Category Archives: Travel & Tourism

An Indo-American’s pursuit for vanishing Islamic heritage sites

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Toronto, CANADA :

Chennai:

Mr. Siraj Thakor, from Toronto, Canada, has undertaken the monumental task of creating an online database of all the Islamic Heritage Sites of India. He likes to preserve it digitally and make it available to all to cherish the Islamic past of this great country.

Mr. Siraj is looking for volunteers to assist him with the information on Islamic Heritage Sites in India. In response to his call, someone wrote to me with detailed information about a graceful mosque that lies in ruins in the Gaya district of Bihar.

This mosque popularly called ‘Lodi mosque’ was built around 1536 AD during the Lodhi rule in India. It is believed that Sultan Ibrahim Lodi, one of the rulers of the Lodhi dynasty had taken initiatives to get this mosque constructed.

This mosque is about 25 km from Gaya on Gaya-Patna road. It is exactly near Kundwa village at Khijrasarai block in Gaya district. It is situated on the banks of the river Falgu, a kilometer from village Kundwa. On the West of the river is Lodhipur village colloquially called Lodpur, while on the east is Kundwa village.

The mosque becomes functional only during ‘Eid’ and ‘Bakrid’ festival when some Muslims from Kundwa village come to offer prayers in this mosque.

For the rest of the years, this mosque remains a picture of neglect and want for maintenance. There is no Azaan called from this mosque as there is no one to take care of this house of worship. Some people have illegally occupied the land around this mosque but there is none to challenge such encroachments.

This historical mosque comes under the Archaeological Survey of India but neither ASI nor the Bihar government nor the Waqf Board, have any concern in protecting this Islamic heritage site.

It is in this context people like Mr. Siraj Thakor, who is Past President of the American Federation of Muslims of Indian Origin (AFMI), comes into the picture.  He wrote to me:

“Dear Brother Syed Ali Mujtaba, ASAK, I am a Past President of the American Federation of Muslims of Indian Origin (AFMI), We have undertaken the monumental task of creating an online database of all the Islamic Heritage Sites of India to preserve it digitally and make it available to all. I would take this opportunity to request you to be part of our team to collect info on Islamic Heritage Sites in your area. Alternatively, can you put in touch with someone or the organization which would be interested in such a historical task and leaves a legacy for the Indian Muslim generation to come? Wassalaam- Siraj Thakor.”

Mr. Siraj has started an All India campaign to document such historical Islamic heritage sites in ruins. If you have any similar story of any such Islamic heritage site near you, please write to him directly with photographs; (thakorsiraj@hotmail.com. You can even contact him on ‘WhatsApp’ -+1 416-277-7082.

This is a huge initiative and the efforts of people like Mr. Siraj needs to be strengthened by giving him a helping hand. Anyone, anyone where in the country who feels concerned about vanishing  Islamic Heritage Sites in India must come forward and join his team.

– Maiñ akelā hī chalā thā jānib-e-manzil magar– log saath aate gae aur kārvāñ bantā gayā –

(Translation: I set off alone towards my goal, but, people came along and it began to turn into a caravan!)

—

Syed Ali Mujtaba is a journalist based in Chennai. He can be contacted at (syedalimujtaba2007@gmail.com)

source: http://www.muslimmirror.com / Muslim Mirror / Home> Indian Muslim / by Syed Ali Mujtaba / June 19th, 2021

Find out why Aslam TP and Mujeeb Rahman are walking from Kasargod to Kanyakumari

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Kasaragod, KERALA :

Mujeeb (left) and Aslam share a laugh with locals along the highway   | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement

The two will cover a distance of 600-odd kilometres on foot, to raise money for children’s education

Ambling through the streets of Kozhikode, a visibly tired Aslam TP and his childhood friend Mujeeb Rahman are intercepted by an auto driver.

He wants to know where they are heading, and why they looked so drained. When Aslam tells him about the cause they are trying to raise money for, the auto driver promptly pulls out ₹100 from his pocket and hands it over.

