Ghajini, Quit (Most of) India!

We urge readers of KARNATIQUE whose mother tongues are other than Hindi to not view the movie Ghajini as a note of protest against Hindi imposition.

Entertainment has become a major leak-hole through which Hindi is getting imposed on India. While laws and departments of the Govt. of India get opposed in non-Hindi states either formally or informally, the increasing amount of sexual content in Hindi movies is accomplishing what the laws and departments set out to do - impose Hindi on the whole of India. Non-Hindi states must answer back by boycotting Hindi entertainment of any sort and give audiences what they want in their own languages. Hindi must quit most of India, which speaks languages other than Hindi.

And again, let's reiterate that Hindi is not the national language of India. It's only an official language of the Indian union, and that too is undemocratic.

If the U.S. Needs a Reboot, What Does Karnataka Need?

Of all things the U.S. stands out as a role model for the world, perhaps the first and foremost is the attitude of its thinkers who constantly challenge the status quo, raise the bar on prosperity and well-being, but never, never take their eyes off the basics such as education, teacher-training, basic research and infrastructure.

Thomas L. Friedman, author of the famous book on globalization - The World is Flat - writes in the NY Times:

If the U.S. is lacking in things like education and infrastructure, how should we describe the status of Karnataka today? How should we describe the attitude of our thinkers who don't seem to understand the basic fact that education is the best bet for a bright future for Karnataka? How should we describe the attitude of those who think Karnataka can get away by having a handful English-medium schools and English-medium higher-education? How should we describe the attitude of those who think Karnataka has progressed if Bengaluru gets a few IT / BT companies (which are filled with non-Kannadigas!) even if crores of Kannadigas are left wanting for food, clothing and shelter?

If the U.S. needs a reboot, what does Karnataka need? Karnataka doesn't need a reboot or anything because it's not even turned on yet. Karnataka needs her thinkers to reboot themselves so that they can start afresh and focus on the real issue: universalization (as opposed to concentration in English-educated people and areas) of education and infrastructure. They need a reboot so that they can realize the true importance of Kannada in the development of Kannadigas and Karnataka.

For the full NY times article, read: Time to Reboot America. Thomas L. Friedman photo courtesy NY Times.

Fever FM shoots Kannada ad in Los Angeles

Staying on the "Kannada is cool" topic, Fever 104 FM (which started off in Bengaluru as a predominantly Hindi film music station but soon realized its mistake) is now going all out to promote itself as a 100% Kannada FM channel.

The channel recently shot a TV ad (which it calls the "girls and the lips ad") in Los Angeles which will go online in Jan 2009. The channel's Bengaluru station head, Anjali Paul told Indiantelevision this:
"The TVC strengthens our proposition that Fever 104 FM is 'all about the music'. We wanted to convey the message to the kannada listeners. Also the quality of music in Kollywood has changed and has become better in these years. Thus its cool and in vogue to listen to a kannada station like Fever 104 FM."
That's some transformation!

BTW, what do you think the Kannada Film Industry should be called? Some say "Sandalwood", and some say "Kollywood". What would you choose? Feel free to suggest new names, too.

For the full news story, read: Fever104 FM launches TVC for Kannada market in Bangalore

What had we done to make Kannada non-cool?

The Deccan Herald today reports an event held by an FM channel in Bengaluru with Kannada being used as the cash cow. This is, of course, good news:
The theme of the event was Kannada is cool. The whole venue was given an ethnic Karnataka touch with usherers dressed in ethnic clothing and tender coconuts served as beverages for the guests.

Even the radio jockeys were dressed in ethnic wear. The evening began with a crash course in Kannada for the audience, which the hosts declared was important in order to communicate.
And this is what Kunal Ganjawala - quite a sought-after voice for Kannada film songs - had to say about Kannada:
"I love Kannada and it’s my pleasure to perform in this language, with so many talented artists."
But the question we'd like to ask our readers is - do we need a non-Kannadiga to remind us that Kannada is cool? This is sounding very much like needing foreigners to tell us that Yoga is cool!

What had we ourselves done to paint the picture that Kannada is non-cool? Why do film producers seek non-Kannadiga singers for movies? What's wrong with our own singers? Can't they sing as well as the Kunal Ganjawalas? Can't they market themselves as well? Are they just too naive? Are they just "individual contributors" waiting for some non-Kannadiga manager to use them as resources in a project? Or what's the real deal here? Ideas?

