It is a good fortune that Karnataka’s soil has been treaded by personalities known for their universal outlook and integrity. A melting pot for various languages, religion and culture, Karnataka had a number of persons belonging to Muslim community whose contribution to Karnataka’s secular traditions is immense. Historically we had Ibrahim Adilshah, the ruler of Bijapur whose work in Urdu, Kitab-e-Nauraspopularised Hindu music among the Muslims. Karnataka was the abode of Sufi saints like Baba Budan and Khwaja Bande Nawaz whose way of life and moral sermons inspired both Hindus and Muslims and paved way for Hindu-Muslim amity. In the 20thcentury there was another similar figure who was not only a symbol of Hindu-Muslim unity but also a freedom fighter, folklorist, singer, lyricist and a dramatist. He was the late Dr.S.K.Kareem Khan. Born in 1908 at Sakleshpur in Hassan district of Karnataka to an Afghan soldier, Abdur Rahman Khan, and his wife Jainabi, S.K.Kareem Khan studied classical Sanskrit and Kannada literature under Achangi Narayana Shastri of Sakleshpur and despite his informal education, mastered Sanskrit and Kannada.
As a Folk Singer: It was during his teens that Kareem Khan was attracted towards folk songs. His house at Sakaleshpur was a halting place for touring merchants selling brass and copper wares. After dinner they used to hum folk songs which young Kareem used to listen with rapt attention. Inspired by the call given by Mahatma Gandhi he Kareem Khan joined the freedom struggle and this took him to various places. This occasion gave him an opportunity to hear and chronicle folk songs which he came across and later he himself used folk as a medium to spread the message of the freedom. Later collecting and singing of folk songs became his life’s passion. He used to visit villages and standing under a platform or tree frequented by people used to sing folk songs. Mesmerised by his melodious voice people used to gather around him. At the end he used to urge the people to join the Congress party then involved in the country’s freedom struggle. He was jailed several times for his participation in the freedom movement. There his fellow jail inmates used to pester him to sing folk songs for them. Such was the sweet voice possessed by Kareem Khan.
Multi-faceted Personality: Kareem Khan’s was a multi-faceted personality. He penned screen play and song lyrics for Kannada films, wrote dramas, translated works from Sanskrit and Urdu to Kannada, was a researcher, essayist and a pioneer scholar in folklore studies. This apart he was fully involved in the country’s freedom struggle and Karnataka’s unification movement. During 1930s worked as an editor and sub editor of two publications Loka Mitra of Dharwad and Antharanga of Udupi. . In the early 1960s he launched `Janapada Prakashana’, an exclusive publication dedicated to folk literature, art and music; copies of which he sold at 50 paise each. Secularist to the core he led a simple life, true to the Gandhian principles which he cherished. Though he avoided power and publicity, such was his achievements that honours came in abundance. He was conferred the Janapadashri and Karnataka Rajyothsava awards by the government of Karnataka, Nadoja award by Hampi University, honorary doctorate from Gulbarga University and numerous other honours from various institutions and organisations. Given epithets like Janapada Jangama and Janapada Bheeshma, he was the President of Karnataka Janapada and Yakshagana Academy from 1987 to 1990. He passed away in Bangalore on 29th July 2006.
Modern Shishunala Sharif: It would be surprising to know that there is a lot similarity in the life and works of Santa Shishunala Sharif and Kareem Khan. Both were known for their simplicity and integrity. Both were secular in their outlook and had good knowledge of Hindu epics, traditions and culture. While Shishunala had Govindabhatta as his guru, Kareem Khan had Narayanashastry as his guru. While Shishunala was a mystic poet, Kareem Khan was a social activist cum folklorist. The composition of both these stalwarts will be evergreen in the minds of the Kannadigas.
source: http://www.karnatakahistory.blogspot.in / Home> Dr. S.K.Karim Khan / by S. Srinivas / May 22nd
The secular vs saffron tussle over naming the 100-ft road in Indiranagar after noted folklorist and freedom fighter Dr S K Karim Khan has gained new life, with his family knocking on the doors of the BBMP to implement a 2006 resolution on the issue.
