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Grey Matter

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

Five years ago, Gulshan Devaiah quit a successful fashion business to become an actor. Today, he awaits the release of Ram-Leela, which can be a game changer for him

ALAKA SAHANI

Some years ago when Gulshan Devaiah was walking towards his Andheri pad after a particularly bad day, he got a call from Kalki Koechlin. She was having dinner with Anurag Kashyap in the vicinity and wanted him to join them. Devaiah headed there. However, there was more in store for him. Kashyap and Koechlin narrated some scenes from That Girl in Yellow Boots to him and asked him to play the role of Chittiappa.

The character of this ruthless gangster was not fully fleshed out at that time. Drawing from his experience of devised theatre where the cast improvises together and develops a script, Devaiah started working on it. “We did not want Chittiappa to be a typical gangster. Apart from theatre, what helped me was the experience of living on the outskirts of Bangalore. People I had encountered there as well as the hoodlums in my college came handy in giving shape to the character,” he says.

With this, Devaiah got his first break on the big screen that kind of justified this National Institute of Fashion Technology, Bangalore, graduate’s decision to give up a fairly successful career in fashion at the age of 30 and shift to Mumbai. Five years since, he has acted in seven films and is awaiting the release of the most commercial of them all — Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Ram-Leela, where he is cast as Deepika Padukone’s cousin Bhavani. Most of his characters, including the one in this movie, where his villainy is unveiled gradually, are marked by dark shades. “Yet with each of these roles — be it KC of Shaitan or Siddharth Dhanrajgir of Hate Story — I have attempted to do something out of the box. I don’t have a straightforward approach; I like to deviate a bit,” says Devaiah, who has done English theatre in Bangalore and Mumbai. He featured in acclaimed plays such as Butter and Mashed Banana, Hamlet: The Clown Prince and Project STRIP.

source: http://www.indianexpress.com / The Indian Express / Home / by Alaka Sahani / Thursday – November 14th, 2013

Harshika Poonacha’s Lip-Lock In B3

Arts, Culture & Entertainment

Coorg girl Harshika Poonacha, who recently won Karnataka State Award for the Best Supporting Actor (female), has done three seconds lip-lock in her forthcoming movie B3. It is reported that the actress has done the lip-lock in a song sequence, which is featured on her and lead actor Shrikanth.

Harshika, who confirmed the news to a regional daily has said that the song of the B3 has a lip-lock scene, which features her and Sriknath. “Actually, it is a song, which has the intimate scene for ten seconds, including three seconds of lip-lock,” Harshika added.

Harshika has also said that B3 is a women centric movie and she has got an opportunity to show her talent as an actor. Talking about her role, Harshika said, “I am sure, I will get a big break with the movie. I will also make few boys to remember their girlfriends after they watch me on-screen.”

Defending the lip-lock scene, Harshika said, “Actress Sridevi was also seen in wet dress in the movie Mr India. I don’t see any vulgarity in that. We should change our mind set.” B3 reads the tagline – Love U, and it is directed Ghanshyaam.

source: http://www.entertainment.oneindia.in / OneIndia Entertainment / Home> oneindia> Entertainment> Kannada> News / by Sandesh / Wednesday – November 13th, 2013

When Ram-Leela’s costume gave Gulshan Devaiah trouble

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

Not everything went well for Gulshan Devaiah, who plays the chief antagonist in Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s ‘Ram-Leela’. Since the movie is based in Gujarat, the actor had to wear traditional costumes and jewellery for the film. A key element of that look is the earrings he is wearing.

(Gulshan Devaiah )
(Gulshan Devaiah )

Gulshan was initially excited with the idea of wearing the heavy earrings as the script, the look and the director demanded it. He, however, realised that they were pressing against his ear lobes and as a result gave him headaches and radiating pain down his neck & shoulders. “I spent hours and days trying to manipulate the shape of the earrings to fit my ears comfortably but it just didn’t work. They were really painful. I just had to put up with the pain as the earrings were such an integral part of the brilliantly designed look .”