For the full news report, read: Kannada Calling

Coca Cola dumps Bollywood in favour of Mungaru Male Ganesh?

There are rumors that Golden Star Ganesh is going to endorse Coca Cola. According to sources available to us, the shooting for the ads has nearly completed.

If this is true, we could well call this the beginning of the end of Hindi domination in ads for global products in Karnataka. The Amir Khans, the Kareena Kapoors of Bollywood will soon run out of fizz in Karnataka.

One can clearly recognize a pattern in the adoption of Kannada by companies: Global players are the most sensitive to (and sensible enough to recognize) the sentiments, icons and language spoken by the local market. It's the Indian companies which still stick to Hindi since they remain under the illusion that Hindi has its sway all across India. Flawed assumption. Not understanding the local market is one of the reasons why Indian companies pale in comparison to the global reach of the Coca Colas of the world.

We wouldn't be surprised if the stylized Coca Cola logo is done in Kannada in the near future. That's getting really down to the grass-roots level in tapping local market sentiments - something successful global businesses cannot avoid. See pictures of Coca Cola bottles in different languages: Hebrew, Mandarin, Korean, Thai, Ethiopian, Russian, Arabic, Japanese. When do we have the Kannada version?

Note: The picture in this post is not a real ad. It's an artist's impression of the rumor.

What punchline do you think Ganesh should be using in the ad? Come up with creative answers!

Three-language formula for national disintegration

The National Curriculum Framework 2005 has "reaffirmed its commitment" to the implementation of the "three-language formula" across India as per the National Policy on Education. The intent of the policy is "national integration". The Deccan Herald reports:
The formula includes the study of a modern Indian language, preferably one of the southern languages, apart from Hindi and English in the Hindi-speaking states, and of Hindi along with the regional language and English in non-Hindi speaking states.
The very wording of this statement is wrong. Hindi is being implicitly assumed as "non regional" while languages like Kannada, Tamil and Marathi are being termed as "regional". Welcome to the world's largest democracy where everyone is treated equally, but where speakers of Hindi are treated a little bit more equally. A little bit which is enough to wipe off speakers of Indian languages other than Hindi from the face of this planet.

Hindi imposition is ethnic subjugation of most of India

Even if one were to agree, for argument's sake, that learning an extra language over and above English and the language of the state fosters "national integration", why should one of the languages be compulsorily Hindi, a regional language? Why at all should Hindi be taught all over India? To offer formal channels and methods of migration and ethnic subjugation of non-Hindi speakers across India who form the majority of the Indian population? To perpetuate the baseless argument that Hindi can unite people all over India? To perpetuate the feeling in non-Hindi speakers that Hindi-speakers are Indians of a greater God? India cannot achieve "national integration" using Hindi. Hindi can only achieve "national disintegration". If there's any language which will find acceptance all over India, it is English. It's high time policy makers understand this basic ground reality and stop imposing Hindi on non-Hindi speakers.

The EU would disintegrate overnight if such a move is made

Can you imagine a three-language formula applied within the European Union (EU)? If any such thing ever happens, it will never be the case that one regional language - say Slovak - will be imposed on all of Europe. Any such attempt would be termed undemocratic, and states on which such impositions are made would vehemently oppose it. If the imposition continues, you will soon have the European Union disintegrate. The choice of languages should be left to the students and their parents. A Belgian may learn Flemish, French and English if he wishes. Nobody has the authority to impose the Slovak language on him!

Learners need freedom to choose 3rd language in this formula

Similarly, in India, nobody has the authority to impose Hindi on non-Hindi speakers. Even if we were to allow the three-language formula, Kannadigas must have the option to choose the third language of their choice. Maybe we pick Bengali. Maybe we pick Tulu. Maybe we pick Marathi. Maybe we pick Tamil. But why should we be forced to pick one of the most unendowed and unimportant of Indian languages to Kannadigas - Hindi?

Formula a vehicle for undeserved representation to Tamil?

Also, what is the guarantee that in the proposed scheme Kannada will be learnt by North Indians at all? There's already the feeling among North Indians that south India speaks only Tamil because they created most of the noise when the seeds of Hindi Imposition were sown. There are North Indians who feel that the Vijayanagara Empire was built by a Tamil! What is the guarantee that North Indians who learn Tamil as per the proposal won't come to Karnataka on the "palace on wheels for hindiwallahs" and expect Kannadigas to know either Hindi or their pidgin-Tamil?

