By Dr. K. Javeed Nayeem, MD

My association with the Kodavas, the people from the hilly neighbourhood district of Coorg, now Kodagu, is almost as old as I am. Ever since my early childhood we have had Kodava managers and writers in our coffee plantation in distant Chickmagalur. Their choice as overseers of our coffee growing enterprise was a natural one as they are themselves age-old coffee growers, with the art simply running in their blood. Two of them who grew very close to me as I grew up were P. M. Pemmaiah and K. K. Ganapathy both of whom joined duty within days of one another, even as they themselves were both young lads, barely out of their teens.

While the former, an absolute teetotaler, with a very quiet temperament, retired after many decades of faithful service and left to look after his own family holdings, the latter, a hard-drinking meat-eater and boisterous merry-maker but no less faithful, somehow retired into an ashram, becoming a sanyasi of sorts, completely shunning liquor, his first love and becoming a total vegetarian. During the daytime they would teach me to use a catapult with deadly effect and also to speak their native dialect Kodava thakk. In the even-ings they would feed me with interesting nuggets from the fascinating folklore of Coorg and spell-binding stories of the valour of the Kodavas, a warrior tribe.

When I arrived in Mysore to commence my education, at the turn of the sixth decade of the last century, this smattering knowledge of Kodava thakk and the folklore of Kodagu,stood me in good stead in my interaction with the many Kodava boys and girls who happened to become my schoolmates. Many of them continue to be my closest friends even to this day. With good English schools being very scarce in all the Malnad districts, it was then common for most children from well to do families to be put in schools either in Mysore, Bangalore or Ooty.

While I then used my Kodava thakk only to impress the girls in my school, as some of them might still remember, or at least recollect as they read this, I now use it only in elusive bits and pieces, thanks to a lack of practice, only to converse with my most elderly Kodava patients. I do this, not to impress them, because they are long past their impressionable ages but only to calm and reassure them as the bondage that the use of any language establishes with its speakers is instant nd very strong.

There are not many books, at least in English, about Kodagu and the Kodavas themselves and I have read almost all those that exist, including some of the ones that are now out of print. While all of them are very interesting and informative, I think none of them can make up for what I just finished reading just two days ago. It is a book that is unfortunately not yet available in print but one which I hope will soon find a ready publisher and many readers consequently.

Authored by Dr. Latha Muthanna, a close friend and a fellow physician, who is settled in Mysore, it is a first person narrative in the words of her recently deceased mother Malavanda (Biddanda) Gowramma Achaiah, a well-known social worker who was born in the year 1920 and who spent much of her married life in and around Chickmagalur. It was first written by her in Kannada script in Kodava thakk which lacks a script of its own and later expanded and rendered into English by the daughter who seems no less of a writer or historian herself.

Written in a style and language which I never knew my friend was capable of, despite our close friendship (and intense professional rivalry) over more than thirty years, the book is immensely readable with an ample sprinkling of humour and is therefore ‘unputdownable.’ It has a very apt and fitting title: Lopamudra’s Daughter, with Lopamudra being one of the main tributaries of the Cauvery, a river which we all know is holy to most Hindus in general and the Kodavas in particular.

While the book deals mostly with the lives of a cluster of close relatives from a few families of Kodagu spanning over four generations, it throws much light on many little known but very significant nuggets from the history and folklore of the land and its people. That is what is likely to make it very unique and also perhaps render it a keepsake for anyone interested in the history of Coorg or simply in a bygone era. To the uninitiated however, keeping track of the various protagonists in the narrative, especially with their tongue-twisting family names, may seem a slightly daunting task.

While the book has interesting cartoons by the well-known Kodava cartoonist Ponnappa,I feel the final print edition would do well with some photographs related to the many places that find a mention therein. The visit of Gandhiji to Coorg and his impact on the freedom movement there, the travails of the ordinary women who would without exception unfailingly turn into extraordi- nary home-makers immediately upon exchanging marriage vows, the poignant and recurrent tragedies brought on by the lack of health care facilities in a land tormented by rain and storm for a greater part of the year, are all there in vivid detail to stir the feeling heart.

Since I also happen to be from the Malnad hinterland where life is not very dissimilar from what it is in Coorg I could instantly recapitulate, visualise, smell and even taste the sights, smells and tastes that the writer talks about when she describes the traditions, the weddings, the festivals, or even the seasonal delicacies like mushrooms, honey and bamboo shoots, that come and go with different times of the year.

