Category Archives: Arts, Culture & Entertainment

The Hockey Stars of Coorg

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Inspiration / Positive News and Features, Records, All, Sports
Still from "Hockey In My Blood" (India International Centre)
Still from “Hockey In My Blood”
(India International Centre)

Around April every year, Coorg’s famous tea-plantation fields turn into a hockey ground to host the Kodava Hockey Festival. It is considered the world’s largest hockey tournament that’s played fondly, and as a tradition, between the families of the region. The essence of this unique tournament has been canned in a 52-minute long documentary, “Hockey in my blood,” by Sandhya Kumar. It captures the relationship between the sport, the festival and the people involved – the Kodavas, a martial-tribal community who live in the beautiful Western Ghats in south-western Karnataka.

It all started when 69-year old Pandanda Kuttappa, who was a first division hockey referee, realized the passion for hockey in Kodagu district and also, that the junior hockey players were not getting enough recognition and exposure. In 1997, he organized the first tournament which was also a way to unite the community at one common occasion. In the beginning, there were 60 families, and today the number has gone up to 200. Interestingly, the game has no rules regarding age and gender but all the team members must be from the same family. The Kodava Hockey Festival has given India more than 50 players who have represented it in international tournaments; seven have even represented India in the Olympics. Renowned hockey players B P Govinda, M P Ganesh, M M Somaiya and C S Poonacha are all Kodavas.

“Hockey, once India’s pride, has been on the path of steady decline. From a dead certain Olympic gold medal discipline just a few decades ago, these days the national team struggles to qualify for the major tournaments. Given this scenario, for one region to continue to be so passionate about the game is a story in itself. But how the Kodavas have used the sport as a social glue to keep their community together is uniquely another story,” says the filmmaker.

The film starts with the final match of the 2013 tournament and runs back and forth from turning the rural hinterland into a professional hockey ground, stories of families and team players and different levels of matches. The whole family — from the oldest member to the youngest — practicing hockey in coffee plantations reflects the sentiments attached to the sport. Little Prajwal says that his family team is the best, just like Team Australia in the World Cup! On the other hand, 17-year-old Priya boasts of how she was made the captain the first time she ever played because she was the only girl in the team. “Over three months, the film travels to many parts of Coorg in a quest to understand ‘why hockey’ and ‘what a family tournament means to its people’”. The film also has former Olympians and professional hockey players from Kogadu going down the memory lane reminiscing their days playing on the plantation fields.

Bangalore-based Kumar has been making documentary films since 2007 and received the President’s National Film Award of India for 2013. She has films like “O Friend, This Waiting!” (2012), “Memory of a Light” (2014) and “Light Falling on White Flowers” (2009) to her credit.

-“Hockey in my Blood” was recently screened in Delhi at India International Centre and is scheduled to be screened in Bangalore this evening at Everest Talkies in Fraser Town. For more information, visit https://www.facebook.com/hockeyinmyblood

source: http://www.uk.bluinartinfo.com /BlouInArtInfo.com / Home> Performing Arts> Film> Article / by Hemani Bhandari /July 09th, 2015

Shivarajkumar gets candid with Shubra Aiyappa

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Famous Personalities of Kodagu / Coorg

ShubraKF09jul2015

Bonding with your co-star is perhaps the best way to ensure that there is chemistry onscreen. Century Star Shivarajkumar is known to be friendly, so it comes as no surprise when we spotted that he had posed for a selfie with his beautiful Vajrakaya co-star Shubra Aiyappa.

Vajrakaya is Shubra’s debut Kannada movie, which has gone on to do exceptionally well at the box office. What we also like about the picture is that both the actors are colour-cordinated as they are both wearing white outfits. Sweet!

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> Entertainment> Kannada> Movies / TNN / July 08th, 2015

Coffee, Coorg hockey

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Sports

Every year, Kodava players from over 200 families come together to play in their own hockey tournament

Vikalp Bengaluru, a forum of documentary filmmakers who regularly screen documentaries from the world over, present Doc@Everest, the Thursday documentary screening at Frazer Town’s famed Everest Talkies.

On July 9, they will screen Hockey in my Blood, a film about hockey in Coorg, told through the story of the Kodava Hockey Festival, the world’s largest hockey tournament played between the families of Coorg in the coffee hills of South India. The 52 minute film is in English and Kodava takk, with English subtitles.

Kodavas, the people of Coorg are a martial-tribal community known for strong ties to land and family. Every year, Kodava players from over 200 families come together to play in their own hockey tournament – The Kodava Hockey Festival. There is no bar on age or gender. The only rule of forming a team is that all members must be from the same family.