People are more aware now, amend the policy

The times are a-changing. The speakers of every Indian language are realizing that they have been subjected to Hindi imposition. They're realizing that they can't take this lying down anymore. Kannadigas are realizing that Kannada is not inferior in any way to Hindi, and that if at all any language were inferior to another, it's Hindi which is inferior to Kannada because of its recent birth, lack of any solid history, and because its literature counts to a naught in comparison to Kannada literature.

Hindi imposition is ethnic crime. The only thing it fosters is "national disintegration". It's high time this three-language formula is amended to remove Hindi imposition. The pros and cons of a two-language formula (language of the state plus English) versus a three-language formula (language of the state plus English plus choice of any other Indian language) should be carefully analyzed. There's no point in jumping to conclusions. That too, the same old Hindi-imperialisitic ones.

For the DH story, read: Govt committed to 3-language formula for national integration

Management Lesson to IIM-B: Speak the Language of Thy Students

The orientation programme for Karnataka legislators at the Indian Institute of Management - Bangalore has exposed many of the ills in the education system of Karnataka.

When the English media makes fun of Mr. Shivalinge Gowda, MLA, who didn't feel like being a mute spectator in Prof. Lakshman Prasad's lecture delivered in English and wanted the lecture to be in Kannada, it isn't just one person who is being made fun of. It's an entire Linguistic People being made fun of. Let's not forget that these legislators are actually representatives of the Kannadiga people. Here's an excerpt from todays's Deccan Herald:
Prof Lakshman Prasad, professor of Organisational Behaviour began his talk in English. After a few minutes, Shivalinge Gowda, MLA from Arasikere raised the objection for a lecture in the language that he could not follow. He questioned why should he be reduced to a mute spectator in the name of the orientation programme. Speaker Jagadish Shettar and Legislative Council Chairman Veeranna Mattikatti pacified him saying that Kannada translation of the talk would be presented.
The very fact that professors at IIM-B started delivering lectures in English to representatives from Karnataka exposes the unpreparedness of our entire education system to address the educational challenges of Karnataka. How foolish it is for an institute of such repute to have such a basic disconnect with its students! It's not enough if a Kannada translation is "also" presented. Why was an English version presented in the first place? To make the "students" feel out of place? To make them feel that they're leading a state which speaks an inferior language? To make them feel that the real thing is English and not Kannada? Even if a Kannada translation was presented, why waste time with the English version?

One only hopes that legislators like Mr. Shivalinge Gowda realize that it's the institute which should be built or rebuilt to serve the population and not vice versa, and take necessary steps to reform Karnataka's ailing Kannada Medium Education System.

Shall we say "the IIM-B did what it knows implicitly assume that the language of education is English"? If this is the understanding which the IIM-B has about education, God save the "International Conference on Educational Leadership" coming up next year!

And shall we say, "the English media did what it knows consider Kannada as a language not worth uttering in AC rooms outside the Vidhana Soudha"?

For the full DH story, read: Legislators did what they know best!

Make Hindi Court Language: Parliamentary Committee

While it is commonsense that the Karnataka High Court should function in the Kannada langauge (and the Supreme Court in all State Languages), a "parliamentary committee" recommendation which seems to be devoid of any such commonsense sought to impose Hindi as the official language of the Supreme Court and all High Courts. The recommendation has been dismissed. Reports The Hindu:
The Law Commission has rejected a parliamentary committee recommendation to make Hindi the official court language for delivering judgments in the Supreme Court and all High Courts and also to amend the Constitution to enable the Union Legislature department to undertake original drafting of laws in Hindi.

In finalising its report, the Commission, headed by Justice A.R. Lakshmanan, considered the views of several former Chief Justices of the Supreme Court, retired Supreme Court and High Court judges and eminent lawyers.
While that looks like a prudent decision made by the Law Commission, the following statement in the Law Commission's report is not made in good taste:

Furthermore, the unity and integrity of the country is [likely] to be affected by the linguistic chauvinists and the switch over from English to Hindi in the Supreme Court and High Courts will create political and legal unrest throughout the country, which is an avoidable exercise.

It is unacceptable that those who ask for one of the most fundamental of rights - the right to preserve, protect and promote one's own language - are being called as chauvinists by a responsible Law Commission. In reality, it is the "parliamentary committee" which needs to be labeled as a band of chauvinists who are up to imposing their regional language on the whole of India. It is the "parliamentary committee" which seeks to dent the unity and integrity of India. It is the "parliamentary committee" itself which is an "avoidable exercise".