Reading the book was like finding the key that suddenly unlocked the door of nostalgia to my own past and childhood. I am sure it will do the same to the others who happen to read it too.

source: http://www.StarofMhysore.com / Feature Articles / September 21st, 2012

The Shaitan actor is gung ho about working in the Ranveer Singh-Deepika Padukone starrer, Ram Leela. And no, it is not the role everyone thinks it is!

Thanks to his unusual choice of roles, actor Gulshan Devaiah has earned himself the moniker of ‘Bad Boy of Bollywood’. His performances in Shaitan, That Girl In Yellow Boots and more recently Hate Story have been appreciated. And now he has bagged a role in Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Ranveer Singh-Deepika Padukone starrer, Ram Leela. Gulshan is reportedly playing a negative role in the film. But he himself has a different story to tell.

Though excited about doing a Sanjay Leela Bhansali film, Gulshan seems rather irked by the rumours about him playing a baddie in Ram Leela. He explains, “Though I can’t say much about my role in Ram Leela at this moment, it is not a negative role, as reported in the papers. Everyone has grey shades, be it the hero or heroine. It is an important part and the role just fell into my lap. I didn’t have to audition for it. I used to think that some day I will work with Mr Bhansali, but I didn’t know my dream would come true! I have started shooting for the film and it feels great to be working with the biggest director of India.”

While we like this gung-ho attitude, we are still curious. Sure, he is not the bad guy and no one is all white or all black, but what will an actor of Gulshan’s calibre do in a film that has commercial hot-shots Ranveer and Deepika in it? We wonder…

source: http://www.bollywoodlife.com / Home / by Keyrun Rao / September 20th, 2012

Sindhis are known to be food connoisseurs. And when producer Vashu Bhagnani came to know that South actress Nidhi Subbaiah has never tasted Sindhi cuisine, he took it upon himself to organise a special meal for her

Our source says, `The Kannada actress, who is making her Bollywood debut in Vashu’s film, took everyone by surprise when she mentioned she has never tasted Sindhi food. They settled on an off day and Nidhi was invited to the Bhagnani residence for a full-fledged Sindhi meal.`

Sources add that the meal consisted of Sindhi kadhi and tuk, three kinds of papad, sai bhaaji, sai aloo, dal pakwaan, tivan mutton, koki, and sev barfi for dessert! A birdie chirped to say Nidhi almost had a gastronomic orgy at the dining table!

Courtesy: Mid-Day.com

source: http://www.santabanta.com / Home> Bollywood> Titbits / Friday, September 14th, 2012

Vishal Dadlani talks to Ritika Arora about making music for Karan Johar’s forthcoming film

Nazia Hassan’s popular song Disco Deewane, composed by Biddu, is once again topping the music charts. Though the song has never been out of public memory but its remake avatar by Vishal Shekhar, which is a part of Karan Johar’s Student Of The Year, is a recent addition to many Djs’ playlists.

“We have twisted the desi number. Hip hop has been added to it, to make it more appealing. We have just used the phrase disco deewane and have changed the lyrics totally. Student Of The Year is light fun-filled film. The song was perfect for the prom party,” said Vishal.

This is the duo’s first full-fledged project with Johar as a director. “We share a good rapport. I and Shekhar have previously worked with him in I Hate Luv Storys and Dostana. Karan is very easy to work with.” Vishal has also sung Ratta Maar and Vele along with Shekhar.

“Before making music for the film it’s important to understand the script. This film revolves around youngsters. Even the cast is new. We wanted to make masti songs and not heavy emotional numbers. The tracks sit perfectly with the scenes and situations in the film,” added Vishal who is also the co-founder of the rock band Pentagram.“I have grown up listening to RD Burman and Pancham Da. I am heavily inspired by their work.”

Vishal feels our music industry has evolved over the years.“It’s so exciting and fulfilling to work with artists like AR Rahman, Shankar Ehsaan and Loy, Pritam, Amit Trivedi. They have taken music to an altogether different level. They make such refreshing music. I love the songs from Barfi. Nowadays a lot of bands are coming in, youngsters are getting a platform to showcase their talent. Earlier things were different.”