Young boys and girls, fathers, uncles, mothers, professionals and even former Olympic heroes – are all players. With the families playing for bragging rights for the rest of the year, victories are hard fought and competition can get heated. At the end of the month-long event, there is just one winning team but many winners – the sport and the sense of community not least among them.

The film be screened on July 9 at 7 p.m. Entry is free and donations welcome.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> Features> MetroPlus> Events / July 07th, 2015

Kannada cinema’s blonde babe

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Famous Personalities of Kodagu / Coorg
Harshika Poonacha
Harshika Poonacha

Harshika Poonacha is currently on a holiday, which she is spending in the USA. And in preparation for her break, the actress seems to have done something special — she’s coloured her hair blonde!

Harshika looks quite different in her blonde streaks and bangs. Going by her feeds on social media, she seems to be having a ball of a time on her holiday. Here are some of her posts that will give you an insight into what she’s up to in the US:

“Now thts d reason y I love America….I can do watever I want to do….. #USA #Funnn #Ilovetravelling”

“The Deepest Lake in #USA #CraterLake #CraterNationalPark #Funnn #Holiday”

“Saw a full rainbow for the first time in my life. So beautiful☺☺☺ #USA is filled wid new surprises fr me.I love it”

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> Entertainment> Kannada> Movies / TNN / July 03rd, 2015

The Power of Yoga

Arts, Culture & Entertainment

Yamini’s gift on International Yoga Day

YogaKF06jul2015

Following United Nations (UN) declaring June 21 of every year, beginning from this year, as the International Day of Yoga, there has been a plethora of publications on Yoga almost all over the world in different languages.

We find most of those books, richly produced on art-paper with any number of Yoga postures by sexy looking females along with men, looking like coffee-table books. This is not to belittle their purpose and quality. Some of the books are indeed excellently produced with inputs sourced from experience and research on the subject of Yoga.

One such book landed on my table by courier last evening and being such a beautiful book, I couldn’t wait for another day to browse through it. The cover of the book is produced above.

There is also another reason why I decided to write immediately about the book. Its creator, Yamini Muthanna, is a Mysuru girl, a highly talented daughter of my classmate in Madikeri, Kodagu, who mastered the art of Bharathanatyam, for whose arangetram in Mysuru, I had the opportunity to attend. That was decades ago. Being a distinguished Bharathanatyam danseuse, Yamini apparently is using her Yoga skills to enhance the beauty of her dance adding grace to this classical art form.

Yamini, who studied Ashtanga Yoga in Mysuru under the renowned Yoga Master B.N.S. Iyengar, later shifted to Bengaluru establishing a Yoga School called simply as ‘Yoga Sthala.’ Soon people from all walks of life — from professionals to students — began to make a bee-line to Yoga Sthala. From then on, there was no stopping her from spreading her wings and soaring high in the art and craft of Yoga. She has conducted workshops at Yoga-studios in London, New York, Washington DC and Los Angeles. She gives Yoga demonstrations with different postures interpreting the Yoga Sutras. A Baba Ramdev in female Avatar !

Yamini strongly believes that if every individual practices Yoga daily, making it a way of life, there will be much benefit to the practitioners of Yoga because it brings about mental transformation bestowing good health and peace of mind. That is the power and glory of Yoga.

The pictorial book running to 286 pages with an index and more importantly, [probably this is one of the good reasons to buy this book] it has in section D titled ‘Precautions’ under chapter 10, information about the common injuries that a Yoga practitioner may suffer and hence the need for taking caution.

The reason for some of the common injuries may be due to faulty practice of Yoga. Which is why one should always learn Yoga from a real Guru, an authentic master like for example the great late K. Pattabhi Jois and B.N.S. Iyengar of Mysuru or late B.K.S. Iyengar of Pune. These giants have produced many students who have perfected Yoga as propounded by its originator Patanjali. Apart from benefiting from it themselves, they have themselves become teachers of Yoga like Yamini Muthanna. It may be said that one of the reasons for its popularity is because these Yoga Asanas are therapeutic in nature and many have got cure from its practice for some of the ailments which could not be cured by allopathic or other alternative medicines.

While there are hundreds of books that have sought to explain different dimensions and perspectives of Yoga and its accompanying sub-types, ‘The Power of Yoga’ is a one-of-its-kind, hands-on guide that takes the personalised and customised approach to Yoga. It offers Yoga lovers the opportunity to get right to the heart of different kinds of Yoga.