In just seven days of their walk, Aslam and Mujeeb have been met with overwhelming tales of generosity, and as a result, 62% of their target amount (₹7 lakh) has been raised. They are covering a distance of 600-odd kilometres on foot, from Kasargod in Kerala to Kanyakumari in Tamil Nadu, to raise money for children’s education in Kasargod for the Najath Educational and Charitable Society. With the amount raised, they will buy smartphones for online classes. “We walked from Vadakara to Kozhikode on Monday, covering around 49 kilometres, the longest stretch so far,” say Aslam over a call from Kozhikode, Kerala. A serial fund raiser, Aslam took up a similar challenge in Bali last year, where he cycled 397 kilometres to support the education of 45 Balinese children. Currently, he runs a company called Yourfitrip in Bali, which encourages fitness holidays. These include surfing, kayaking, volcano trekking… activities that have helped Aslam stay fit over the years.

He also runs a community called Cause is Life that connects blood donors to receivers. It kept him and his pan-India volunteers busy through the second wave of COVID-19. Just before the lockdown this year, Aslam was in Nagaland, setting up Yourfitrip there, running up hills and walking from one village to another meeting the locals.

“For this walk, Mujeeb and I trained in Kasargod, our hometown, walking 15 to 18 kilometres everyday. We are training our brain to know that we are good to go, even when we are tired,” he laughs. They prepare a chart, based on which their daily route is fixed. “We average about 30-35 kilometres a day. On somedays, it goes up to 45 to 48.”

They start walking at 6.30am and wind up for the night by 7pm. “In case of emergency, we have a backup car that stays 15 kilometres ahead of us,” he adds. They take the highway, spilling into Tamil Nadu from Nagercoil before heading to Kanyakumari. With everything functional in Kerala and food available for takeaway, things have so far been under control.

Aslam says he will complete the walk in 21 to 23 days. Though planned as a 21-day project, the end date is uncertain as they get enveloped by hospitality from people they come across. So far, the duo has been pleasantly surprised by receptions planned in their honour, invites for meals from strangers, and the willingness of people to contribute even if it means handing over the last penny in their pocket. At one of the villages, a group followed them in a car as they wanted to be part of this mission. “I want people to know that we are collectively strong and can do so many things to give others a better future,” he says as he and Mujeeb stretch, lunge and soldier on, with the rain for company.

For details, check out Aslam’s Instagram handle @aslucha

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> Society / by Priyadarshini Paitandy / June 30th, 2021

Mohammed Mubin Mallick: Meet The Man Behind Delivery-Robot That Served Food At COVID 19 Quarantine Center In Beijing

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Kolkata, WEST BENGAL / KUWAIT :

Robotsman’ Mohammed Mubin Mallick.

Bengaluru :

When his friends were busy playing with toy guns, Mohammed Mubin Mallick was building robots like a pro.  For Mubin, robotics was a passion that eventually became his profession.

From an amateur innovator to a global leader in robot solutions, 39-year-old Mubin has come a long way to earn a sobriquet of `Robotman’ of India and middle east. A native of Kolkata, he holds MBA degree from Cardiff University, United Kingdom.

Being the school captain, Mubin grew up as an achiever, bagging awards in various recreational activities like sports, dance, speech, etc. He continues to be an achiever even today. Recently, he received Agata Lo Tauro Special International Award 2020 and a certificate for being the Mentor for ROBOCON 2020.

Mubin ventured into digital solutions and robotics solutions with his IT service company `Kiran Smart’. Always on the lookout to cater to the market’s needs, he set out to innovate and take steps beyond what others already offered.

Since the time he realized that he had the power to think out-of-the-box and innovate, Mubin dreamt of building a company that he could run depending on his ideas. The cradle for his innovation comes from very munificent thoughts of wanting to create job opportunities and donating the profits. It is for this reason that Mubin doesn’t want to leave any stone unturned to make his firm a global leading light.

“Our company Kiran Smart is into IT Solutions and Services for the past 15 years. We have been looking for diversification in our business portfolio. We did diversification into Digital Transformation and then recently we launched and started Robotics and Artificial Intelligence. Our market research on Humanoid Service Robots indicated a considerable demand for Robots. Therefore, our company decided to launch a brand Called Mi-Robots,” he said.

The pandemic, however, came as a blessing in disguise for Mubin and his company. “One of our delivery Robots serving food in China in 2019 December to COVID 19 quarantine centre became breaking news around the world. This news around the world helped us gained the trust of the people,” he said.

It was in 2017 that he came across a humanoid robot. He invested time in GITEX technology and ultimately made his passion and childhood dream come true. Understanding the working of robots and offering solutions related to them is Mubin’s only focus now.

“To be very honest, there were many challenges which cannot be listed here. Apparently, the major aspect was the financial crunch. Firstly, it is very crucial to survive in the local market. Secondly, we need smart and loyal team members who can run the company,” he said.

