The advent of Tamil New Year Vijaya is round the corner and almanacs are ready to hit the stands. Sri Desika Darsana Diary and Guide contains matters of astronomy, important dates and do’s and don’ts. It has slokas and valuable information for Vaishnavites. Released on the occasion of the 90 jayanti of Sri Seva Swami, the diary is priced at Rs. 60. Contact 044-26180481.
The Brahmin Welfare Association, Triplicane, also gives vital information for followers of Sanatana Dharma, especially Vaishnavite,in a simple style. The positions of the planets in the new year have also been given. Contact 28441503, mobile 9840227436.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> Arts / April 04th, 2013
Kodaikanal, the princess of hill resorts, is bursting at the seams despite a dry spell.
With the sun showing no mercy on the residents in the plains, tourist influx to the popular hill station in the south Tamil Nadu is soaring.
“The average arrival of tourists during weekdays is 3,000 and during weekends is 5,000 now. If the colleges are closed for vacation, there will be a steep rise in the number of tourists visiting Kodaikanal. We expect a considerable increase in the influx this summer,” says an official in the tourist department.
Exhibiting flamboyance with 75 percent of 3.5 lakh plants planted for the ensuing flower show blooming in splendor, the Bryant Park spread on 20.5 acres has attracted 21,000 visitors since the beginning of April.
Horticulture deputy director S.Raja Mohamed says, “Put together, the revenue collected through sale of tickets to visitors to Bryant and Chettiar parks is Rs 6.2 lakh in the last 12 days.” Even as Bryant Park has been readied for the flower show, he says, fancy varieties like California Poppy, popularly called Singamuga poo (lion-faced flower) in local lingo, and andraeanum, a frog-shaped flower, are in full bloom.
Anticipating traffic congestion and problem in parking tourist vehicles as encountered in the last few years, the municipality in coordination with highways and forest departments is making arrangements to level the government lands along the approach roads to sight-seeing places.
“Usually, the stretch of tourist spots from Green Valley View, Pillar Rock, Guna Caves, Moyer Point to pine forests is choked with vehicular traffic during peak season. So steps have been taken to level the forest and revenue lands on the roadsides in these sites to facilitate parking of vehicles,” an officer in the municipality said.
“The pleasant climate is drawing crowds from the plains to the hills. Hence, we are also chalking out plans to mitigate water shortage,” he added. Kodaikanal recorded a minimum temperature of 17 degree Celsius and maximum of 24 degree Celsius on Friday.
source: http://www.deccanchronicle.com / Deccan Chronicle / Home> News> Current Affairs / DC / by AR. Meyyammai / Saturday, April 13th, 2013
Rajhesh Vaidhya has redesigned the veena to resemble a guitar so it can be carried around like one — Photo: R. Shivaji Rao / The Hindu
‘Made of red cedar, the RaVna can be amplified to produce any sound. I wish to take it to concerts across the world so people become aware of it’
Rajhesh Vaidhya wondered what it would be like to walk and play his veena. Look where this idea took him.
Collaborating with Shankar Swamy of Chennai-based Harmony Musical Instruments (HMI), he has made a veena that resembles a guitar and can be carried around like one.
Rajhesh is now considering applying for a patent for this instrument, which he calls RaVna.
“RaVna was inspired by Roland AX-Synth, the keytar,” said Mr. Vaidhya, who has performed alongside pianist-composer-arranger Stephen Devassy, a famous Roland AX-Synth player.
In fact, Mr. Vaidhya was seen performing with Mr. Devassy at a concert in Croydon, London, on March 30, when he unveiled his unusual-looking veena to the world.
Before he mustered the courage to go on stage with the RaVna, Mr. Vaidhya spent around eight months getting accustomed to the instrument. Made of red cedar and weighing 12 kg, it is a tad too heavy.
However, sustained practice enabled Mr. Vaidhya to get a grip on the instrument. He said, “It has a solid body. I did not want a hollow one. I can amplify it to produce the desired sound.”
Other features of the RaVna include two pick-ups for the main strings and one more for the harmony strings, an unusually-sized fretboard and wooden scalloping that enables the strings to be pulled down in the manner unique to the veena.
Mr. Vaidhya denies any plans to market the instrument. “I just wish to take it to concerts in different parts of the world so people become aware of it,” he said.