In 2010, the BJP, which is the ruling party in the BBMP, created a ruckus and demanded that the same road be named after former Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee. Result: BBMP officials and representatives are “inconclusive” over implementing the resolution.
The family points out that Khan’s contribution to Kannada folklore and culture has been immense, resulting in several awards. He single handedly collected thousands of oral epics and ballads and recorded them.
Though a follower of Islam, Khan had profound respect and deep understanding of local mythology and was best remembered for his devotional songs in Kannada which even won state and several other awards. He lived the life of an ascetic as he spent considerable years of his life in a hotel room in Basavanagudi.
Khan’s grand nephew Tanveer Ahmed told Bangalore Mirror, “It has been six years since his death. Yet, posthumous recognition for the literatteur has remained elusive. This is not the way to treat a person who devoted all his life for the language and culture. Not the just folklore, but he was the first to chronicle the history of Bangalore’s founder Kempe Gowda and wrote three books on the life of Kempe Gowda. His song Natawara Gangadhara… won state award. He was presented with the Nadoja award along with Jnanpeeth Awardee Dr Shivarama Karanth. But still nobody knows about his contribution in Bangalore. Should it take six years to name a street after him?”
‘No Personal Interest ‘
Ahmed pointed out that the family members neither have any personal interest nor benefit from the move. “We only hope that a kind gesture by BBMP would help future generations remember a man who did great work for Kannada and culture of the land.”
The state government, which promised several things upon his death, is also yet to deliver on its promises. “During the final rites of Khan, then home minister M P Prakash announced a trust in Khan’s name. Further, the then CM H D Kumaraswamy responded positively. This also has not happened,” Ahmed said.
Khan was born to parents with Afghan-Arab lineage. Despite being a high school dropout, Khan mastered Kannada and Sanskrit and developed indepth knowledge about Hindu mythology and Sanskrit texts. “In fact his works on Kempe Gowda served as major evidence for the union government to rename the BIAL as Kempe Gowda International Airport,” he added.
The family wants the Kannada Development Authority to profile Khan’s life and works and bring it out in the form of a compendium accessible to all. They also suggest a state award to foster communal harmony in Khan’s name.
source: http://www.bangaloremirror.com / Bangalore Mirror / Home> Bangalore> Civic / by Niranjan Kaggere, Bangalore Mirror Bureau / November 22nd, 2013
Srinagar’s famed Shalimar Bagh has been restored to what it was in Jehangir’s time — Farah Baksh, or ‘the delightful’. Now for the 15 others, writes Gargi Gupta
In a television interview, conductor Zubin Mehta proclaimed that despite the controversy about the concert, Kashmir now had a beautifully restored garden, fountains, flowers et al. Many agree.
“Zubin Mehta’s concert was the best thing to happen to Shalimar Bagh,” laughs Sheikh Irfan Qadir, assistant executive engineer in the Roads & Building department of the Jammu & Kashmir government. Qadir should know — he’s been working at Shalimar Bagh since early this year, deputed by the state government in its race-against-time to restore the 17th century gardens laid out by Mughal Emperor Jahangir, in time for Mehta’s concert with the Bavarian State Orchestra held on September 7.
German ambassador in India Michael Steiner and Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir Omar Abdullah took close interest in the repair works, visiting the site several times in the months leading up to the concert. After all, this was a high-profile event, hosted by the German Embassy in India, attended by dignitaries and broadcast on high-definition to millions of viewers across the globe.
“When the German ambassador first came here,” says Qadir, “Shalimar Bagh was in such a bad state that he looked around and despaired at having the concert here.” Describing the state of ruin, an October 2012 report in British newspaper Daily Mail bemoaned that the ‘fountains have long stopped working and the walls are peeling at every corner’. Photographs accompanying the article, showed the water channels silted up and covered in vegetation.
Strangely, Shalimar Gardens, or any of the other 15 Mughal Gardens in Kashmir, is not protected by the Archaeological Survey of India, or its Kashmir circle. It is the floriculture department of the state government that looks after these gardens, which attracts lakhs of tourists every year.