Over the years, Mubin learned both professional and personal lives play a considerable role in making an achiever or a failure. According to him, success in personal lives has a direct and positive impact on professional lives.

“To overcome these challenges, we adopted different strategies like inviting investors locally and globally. Apart from in-house human resources, we tied up with international firms to induct more innovative people to work with us remotely. Finally, our satisfied customers are our revenue. We do the regular follow-ups and technology updates with our customers so that we can fulfill their needs as per their growing needs,” he said.

Mubin is dealing with different kinds of Robots. These include Delivery Robots for restaurant and hotels, Educational Robots for Schools, hospitality Robots for hotels, UVC Disinfection Robots for all, Spray Dry Mist Disinfection Robot, Humidifier Robots for Home and Office, and Robots for children. 

“Robots have played a major role during the pandemic as they helped people tremendously. For example, Disinfection robots are used to disinfect the places and those robots are UVC Lights Robots and Dry Mist Spray Robots. Many robots are used to check the temperature of people. Robots are used in hospitals to carry hand sanitizer, masks, and gloves in hospitals, hotels, shopping malls, restaurants, and many places,” he said.

Even corporates are using to communicate with their remote employees so that managers and team leaders can stay focused on live meetings. “Many universities across the globe have launched courses for Robotics and Machine Learning. There is data supporting the popularity of Robot installation in restaurants, hotels, hospitals, warehouses, home delivery, and schools,” he said.

Headquartered in Kuwait, Mubin’s Robots are going places. From all GCC to Africa, UK, Canada, Mexico and few European countries, Mubin is trying to introduce technology for making the life of the common man easy.

“It is really difficult to define the demand or maximum interest was shown by any specific country in this future technology because most of the countries are working on all the innovative technologies to lead the world. So, according to me, I see South Korea, China, Japan, Singapore, Canada, and UAE from the Middle East. The global market for robots is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of around 26 percent to reach just under 210 billion U.S. dollars by 2025,” he said.

His company, `Kiran Smart’, is a reflection of Mubin’s achievements. It has been recognized as the Top Most Robotics Company of 2020. The firm also received awards from the Ministry of Awqaf as the Most Innovative Company. KISR honored Kiran Smart for being their Most Innovative Supporter in Science and Technology for their Children’s Exhibition.

His message for the youth who aspire to reach as far as he has is boosting, “Don’t give up even if you fail. Failure teaches you a lesson and makes you stronger. Accept the reality, believe in yourself, and try again! Caring for humanity and seeing a smile on people’s faces keeps us motivated in life. People should be thankful to God, respectful to their parents, and be humble,” he said.

*The author is a Bengaluru-based freelance journalist.

source: http://www.indiatomorrow.net / India Tomorrow / Home> Education> Featured / by Rashida Bakait / February 10th, 2021

Decoding history cast in stone

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Birur town (Kadur taluk-Chikkamagaluru District), KARNATAKA :

It became an abiding interest  while studying Kannada at the pre-university level at Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru Memorial College.

Shivamogga :

To D Ismail, the mastigallu (masti stone) is a fascinating storyteller. It talks about the history and the people as he peers into the inscrutable inscriptions whether it is in Modi lipi or Halegannada (ancient Kannada).

The epigraphist from Birur town in Chikkamagaluru district took a fancy to the knowledge hidden in stones, and is one among a small number of people who can understand ‘Modi lipi’, a cursive script used to write several languages, including Kannada. It is just like English running hand, he says. It became an abiding interest  while studying Kannada at the pre-university level at Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru Memorial College.

Ismail (63) says Modi lipi is a kind of early Kannada writing found from the times of Ashoka to the 18th century, which was used to record events and facts about emperors and their empires. In English, it is termed ‘cacography’, which according to the Kannada dictionary, means ‘illegible handwriting’, seen mostly in ancient stone inscriptions called mastigallu and veeragallu (hero stone).

Ismail is studying stone inscriptions to analyse their contents for anything related to astronomy and is compiling a research paper on the subject ‘Astronomy in Inscriptions’. Other issues that he is studying include natural calamities, music and life events, recorded in inscriptions to understand the culture of people going back to the Cholas, Gangas, Rashtrakutas and others who ruled South India.

