Category Archives: Arts, Culture & Entertainment

2013 was a year of joy, sorrow for Kodagu

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Business & Economy, Records, All

Kodagu district witnessed a series of incidents in the year 2013 that has bygone. The year brought joy and sorrow to the district, however a keen look into the year reveals that the district witnessed more negative events than the positive ones.

From the heavy rainfall that proved disasterous to the district, to the reports under the guise of conservation of environment creating ripple in the society, the district has seen it all. It was also a year of protest, as there were repeated protests opposing Madhav Gadgil report and Kasturirangan report on conservation of Western Ghats, demand for title deeds to tribal, demand for relaxing the law on possession of weapons, protest seeking autonomy status to Kodagu.

Of all the events, the rain fury leading to major damage across the district, occupies the first place in the list of events. Coffee growers and agriculturists incurred crores of rupees loss due to rain. Six persons and 30 cattle lost their lives. The district administration had submitted a report to a study team from the Central government estimating the rain loss at Rs 86 crore.

The district witnessed a success in the form of amendment to the Land Revenue Act, 1964, scrapping the tax imposed on Jumma Bane land. Unfortunately, despite the amendment, people complain that the revenue department officials have failed to implement the Act effectively.

The presence of Maoist activities which was felt in the end of 2012, continued even in 2013. Maoist activities were noticed in Madikeri, Virajpet and Somwarpet taluks. In this backdrop, the government has decided to set up an Anti Naxal Force camp in Kutta.

For the first time in the history, Talacauvery – Bhangadeshwara temple management committee offered ‘Annadana’ for a period of one month from October 17 to November 16 as a part of Tulasankramana.

Despite the disputes that prevailed in offering ‘Annadana’ right to private organisation, ‘Annadana’ was offered, thanks to the efforts by Deputy Commissioner Anurag Tiwari who strove hard to co-ordinate between the temple committee and Kodagu Ekikarana Ranga.

source: http://www.deccanherald.com / Deccan Herald / Home> District / by Shrikanth Kallammanavar / Madikeri, DHNS – December 31st, 2013

Gazal Somaiah to up her glam stakes

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

GazalKF23sept2014

Gazal Somaiah, who made her T-Town debut with Uu Kodathara Ulikki Padathara, will be seen in a chirpy role in her next film, The End, directed by Rahul Sankrityan. Taking about her role, Gazal says, “It’s a horror film and my role offers ample scope to perform. I play a glamorous urban girl,Rekha,who is full of energy. I’m totally caught unawares with the paranormal happenings around me,” says the actress who was admittedly “very apprehensive” initially about the film.

The most difficult part of shooting for Gazal was dubbing her lines. “When my director couldn’t find a suitable voiceover artiste, I jokingly said I’ll dub for my lines. Then we went ahead and I think it’s the most difficult part in the filmmaking. But being a South Indian, I’m familiar with Telugu and I was able to complete the task”, explains the Coorg born actress, who will also be seen in a romantic entertainer Jagame Maya.

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> Entertainment> Telugu> Movies / by Shashidhar AS / September 22nd, 2014

The Tamara Coorg wins ‘Best Luxury Honeymoon Resort in India’

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Business & Economy, Records, All, World Opinion

TamaraCoorgKF22sept2014

The Tamara Coorg won the award for ‘Best Luxury Honeymoon Resort in India’ at the Service Excellence Awards 2014 organised by Brands Academy recently.

Established as a celebration of unmatched excellence, Service Excellence Awards honour the doers and pioneers of the service industry. World-renowned chess champion, Vishwanathan Anand, presented the awards at a gala ceremony held in Mumbai, India.

Senthil Kumar, CEO, The Tamara Coorg, attributed the resort’s successes to its dedicated staff and world-class standards. “We are honoured to win this award and be recognised for our services. We strive to not only maintain our standards but to continue to exceed our guest’s expectations in the wonderful journey that lies ahead of us,” he said.

source: http://www.hospitalitybizindia.com / HospitalityBizIndia.com / Home> Newstrack / by HBI Staff, Mumbai / Monday – June 09th, 2014

Home stays to be certified as ‘good and clean’

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Business & Economy

Tourism dept plans to get both new and existing ones surveyed by third party

The Abbi water falls draws many tourists to Kodagu
The Abbi water falls draws many tourists to Kodagu

Ahead of Dasara, the tourism department is on a mission to assess the quality of home stays across the state. Following complaints of illegal home stays popping up around various tourist destinations amid fresh applications seeking licences, the department wants to screen both the existing and upcoming home stays with the help of an external evaluating agency.