He is clearly besotted with his RaVna, and in a tribute, his international school of veena — scheduled to launch on May 25 — is being named after the instrument.
source: http://www.TheHindu.com / Home> News> Cities> Chennai /by Prince Frederick / April 07th, 2013
Renovation work under progress at Ripon Building. / Photo:B.Jothi Ramalingam. / The Hindu
Two heritage buildings of Chennai Corporation — Ripon Buildings and Victoria Public Hall — will sport a new look by the end of this year.
Addressing the Assembly on Monday, Municipal Administration Minister K.P. Munusamy said that the work to restore the Ripon Buildings, the headquarters of the Corporation, will be completed by October this year, to facilitate centenary celebration of the heritage structure in November. The project to renovate Victoria Public Hall too would be completed in July this year. The Corporation has spent nearly Rs.11.06 crore towards renovating these two buildings.
This fiscal, the Corporation proposes to construct five bridges across the city to ease traffic congestion at a total cost of Rs.13 crore. Residents of Bojaraja Nagar, Old Washermenpet, would soon have vehicular subway in their area.
The civic agency also plans to build a box culvert linking R.K. Link Road at Korattur and Jawaharlal Nehru Salai at Baba Nagar and another culvert at Narayanapuram across Keelkattalai tank surplus course. One more bridge would be constructed to link Rajiv Gandhi Salai and East Coast Road. It will come up across Buckingham canal connecting Thoraipakkam Murugesan Nagar and Pandiyan Salai, Neelankarai. A box culvert at Padi Pudu Nagar Road across Padikuppam canal will also be reconstructed in 2013-14.
As the generation of solid waste has increased to 4,700 metric tonnes per day after the city expansion, the Corporation is taking measures to set up waste processing facilities at Minjur-Vallur and Kuthambakkam. Once the tenders are settled and projects are started, garbage would not be disposed at the Kodungaiyur and Perungudi sites.
source: http://www.TheHindu.com / Home> News> Cities> Chennai / by Staff Reporter / April 02nd, 2013
Kashmiri creations have been retailed from Spencer’s Plaza for a long time,despite the mall having hit a rough patch | P Ravikumar
Spencer Plaza, one of the oldest shopping malls in the country, is now probably just a remnant of the British Raj. But, a horde of Kashmiri Muslim merchants have kept the place buzzing with activity for decades now, despite other shops moving out to more feasible locations after the advent of modern-age malls
Rows of shops dot the maze of floors at the Spencer Plaza that otherwise bears a desolate look, except for one thing: goodwill drives trade despite tough competition. S A Shawl of Master Collections explains, “So many shops have shut down over the years, especially in the last decade. But, I have a stream of customers at my store and they are not just the foreign clients.”
Shawl, like most of the other shop owners is from Srinagar, Kashmir and has been a resident of Chennai for the last two decades. For many generations now, the Shawl family has been engaged in handicrafts. “We had the license from the British government in those days. Our family name, Shawl, indicates our occupation,” he adds.
Quite a few procure the handicrafts from Kashmir, he explains, “It is a labour-intensive sector and it takes many days for us to manufacture one handicraft item. And, it has a long procedure involved as well.”
Jewel Mine, another shop that is popular among the local shoppers and foreign clientele is a hotspot for its exclusive handicrafts, shawls, gold and silver jewellery. Parvez Ahmed Khan, owner, Jewel Mine, shares his views on the consistent popularity of Kashmiri handicrafts among the crowd. “The reason why none of the handicrafts shops moved out of Spencer is because of the places popularity among the foreign crowd. They come here because it doesn’t have a European or American feel to it.”
He adds that it is impossible to run a unit in Chennai, though it might possibly save much of costs for the shop owners. “For many, it is easier to procure the handicrafts and other items like carpets and shawls from Kashmir,” he says rather ruefully.
Shabarat Sidiq who runs Aarasz, another Kashmiri emporium explains why Spencer is the ideal set up for many like him.
“Over the years, emporiums have thrived because of their appeal among foreign clients. There are close to 72 shops here and everyone has an exclusive client,” he says.
With the fashion boom that has spread even to a traditional city like Chennai, emporiums have benefitted from the sudden surge in demand. Shawl says, “Even college girls in Chennai are now keen on the original pashmina shawls.”
Khan echoes similar thoughts and says, “Earlier, Chennai’s customers were interested only in gold but today we see people like to invest even in gems.” Now they are open to spending on new things,” he laughs.