The curiosity that drew him to these stones soon became his passion. “I studied various books related to Modi script, and under the guidance of epigraphist Shambhu Lingappa, I visited ancient sites in and around Birur, Kadur and Chikkamagaluru with him. I learned to read inscriptions in Modi script and also in Halegannada. I started reading books written by famous epigraphists like M M Kalburgi, Chidanandamurthy, A V Narasimhamurthy and others.”

Though Ismail could not pursue his education after pre-university, he never missed an opportunity to upgrade his Halegannada-related knowledge. Today, he is a well-known epigraphist who offers guidance to students of Kannada literature researching inscriptions and Halegannada in various universities. He has a rare collection of more than 5,000 books related to epigraphy, Halegannada, mastigallu and veeragallu.

He has written a book titled ‘Madhya Karnatakadalli Beeradevaru’ (still a manuscript) about Beeradevaru, a deity worshipped by the Kuruba community. The book throws light on the community, where they came from, and how they settled in Shivamogga, Chikkamagaluru and Chitradurga districts. He has travelled the length and breadth of these districts to collect information and did a field survey for more than two years.

He suggests that people interested in inscriptions read the book ‘Kannada Lipiya Ugama Mathu Vikasa’ by A V Narasimhamurthy, and ‘Lipi, Lipikara, Lipi Vyavasaya’ by Shettar, for those who want to learn Halegannada.

Ismail is one of the four sons of E M Dastagir Saab and Razia Begum of Birur, who have had a grocery business at M G Circle in Birur town for many decades. Even today, Ismail is the one who opens the grocery shop in the morning and takes care of the business.

He has a rare collection of more than 5,000 books related to epigraphy, Halegannada, mastigallu and veeragallu.

source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> States> Karnataka / by Ramachandra V Gunari / Express News Service / June 27th, 2021

Meet Sofia Khan: Covid Warrior of West Bengal

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WEST BENGAL :

Kolkata :

The world is in chaos. The pandemic happened when none of us were expecting it. It has been one of the most disastrous and depressing things throughout history. It wasn’t in our plans, but it happened. People have lost their jobs and their loved ones. Moreover, people are losing their will to live. The lower class of society is struggling. They are even lacking the necessities needed to survive. However, the pandemic has given rise to people who have come forward to help poor, needy, and unarmed people to fight the pandemic. These people are the warriors of the nation and Sofia Khan is one such warrior.

Sofia Khan cleared School Service Commission in 2009 and was the topper of her zone as well. Then, she was appointed as a government school teacher. However, she is also a social activist, chairman, and founder of the ‘Sufi Humanity Foundation,’ a no cash or fund transfer NGO. She is a very active participant in the improvement of our society. She has been given the post of secretary in the NGO named ‘Udaan Empowering Women’ in the year 2016 and then in the Rotary Club of Kolkata in 2018. Her performance was remarkable in the two organisations. She then joined the TMC Minority Cell, West Bengal, as a general secretary.

Sofia Khan has organized various literacy awareness campaigns in different states of the country as she is the president of the Sarparast Literacy Awareness Movement in West Bengal. She has also participated in many debates in national media as a panelist from the TMC. She conducted campaigns and rallies for TMC during the 2021 West Bengal elections. She has continuously been a keen supporter of girls, always ready to support and empower them. She helped the girls of the Milli Al-Ameen College for Girls by joining their protest against injustice to the college students. These girls were not being allowed to sit for their exams due to the college’s internal disputes. Sofia fought for them and got them justice.

It’s commendable and worth mentioning how she did not waver from her motive of helping the people even in lockdown. Sofia Khan has helped many people by providing them food amidst the lockdown. She sent back numerous migrant labourers to their native places during the first phase of the lockdown in 2020. This year when second wave was on its peak and people were dying without oxygen she was there to help people across West Bengal with free oxygen cylinders. She later extended the help and converted four cars into free ambulance service with oxygen cylinders for Covid patients.  When the state was hit by a deadly tropical cyclone called the ‘Amphan’, Sofia Khan, along with her team distributed tarpaulins and ration to almost a thousand families. She also showed her support during the Yaas cyclone. She sent relief materials like biscuits, cakes, drinking water containers each of 20 litres, clothes, etc. to the affected families. Her works and contributions have also been recognized by the Sanmarg Hindi daily, Echo of India, Awami News, etc.

Life has been tougher than usual for all of us but that doesn’t stop some of us from being an inspiration to others. While our nation and the world are fighting against the pandemic, it is important that we stay alert and be responsible for each other. We need to support and help those who are unable to survive on their own. Warriors like Sofia Khan do not wait for a chance rather they create the opportunity to help others because they realize that ‘Warriors are not born, but self-made’.