Gulshan plays the character of Bhavani . The movie is slated to release on 15th November, 2013.

source: http://www.articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> Entertainment> Bollywood> News & Interviews> Costume / by Tanvi Trivedi / November 13th, 2013

Even semester class at Chikkaluvara campus from January

Education

Mangalore :

Mangalore University is all set to start even semester classes on its Chikkaluvara campus in Somwarpet taluk of Kodagu district from January 2.

While plans were drawn to inaugurate the campus on November 18, the mandatory presence of vice-chancellor T C Shivashankara Murthy to receive the Indira Gandhi NSS Award-2013 from President Pranab Mukherjee now means the formal inauguration will be held mid January.

However, the university authorities have decided to make best use of the infrastructure ready by commencing classes on the new campus spread over 73.4 acres of land when the even semester of the academic year 2013-14 gets underway in January 2014. For now, the university authorities will shift the post-graduate courses in microbiology and bio-chemistry to the new campus from the Field Marshal K M Cariappa College in Madikeri.

Shivashanakara Murthy said as things stand now, work on the science building and staff quarters on the campus is ready. “The work on the women’s hostel is in the final stages. If the inauguration had been held as scheduled on November 18, we would have to contend with some pending works with the arts building and the boy’s hostel,” he said, adding that work on overhead tanks and other sundry works too will be attended to in this duration.

Noting that no decision has yet been taken on naming the Chikkaluvara campus, the VC said. “Local sentiments in Kodagu district favour the campus to be named as Cauvery campus. However, the university is yet to form any opinion on this issue. This is a decision that has to be taken by the Syndicate,” he said. The Mangalore campus of the university is named Mangalagangothri.

source: http:articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> City> Mangalore> Mangalore University / TNN / November 13th, 2013

Indian Army hosts KM Cariappa Memorial Lecture

Famous Personalities of Kodagu / Coorg, Historical Links / Pre-Independence, Leaders

New Delhi :

The 18th Field Marshal KM Cariappa Memorial Lecture was held on Monday at the convention hall of Manekshaw Centre in New Delhi.

The event is held annually as part of the Infantry Day celebrations, which over the years, has become an occasion for prominent speakers to share their insights and thoughts on dynamically evolving strategic national security issues and imperatives of higher military leadership.

Lieutenant General SK Sinha (Retd), the erstwhile Vice Chief of Army Staff, a renowned veteran who has also rendered distinguished services to the nation in his capacity as India’s ambassador to Nepal as well as Governor of J&K and Assam, shared his experiences of the critical phase of transformation of the Indian Army at the time of India’s Independence and dwelt upon the personality and leadership traits of the Field Marshal.

He credited the Field Marshal with displaying visionary leadership and laying the foundations of the core values and military ethics of the modern Indian Army.

Chief of Army Staff General Bikram Singh speaking on the occasion, stressed on the continued relevance and necessity of upholding the core values of integrity, loyalty, duty, respect, selfless service, courage and honour, as well as the necessity of ensuring financial probity in all dealings.

He highlighted various initiatives which the Army was relentlessly pursuing towards reinforcing these core values amongst all ranks, especially in the changing socio-economic milieu.

A large number of serving officers and the veteran community attended the event.

source: http://www.indiablooms.com / India Blooms / India Blooms News Service (IBNS) / New Delhi – November 11th, 2013

Ancient microcontinent discovered in Coorg block

About Kodagu / Coorg, Historical Links / Pre-Independence, Nature, Records, All, World Opinion

MicroContinentKF16nov2013
A team of scientists from four research institutions have reported the discovery of an ancient microcontinent in India.

Based on extensive investigations in the Coorg block comprising parts of Kerala and Karnataka, the scientists have confirmed the existence of a 3.1 billion-year-old exotic microcontinent that could have broken off from Madagascar or Africa and drifted across the ocean to get wedged into the Indian landmass.

Based on the geological formations that characterise the block, the researchers assume that it could have been part of the earliest ‘Ur’ supercontinent formed through microcontinent amalgamation.

