge (RFC) India rally held at South Goa recently. Chethan Chengappa, who joined in as a co-driver alongside a Kerala rallyist, came second overall despite complexities.
The Rainforest Challenge India is among the top five toughest motor spots in the world and the rally was held from July 22 to July 29. The RFC recorded 21 participants from across the country.
Chethan Chengappa teamed up as a co-driver with rallyist Anand V Manjooran and finished second overall and second in category, despite the various breakdowns of the vehicle they were driving. The duo were supported by JK Tyres Motor Sports and Vamcy Merla Sports Foundation (VMSF).
The highlight of their win was when Chetan took over the wheels and drove in reverse gear for nearly 3.5 km.
“The RFC has 26 stages and the terrain is really tough. In the twilight zone, the main gearbox of our jeep broke down. At this time, I took over the wheel and drove 3.5 km in reverse gear to finish the stage,” recalled Chethan.
He added that the rally was extremely tough due to incessant rainfall in Goa this year. “In one of the stages where we had to cross a river, our jeep got stuck. I took over the wheels and we finished second overall,” he explained. Chethan has been an active rallyist and he has participated in the RFC India six times. He has won five times in the rally – thrice as overall champion and finished second overall two times.
source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> States> Karnataka / by Express News Service / July 31st, 2023
KC Ganapathy will pair up with Varun Thakkar to represent India in the men’s 49er event at Tokyo 2020.
Indian sailing star KC Ganapathy not only made his country proud but also put his community — Kodava — on the sailing map of the world by making a cut in the 49er event (with crew member Varun Thakkar) for Tokyo 2020 at the Mussanah Open Championship earlier this year.
For the uninitiated, the Kodavas are a tribe from the Kodagu region of Karnataka in India, who speak the Kodava language. And the 26-year-old will be the first from his community to represent India at the Olympics.
His journey to the pinnacle of the sporting event has been challenging as after losing his father, Deepak Chengappa, it was his mother Reshma Chengappa, who ran the furniture business for his family in Chennai.
However, his achievement is also fulfilling for his grandmother Padma Prathap, a resident of Kolthodu village near Hatur in South Kodagu, as she has seen Ganapathy overcome all the odds.
“He won the Under-12 National Championship and has come a long way. I pray for his success every moment,” she told the starofmysore.com.
Incidentally, his journey is also inspiring for his Indian sailing contingent teammates, who have seen his never-say-die spirit at close quarters.
It happened so in 2020, that after being reduced to visual training for a major part of 2020 in Chennai, Ganapathy and his crew member Thakkar decided to train in South India in Rameswaram. However, the plan turned out into a disaster, as a bike accident almost reduced his chances of competing any further.
Ganapathy suffered a hairline fracture on the foot along with a soft tissue damage. But he was able to pull off the recovery in no-time, thanks to the doctors and training process he was asked to follow. His teammate Vishnu Sarvanan, a laser radial class sailor, has had a lot of respect for him ever since.
“When I got into sailing for the first time, I kind of looked up to him,” Vishnu told the New Indian Express.
Moreover, Ganapathy also worked on putting up weight to balance his boat (along with his partner), which needs a minimum of 160 kilograms on board. And from quitting school to pursue sailing on a full-time basis, Ganapathy has come a long way in pursuit of making his dreams count
When will KC Ganapathy’s campaign at Tokyo 2020 begin?
Varun Thakkar and KC Ganapathy will begin their campaign at Tokyo 2020 on July 27, Tuesday, in the men’s 49er Race 1.
source: http://www.olympics.com / Olympics.com / by Samrat Chakraborty / July 26th, 2023
City’s tennis ace Rohan Bopanna and his wife Supriya Annaiah talk about his successful stint at Wimbledon ’23, maintaining a high level in sport and his final appearance at the Davis Cup.
Bengaluru :
While it is undoubtedly true that Indian tennis ace Rohan Bopanna is in the twilight years of his sporting career, a quick look at his recent achievements denotes he is still far from being finished. The 43-year-old, in the recently-concluded Wimbledon, reached as far as the semi-finals in the doubles category with his partner Australia’s Matthew Ebden.
Getting to the final four of a major at his age is pretty unprecedented. But the laurels don’t end there. Bopanna also rose to no 7 in the ATP rankings for doubles, the first time he reached the number since 2013. Bopanna says the experience at Wimbledon was ‘fantastic’.
“Especially since last year, I did miss Wimbledon. They did not have any ranking points last year, so I decided to skip the event. It’s one of the events which I think every tennis player wants to play. It’s a mecca of our sport. And Matt (Ebden) and I had a pretty successful season so far. We had some tough matches in the beginning, and I think fighting through that was a tremendous achievement for us,” shares the Bengalurean.
Regarding making it into the top 10 rankings, Bopanna elaborates, “It’s really good to be back in the top 10. Especially with the way I’ve been playing. I think the Grand Slams make that difference. You can achieve big points in major events like Grand Slams and Masters. This year, that’s what we have done. And I think it has really shown the difference,” he says.