For the full news story, read: Panel says ‘no’ to making Hindi court language

Kannada word "Ooralli" used by Alexander the Great?








The Mysore Express is not a train. It's a pure Kannadiga fast bowler.

Mallik Gowda writes about Javagal Srinath in the Bangalore Mirror:
And with all the travelling and exposure the former India speedster remains a shrewd Kannadiga, looks it and speaks every inch a Mysore product and enjoys conversing in his tongue like every other person, which he did through a major part of this conversation and when asked about his Kannada he is very quick to respond, “Of course no one can forget their mother tongue and I love to speak it whenever I can,” he says.

For the full story, read: ‘Application, intensity missing’

South Indian TV Markets Defy Hindi Imposition

The DNA on Dec 9th reported a story on how non-Hindi television market in India is faring, calling that market wrongly as the "regional" market:
The regional television market in India is poised for a quantum leap with the entry of conglomerates and a bigger-than-expected spurt in advertising revenue. Experts believe the regional markets are still to be tapped to their fullest potential since their share of the total TV advertising revenues is only 25% compared with their viewership share of 37%.

The major regional markets are Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam, Bengali and Marathi, in that order.
Hindi, which is also as regional a language as any, doesn't figure in this analysis because it's assumed to be "national". The Hindi Impositionists win again. Damn. Another point to note is that languages which have been derived from Sanskrit (Bengali, Marathi) figure low in the list of major markets even though their populations are considerably higher than the populations of the southern states. Look at this striking imbalance between population and market:

Languages ordered by decreasing order of speaker population:
  1. Bengali
  2. Telugu
  3. Marathi
  4. Tamil
  5. Kannada
  6. Malayalam
Languages ordered by decreasing order of market:
  1. Tamil
  2. Telugu
  3. Kannada
  4. Malayalam
  5. Bengali
  6. Marathi
If you haven't noticed, the Marathis and Bengalis, although their populations are very high, have very small markets for their own languages! Kannadigas, who are 5th in the population-list, figure 3rd in the market-list. The Tamilians who are 4th in the population-list figure 1st in the market-list. The Telugus are 2nd in both lists. While the people of the south have defied Hindi Imposition, the Marathis and Bengalis have been gobbled up by Hindi. Also, it is clear that the languages of South India - which are not derived from Sanskrit - are the new rising stars in the market. The Marathis and Bengalis have some catching up to do.

For the complete news story, read: Regional TV heats up as biggies beam in
Population data source:List of Indian languages by total speakers

California Kannadati in Sankata

The Deccan Herald on Saturday 6 December carried a story on Meghana, a Kannadati actress in Ramesh Aravind's new movie to be released in February 2009. Excerpts:
Her debut venture Venkata in Sankata (VIS) is due to release in February. But Meghana, who is among the three leading ladies in the comedy flick, seems to have already made her presence felt.

“I have bagged a role in Shishira to be directed by Manju Swaraj,” she shares the news in her maiden press interview. Meghana is being paired opposite Yashas in the movie. That’s not all, for the lass tells us that offers have been pouring in from other industries as well. “However, I’m focused on these two projects for now and looking mainly at Sandalwood because Kannada is my mother tongue.”

While VIS will see her in a bubbly and fun role, in Shishira her character is of a more serious nature. In the film, she plays an NRI. So will we get to see traces of the real Meghana on the reel? “Portraying both these roles has been really challenging. But probably what makes things easier for me in Shishira is my accent.” The accent is evident while she speaks English, but there are no traces of it when she converses in Kannada.
For the record, she's a B.A. in Political Science and Economics, speaks unaccented Kannada (that's something for an American born Kannadati), is related to Dr. Vishnuvardhan, and often gets lost on Bengaluru's roads. Get the point?

For the full news article, read: Maiden's journey

What do we call this? Bihari Terrorism?

The Indian Express reports on 5th December of a recent attack on Kannadiga construction workers by Biharis. So much for letting the Biharis into Karnataka.
Bihari workers attack locals in City

BANGALORE: A request for water ended up in a fight among the construction workers of the Manthri Greens apartments in Malleswaram. Reportedly, a local worker had gone to ask for water, when some Bihari workers assaulted him and later his friends and also their sheds. It is said that a similar incident had occurred earlier also where these workers assaulted each other. Police said that when the fight got severe the Karnataka Rakshana vedike members were informed about it, who rushed to the spot for the rescue of the local workers. A few men suffered injuries and six Bihari workers were arrested.
Should these uncouth goons, aka "Indians of a Greater God" (for they speak the Language of a Greater God called Hindi) be allowed to come to Bengaluru? Who should protect Kannadigas from these goons? Should there be a new Karnataka Immigration Law?