(The author of the article is a freelance journalist).

source: http://www.indiatomorrow.net / India Tomorrow / Home> Featured> National Interest / by Meer Faisal / June 18th, 2021

Why Salim Ali’s ‘The Book of Indian Birds’ is Indian birdwatchers’ favourite guide

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Mumbai, MAHARASHTRA :

Glossier, more attractive birding books have been published in the 80 years since Ali’s guide first appeared, but it remains indispensable.

The first edition of Salim Ali’s book appeared in 1941. (Source: Wikimedia Commons)

It is a small book, my copy of Salim Ali’s The Book of Indian Birds — a hardcover version, bound in green, a mere 187 pages. I have the 1979 edition. The cover is long gone, leaving behind a few tatters of the original, but I am hard put to think of a book I have treasured and used as much. The book and an old pair of Bushnell binoculars acquired some 20 years ago are a part of my essential travelling kit, as essential as a toothbrush and comb.

The first edition of the book appeared in 1941. Jawaharlal Nehru , a keen nature lover, gifted a copy to his daughter while lodged in Dehradun jail.

Ali was quite matter-of-fact in his autobiography, The Fall of a Sparrow. According to him, the book was “acknowledged as largely responsible for creating and fostering much of the interest in birds and birdwatching seen in the country today”. Indeed, for people of a certain generation, no other guide has been valued and loved in the same way, and even among Ali’s other classic works, it is this book that has iconic status among Indian birdwatchers. While setting off on a birding trip, we would ask each other: “Have you taken your Salim Ali?” Or: “Oh, no, I forgot my Salim Ali.” It was always the small green book that we were talking of. It is the essential — the foundational — field guide for Indian birders. It is now in its 13th edition. No other book can take its place.

I came to birdwatching by serendipity. No one on either side of my family was even remotely interested in birds. By a throw of the dice, I was allotted Bharatpur for my district training in the IAS. The Keoladeo Ghana National Park beckoned. I was hooked. Ali, who had done more than anyone alive to create this “Garden of God” out of a Maharaja’s private wetlands reserve, was still alive, and visited a few times while I was there. Two bird guides, Sohan Lal and Bholu Khan, still active today, were being trained by him and other naturalists. They were to mature into fine birding guides, much in demand.

The Book of Indian Birds is where we learned our basic vocabulary of birdwatching. For instance, we learned that “pied” meant black and white, that “rufous” meant reddish-brown as in rust or oxidised iron, and that “fulvous” indicated tawny. Every carefully chosen word signified something. The clarity and the precision of expression meant that in a short half-page entry, we would have all the necessary information about a species. Each write-up was organised around five or six points — size, field characters or appearance, distribution, habits, food, call and nesting. Size was always charmingly described as myna plus, or house crow minus, or with reference to a sparrow, a bulbul or other common bird. Under “field characters”, Ali beautifully and accurately described the appearance: Colour of the feathers, the shape of the bill, silhouette in flight. A crimson-breasted barbet was “heavy-billed”, a blue-throated barbet “a gaudily coloured, dumpy green, arboreal bird” and the common grey hornbill a “clumsy brownish-grey bird”. Birds are described variously as handsome, squat, soft-plumaged, lively, dapper, dainty, spruce, slim, perky, well-groomed. The common roller or blue jay (neelkanth) is described as a “striking, Oxford and Cambridge blue bird”.

People who have always noticed the easy readability of the prose might not be aware that Ali himself gave credit to his wife, Tehmina, for ironing out the “stilted passages” and for “moderating the language”. He did not fail to praise her “remarkable feeling for colloquial English prose style”.

My Salim Ali bears the marks of the trajectory of my life, where I went, what I did. It is not merely well-worn and well-thumbed, with an unravelling spine and precarious binding; it also bears the added signs of pickle stains and tick marks in ink and pencil. Like me, it has seen better days. I know that many bird guides have been subsequently published with much better production values and better colour plates. I am aware that many of the illustrations in the Salim Ali book are decidedly not true to life. For instance, never did a rosy pastor look as pink in real life as it does in the book. But this is mere quibbling. The core and kernel of the book is that it communicates to us so successfully the magical universe of the birds of India.