Karnataka has about 2,000 home stays classified under Gold and Silver class. However, it has been more than four years since the tourism department reviewed the condition of existing home stays and allowed setting up of new ones. “There are about 500 to 600 applications comprising both the new ones and existing home stays. All of them have to be reviewed before handing them a certificate which will boost their business and tourism activities,” said A Poovaiah, Joint Director, Tourism department.

The parameters for evaluation include hygiene, sanitation, ventilation, quality of services, affordability, safety standards and so on. “The department will not directly evaluate the home stays on these merits. Instead, a third party will be chosen by way of tendering and all applications seeking permission to set up home stays will be referred to an experts’ committee. They will visit the proposed place and assess the applicants. Based on the recommendations and final inspection by the department experts, we will classify them,” Poovaiah said.

The department has strict guidelines for setting up of home stays, but there have been several illegal home stays. “At times, house owners mislead officials, claiming that the guests are their distant relatives and officials cannot intervene. Unless people tip us off about such illegal home stays, we can’t initiate any action. Further, the tourists must insist on seeing the accreditation or certificate issued to them by the tourism department,” said a senior official.

The Scotland of India— Kodagu — has the highest number of home stays followed by Chikmagalur. Only Kodagu has Gold category home stays, which number 12. The other 13 districts have only Silver class home stays.

source: http://www.bangaloremirror.com / Bangalore Mirror / Home> Bangalore> Others / by Niranjan Kaggere, Bangalore Mirror Bureau / September 16th, 2014

Musicians hit a high style note

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Business & Economy, Famous Personalities of Kodagu / Coorg
Singer, actor Monica Dogra has turned into a fashion designer
Singer, actor Monica Dogra has turned into a fashion designer

Channeling their creativity to clothes, several musicians are turning designers and debuting their fashion lines

Following her success as a singer and songwriter, Monica Dogra has recently turned fashion designer with the launch of her debut fashion line for Stylista.com. Inspired by her own personal style, the collection mirrors the singer’s varied inspirations that include music, cinema and contemporary art. Dogra is not the only musician to bring her creativity in the line of fashion. Nikhil Chinappa, one of the pioneers of EDM in India, recently launched a menswear collection. And then there is ace guitarist Randolph Correia, who has designed a collection of tees for men and women in association with Kulture Shop.

Dogra’s collection is inspired by her own personal style, which is very boho chic, and has a very grunge and rock vibe that’s perfect for music festivals, gigs etc. “She loves layering using clothes that can be styled in different ways, and this collection can be worn by women in so many different ways to represent their own personal style. Her collection is breezy and comfortable, and consists of beautiful prints, bohemian silhouettes and earthy colours — all of which represent Monica perfectly,” says Avnish, CEO of Stylista.com.

Nikhil Chinapa, besides being one of the first VJs, is also the brainchild behind the country’s exploding EDM scene. koovs.com has collaborated with Nikhil for a menswear collection. “Nikhil is well respected within the EDM world and has a large social media following. We wanted to take this energy forward and channel it into a clothing collection that would reflect the aesthetics of this scene,” says Robert Bready, creative and retail director, Koovs.com.

Talking about what appealed to him the most about this collaboration, Chinapa says, “The idea is actually one of the oldest one in the world, which is — ‘why not’! I had never done something like this before, so I readily accepted the offer. The behind-the-scene people and I seemed to be on the same wavelength, so I decided to take up the offer.”

Chinapa’s fashion sense makes him one of the coolest musicians in the EDM world. He quips, “However, my mom would not agree and likes to call it my ‘fashion nonsense’. I guess I have done my mom proud by designing something which she is not going to like completely, but my fans are giving me a positive feedback about the same.”