Culled from years of teaching and learning Yoga, these sequences help incorporate combinations of the thousands of recorded asanas into tailor- made daily practice to suit particular lifestyles. The user can choose routines according to the levels of emotional, mental and physical fitness that he or she would like to reach. With bold visuals, illustrations and a go-to sequence manual, the book aims to be a dynamic and user-friendly guide to Yoga, rather than a stodgy reference book on it.

Not many of us are aware of the fact that Yoga routines can be customised and varied to suit our professions, body types, physical ailments, state of mind, mental make-up, work patterns and day-to-day life. It’s a book for the quintessential urbanite looking for physical fitness and mental balance.

Asanas are not mere physical exercises but therapeutic postures that activate certain chakras and nadis in the body. The techniques taught in this book are completely authentic and haven’t been improvised in anyway, claims the author.

Yamini has students from many parts of the world. She conducted a session for more than 100 people on the World Yoga Day as part of the celebrations. The book is a part of her endeavour to spread the knowledge of Yoga and what a purposeful endeavour !

At Rs. 995, this book must find a place in every home and benefit from it. The book will be launched on 3rd July, 2015 in Bengaluru at the Om Book Shop at the Phoenix Mall, Mahadevapura, by the noted artist (painting) Anjolie Ela Menon.

e-mail: kbg@starofmysore.com

source: http://www.starofmysore.com / Star of Mysore / Home> Abracadabra….Abracadabra / by K. B. Ganapathy / Tuesday – June 30th, 2015

LAST PAGE – Coorg Diary

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Nature

Here’s hope that Coorg will never become the tourist haven many feel it should aspire to.

CoorgKF04jul2015

Raining old women with clubs
This ancient Namibian proverb only partially describes our wet week-long sojourn in this utterly beautiful part of Karnataka. We’re 10 minutes up a steep hill (which till recently used to house a coffee plantation) in Bittangala, a short distance from the only golf course in south Coorg, or Kodagu. But no one can play golf. For four straight days and nights, it doesn’t stop raining. The wind howls for hours on end, abating for barely 10 minutes, before picking up again with renewed ferocity. Trees are uprooted, roads are blocked (and miraculously unblocked) and we survive thanks to a generator for the entire period. This continuous sound-and-water show plays tricks on the mind—and I’m not talking about board games Boggle et al. After a while, my sons Kabir and Krishna refused to go up to the bedroom alone to fetch a book—or even a gadget!

The affable Kodendera ‘Nanda’ Cariappa—the retired Air Marshal with an enviable lineage who got famously shot down and taken prisoner in the 1965 war with Pakistan—informs me that it has never rained so heavily in this part of Coorg since he’s been back 19 years ago. Located right in the middle of a forest, we soak in the green (and many more shades of green than you can imagine). Thankfully, no snakes and leeches show up.

Green politics

This onslaught of nature—mind you, the monsoons have barely begun—has given me some hope that Coorg will never become the tourist haven many feel it should aspire to. Des­pite thousands of plantations and homestays knitted together by excellent roads, connectivity to the rest of the country is poor. But given that the builder lobby is busy carving up “layouts” all over the district, there are fears that residential complexes and hotels will destroy the unique eco­system of this Western Ghats hotspot. Thanks to growth and poor sanitation, the capital Madikeri is fast becoming another Mussoorie. As writer Roopa Pai put it in a piece for the Outlook website: “Coorg is a small coffee-growing, pork-eating, hard-drinking, gun-toting district of Karnataka with a terrible superiority complex.” If you ask me, it’s in the national interest that it continues to remain so.

Right-wing rumblings

We’re in Coorg to celebrate the 75th birthday of my wife Rat­hi’s uncle G. Parthasarathy, the diplomat-turned-news-TV-hawk. There’s much family bonding—anecdotes are swapped, tall stories told, and I’m happy to report no one is provoked enough to spill a glass of wine. As word gets around, the invitations start flying in—everyone wants to meet the man on national TV! During one such interaction at a 100-plus-year-old house in Siddapur, it emerges that a key concern is “population control”—there has been a steady influx of Muslims from Kerala into the district. Despite assuring many of these guests that it is statistically impossible to overrun the Hindus, the older generation is clearly worried. The silver lining—one gets a calmer, more accepting view on migration when one speaks to some members of the younger lot.