The age data of the rock samples collected by the researchers showed that the peak of continental building in the exotic Coorg block occurred around 3.1 billion years ago. The studies indicated that the crust building might have also involved partial recycling of basement rocks as old as 3.8 billion years.

The team comprising M. Santosh from India, now working at the China University of Geosciences, Beijing, Q.Y. Yang from the same university, E. Shaji from the Department of Geology, University of Kerala, T. Tsunogae from Tsukuba University, Japan, and Ram Mohan and M. Satyanarayanan from the National Geophysical Research Institute, Hyderabad, has published the discovery in Gondwana Research, an international journal on earth science with particular focus on the origin and evolution of continents.

According to the paper, the Coorg block, a continental fragment sandwiched between the Dharwar craton (a craton is a piece of a continent that has been stable for over a billion years) in the North and several younger crustal blocks to the South, is composed dominantly of a suite of arc magmatic rocks.

“Considering the age of the rocks from the periphery of the Coorg block, the microcontinent could have got wedged with peninsular India around 1.2 billion years back in time,” says Dr. Santosh, the lead author.

“This exotic microcontinent could have come from any of the cores of the earliest supercontinent Ur. The possible sources are Madagascar or Africa.”

The study revealed that the Coorg block was unaffected by major tectonothermal (geological episodes that shape rock formations) events in the rest of southern India.

The team relied on Uranium-Lead dating and Lutetium-Hafnium analyses of zircons separated from the different rock types. They also carried out petrological and mineralogical studies and geochemical analyses of the rocks.

The study is significant in understanding the supercontinent cycle, the amalgamation of continents into large land masses and their disruption.

“The Early Earth was dominated by island arcs in an oceanic realm analogous to the modern Pacific region. The formation and collision of arcs gave rise to the birth of microcontinents,” explains Dr. Shaji.

The landmass arrangement on earth today is the culmination of a long history of continental movement. The Indian subcontinent is believed to be one among the several landmasses that emerged from the break up of the Gondwana supercontinent about 180 million years ago. The Coorg block covers an area of over 3,000 sq km and includes the whole of Kasaragod district in Kerala and parts of Kodagu district in Karnataka.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> National> Kerala / by T. Nandakumar / Thiruvanathapuram – November 12th, 2013

Coorg: A Green Escape in Karnataka

About Kodagu / Coorg, Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Nature

If you find Ooty, Kodaikanal or Munnar a bit too touristy and crowded a destination in southern India, Coorg is that perfect holiday spot in Karnataka that is sure to please toddlers, youth and the old alike.
CoorgKF16nov2013
Not that this hill station needs to be chosen for a sojourn by eliminating other similar destinations in the vicinity. Just a three-hour drive from Mysore, 150 km away, Coorg district on its own has much to offer, beyond its coffee, cardamom, pepper and beetelnut estates.

There is much to see, admire and soak in at this hill station, which the locals call Kodagu, on the slopes of the Western Ghats, what with some pristine trekking trails, picnic spots, waterfalls, wildlife, woods, forests, valleys and some mouth-watering cuisine. Situated at a height of 1,525 metres, Madikeri or Mercara is the capital of Coorg, with a nice bazaar, quaint houses with red-roofs and liberal use of teakwood reapers for doors and furniture, so common among homes and clubhouses in Indian hill stations.

It may come as a surprise to some that Coorg has one of the largest settlements of Buddhists in India, just about 30 km away from Madikeri, with their own Namdroling Monastery built in 1963, which the locals call the Golden Temple. Once you enter the monastery, you feel transported into some other world in the Orient, packed as it is with some 5,000 monks in bright yellow and red robes, with some soothing Buddhist chants, smell of incense and breathtaking sights of pagodas.

After seeing those large golden statues of the Buddha and Tara, the intricate murals and Tangkha paintings, don’t forget to taste some authentic Tibetan food here, especially the delectable momos and the subtle thugkpa, their noodle soup. One is told it is the largest teaching centre of Nyingmapa – a major lineage of Tibetan Buddhism in the world – and the present Dalai Lama gave its shorter name, as opposed to Thegchog Namdrol Shedrub Dargyeling that this mesmerising place was called originally.