The international jury which selected Ali for the J Paul Getty Wildlife Conservation Prize of the World Wildlife Fund in 1975 said in its citation: “Your message has gone high and low across the land and we are sure that weaver birds weave your initials in their nests, and swifts perform parabolas in the sky in your honour.”

On his 34th death anniversary on June 20, it is time to remember the book that Ali gave us, which took us on this magical journey to the birds.

This column first appeared in the print edition on June 19, 2021 under the title ‘Birding with Salim Ali’. The writer is a former IAS officer.

source: http://www.indianexpress.com / The Indian Express / Home> Opinion> Columns / by Malovika Pawar / June 19th, 2021

All about Rezoy, one of India’s first food delivery apps by a restaurant association

Business & Economy, Travel & Tourism, , , ,

KERALA :

Starting with Kochi, Rezoy — launched by Kerala Hotel and Restaurant Association — is set to start full operations in other parts of the State. We explore how the app works and why it benefits the industry:

When Kerala Hotel and Restaurant Association (KHRA) launched Rezoy, the Kerala-based food delivery app, the intention was as much to support restaurateurs as much as customers, says Azees Moosa, Ernakulam district president of KHRA.

What makes Rezoy unique is that it is one of the country’s first food delivery apps by a restaurant association. The app, available to both iOS and Android users, has been developed by Ludhiana-based developer Jungleworks for KHRA.

Although the beta version was available in December 2020, it was finally formally launched in May, in Kochi. For now, the app’s reach is limited to parts of Kochi; the plan, however, is for it to be available across Kerala.

Going online was inevitable since doorstep delivery became a reality, a lesson learnt during the lockdown. “We are increasing our geo-fencing to cover a wider area. Although the app is available in Thiruvananthapuram, Malappuram and Thrissur, Rezoy does not have delivery executives there yet. We are working out the logistics and payment gateway. For now, the restaurants in these cities use their own delivery staff,” Azees says.

Working through the lockdown

Lockdown restrictions and containment zones in Kochi have thrown a spanner in KHRA’s expansion plans. “It will take time, but we are committed to this app and making it work. So far we have 300 listings [of hotels and restaurants] in Kochi . We don’t have the financial resources of the large food aggregators; our growth is bound to be slow in comparison,” he adds. Business owners have invested in developing the app and get it running, he says, adding that contributions vary based on how much a business owner can afford.

Rezoy charges a 10% commission from restaurant owners, towards salary for delivery staff and expenses incurred on delivery.

Since it is one of the first in the country, all eyes are on it. “We are the first food delivery app launched by an association such as ours, hence we have been getting enquiries from peers in neighbouring states about how it works,” says Azees.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> Life & Style> Food / by Shilpa Nair Anand / Kochi – May31st, 2021

‘Piya ka des’: 165 years on, Nawab Wajid Ali Shah’s legacy lives on in Kolkata

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Awadh, UTTAR PRADESH / Kolkata, WEST BENGAL :

The nawab, who was deposed by the British, came to plead his case with Governor General Lord Charles Canning, only to be imprisoned at Fort William.

Nawab Wajid Ali Shah (Photo| Wikimedia Commons)

Kolkata :

Some 165 years ago, in the month of May, Nawab Wajid Ali Shah — the last ruler of Awadh — is believed to have written the now-famous lament “Babul Mora Naihar Chooto Jai…Mein Chali Piya ke Des” (O father, my home I leave behind…I go to my beloved’s land), as he made his way to Kolkata to live the next 31 years of his life in exile.

The nawab, who was deposed by the British, came to plead his case with Governor General Lord Charles Canning, only to be imprisoned at Fort William as the East India Company feared that he may turn into a rallying point for sepoy mutineers during the first war of Indian Independence, which broke out the very next year.

After he was freed two year later, Wajid Ali and many from his court who chose to join him in exile decided to live in his ‘Piya ke Des, gifting a legacy of music, dance, Urdu poetry, fashion and fusion cuisine to the syncretic culture of the metropolis.

“My great, great, grandfather Wajid Ali Shah, who landed here by steamer on May 13, could have chosen to live anywhere after he was freed…but he chose this city. We believe he fell in love with its culture and found remnants of his beloved Lucknow in Metiabruz or Matiaburj where he chose to settle,” said Shahenshah Mirza, 54, a civil servant and a history buff.

The nawab, over the years, built some 18 palaces and the landmark Sibtainabad Imambara in Calcutta, but his descendants live scattered as the British demolished the palazzos on one pretext or the other.