“The last ‘sensible’ conservation effort took place in 1941,” informs M Saleem Beg, convenor of the Jammu & Kashmir chapter of Indian National Trust For Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH), which has overseen the current restoration exercise. The committee prepared a detailed conservation plan for Shalimar Bagh in 2005. That, says Beg, came about by sheer accident. “In 2004, Jagmohan, then tourism minister, allocated Rs1 crore for reconstructing the Mughal wall in Nishat Garden. Appalled, I met him to point out how inappropriate ‘rebuilding’ a historic wall was.
He told me to come up with a conservation plan for the gardens and asked me to name the budget. I had rattled off a figure of Rs5 lakh. We ended up spending Rs9 lakh.”
Much of the work at Shalimar, says Beg, entailed undoing earlier unscientific, ill-considered conservation efforts. For instance, the water channels were covered in concrete. “We removed thousands of kilos of cement,” says Qadri. The channels, measuring 1,000 ft x26 ft, were relaid with crushed stones, then covered with lime concrete. “We had to source lime concrete, which is what the Mughals used, from Amritsar. The material takes much longer to dry than cement, but we were determined to do it the right way,” he says. “The stage for the musicians was laid out over these channels, but they did it very carefully, placing it over small metal stools so as not to leave a single mark on the grass,” says Qadir.
The stones that lined the rim along the water channels, the foot-bridges across them, niches along the walls and terraces had become loose or were displaced over time; these were carefully taken out, cleaned and refixed. The pavements too were re-laid with local devri stone. The Pink and Black Pavilions were restored with new shingle roofs and their walls covered with a 20mm coat of lime plaster. “We have not yet touched the ceilings,” says Qadir, pointing to the richly-painted panels, which are a more recent addition, probably the time of Kashmir’s Dogra rulers.
Nearly Rs3.5 crore was spent on Shalimar Bagh’s restoration. The fountains are working; the channels are clear; a Mughal-era hammam (public bath house) on the premises has been opened to public and there are better public conveniences. Of course, the problems too are visible, the most being the buildings outside that have been built too close to the Mughal-era boundary wall.
Perhaps, the only long-term hope for Kashmir’s Mughal Gardens is in securing a World Heritage Site status. Six of the better-known gardens did make it to the tentative list in December 2010. But despite several representations to the culture ministry, the elaborate dossier that is required for their final application, has not yet been prepared.
source: http://www.dnaindia.com / DNA / Home> Lifestyle> Report / by Gargi Gupta / Agency:DNA / Sunday – October 20th, 2013
After coffee producers in Brazil and Vietnam used mechanisation and genetically improved plants to increase crop yields, Indian coffee growers are trying to replicate their success. However, many allege the Indian government has not provided adequate incentives to increase crop yields or protect these from diseases such as the white stem borer. On the sidelines of the UPASI-KPA Coffee conference in Bangalore, Jawaid Akhtar , chairman of the Coffee Board , spoke to Antonita Madonna on these allegations and on the focus of the commerce ministry. Edited excerpts:
Growers allege, unlike their counterparts in Brazil, they have not been provided adequate incentives. How would the Coffee Board address that?
Brazil and India cannot be compared so easily. The methods used by them cannot be correlated with India’s, as the plantations in the two are very different. In Brazil, the higher crop yield is not as much the result of incentivisation as of the use of new varieties, new agronomical practices, etc. Production in India is increasing, but at a very slow pace due to several constraints. The drastic difference between the progress in India and in Vietnam and Brazil is because the soil is less conducive here. Vietnam and Brazil have volcanic soil. In India, coffee is not grown under direct sun, but under the cover of trees. So, productivity suffers, but quality increases.
Second, coffee growers have to show more dynamism. They have to put in more effort and use better inputs. What it requires is more water, more use of agrochemicals, etc. The Board is regularly working on research. We also disseminate the findings of these studies among growers. It is an ongoing programme.
What research and development is the Board doing?
We are working on finding new varieties that are high-yielding, pest- and drought-resistant.
Some three-four varieties are in the pipeline on the arabica side, as problems, including the white stem borer, are more prevalent in arabica. We had also introduced a variety of arabica coffee four years before. Robusta, on the other hand, is yielding in some places even after 80 years.
To replicate the success in Brazil here, growers have been seeking the Board’s help in research and tools. Is the Board working on that, too?
The mechanisation in Brazil cannot be correlated with that in India because in Brazil, there is no shade. Also, unlike the undulating terrain of the Western Ghats in India, the land in Brazil is plain.