Before dwelling further, where to stay is a question that is bound to crop up. While there are plenty of hotels and resorts, including the Orange County, that can even set you back by as much as Rs.25,000 per day, it is best to opt for a home stay. There are some 35 of them in and around Medikeri in a range of Rs.1,000 to Rs.5,000 per day where one gets not just to retire but also taste authentic Coorgi food and take some refreshing strolls on their plantations that grow coffee and other cash crops.

As far as the season goes, October to March — like most places in India — are the best months. The weather is pleasant with that welcome nip in the air. But Coorg during monsoons can be equally mesmerising and enchanting. There are also plenty of places one can go to. There is Abbey Falls, not far, where one has to make his or her way through some dense woods, dotted with coffee bushes, trees and creepers, to suddenly find a cascading gush of water.

Then about 80 km away is the Iruppu Falls, right next to the Rajiv Gandhi National Park, also called Nagarhole, which is famous for its elephants, with a lot of other game and some 50 species of birds. Children, especially, are certain to enjoy a visit to Dubare Forest, around an hour and a half from Medikeri. A ferry there takes you across to an elephant camp where one can see the pachyderms being bathed and fed, after which they are ready for a joy ride.

Talacauvery, around an hour away, is the source of the river Cauvery, with a temple to pay homage to this main source of water for some parts of Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. Not far is Bhagamandala, the confluence of three rivers: Cauvery, Kanika, and Sujyothi.

Another must-see is Tadiyendamol, which is the tallest peak in Kodagu and gives a breathtaking view of the entire Coorg, apart from the distant Arabian Sea. There is also the Naalkunaadu Palace built by Kodagu king Dodda Raja Veerendra in 1792. After all this exploring, a bungalow at the plantation is perhaps the best place to retire. Toddlers can chase butterflies, and a hammock and freshly brewed coffee are sure to be at hand!

How far: Around 150 km from Mysore and 260 km from Bangalore

How to reach: By bus or car from Mysore. Closest airport is in Bangalore; the airport in Coimbatore in neighbouring Tamil Nadu is another alternative.

Cost: Around 35-40 home stays in Coorg ranging Rs.1,000 to Rs.5,000 per day.

source: http://www.indiatimes.com / India Times / Home> Lifestyle> Travel / November 11th, 2013

Obituary : Lt. Col. (Retd.) M.C. Uthaiah

Famous Personalities of Kodagu / Coorg

LtColKF14nov2013
Mysore :

Lt. Col. (Retd.) M.C. Uthaiah (76), hailing from Munjandira family and a resident of Vijayanagar First Stage, passed away at the Jayachamaraja Wadiyar Golf Course here this morning.

He is survived by wife Chummi Uthaiah and a large number of relatives. Last rites took place at Chirashanthidhama in Gokulam this afternoon. Uthaiah was an ardent golfer and an active member of the Mysore Kodava Samaja.

source: http://www.starofmysore.com / Star of Mysore / Home> General News / November 08th, 2013

Five IAS officers transferred

Business & Economy, Leaders

The State government on Friday issued transfer orders to five IAS officers.

M V Savithri as been appointed the new Managing Director, Karnataka Public Lands Corporation Limited, and Priyanka Mary Francis is the new Managing Director for Karnataka Food and Civil Supplies Corporation.

The other officers are: V Srirama Reddy, MD, Managing Director for Karnataka State Beverages Corporation Limited; Dr D S Vishwanath, Deputy Commissioner, Ramanagara district, and P I Sreevidya, the Deputy Secretary, Zilla Panchayat, Kodagu — who has been given the additional responsibility of being the Chief Executive Officer, Zilla Panchayat, Kodagu.