However, there has been a 70 per cent decline in the production because of the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA), over the past 5 years, says Shawl. “That has directly affected the manufacturing of handicrafts. Labourers don’t want to engage in the process as the act has a provision to provide them with the basic amount.”
source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Cities> Chennai / by Janani Sampath – Chennai / April 01st, 2013
Artistes from Abhinava Dance Company, Bengaluru perform on the inaugural day of the Panguni Peruvizha and Vidyaatri Festival at Kapaleeswarar Temple in Mylapore. The festival is on till April 8, with renowned artistes performing every single evening at the venue | P Ravikumar
The ten-day Panguni Peruvizha and Vidyaatri festival commenced on Friday at the Kapaleeswarar Kovil with a dance performance by Bengaluru-based Abhinava Dance Company. The event was presided over by P S Sachu, Secretary, Tamil Nadu Eyal Isai Nataka Mandram, who inaugurated the festival. Other special guests at the function included renowned city-based gynaecologist and obstetrician Dr Kamala Selvaraj.
The music and dance programmes for the Kapaleeswarar Temple’s Panguni Peruvizha and Vidayaatri festival have been sponsored by Preetha Reddy and P Vijaykumar Reddy in memory of P Gnanamba and Obul Reddy (parents of P Vijaykumar Reddy).
Beginning with a Shiva Stuthi, Nirupama and Rajendra, who have been performing together for the last 25 years enthralled audience that included devotees at the temple, who joined the enraptured crowd that began streaming in. Moving on to chaturang (the combination of four elements – sangeet, nritya, tarana bol and sahitya), the group dance piece by Abhinava, set to tune in raag Khamaj was a stupendous presentation. The vibrant colours of the costumes and the energy were consistent in the following performances that included Shringara Rama — an excerpt from Ramcharitmanas by Saint Tulsidas that explored the human side of the lord and his love for Sita. The depiction of restrained and dignified love by Rama was contrasted with the more-explicit love of another incarnation of Vishnu— Raas Leela of Lord Krishna who danced with his beloved Radha and gopikas on the banks of the Yamuna.
Artistes from Abhinava Dance Company, Bengaluru perform on the inaugural day of the Panguni Peruvizha and Vidyaatri Festival at Kapaleeswarar Temple in Mylapore. The festival is on till April 8, with renowned artistes performing every single evening at the venue | P Ravikumar
Befittingly, as the mercury soars in the city with every passing day, the group also appealed to the rain God to bless Chennai with much-needed showers. Varsha, was an astounding group rendition of the joy that is synonymous with rain.
Talking to City Express about the performance, Nirupama said that performing in Chennai was always special, and that the group was glad that the organisers thought about bringing kathak to the audience at the temple.
Vijaykumar Reddy, Thakkar, Kapaleeswarar Temple, said that the ten-day festival will showcase performances of both music and dance. “We are having a host of performances by renowned artistes. Performing the arts is an important part of the temple’s activities and we are looking at having some remarkable performances here,” he said.
source: http://www,newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Cities> Chennai / by Express Features- Chennai / April 01st, 2013
Tamil poet Vairamuthu on Thursday called upon educationists to produce candidates who can successfully face the global competition in various fields.
The world had shrunk in the era of globalisation and information technology. There was a sea change in the globalised employment scenario. The situation had warranted that the higher, technical and professional educational institutions need to prepare students to face the tough competition from countries such as the United States, England, Australia and others, he said.
Speaking at a programme held at Manakula Vinayagar Engineering College at Madagadipet, Mr. Vairamuthu said that there were reports that several developed countries had been following inventive approaches to produce super rich students basically to outshine students from upcoming countries. The educationalists should take note of this so that they could strive to provide global standard education to Indian students. While stating that women education had seen spectacular improvement in India, he said there was a need to bridge the gap between rural and urban women.
M. Dhanasekaran, Chairman, S.V. Sugumaran, Vice Chairman, SMVE Trust and K. Venkatachalapathy, Director, spoke.
source: http://www.TheHindu / Home> National> Tamil Nadu / by Special Correspondent / Puducherry, March 29th, 2013
Flashback: S.A. Raju, the founding member of Chamundeswari Studio, seen working on the projector at the studio / Photo: Special Arrangement / The Hindu
He trekked the seven hills of the Velliangiri Mountain and photographed the buttery sun at dawn with his prized Kodak box camera. “It cost just 52 rupees!” recalls S. A. Raju as he shows it off. “I captured the sunrise and sunset at the Singanallur tank, birds, and scenery in and around my area.” When he was studying at Sarvajana School, he would develop the negatives at Art Studios on V.H. Road, and send the photographs to the Illustrated Weekly of India in Mumbai. They paid Rs.100 for every good photograph.