Also read: Should Bihar be Penalized for Irresponsible Behavior?, Maharashtra: The Un-asked Questions

Will sons benefit from sale of soil?

Export of raw iron ore has been a very easy way for uneducated, unpatriotic and corrupt politicians of Karnataka to loot the state and fill their coffers. Just sell your soil, that's it. But now the Government of Karnataka seems to have finally realized that the state is being slowly relieved of its iron-ore reserves without any sort of profit for the state. We hear traces of sensibility in Shobha Karandlaje's remarks on this issue:
The state has about 9-10 billion tonnes of iron ore, mainly haematite. In order to conserve and discourage the export of the ore in the raw form, a push is being given to value-added iron ore-based products only.
Well well, well: if selling our soil is one of the very few ways in which the treasury of the state can be filled, there's obviously and unfortunately no other go. And yes, it makes a lot of sense to create jobs in the state in the process of selling our precious soil (value-addition doesn't come about without new jobs). But the big question is: Jobs for whom? Who will benefit from the "value-addition"? What percentage of the new jobs created will be filled by Kannadigas? How many Kannadiga experts will get jobs in this new "push"? How many of the top officers will be Kannadigas? Or will we have more Biharis and UP-wallahs come to Karnataka in search of these jobs? Will we see new overnight trains from Patna and Lucknow to Bellary? That's the question.

It is binding on the Govt. of Karnataka to ensure that Kannadigas get atleast 90% of the jobs which are created due to this new "push". Is the government committed to this? Will the sons of this soil benefit atleast by way of jobs while their precious soil is being sold? Yeddy, are you listening?

Also read: Good move by Orissa. Yeddy, are you listening?, Good move by Maharashtra. Yeddy, are you listening?

Have we failed to resurrect Sir MV?

In that very same Mysore which was once blessed by the Diwan-ship of Sir M. Visvesvaraya, one of the greatest engineers the world has ever produced, distribution of drinking water today requires a "Jamshedpur Utilities and Services Company Limited" of the Tata group. The Business Standard reports that JUSCO has bagged a Rs. 152 crore order, beating global competition:






The question which obviously comes up is: have all the Kannadiga engineers and entrepreneurs died and gone? Have they all become extinct? What have we learnt from the great water-management Guru - Sir. M.V. - who lived amidst us just a few decades ago? Have we failed so miserably to resurrect the great Kannadiga engineer and statesman?

Unity in diversity: a principle which holds with or without a common enemy

In the aftermath of the Mumbai terrorist attacks, there is quite a bit of discussion on what's wrong inside India because of which we keep on having these attacks. Two different sentiments are holding sway over the media, which in turn holds sway over people. Firstly, there is the sentiment that India's defense apparatus has gone to the dogs because of unprofessionalism and corruption. Secondly, there is the sentiment that India's linguistic diversity is an impediment to India's unity and security. While the first sentiment is based in reality, the second is based in a false notion of India.

The first sentiment is shared by anybody having even the slightest commonsense. India's progress will never exceed the unprofessionalism and corruption in not just defense but in every sphere of public life. Unprofessionalism and corruption are two different types of cancers which are eating away India. There is no option but to get rid of these two cancers. The only question which remains to be answered is - how can we reduce unprofessionalism and corruption in public servants? The answer lies in true leadership. It is foolish to believe that those who are corrupt and unprofessional can be cured of their cancers. Instead, the solution is for those who are professional and non-corrupt to become public servants, that's all. That is the only way out. In other words, rectifying the unprofessional and corrupt is a futile excercise. It is best to replace them.