The 20-ft high harvester they use in Brazil cannot be used in India, as coffee does not grow in the open here. Our plantations are different.
How is the Coffee Board encouraging more acreage for coffee?
We have seen production rising in non-traditional areas, but in traditional areas (Kerala, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu), it is not. Now, we have identified more areas where coffee production can be increased and are trying to include that in the 12th Plan.
With a depreciating rupee, is the board planning to increase exports?
There are schemes for exports already. But you can export more only if there is more production. We export 70 per cent of whatever is produced. But we offer incentives for areas to which much coffee doesn’t find its way, despite these being good markets for coffee. For instance, in the 11th Plan, we had five countries—the US, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and Japan. Now, in the next Plan, we will include other markets such as South Korea and two other countries. We are in discussions with other countries as well.
We are also trying to promote brand-building. So, we’ll give incentives to export value-added coffee in retail packs. The value-add maybe anything from roasting green beans or making instant coffee. Our instant coffee market is very robust. Almost all the value-added coffee that goes from India is instant coffee. Now, we’re the second-largest producer of instant coffee, after Brazil.
Any plan to introduce the Coffee Board’s own brands?
No, there is no such plan. All these plans were shelved 20 years ago and there are no plans to revive those. Now, it is a free market and we encourage private businesses. That is why we have introduced so many programmes to train manpower and tasters so that private people can run businesses.
Is the Coffee Board working on increasing awareness or building brand equity for Indian coffee?
We are, of course, working on positioning Indian coffee better in the international market. We participate in international trade fairs, advertise, get media coverage, arrange Indian coffee tasting sessions in international locations, invite roasters, make them taste Indian coffee, etc. All these efforts are already reaping rewards. Our average price of robusta is about 40 per cent higher than the international average. There is a very large international market for this premium Indian coffee.
source: http://www.business-standard.com / Business Standard / Home> Companies> Q & A / by Antonita Madonna / Bangalore – November 14th, 2013
She is a woman who dares death by doing motorcycle stunt-riding in motordromes (well of death). Baby Khan, 40, from Chadayamangalam of Kollam district, is also a housewife who takes care of a big family.
On the sidelines of a carnival being held at Oachira Parabrahma temple, Baby Khan, mother of three, told DC: “I perform the stunts that a man does in a motordrome.” Her romance with bike stunt began during childhood when her poor parents took her to watch a motordrome show in Chadayamangalam. “The sound of the bikes without the silencer attracted me. When my family moved to Tirunelveli, they let me learn bike riding,” she says.
Rajiv, a bike stunt rider, taught her the first lessons of riding a bike and doing stunts. Subsequently, she joined an amusement troupe in Tamil Nadu. She is now part of the troupe called Golden Amusement owned by Babu Khan, her husband.
There are seven bike stunt riders in the group. “Even though we have been in the field for decades, an insurance coverage or pension is still a distant dream. Two years ago, I met with an accident in the carnival held as part of Oachira temple festival. I was rushed to the hospital and was forced to take two days’ rest,” she says. “We are constantly on the move and I have travelled the whole of India several times,” she adds.
She performs the stunts from 4 p.m. till 10 p.m. “I am proud of being a bike stunt rider and I have a lot of fans as well, mostly children. They often look at me with wonder. I intend to do stunts as long as I can as there is a thrill in being one of the few women in the field,” she says.
source: http://www.deccanchronicle.com / Deccan Chronicle / Home> News> Current Affairs / DC / by T. Sudheesh / November 20th, 2013
It’s only four in the evening, but Basheer has already decided to go home — he has no work that day. “The festive season just got over, hasn’t it? People will come to polish bangles and chains only after a few days,” he says, softly. Seated in front of a steel basin, with four boondhi kottais (soap berries) and four small brushes floating in the water, Basheer talks of the gold polishing business that he has been a part of for the last 30 years.