Other officers

The government has also appointed V Umesh Kusuga, KAS, the new MD, North-Western Karnataka Road Transport Corporation, Hubli, and K B Anjanppa, CEO, Zilla Panchayat, Haveri.

source: http://www.deccanherald.com / Deccan Herald / Home> State / Bangalore – November 08th, 2013

Coffee growers spar over poly wrap method to curb white stem borer

Agriculture, Coffee, Kodagu (Coorg), Nature, Science & Technology

Better solution: An arabica plant stem wrapped with cellophane tapes to prevent it hosting the white stem borer on a coffee estate in Kodagu. / The Hindu
Better solution: An arabica plant stem wrapped with cellophane tapes to prevent it hosting the white stem borer on a coffee estate in Kodagu. / The Hindu

Results are good, says Coffee Board; some planters raise environmental concerns
An ingenious method has been found to control the ruinous white stem borer in coffee estates where the arabica variety is grown. But coffee planters are split over the effect of the solution with some even questioning its impact on the environment.

According to A.K. Bhandari, coffee planter and former President of the United Planters Association of Southern India, wrapping the stem of the arabica plant with cellophane, called poly wrap, helps in containing the borer menace. The wrap prevents the female beetle from laying eggs in cracks and crevices of the plant.

“We came across this solution some two-and-a-half years ago when some planters used old plastic to wrap the stems. It prevented the borer from laying eggs and controlled the spread of the pest,” he said.

Coffee white stem borer, Xylotrechus quadripes, is a pest found in arabica coffee causing huge yield loss. A blackish brown coloured beetle, it can also be found on rosewood, sandalwood and teak.

Ten to 12 days after the female beetle lays the eggs on the stem, the larvae enter the woody tissue and burrow up to the roots. This leaves the plant impaired and the only known solution is uprooting the plant totally and burning it.

“Poly wrap physically stops the insect from laying eggs on the plant. Growers had, at one point of time, wrapped plants with old fertiliser bags. Now, they have begun to use strip wraps and the results have been good,” said Jawaid Akhtar, Coffee Board Chairman.

History traces the borer menace to 1837 and the first reference was made in 1838 by H. Stokes, Mysore Commissioner. In 1868, the Madras Commissioner had reported the ravages of the borer in Mysore and Coorg.

YIELD LOSS

“We have been suffering from the borer menace for over a decade now. It has affected arabica production. In some estates, nearly 50 per cent of plants had to be uprooted,” said Bose Mandanna, a grower in Kodagu and former vice-chairman of Coffee Board.

The borer menace has resulted in arabica production stagnating around one lakh tonnes annually for almost a decade after rising to a record 1.21 lakh tonnes in 2001-02 (October-September) season. Its share in total coffee production (robusta makes up the rest) has decreased from over 50 per cent in the 1980s to around 30 per cent now.

This year, out of the estimated 3.47 lakh tonnes production, arabica output has been pegged at 1.11 lakh tonnes. However, growers expect it to be lower than 90,000 tonnes.

“The poly wrap seems to be working very well. Most of the growers have reported 99 per cent success. About 10 estates can be taken and the experiment tried for 2-3 years,” said Bhandari.

The Coffee Board had sent an advisory on the poly wrap but not much progress seems to have been made.

“Labour shortage is the reason why poly wrap has not picked up. Also, there was short-supply of wraps. That has ended now as supply is ample. Results are encouraging and the wrap does not affect the plant’s growth,” said Akhtar.

But, there are voices of dissent too.

“The poly wrap was tried in small pockets and it has not been successful when tried on a large-scale. It prevents plants from growing. The bark growth is stunted and we feel this is not a scientific solution,” said the Karnataka Planters’ Association Chairman, Nishant Gurjer.

Some of the corporates involved in growing coffee have now begun to experiment the method. “We have begun the poly wrap on Coffee Board’s suggestion and are assessing the results,” said an official of Tata Coffee at its Margolly estate in Kodagu.

However, concerns are being raised over its effect on the environment.

“When the poly wrap gets old, it could lead to environment problems since it won’t disintegrate easily,” said Mandanna.

Gurjer agrees. “Plastic will add to the mechanical damage to the plants,” he said.

Other growers say that until a better solution is found, the poly wrap method should continue.

source: http://www.thehindubusinessline.com / Business Line / Home> Industry> Agri-Biz / by M. R. Subramani subramani.mancombu@thehindu.co.in / November 07th, 2013