We now come to to the second sentiment which is rooted in a misunderstanding of the Idea of India. The basic rights of the different linguistic peoples of India to obtain education and employment, as well as their right to protect their own language and culture are being slighted with increased vigour in the aftermath of the Mumbai terror attacks. It is being selectively forgotten that the irritation of Marathis is against those non-Marathis who act to the detriment of Maharashtra, its culture and its language, and not against those who help Maharashtra in any way. The anger of the Marathis is against those non-Marathis who have the audacity to snatch away jobs of Marathis and openly disgrace the language and culture of Maharashtra. Those non-Marathis who help Maharashtra and who are not inimical to its language and culture (for e.g. the NSG commandos) are obviously welcomed by the Marathi people. The fact that Indians need to be united against a common enemy - terrorism - does not make India's linguistic diversity a shame. Nor can it be wished away. The need for India's linguistic peoples to protect themselves, their respective languages, their respective cultures and their rights to education and employment remains irrespective of whether or not there is a common enemy. India's education and employment are the education and employment of the Marathis, the Kannadigas and that of every other linguistic people. Not just that of the Hindi speaking people.

It is high time people understand that the linguisitc states of India have willingly transferred defense responsibilities to the central government in order that they can focus on peace-time activities such as education, employment, human development, language development, arts and crafts, and culture. It is unfair and against the very idea of India to argue that the speakers of one particular language and their language itself - Hindi - have a higher priority in all the above peace-time activities all over India. It is against the very idea of India to have a system which makes Kannadigas themselves underdogs in Karnataka, and Hindis the upperdogs. We should not forget that this fact remains whether there was a terror attack on Mumbai or not. We should not forget that the principle of unity in diversity holds irrespective of whether or not the different linguistic peoples of India have a common enemy.

Windsor Manor, Bengaluru: the Next Target of Terrorists?



Bengaluru is the next target, be careful



Three terrorists arrested





Main target: 'Bridge hotel'


Central intelligence has issued alerts



State-level NSG is the Need of the Hour: Deshmukh







And yeah, Yeddy, are you listening?


Also read on KARNATIQUE:
Blasts: why do they keep happening?
Good move by Orissa. Yeddy, are you listening?
Good move by Maharashtra. Yeddy, are you listening?

Read on ENGURU:
ಮುಂಬೈ: ಬಿದ್ದುದನು ನಿಲ್ಲಿಪುದೆ ನರನ ಮೃತ್ಯುಂಜಯತೆ

Good move by Orissa. Yeddy, are you listening?








And Now, Ladies, Hampi Silk




Sanskrit Univ: BJP's facade of righteousness?







Good move by Maharashtra. Yeddy, are you listening?










'Language is not just the material phonetic means'






Picture courtesy: Wikipedia

Americans Turn Torchbearers of Kannada?





Nruthyagiri Director Krupa Phadke had trained them.


Is Kannada Literature Ageing?





High Tech to Compensate for Lack of Market Understanding?



Kannada Web Portals: Unicode or Die




Time to Revisit the Official Languages Act?




Why Do All Railroads Lead To Chennai?




'We Tried to Impose Hindi as National Language'



'Centre of Excellence for Classical Kannada'






Article on ITExaminer: Kannada to be taught on the web

Anjadiru, it's the girl from next door





Here's part of her resume on

Maharashtra: The Un-asked Questions


'fuck you all man..., kannada sucks'



Let's see some replies.

BREAKING NEWS: Kannada Identified as Classical Language

Okay, we've got breaking news. After years of protests and appeals, notably by the Karnataka Rakshana Vedike, Kannada has now been granted Classical Language status. It's time to celebrate, folks, and also time to cogitate on why it took so long, why it needed so many protests and appeals, what it means, and what we can do with the newly attached status.

Let ideas pour in. Come on!

We also congratulate our Telugu friends for Telugu also having been granted classical language status.

Also on ENGURU: ಕಡೆಗೂ ದಕ್ಕಿದೆ, ಕನ್ನಡಕ್ಕೆ ಶಾಸ್ತ್ರೀಯ ಭಾಷಾ ಸ್ಥಾನಮಾನ!!

The McCain-Murthy Connection

Justin Moyer from the Washington City Paper reports how a Kannadiga family - the Murthy's - hosted a McCain Super Saturday event. Leaving aside the question of whether it's McCain or Obama who ultimately becomes the president of the USA, one questions as to what it takes for Kannadigas right here in Karnataka to 'think politically' like the Murthy's in Virginia. It's high time Kannadigas realize that the best government for them is not going to materialize out of nowhere if they don't actively participate in the political process and continue to call it 'dirty'.




Attacks on Kannadigas in Kasargod

As Kannadigas are victimized in Kasargod, one questions why Kasargod, a predominantly Kannadiga area, is not included in Karnataka:

Students stage protest against principal in Kasargod

Kasargod Oct 24: The anti-Kannada activities have been increasing in Government College Kasargod and both the College principal as well as the district administration are opting to be quiet about the matter. Instead, the victims of the issue are now held in wrong light and notice have been issued against them.

