Unveil the Other Side

Bangalore, ah, my dear old friend! Every visit feels like catching up with a buddy who’s constantly evolving but still cracks the same old jokes. Whether it’s the early morning ambles through Lalbagh, where the grass is still half asleep, or the high-energy hustle of Commercial Street, where the art of bargaining deserves a gold medal, Bangalore knows how to keep me on my toes. Now, living overseas has turned me into quite the daydreamer. I often find myself drifting off, imagining the smell of filter coffee wafting from my go-to café or the electric vibe of MG Road on a Saturday night. It’s funny how the city has mastered the art of juggling old-school charm with new-age chaos, all in one breath. Take Cubbon Park, for example—a slice of serenity where the leaves gossip in the breeze. But then, step outside, and bam! You’re back in the traffic circus, where honking is a language of its own. I used to grumble about it, but now? I catch myself smiling at the thought of it from across the...

Come again August , the plan to visit Lal Bagh for the Indepedence day flower show is one that I wouldn't want   to give a miss. And waiting for "The I Day" makes it impossible to soak in the right essence of the show. The crowd is getting intolerable on weekends and public holidays over the week-long festival year after year. I generally pick the weekend before "The I Day" to avoid bit of a crowd. If you are lucky enough to breathe through the hustle bustle, grandpas, grannys, lovey-doveys who seem to be inseparable, recent fathers pushing the trolleys of their babies while the mom is capturing some macro flower snaps, the school outing team, then I'd say you are a perfect Bangalorean. And me one such Pakka Bangaloored lady take this challenge every six months. The adventure this time did not please me much, may be my expectations were high. It was plain and simple. Some attractions in the glass house are - Panda made of pink flowers   ...

The flower show at the Botanical garden in Bangalore[Lal Bagh] is an event that puts me into a world of imagination. I love the creations and the thoughts that are poured in every year. As a part of the Republic day celebrations this year the glass house is filled with various creative flower arrangements. This show happens to be the 100th exhibition event since Dept of Horticulture started the flower show. On a pleasant saturday evening, I started off my stroll from the west gate and stopped at the lake which had floating floral boats. It was indeed an amazing view. South Korean Buddha Stupa is the show stopper this year which is housed in the centre of the Glass house. Made of roses, carnations, Orchids and foliages - a total of over 4 Lakh flowers are used to build this massive 30 feet tall structure. Alstromeria and Carnations are used to build yet another beautiful Floral flow structure - "Flower Pouring Out of a Pot". The concept in itself is a wow factor. I had only ...

Our locality which comprised of 30 homes or less 2 decades ago has turned into a full-fledged layout with over 200 homes and families. Back then, a group of young , energetic and enthusiatic minds churned out an idea - A youth Association. Basically we (the entire locality folks) meet once a year and spend a day with lots of fun.A lot many faces have come and gone in these years, but the enthusiasm remains. This post is all about the cultural activities we organize every year in our locality. Ahhh!This year the day started off with the routine pooja followed by the games for elders - Uncles and Aunties (as we refer them as), concurrently running painting and essay writing competitions for kids. Dumb charades followed by Antakshari for youngsters. There was fun everywhere. A stress free day between the stressful life was what I had been waiting for and la here it was. Lunch was a balance of masalas - Bisi bele Bath , curd rice and the special delight - mysore pak . Evening was a mix o...

That's a title as suggested by my sister and cousins who accompanied me yesterday for a ride on the "Namma Metro" - The first ever metro train in Bangalore city.The most hyped attraction of the city which has missed several deadlines and finally made its grand opening this October is the first step in bringing some peace to Bangalore traffic I'd say. With the reach of Metro, not really that attractive as of now, I guarantee that upon its completion in the years to come we can see some organized structure in the movement of traffic in this city. The plan was in place. Sis, I and two other cousins had the idea of enjoying this ride when it opens to public. What better day could it be than the Karnataka/Kannada Rajyotsava to make this event dream come true! Yes, we headed out on the road early yesterday morning (Pretty early). Reached MG road at around 8:30am. Walked past the Deccan Herald (office of a daily newspaper) and there we walk the first time ever into the stati...

This was not the first time I visited Lal bagh. Yet it had its own charming welcome. Colors around and pretty decorum made it the perfect outing. Alone I started this journey and the best part of the day was the attractive Lal Bagh Flower show. Its been a beautiful part of my life now as I can cherish the memories viewing the clicks I happened to capture in the lens - How ever they dont match the real view that's stored in my brain :) Lucky me - to have been blessed to see this colorful nature. Part of the Independence day celebrations started a week before the actual date. I thoroughly enjoyed the Flower show and here is a glimpse of what I saw in Real. Next time if you are in Bangalore either during the Republic day weekend or Independence day weekend and if you love colors , nature and gardening - Please don't miss this event. Vande Mataram. Jai Hind! Macro shot of a Dahlia in white and Maroon. That's an Anthorium in Red. Loved the cont...