Bittersweet partying

This is a first for me: I have never partied for an entire week with a group whose average age is 85, with the eldest being a sprightly 92-year-old Lt General Somanna, the former deputy chief of the army. His wife Renu, an irreverent and charming motormouth, was the star of one afternoon. You have to admire the zest for life here—they show up on time, eat and drink well, leave late, and drive their Dusters back to their estates themselves. Despite everyone knowing each other, I’m sure there’s loneliness and boredom too in these massive estates. And of course, there are limits to age. I get into a discussion on the joys of the drink Campari with a gentleman, telling him that some of the best things in life are bitter. A bit tipsy, he turned to me with a twinkle in his eye: “Well, I wouldn’t know if my wife’s bitter…it’s been a while since I’ve tasted her.”

National food integration

High up above the beautifully sleepy Mysore rests the famous Chamundeshwari temple. The tourist-clutter-complex also hosts Durga restaurant which has the best menu-teaser I’ve seen in a while: “South Indian meals, Kerala meals, Rajasthani thali, Gujarati thali, Punjabi thali, Bengali thali, Bombay thali, UP and MP, idly, dosa, alu parota, parota, puri, chapathi & side dishes Punjabi.” According to my vagabond friend Siddheshwar Wahi’s ast­ute analysis on Facebook, “Punjabi rulz! It appears twice.” A family elder asks an important question: “Surely, parotta tastes better than parantha?”

Last week…

While visiting Mysore, I text a colleague in Delhi whose hometown it is. I get the following response: “Good. Make sure you leave it the way I left it.”

Sunit Arora is the associate managing editor of Outlook; E-mail your diarist: sunit [AT] outlookindia [DOT] com

source: http://www.outlookindia.com / Outlook / Outlook> Magazine> Last Page> Diary / by Sunit Arora / Magazine – July 13th, 2015

Writer calls for documenting Kodagu’s tribal culture

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Historical Links / Pre-Independence, Records, All

Writer J Somanna on Sunday said writers should come forward to document the complete history of Kodagu where people from various communities speaking various languages reside.

The documentation of the district’s history has not been not carried out properly till date, he observed while presiding over the sixth Virajpet taluk Kannada literary conference here on Sunday.

“A lot of work has to be created in the literary world of Kodagu. Apart from the history documented by Christian Missionaries writers, folklorist Nadikeriyanda Chinnappa and D N Krishnaiah, we don’t have any other documentation on the history of the region. Now, Hampi Kannada University lecturer Tambanda Vijay Poonacha is trying to document the history. Young writers should also initiate a move in this regard.”

Somanna said that there was a need to document the culture, attire, tradition of tribals, including that of Kodagu Kembatti, freedom movement, life of soliders and so on. Only a handful of writers like G T Narayana Rao, Kodagina Gowramma, B D Ganapathy, Kakemani I M, Muthanna, Thambanda and Vijay Poonacha have made their names in the literary world, he added. Somanna said Kannada teachers should be trained properly to teach the language in an appealing manner.

The teachers should have an in-depth knowledge on the subject, he observed. He urged the Union government to nationalise educational institutions and frame a uniform education policy for the country.

Tribal academy sought

“The tribals in Virajpet taluk are living in a pathetic condition. The government’s facilities have not reached them yet. There is a need to rehabilitate them on the periphery of the forest. A separate Budakattu (Tribal) Academy should be established to protect the literature and culture of the tribals,” he said. The literary meet passed a resolution urging the government to check elephant menace.

At an open session presided over by taluk Kannada Sahitya Parishat president M P Keshava Kamath, honorary secretary D P Rajesh Padmanabha read out the resolution. It read: “Chennayyanakote is located on the periphery of the forest. The residents are scared following the elephant menace. The forest department should chalk out a plan to check elephant-human conflict.”

The resolution would be submitted to chief minister and forest minister through the deputy commissioner.

source: http://www.deccanherald.com / Deccan Herald / Home> District> Madikeri, DHNS – June 28th, 2015

Three tourist circuits identified to increase footfall in Cauvery basin

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Business & Economy

Interesting places in Mysuru, Kodagu, Chamarajanagar and Mandya districts, and parts of Ramanagaram district to be covered

TouristCircuitKF28jun2015

In a major boost to tourism promotion in the Cauvery basin — comprising Mysuru, Kodagu, Chamarajanagar and Mandya districts, and parts of Ramanagaram district — the newly constituted Cauvery Tourism Development Authority (CTDA) has identified tourist circuits for drawing higher footfalls.

The authority, which recently met, announced the circuits — Malai Mahadeshwara Tourist Circuit, Kodagu Tourist Circuit and Chamarajanagar Tourist Circuit.

The authority was constituted to develop a combined ‘Mysuru Tourist Circuit’ consisting of Kodagu, Mandya, Chamarajanagar and Kanakapura taluk in Ramanagaram districts. Incidentally, this was one of the recommendations of the Karnataka Tourism Vision Group.