The pressure of maintaining a high level in sport gets harder as you age, and support from loved ones is crucial. Supriya Annaiah, Bopanna’s wife and a practising psychologist, explains, “I don’t work with him as a psychologist. Ethically, I can’t and personally don’t cross that boundary. Each athlete’s needs and requirements from their spouse varies.
So when I started travelling with him on the tennis tour 12 years ago, it meant understanding his world from scratch, but it was also very freeing – to be able to customise our partnership to pay attention to his needs and performance, while I get to honour my needs and individuality too.” She adds, “Tennis is a sport that demands a lot out of an athlete on and off the court to be at a particular level – I’ve witnessed Rohan go through the grind of it.
So when I cheer for him on and off the court, it is equally (sometimes more) for the man he is behind what he does professionally.” Annaiah believes that the need for an athlete to maintain their mental health is pertinent now, but there isn’t much awareness around it in India when it comes to sport psychology. “There are courses that are being offered, and professionals are being churned out in India.
However, in sport, there isn’t enough awareness and practice in a place where physical health is given attention at par with mental health despite knowing that both go hand in hand. Athletes need to know that they don’t need to reach a tipping point to seek help,” says Annaiah. This year, unfortunately, is the final time Bopanna will play in the Davis Cup in September, a tournament he has been playing since 2002.
“One of the main reasons I decided to stop playing Davis Cup is because I know, this is one place where if I stop, another Indian will be able to take my place. It’s been a long career representing India in the Davis Cup, over 20 years. So, I’m very happy to move on and am very happy that I can bow out of the cup in India,” concludes Bopanna, adding that the one thing that helped him was to have short-term goals.
source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Cities> Bengaluru / by Tunir Biswas / Express News Service / July 29th, 2023
Brik Oven, the renowned Bangalore-based pizzeria is thrilled to announce a collaboration with Nikki Ponappa, golf coach and founder-the Food Lover Company, for a special breakfast sandwich pop-up event. This partnership aims to support the Coorg Wellness Foundation, with all proceeds from the event going towards the charitable organization.
Brik Oven’s sourdough, meticulously fermented for 48 hours, will be generously packed with the most delicious fillings. The menu will be showcasing a range of breakfast sandwiches including scrumptious Burrata and Mozzarella cheeses and bread made in-house at Brik Oven. Drawing inspiration from the coffee heartland, the sandwich spread will feature an authentic Coorg delicacy as well, directly sourced from the estates of Coorg – the Pandi Curry. The offering will also include Veg, Vegan, Prawn and Brik Oven’s own Roast Chicken and Ham varieties, paired with fresh seasonal fruits for a harmony of flavours.
Brik Oven and the Food Lover Company aim to create a memorable culinary experience for attendees while supporting a noble cause, a commitment to building a community and giving back to the Coorg Wellness Foundation. The Food Lover Company has made significant contributions to the foundation’s initiatives, including the construction of homes and the provision of higher education for children in Coorg.
Drop in at Brik Oven and dig into these mouth-watering sandwiches. Follow @brikovenblr on Instagram for more updates!
Filmmaker duo Raj Nidimoru and Krishna DK’s upcoming web series Guns & Gulaabs will premiere on Netflix on August 18.
The upcoming series brings together Rajkummar Rao with Dulquer Salmaan, Gulshan Devaiah and Adarsh Gourav.
The streamer shared the show’s release date on its platform. “Coming on 18 August,” the tagline read.
Inspired by the misfits of the world, Guns & Gulaabs is set in the 90s. It is billed as a story that depicts love and innocence though it is set in a world of crime, as per the official description of the series.
Produced under Raj & DK’s banner D2R Films, the show also features TJ Bhanu.
Guns & Gulaabs marks the first directorial venture of Raj & DK with streamer Netflix.
They earlier made shows The Family Man and Farzi for Prime Video and are currently working on the Indian chapter of Citadel for the streamer.
source: http://www.cinemaexpress.com / Cinema Express / Home> Hindi /by PTI / July 21st, 2023
The 22nd Annual get-together of Kuvempunagar Kodava Residents Association, Mysuru was held on July 16 at Kodava Samaja’s Field Marshal K.M. Cariappa Community Hall in Vijayanagar 1st Stage here.
On the occasion, Association directory was released.
Seen in the picture are from left:
Ponjanda Lovely Appaiah, President, Shri Kaveri Kodagu Mahila Sangha; Byretira Ganapathy, Association Past Secretary; Mukkatira B. Jeevan, Kodava Samaja Hon. Secretary; Machanda Raja Muthappa, Association Secretary; Voterira B. Medappa (Vittal), Association President; Mechanda Shashi Ponnappa, Samaja President; Madapanda Lala Appachu, Association Vice-President; Balyamanda Nanaiah, Past President; Moovera Kuttappa, Past President and Ithichanda Kalappa, Association Past President.
source: http://www.starofmysore.com / Star of Mysore / Home> Gallery> PhotoNews / July 23rd, 2023
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