A Class 8 dropout, Basheer was initially a two-wheeler mechanic, before he trained for five years and became a skilled silver and gold polisher. After working out of several locations in Mylapore, Basheer now runs the ‘K. Noor Mohamed Gilt Shop’. “Earlier, I had my own shop. This one,” he says, pointing to the small, rectangular shop, with its blue shutters and green walls, “belongs to my cousin. He asked me to run it.” I strain to hear his voice, which gets drowned in the street noises of Mathala Narayanan Street; it’s only an old, narrow thoroughfare, but vehicle sounds and arguing neighbours make us raise our voices.
Our loud voices attract attention. One gentleman enquires why I’m asking Basheer “all these questions”; another offers to answer on his behalf and says, “He lives in Kunrathur.” Basheer explains that he moved to the ECR approximately 30 years ago. “Land was cheaper there, but now, it sells for crores!” Every morning, for the last three decades, Basheer has been taking two buses to reach Mylapore. “It’s faster to get here now, even though there’s heavy traffic after Tiruvanmiyur. In those days, there were hardly any buses, you see!” he smiles. The return journey is equally long, and he typically gets home for a late dinner around 10 p.m.
The day is spent in polishing silver and gold. Job orders range from small items — bangles and chains — to the temple kavacham or crown polishing. “Approximately 15 years ago, I polished silver items for the Kapaleeswara temple. Many of my customers are from Chennai, but some come from faraway places too.” Basheer, very modestly, says he’s an expert at polishing temple (dance) jewellery. “Dance jewellery is made in Nagercoil, and it’s difficult to clean and polish, as it has a lot of stones,” he says, showing me a pair of red-stone bangles that he has freshly gilded for a customer. It’s hard to tell it’s only ‘covering’.
To gold polish jewellery, Basheer first cleans it well. “I use soap berries bought from the naatu marundhu kadai; they foam naturally,” he says, pointing to the soapy water in the basin. Next, Basheer readies the ‘gold bath’, by dissolving a tiny amount of gold in acid, and boiling the resulting fine dust in water. This is then used to coat the article, by electrolysis. “After plating, the chain or bangle is dried on a bed of sawdust. It will then shine like gold.” (Silver plating is somewhat similar, except, it is buffed in the end).
Gold polishing costs around Rs. 250, a price that does not make it really profitable. “Gold prices have increased, but customers are not willing to pay more,” Basheer says. But he also rationalises their reluctance — gilt jewellery itself sometimes only costs Rs. 250, and the gold finish lasts for just a few months. And yet, Basheer seems happy with his lot; he talks of his three children — all graduates — and his visits to Nagore, with his family, once every two years. And when an old woman comes to his shop seeking alms, he springs up from his low stool, and fetches her a few coins…
(A weekly column on men and women who make Chennai what it is)
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> Features> MetroPlus> Society / November 11th, 2013
Paintings will be cleaned using chemicals, and scribbles on the walls will be covered by patch plastering work
Years of dust and smoke that have masked the paintings on the walls and ceiling of Tipu Sultan’s summer palace in Bangalore may finally be cleaned up, while portions of the wall vandalised with graffiti could also receive much-needed attention.
The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), which protects the 18th Century monument, will take up chemical cleaning of the paintings. The scribbles on the walls will be covered by patch plastering work.
Protected monument
Located in the busy Kalasipalya area, the wooden edifice built in Indo-Islamic style, is a protected monument along with the nearby fort and dungeon.
The chemical wash is expected to brighten the paintings at the palace, most of which are vivid floral designs in water and vegetable colour.
Conservation wing
The process will be done by the ASI’s Mysore-based chemical conservation wing.
“Chemical wash was conducted on a small test area about five years ago. The painting has not changed much since then,” a senior ASI official said. He explained that it was a slow process that was dependent on humidity and dust, among other factors.
Besides, structural conservation work has to be completed before chemical wash is taken up.
An eyesore
However, this will do little to address the damage to paintings from scribbles and scratches.
“If the graffiti has to be removed, restoration of paintings has to be taken up. This is nearly impossible. It is difficult to maintain the same quality of painting and sourcing raw materials is highly impossible,” the ASI source said.
Instead, patch plastering work could be taken up to remove the eyesore in some spots.
“We will attempt to fill the scribbled portions with the patch work.”
Public office
The official claimed: “The palace was a public office before it was handed over to us in the 1950s. Much of the graffiti is from that period.” It was this sort of vandalism that had led the ASI to hire private security guards at the palace.