The Meteorological Department had its forecast in place, ahead of time. Wet weekend it had to be - So was it. Friday evening as I sit on my chair keying in some words making the rugged program work accidentally happened to glance at the window and my vision is stuck to the dark clouds. The setting at any IT office is pretty much similar - Lights are on throughout, giving an imaginary illusion of day beyond 6 in the evening as well. However I sit in a place that gives a clear view of the sky. Hurdling through the bustling traffic, avoiding as many potholes possible - made the trip back home in a ridiculous 3 hours drive. Cars carried mud along, auto rickshaws pulled themselves with all the strength - drivers making the best of the opportunity. Bikers - ones afraid of falling sick took shelters off the road until the rains mellowed a bit, the ones who did'nt care of drenching - zoomed along. Adding to the splashing surprise for the city on Friday, more rains and thunder-show...

Vidyarthi Bhavan - One of the iconic restaurants in Bangalore/Bengalooru makes me feel elated every visit there. If you are in and around Gandhi Bazaar area, then this is one place you need to hop into, for the very reason of gulping in a hot cuppa filter coffee while munching away a calorie-rich-ghee-roasted Masala Dosa. This restaurant, with the interiors backing to the age it opened with [Started in 1943], is a mark of old Bangalore/Bengalooru . Breakfast or an evening snack - this is the right place to be. Its a small crowded place and people flock here all hours in the day till the doors close. Diet! - Forget the routine for one day to enjoy this restaurant's special masala dosa. Bid a bye to your calorie conscious soul while you relish the crisp crepes[Dosas] accompanied with coconut chatni and lentil sambhar . You need to wait for atleast 15-20 minutes to occupy a table. A common scene one would come across here is that people stand next to you when you are eating, as they ...

BIAL - That's the abbreviation of Bangalore International Airport Limited . I with a friend and my dad headed towards this destination last friday. Its a clean 45 km drive one way. The traffic seemed to have come to halt on a friday night at 10, maybe a result of rising fuel price and adding to that the inflation taking tolls on the commuters. Weather was cool and the dark clouds had covered the sky, hiding away all the stars. The strong chilly wind that was cutting through the half openend window, ran my ears numb. It is a national highway that I need to take after a few initial rough city roads. As I drive through at a speed marking 100kmph on the display meter, few drops of rain made its entry on the glass surface in front, blurring the vision for a moment, until the wipers came on. A few gossips and giggles kept us engaged till we reached the parking lot at the airport. A glance at the clock confirmed the time - it was 11.05 pm. Malaysian airlines was to land at 11:25 and we w...

Of late Sis and I have been travelling by car to and fro office and the reason behind this post is to let people know the fun we've been going through doing this. Pun intended as well not. Am I confusing you with such an open ended statement? It all started about 3 weeks ago with my job change. 30 kilometers daily, one way though, in a rush mad city like Bangalore is no joke for an individual who performs the 8 hour work routine - 5 days a week. Since this routine would be shared by 2 of us, car pooling did not sound a bad idea. It also happened to work this way out mainly because there is no transportation facility provided by the new company. The jams and the chaotic drivers on the streets drive us crazy every day. Not to forget crackpots who plunge out of nowhere right in front of the wheels of our mighty Santro Xing . Auto fellows zoom-on to equal Narain Karthikeyan ! The gigantic Hi-tech buses flood this city's roads every day and its drivers declare themselves the king...

Finally the struggle of a couple of hundered days ended on this BIG day. Happiness knew no bounds when the correspondent on the other end keying in some information into the computer announced that I have the seat confirmed for R V college of Engineering , stream - Instrumentation Technology. Dad heaved a sigh of relief. 10 years wind up since this incident, but the pain of courseware and the frightening entrance exam still leaves me with horrifying night dreams. With the admission process coming to an end, I was tagged as RV'ite (All students of RV college are better known so). First day in college is the day that will remain in memory forever Oct 3rd 2000 - Prof M.R Holla addressing the fresh cream from the millenium batch (seated in the huge auditorium -basically the basket ball court). His words were definitely mightier and sharper than the sword. No kidding here. The power in his voice shaked everyone present there and left a thinking cap on each head. Leaving the serious no...

Not intentional, not planned - we hit the road at about 10 in the night.This was an year ago; the days when I started to sit behind the wheels and tried to balance them on the freaking Bangalore roads. Dad and an uncle from next door personified the status of my " Gurus ". Sessions lasted for an hour or so every night in the nearing neighborhood. Driving had taken a spot on my daily routine from a fortnight. 2 wheels are a lot easier to tackle, with not a lot of brain work required. But when it turns out to be a 4 wheeler that you need to handle, then comes along with it all the thrills. Your eyes, feet, hands are all pulled into full action. Brain gets overworked trying to match the safety to perfection.The first time I ever tried to drive, the only thought that came to mind was "If I ever had exercised all the sense organs as much I was doing during these driving minutes, I would definitely be no less than a super computer!". Quite true isn't it ? A few days ...