Till last Friday, there have been three instances where the Kannadiga students have been subjected to atrocities and have been put down heavily.

The instance of miscreant students belonging to other community tearing off the Kannada hand bill put up near Principal's office room, thereby hurting the emotions of Kannadiga students has occurred again and the Kannadiga students staged a protest against this misdeed on Friday.

Usually the Principal of the College declares holiday when such instances occur but since the Principal did not take the matter seriously, the students themselves went up and rang the bell, declaring holiday.

Sure the political movements during the reorganization of states left us at a loss, but don't we have what it takes even today?

For the full news story to: Students stage protest against principal in Kasargod

Go get yourself a pair of sexy Bellary jeans

Well well well, you start digging in Bellary and you get sexy jeans? Reports Tehelka today:
A quiet Karnataka backwater has become the epicentre for a denim jeans manufacturing revolution, reports SANJANA from Bellary

POINT BLANK. Walker. Nasty. Podium. These are not just random words in an English dictionary. They are the names of successful brands of denim jeans, manufactured in Bellary, north Karnataka. To the tune of an estimated annual turnover of Rs 150 crore. It’s a big sum for a district labeled “one of the most backward districts of the state” on its own official web page.

Consider this: the 2001 census pegged the total population of Bellary at slightly over 3 lakh. A third of Bellary’s population, over 1 lakh people, is employed in the jeans manufacturing industry. According to the Human Development report (2005) for Karnataka, Bellary stood in the ninth position on the Income Index for the state’s districts — and the jeans industry is second only to the mining sector in being the major contributor to this development.

Jeans from Bellary are not just popular in Karnataka: feeding the low to mid range price segment, they are as sought after in Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Maharashtra. Priced 30-50 percent lower than premium international brands such as Lee, Levis or Wrangler, jeans from Bellary cost between Rs 145-Rs 750 a pair.

Why stop at South India? Why not export to worldwide locations? Why not show 'em what we've got? Why not give the Lees, Levis's, Wranglers a run for their money? Is the economic downturn a golden opportunity to place the Bellary stamp on the west's hips?

For the Tehelka story go to: The Jeans That Built Bellary

Wanted: Kannadigas Aspiring to Become Astronauts




A site of 40 acres beyond the greenfield Bengaluru International
Airport has been identified.



Further reading: Astronaut training centre in Bangalore by 2012

Zee who's making money using Kannada

Zee News CEO Barun Das in an interview to

A Temple for Veerappan, the 'Saviour of TN'

In Tamil Nadu, all you need on your resume to secure a temple for yourself seems to be to kidnap a Kannadiga actor, kill policemen and elephants, steal sandalwood and have a good 'working relationship' with the 'right people'. Well, if Annaavra kidnapper Veerappan is going to sit in the sanctum sanctorum of a temple in Tamil Nadu's Gopinatham village, what else would you think? Reports the DNA yesterday:

A Trust would soon be formed in the name of Veerappan and a memorial built for him. There's also a likelihood of a temple coming up to deify the moustachioed sandalwood thief who was gunned down on October 18, 2004.

This announcement came at the fourth death anniversary of Veerappan held at Moolakadu near Kolattur in Tamil Nadu on October 18. The moving spirit of the memorial is the late brigand's wife Muttulakshmi.

According to sources at the Karnataka forest department, Muttulakshmi, who has been waiting to cash in on Veerappan's 'Robinhood' image for political mileage, announced her plans saying the Trust and Memorial would fight for the poor in urban and rural-tribal areas.

What is ironical is that the police department is still facing hurdles from Mysore City Corporation (MCC) to unveil the memorial built in the honour of the officers of the Special Task Force (STF). These members had lived in forest for long time and laid down their lives fighting Veerappan. The police are grinding their teeth in angst as Veerappan gets memorial and the policemen killed by him still remain unsung.

But villagers in Gopinatham, the birth place of Veerappan have no bureaucrataic hurdles to cross to declare him the saviour of Tamil Nadu.

So much for kidnapping Annaavru. So much for social justice. So much for a feeling of brotherhood between Kannadigas and Tamils. So much for the guts of legislators in the Vidhana Soudha.

Further reading on DNA: Yours' eternally - Veerappan!