“We do not encourage visitors to stay on the palace premises for long,” another official said.
Colour washing of pillars with a protective coating and replacing some wooded portions that have been damaged by the elements too are on the agenda.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> National> Karnataka / by Sharath S. Srivatsa / Bangalore – November 19th, 2013
National Testing Service-India (NTS-I) of Central Institute of Indian Languages (CIIL) has been organising series of special lectures by eminent scholars at CIIL, Mysore. One such lecture was held on Nov. 12 at CIIL.
Prof. Qazi Afzal Husain (Director, APDUMT, Aligarh Muslim University, UP) delivered a lecture on “Evaluation of Language and Literature with Special Reference to Post Modernism in Urdu” and Prof. Shamim Hanafi (Professor Emeritus, Jamia Millia Islamiah, New Delhi) delivered a lecture on “Evaluation of Culture in Urdu Language and Literature”.
Prof. Awadesh Kumar Mishra, Director, CIIL, presided.
Around 100 participants comprising distinguished scholars of Urdu, research scholars of Urdu from the University of Mysore and the staff of NTS-I, NTM and LDC-IL of CIIL attended.
Dr. M. Balakumar (Head, NTS-I) coordinated the programme. Dr. L. Ramamoorthy (Head, LDC-IL), Dr. V. Ilangovan (SRP, NTS-I), Dr. Biresh Kumar (RP, NTS-I) were present.
Workshop
Besides this, a five-day workshop on scrutiny of Conceptual Explanations of the aspects for assessing language and literature included in the General Frame of Reference (GFR) began at the National Testing Service-India (NTS-I) of Central Institute of Indian Languages (CIIL) on Nov. 11. This workshop was initiated to finalise the Urdu version. The same task will be carried out in all the other Indian languages soon.
In this workshop, the accuracy and appropriacy of the coinage of terms, language used in explanations, consistency in the usage of terminologies across levels and the overall readability of the explanations are verified. Besides, the experts will provide model question items for testing each of the terms explained. The General Frame of Reference comprises approximately about 700 terms in the areas of Language, Literature and Personality.
The explanations were prepared by the resource persons of Urdu of NTS-I. They are being checked by the subject experts for their conceptual clarity and language uniformity. The experts lauded the initiation of the work as it is very relevant and necessary, which will in turn help many stakeholders of education and also opined that the material will help in the creation of technical manpower in the area of testing and evaluation, one of the crucial area of education.
The experts participating in this programme are Prof. Qazi Jamal Hussian (AMU, Aligarh), Prof. Ali Ahmad Fatmi (University of Allahabad), Prof. Rafathunnisa Begum, Prof. Safdar Imam Qadri, Prof. Masood Siraj and Dr. Abdur Rahman (from University of Mysore).
The Urdu academics of NTS-I — Dr. G.M. Ansari, Dr. Md. Rizwan, Dr. Salim Ahmed and Dr. Zubair Shadab Khan — are assisting the experts under the supervision of Dr. M. Balakumar, Head, NTS-I. Prof. Awadesh Kumar Mishra, Director, CIIL is providing the overall guidance for the programme.
source: http://www.starofmysore.com / Star of Mysore / Home> General News / November 13th, 2013
Mohiyuddin Masood, Assistant Professor, Institute of Technology, Suratkal, Mangalore and son of Prof. B. Sheikh Ali, former Vice-Chancellor of Mangalore and Goa Universities, passed away yesterday at Suratkal. Namaz-e-Janaza was offered at 1.30 pm today at Chikmagalur.
Prof. Sheikh Ali left for Chikmagalur last night to attend the funeral.
Condoled: Dr. Syed Shakeeb Ur Rahman, Principal, SJCE, Abdul Khader Sait, President, MESCO Sir Khazi of Mysore Moulana Mohammed Usman Shariff, Mohdees Azam Mission, Karnataka Branch, Mysore City President Jameel Ahmed Ashrafi, Member Mirza Jamsheed Baig Ashrafi, DCC Minority Cell Ex-Chairman Allah Bakash and others have condoled the death of Mohiyuddin Masood.
source: http://www.starofmysore.com / Star of Mysore / Home> General News / November 13th, 2013