Talking about his collection, he says, “My collection is fuss-free yet quirky. There are some longer back tees, hoodies, trousers, sunglasses. When it comes to music, I am happy that musicians prioritise music, but I guess after music, it would not be a bad idea to focus on one’s fashion sense, dental hygiene, usage of hair gels and deodorants.”

In the West, it is a popular concept to have celebs like Victoria Beckham, Kim Kardashian, Jennifer Lopez, Sarah Jessica Parker and others successfully running their fashion lines, while in India it still seems to be at a nascent stage. “E-commerce industry is certainly coming of age and they are constantly trying to establish themselves as an alternate shopping industry. Celebrities tend to add credibility and a high dose of glamour to their fashion lines, which encourages their followers to buy their products. In India, Bollywood, cricket and music work very well from consumer’s perspective. E-retail chains are tapping celebrities and now musicians with a good fan following in the digital world. Internationally, this trend is quite prevalent owing to the large amount of resources and support systems they have at their disposal to enter the fashion industry. I think the trend is nascent in India but is definitely picking up steam,” adds Anurag Rajpal, director & CEO, American Swan, who have recently roped insinger and rapper YoYo Honey Singh as their brand ambassador.

Talking about the association Honey Singh says, “I am looking forward to creating a music video for the brand. The brand positioning resonates with my quintessential approach to life, music and work, which is why I accepted the offer. The video will see me styled in looks that my fans haven’t seen before.”

source: http://www.asianage.com / The Asian Age / Home> Entertainment> Music / by Aditi Pancholi / September 13th, 2014

Cauvery Theerthodbhava on Oct. 17

Arts, Culture & Entertainment

Madikeri :

The annual Theerthodbhava will occur at the holy pond at Talacauvery, the birth place of Goddess Cauvery, at 6.07 pm on Oct. 17.

This decision was taken at an official meeting held at the Town’s Fort here yesterday.

Kodagu District in-charge Minister K.J. George, who presided over the meeting, directed the officials to conduct the Theerthodbhava in an organised manner.

When DySP Prasanna V. Raju brought to the attention of the Minister the landslides that have been occurring on Bhagamandala-Talacauvery road on account of incessant rains, the Minister instructed the officials to clear the road of rocks and earth.

As a precautionary measure, the meeting decided to allow only government buses and light commercial vehicles from Bhagamandala to Talacauvery on that day.

The Minister also directed to ensure appropriate lighting and other arrangements in place at Bhagamandala and Talacauvery during the Theerthodbhava.

source: http://www.starofmysore.com / Star of Mysore / Home> General News / September 11th, 2014

KSTDC to stard one-day package tours in Kodagu from Sept. 12

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Business & Economy, Nature

Mysore :

With the influx of tourists to Kodagu district and Dasara fast approaching, the Karnataka State Tourism Development Corporation (KSTDC) will commence one-day package tour in Kodagu from Sept. 12. The decision has come after the recent visit of KSTDC Managing Director Dr. P.S. Harsha to Madikeri during which he had promised to introduce one-day package tour to various tourist spots in the district.

During his visit, Dr. Harsha held a meeting with the stake holders and later decided to introduce one-day package tours from Madikeri on Sept. 12. The introduction of package tours is expected to bring down the burden on tourists who often complain about being charged exorbitantly at the tourist locations.

The package tour will be flagged off on Sept. 12 at 8.30 am from Hotel Mayura Valley View in Madikeri by Kodagu Deputy Commissioner Anuraj Tewari. The package tour, which begins from Madikeri, will travel to Bhagamandala, Talacauvery, Rajara Gadduge, Abbi Falls, Raja Seat, Omkareshwara Temple and will return back to Madikeri. Tourists may visit in person Hotel Mayura Valley View (KSTDC), Kodava Samaja Building, near Police Station, for reservations or contact Ph: 08272-228372 or 08272-223333 or Mob: 89706-50028 or 89706-50116 or 93417-93984.