Accordingly, the circuits — Kodagu, Chamarajanagar and M.M. Hills Tourist Circuits comprising prominent and lesser-known tourist destinations in all the five districts — Mysuru, Kodagu, Mandya, Chamarajanagar and parts of Ramanagaram district – were identified. The lesser-known spots were included to attract tourists and improve economy in the areas.

Kodagu Circuit
There are several alternatives to explore the destinations in the circuit. They include: Madikeri-Abbi Falls-Bhagamandala and Talacauvery; Madikeri-Dubare-Cauvery Nisarghadhama-Harangi dams; Madikeri-Iruppu Falls-St.Ann’s Church-Clock Tower-Nagarahole; Madikeri-Honnammana Kere-Mallahalli falls; Abbi falls-Chelavara Reservoir-Mallahalli falls and Iruppu falls; Mysuru-Golden Temple (Bylakuppe)-Cauvery Nisarghadhama-Abbi falls-Mandalpatti-Madikeri and Bhagamandala.

Chamarajanagar Circuit
There is a mix of pilgrimage, wildlife tourism, eco-tourism and waterfall tourism in this circuit. It includes Chamarajanagar-K.Gudi-Biligiri Ranganathaswamy Hills-Yelandur; Kollegal-Bharachukki-Chikkallur-Gundal; Kollegal-Malai Mahadeshwara Hills-Gopinatham-Hogenakal; Chamarajanagar-Terakanambi-Parvathi Hills-Gundlupet-Himavad Gopalaswamy Hills-Bandipur; Mysuru-Somanathapura-Talakad-Gaganachukki-Bharachukki-Chikkallur.

Malai Mahadeshwara Circuit
In this too, there is a mix of wildlife and eco-tourism. The spots covered are: Ambigarahalli-Yadatore-Kappadi-Chunchankatte-Periyapatna-Kendagannaswamy Gaddige-Bheemakolli-Antharasanthe-Haradanahalli-Terakanambi-Huluganamaradi-Kanakagiri-Parvathi Hills-Biliri Ranganathaswamy Hills-Bandipur-Himavad Gopalaswamy Hills-Nanjangud-Suttur-T. Narsipur-Mudukutore-Talakad-Chikkallur and Mahadeshwara Hills.

In addition, a decision has been taken to develop Mysuru-Gommatagiri-Yadatore-Kappadi-Chunchankatte-Bettadapura Circuit and Mysuru-Gaddige-Kabini-Bheemakolli-Chikkadevammanabetta-Nanjangud-T.Narsipur-Talakad-Mudukutore-Somanathapura circuit.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Bengaluru / by Shankar Bennur / Mysuru – June 27th, 2015

From here & there

Arts, Culture & Entertainment

Free and fearless tribal festival

Visit Devarapura, a small village in Virajpet taluk of Kodagu district on the fourth Thursday of May and you can witness a unique festival known for the use of expletives. The festival of abuse brings tribal people living in different parts of the district together. A huge number of tribals belonging to Jenu Kuruba, Betta Kuruba, Yerava and other tribes from Kodagu and surrounding districts participate in the celebrations.

The tribal people dress fancily and wear unusual ornaments like jackfruit skin and empty plastic bottles. A strange mix of paint, powder and mud in different shades of black, white and other colours decorate their body.

The traditional festival known as “kunde habba” or “bodu habba” is celebrated with fervour. Legend has it that Lord Ayyappa fell in love with Bhagavati Devi and followed her in the forest. Tribal people who were waiting for his return felt betrayed. In a rage, they started abusing him to get back his affection. The tradition has passed on through generations and continued as an annual event. Tribals gather in the village a day prior to the festival.

On Thursday they go out on the streets shouting and scolding people and village deities using choicest obscenities. While doing so, they visit houses and shops, begging for alms. In the evening they worship the almighty, apologise for their act and offer the money collected to the deity. The unique festival draws a large number of people from nearby places.

“The outpour of emotions reflects the broad outlook of the community. It provides a platform for them to give voice to the mental dilemmas they undergo, fighting the injustice met to them and claiming an opportunity to uphold their rights. It is also indicative of their struggle against odds, both natural and social. It also appears to be a protest of the underprivileged,” opines litterateur and folk scholar Prof Kalegowda Nagavara.

source: http://www.deccanherald.com / Deccan Herald / Home> Supplements> Spectrum / by Nihar Madikeri / DHNS – June 23rd, 2015