Vishal ended by saying that he has number of Bollywood projects lined up. “Everything is in its initial stages. Alongwith my band members, I am working on the next album,” he concluded.

source: http://www.dailypioneer.com / Home> Vivacity / Saturday, September 08th, 2012

At the Coorg table, you can immerse your tastebuds into a dark, tangy fish curry, with spice tones reminiscent of the famous pandi curry, but thinner and sharper. No coconut here — just ground onions, garlic and a few grains of raw rice as a thickener, a faint, pleasing bitterness from fenugreek seeds, dark roasted spices. Sharp, clear flavours emerge from the earthenware cooking pots. For a land locked, hill people, we eat a lot of fish in Coorg. The streams and rivers offered a generous supply of fresh water crabs and fish, like the sweet-fleshed bare meen.

Fishing trips had a touch of the theatrical — fire-lit or lamp-lit men, balancing along the mud embankments of the fields, or river-banks, to spear or trap fish. Bamboo traps were laid in cold, swift flowing streams. In season, the flooded paddy fields were full of crab and the prized, tiny koile meen.Fresh catch from the sea was just a day -trip away and, centuries of trade with the Malabar coast established a tradition of fresh and dried fish finding their way into Coorg homes, in sawdust-lined tin boxes, carried by Mapilah traders, to be haggled over in backyards. Salted fish was set aside for the monsoon months, or pickled in a thick layer of spices, immersed in baranis (earthenware jars).

To the fish and crustaceans of the sea and their own highland streams, the Coorgs brought their typical spice mixtures that added beguiling flavours. Whole mackerel, sardines, or slices of sweet-tasting river fish were lightly marinated in red chilli powder, turmeric and the indispensible kachampuli (Coorg vinegar), dipped in rice powder, and fried crisp on cast iron tawas. The contrast of the crunch of crisped exteriors, the lingering levels of spice in the firm flesh and a squeeze of lime was always perfect. There were plump morsels of pickled fish, and curries and pickles of prawns. Some days, an estate worker would come by with a catch of slender, flashing fish, a couple inches long, from the paddy fields. Fiddly to clean of the grit and mud, we spent ages rubbing slippery mounds with ash or salt for curry, or my favourite — clusters of koile meen, mixed with spices, for ‘cutlets.’

Fresh crab, caught in streams or fields were quick fried, or curried with finely ground coconut into a sour-spicy curry. Served with hot akki ottis and melted ghee. As we sat around a small, dining table, crunching crab claws and sucking out tender meat, my mother-in-law would explain which phases of the moon brought the crabs heavy with meat and, the knack of catching live crabs without receiving a painful pinch. I would nod enthusiastically, but left that particular task to the experts.

RECIPE
Coorg Fish Curry
Ingredients
* 1kg fish (seer works very well) cut into ½ inch thick steaks
Grind together to a fine paste
* 4 large onions
* 1 inch ginger
* 8 pods of garlic, peeled
* 1 ½ tsp jeera
Dry spices
* Red chilli powder to taste
* 2 tsp coriander powder
* 1 level tsp turmeric

For seasoning
* 1 tsp mustard seeds
* 2 green chillies
* 2 onions, sliced thin
* 8-10 curry leaves

For the roasted masala
* 1 tsp whole cumin (jeera)
* 1 tsp mustard seeds (rye)
* ¼ tsp fenugreek seeds
* ¼ tsp raw rice
* ½ tsp black peppercorns kachampuli, or malt vinegar

Slow roast the above spices separately on a hot tawa until they release their aromas and change colour. Allow them to cool, and crush to a powder, separately, and then mix.
* Salt to taste
* ½ cup oil
* 2 cups hot water

Method
Wash and dry the fish fillets or steaks.
Mix the kachampuli (or malt vinegar), the turmeric, chilli powder, salt into the fish, and set aside.
Heat the oil in a deep pan, or kadai, add the mustard seeds. When they begin to splutter, add the curry leaves, the sliced onions and the green chillies, and fry gently until softened.
Add the coriander powder, chilli powder, and ground paste of onions. Cook slowly, until the raw smell disappears.
Add 2 cups hot water, or more according to gravy required, and when simmering add the fish, and cook uncovered, until almost done.
Add the dry roasted, powdered spices, and simmer until done.
Optional — you can thicken the curry with a small amount of tamarind paste too.

– The writer is an anthropologist and independent author based in the city, who delves in to food, wine, travel and heritage. She is also behind A Gourmet’s Table In Coorg (http://coorg.com), a blog exploring the fascinating traditions of Coorg cuisine, food lore and special meals.

source: http://www.DeccanChronicle.com / Home> Channels> LifeStyle> Dine o Mite / by Kaveri Ponnapa, DC / September 06th, 2012