Mirza and his father, 86-year-old Sahebzada Wasif Mirza – the president of the Awadh Royal Family Association — now live in a modest though stately old house at Talbagan Lane, off Dargah Road, in the heart of the eastern metropolis.

“Just 500 of his followers came with him in 1856, but as news spread that he was building a Lucknow-like city within a city, at Metiabruz in Calcutta, many of his nobles, artisans and musicians followed and flourished here,” said Mirza.

Though much of the original mini-city which Wajid Ali built was taken over for Garden Reach shipyards, Metiabruz still exists and is now famous as a garment tailoring hub — reportedly accounting for Rs 15,000 crore worth of textile trade a year — mainly on account of the skilled tailors who came here as part of the Nawab’s entourage.

Wajid Ali, who used the pen name “Akhtarpiya” for his poetry, prose and thumris, was a known patron of arts, and with the destruction of Mughal cities in the aftermath of the 1857 revolt, Kolkata subsequently became the new cultural capital, attracting talent from all over north India.

As time progressed, Bengal’s zamindars and rich ‘bhadraloks’ (gentlemen) enthusiastically developed a taste for the Nawab’s leisure activities ‘mujra’ (music and dance soirees), kite-flying and pigeon games (kabootar baazi). “Even today some 3,000 people are engaged in the business of making kites in this city,” explained Mirza.

The nawab introduced the citys elite to Thumri, Dhrupad and Kathak. “Singers and dancers of the calibre of Bindadin Maharaj, Piyari Sahab, Gauhar Jaan, Malka Jaan, Jauhar Jaan came to settle here…Kolkata opened up to Kathak and thumris,” said well-known Shantiniketan-based musicologist Rantideb Maitra.

This, in later years, influenced the film industry and the dance and music forms became part of the pan-Indian culture.

The song ‘Babul Mora’ itself was popularised by Kolkata-based music director Rai Chand Boral when he got Kundan Lal Saigal to sing it for the movie ‘Street Singer’ in 1938, nearly 80 years after it was written.

“Kathak, though it started as a temple dance, had taken a stylised form under the Mughal patronage. When brought to Kolkata by Wajid Ali, who himself often danced as Krishna, it blossomed into a popular classical dance form,” said Shyam Banerjee, another musicologist and Urdu translator.

However, if the average Kolkatan remembers the Awadh ruler with fondness, it is because of the gastronomic legacy he left behind.

Said Manzilat Fatima, another of Wajid Ali’s descendants from his junior begum, Hazrat Mahal — who led mutineers in Lucknow and eventually escaped to Nepal — “He (Wajid Ali) tried to recreate Lucknow but with a difference…(among other things) his kitchen became an experimental centre for new dishes.”

Fatima (53), who runs the up-market restaurant Manzilat’s explained that experiments led to the inclusion of potato — then a rich man’s exotic vegetable favoured by Europeans — and eggs to Awadh’s Biryani. “New spices, coconut milk, mustard oil, all went into the making of Awadhi dishes and the result was the unique dum-pukht Kokata Biryani, now so popular all over,” she said.

The Nawab also set up a printing press in Metiabruz and came out with a weekly gazette in Urdu, adding to the literary and journalistic tradition of the city, which boasts of being the cradle to some of India’s oldest newspapers.

“We feel he was more popular in the city he chose to make his own than in Lucknow…When the legendary filmmaker, Satyajit Ray, asked my father how he saw Wajid Ali’s legacy, he had explained that it lives on, as is evident from the fact that ‘you chose to make your first Hindi movie – Shatranj ke Khilari – on a novel based on the the Awadh ruler’s life’,” added Mirza.

source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Kolkata / by PTI / May 23rd, 2021

Residents welfare group to offer free car ride, ambulance service in Bengaluru amid pandemic

Community Involvement / Social Issues, COVID 19 - Community of Soldiers, FREE : Healthcare / Assistance, Karnataka (under research project), Travel & Tourism, Useful / HEALTHCARE, , ,

Bengaluru, KARNATAKA :

A popular ambulance service the group ran during the COVID outbreak last year to cater to its residents, which stopped two months ago owing to a dip in cases, will be revived again in a week’s time.