Pick-up Points: Hotel Mayura Valley View, Madikeri, Convent Junction, SBI Junction, KSRTC Junction, Kodava Samaja and Thimmaiah Circle have been identified as pick-up points said V. Paneesh, Asst. Director, Department of Tourism.

source: http://www.starofmysore.com / Star of Mysore / Home> General News / Wednesday -September 10th, 2014

Anoop Menon’s next film’s location is Coorg

Arts, Culture & Entertainment

AnoopMenonKF10sept2014
Anoop Menon’s first film as a solo hero – Angry Babies in Love – amassed impressive response from Kerala box office.

The actor recently traveled to Coorg and apparently was blown away by its beauty. He wrote on his online page – “Back in town after a long journey. Missed you all… Coorg was a revelation. I recommend the interior hamlets for the uninitiated. We are shooting our next film She Taxi extensively in the forests of Coorg. Its shoot starts this October and it promises to be another fun filled entertainer from Saji Surendran.”

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> Entertainment> Malayalam> Movies / Deepa Soman, TNN / Septmeber 09th, 2014

Throws her weight around for causes

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Famous Personalities of Kodagu / Coorg, Sports
Ashwini Ponnappa: Remember them who laid down their lives so that we can take breath in air of independence, a big salute to them....Happy Independence Day.
Ashwini Ponnappa: Remember them who laid down their lives so that we can take breath in air of independence, a big salute to them….Happy Independence Day.

Apart from concentrating on her game, Ashwini Ponappa is busy supporting various causes. Currently, she is lending her voice to the Voice of Stray Dogs, and also advocates the importance of teachers with Aksara Foundation with the same commitment and affection that she cares for stray dogs. “I have gained popularity and that helps me give some mileage to such organisations. I’m doing nothing, all the credit goes to them for their special work. I only throw my weight behind them,” says Ashwini, former world class shutler.

Ashwini says she cannot be more grateful to teachers, as she refers to Aksara Foundation’s social campaign for teachers. “Throughout my life, whoever has been my teacher in various aspects of my life has played a vast role in shaping the person I am today. Teachers are very underappreciated in the society and more needs to be done to recognise their importance.” An animal lover herself, Ashwini’s admits that her hectic schedule had her miss out on adopting a pet.

“But a couple of dogs made my parents’ house their home. So for all intents and purposes, they’re our dogs,” she says. A friend was following the Voice of Stray Dogs page on Facebook and she appreciated their work, so she too ‘liked’ the page. “They (Voice of Stray Dogs — VoSD) do amazing work here in Bengaluru and I want to do my bit to support them. They take care of the dogs until they’re completely healthy. I would love to go visit them in Bengaluru but I haven’t had the time yet.”

source: http://www.deccanchronicle.com / Deccan Chronicle / Home> Sports> Other Sports / DC / Vijay Anand / September 08th, 2014

Madikeri Dasara committee submits audit report

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Uncategorized

Committee had spent ` 91.31 L in 2013 Dasara

For the first time, Madikeri Dasara Committee has submitted the audit report of the expenditure of 2013 Dasara to the district administration. The State government has been giving funds to the committee to organise Dasara with grandeur, from last few years.

According to the audit report, the government had sanctioned Rs 75 lakh for organising the programme. The total expenditure during 10 days was Rs 91,31,711 which includes funds collected from general public. Dasara Utsav Committee Working President K M Ganesh told Deccan Herald that the report which has been audited by chartered accountants has been submitted to the district administration. “As we requested the chief minister to release additional fund this year, he has agreed to release an additional Rs 25 lakh. We will upload the expenditure of this year’s Dasara on the website – www.madikeridasara.com, which can be viewed by general public.

However, the government has imposed three terms and conditions while sanctioning the amount. They are, to use the money for the same purpose for which it has been sanctioned, to submit an utilisation certificate of the proper use of released fund and to follow the rules under Transparency Act, 1999 in collection of public fund.

Meanwhile, the district registration officer has reported the district administration stating that Madikeri City Dasara Committee has not renewed its registration since 18 years. The committee was registered on May 4, 1987. Though it is supposed to be renewed every year, it was last renewed in 1995-96.

source: http://www.deccanherald.com / Deccan Herald / Home> District / by Shrikanth Kallammanavar / Madikeri – DHNS , September 03rd, 2014