Changemakers of Kanakapura Road plan to revive its ambulance service for residents which was launched during the first COVID wave and later stopped (Photo | Special arrangement)

Bengaluru :

In light of the hardships experienced by the public to get taxis as well as ambulances during the ongoing pandemic, an umbrella organisation of over 60 resident welfare organisations in Kanakapura Road has decided to come to the rescue of residents. It will offer a car free of cost to help residents reach anywhere for treatment as well as revive the popular ambulance service it ran when the pandemic broke last year.

Speaking to The New Indian Express, Abdul Aleem, president of ‘Changemakers of Kanakapura Road’ said, “With COVID cases rising, we want to help out the nearly 30,000 residents who are our members. We facilitated arrangement of an Innova car through Sathya Sai Tourist service. Our group will bear the diesel and driver charges.”

Explaining the rationale behind it, Aleem said when members of the public use their own car to ferry their family members affected by COVID-19, there is a big risk to others using it. “We want to offer this alternative to them. We will be maintaining the vehicle in a fully sanitised condition so that it is safe for all to travel,” he said.

A popular ambulance service the group ran during the COVID outbreak last year to cater to its residents, which stopped two months ago owing to a dip in cases, will be revived again in a week’s time. “It costs us around Rs 2.4 lakh to maintain the vehicle supplied by J K Ambulance. We had collected Rs 60 per family to sustain the fuel and driver costs last time and plan to repeat it. We have three medical staff available 24×7 and 2 drivers to run the service,” he said.

A ventilator, suction apparatus, cardiac monitor, oxygen cylinder and infusion pumps are among the equipment in the ambulance.

There is a back-up arrangement with the provider so that if there is an emergency and someone has booked this ambulance, another would be supplied, he added.

source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Good News / by S Lalitha , Express News Service / May 13th, 2021

Ismail Shariff the ‘Snow Leopard Man of India’ shares his journey

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TELANGANA :

What started as documenting his own life in Europe while pursuing his Masters gradually gained direction and came to focus on wildlife photography.

Hyderabad:

 His photographs of a snow leopard from Spiti, Himachal Pradesh broke the internet, literally. Yet the man is still calm, unassuming.

Ismail Shariff, Hyderabad-based nature and wildlife photographer, is known to wildlife and photography enthusiasts as the ‘Snow Leopard Man of India’. His long and passionate association with photography began in his student days. What started as documenting his own life in Europe while pursuing his Masters gradually gained direction and came to focus on wildlife photography.

Picking up his first camera in 2005, Ismail was treated to the magnificent sight of a huge male tiger in 2008 while on a trip to the Kanha National Park in Madhya Pradesh. That was the defining moment of his life. “It became one of the reasons for me to move back to India to pursue of wildlife photography and tourism here,” he said.

Ismail, an alumnus of the Hyderabad Public School, Begumpet, has been part of nine snow leopard expeditions in the last seven years with the recent one being in 2020, apart from several other wildlife expeditions. The first thing that strikes his mind about snow leopards is the long fluffy tail, blue eyes, thick fur and a true-blue cat attitude. Snow leopards are one of the world’s most elusive animals and the most common way to spot one is high up on the mountain ridges. After an hour or more of patient stalking in Spiti in 2017, he finally spotted a snow leopard passing by. The shots he posted on various wildlife photo websites are trending even today.

“I was obsessed with snow leopards ever since a photograph taken in 2012 by Dhritiman Mukherjee, India’s leading wildlife photographer,” said Ismail, adding that seeing the mysterious ghost of the mountains for the first time in Hemis National Park, Ladakh, was an unforgettable experience in itself.

Ismail said the snow leopard is a notoriously elusive creature. It is also listed as “Vulnerable” on the IUCN Red List since the global population is estimated to be between 4,000 to 6,000. India is believed to have less than 1,000. That adds stars to his journey from just another photographer to being called the Snow Leopard Man of India.

“There were struggles. My parents were expecting me to get a corporate job. But I chose photography as my career. It was tough initially, since you’ve to invest a lot of time and money with very uncertain returns to make a name. But at the end of the day, if you want to be successful, you have to be willing to work hard, even if it means making more than a few sacrifices along the way,” said Ismail, a Computer Science engineer from Central European
University, Budapest, Hungary.

He moved to Paris to work there for two and half years before wildlife photography took over him.

Ismail, who has had solo photography exhibitions on Snow Leopards even in Los Angeles and New York, also indulges in fine art printing. He also works with the Snow Leopard Trust in helping raise funds for their conservation efforts.

source: http://www.telanganatoday.com / Telangana Today / Home> Hyderabad / by Sowmya Sangam / May 01st, 2021