A pigeon couple captured by S.A. Raj in his Kodak box camera. The photograph won him a cash prize of Rs.1,000 from the Illustrated Weekly of India magazine / Photo: Special Arrangement / The Hindu
S. A. Raju’s house in Singanallur retains the old world charm. Wooden pillars and a sturdy teakwood roof add to the aesthetics. It is from this very house that his journey into the world of filmmaking began. He has worked for 30 years in film studios in various capacities as the cinema projector operator, cameraman, and sound recordist. It was the immaculately dressed S.K. Kannan, a sound engineer at Pakshiraja Studio, who inspired Raju to join the studios. “He was my father’s friend and he earned a monthly salary of Rs. 900, a big amount then,” he remembers.
After his SSLC, Raju became an apprentice at the Pakshiraja Studio. By then, he was a licensed cinema projector operator too. “Pakshiraja Studio worked like clockwork and the shooting began at 9 a.m. By the end of the day, the film would be processed at the laboratory and the print shown to technical crew. I learnt everything about film processes, right from the time the roll was mounted till it rolled out as a motion film in the theatres,” he says. It was during the shooting of MalaiKallan that Raju became a projector operator. “I remember the scene. Actors Chakrapani (MGR’s brother) and Dorairaj were perched on a tree at Sungam. They had to spy on the Malaikallan with a binocular. As the actors had to leave for Chennai, dubbing had to be done on the same day. The projector operator didn’t turn up and I got the opportunity. Chakrapani put Rs. 100 in my pocket as a token of appreciation,” he recalls.
Flashback: S.A. Raju as a young projector operator at Pakshiraja Studio in Coimbatore. / Photo:: Special Arrangement / The Hindu
He learnt cinematography from Sailen Bose, a noted cinematographer from Kolkatta, who also worked in Malai Kallan. He recounts a complicated scene from the film. “A forest set was put up with mountains and trees. Actor Bhanumathi entered humming a song. She threw a mango up in the air, and Malaikallan (played by MGR) caught it. Those days we had the ‘boom man’ to place mikes and record the sounds. As the shadow of the mike fell on the screen, I climbed up in my veshti and operated the mike. MGR noticed the difficulty of my attire ”
During the tea break (sweet, kaaram and coffee was served free) MGR summoned the studio tailor and ordered two pants. Two khaki trousers were ready the next day and Raju started wearing pants from then on.
Besides MGR and Sivaji Ganesan, the reigning stars, other popular stars included Bhanumathi, and the Travancore sisters (introduced by S.M. Sriramulu Naidu in the Malayalam film Prasanna). “The actors shopped at Meeran & Co in Town Hall which sold gramophone and music discs.”
Raju’s acquaintance with the manager at the studio got him an opportunity to take inventory of various departments. “I helped him with typing official letters on a typewriter. As I took account of the different kinds of microphone (pressure, dynamic and ribbon), the mikes used for song recording, for dialogues, the different lenses such as 25 mm, 30 mm, 70 mm ( for close-up) and 100 mm ( for close-up of eyes), I learnt so much.”
The veteran then shares the story of Frank and Mary, a pair of tigers, which S.M. Sriramulu Naidu bought from the Madras Zoo for his film Swami Ayyappan. “Carpenters at the studio made two cages to transport the tigers. The cages were kept at the car shed for a month and later the tigers were tied outside in the open ground. In a few days, Frank became everyone’s pet. But he was scared of light, so we used a stuffed tiger to take long shots.”
Swami Ayyappan in Malayalam was a big success and the dubbed version in Tamil also ran to packed houses. “Local drama troupe members dubbed in Tamil for free,” he remembers.
Raju also mentions the flops such as Kalyaniyin Kanavan that starred Sivaji Ganesan and Saroja Devi. When Pakshiraja Studios wound up and moved to Bangalore it became Chamundeswari Studios, and Raju became its founding member .
He narrates the friendship MGR shared with Kalaignar Karunanidhi, M.N Nambiar, and Chinnappa Thevar. “Chinnappa Thevar was a milk vendor at Central Studios. He did maalish for MGR during his workout and struck up a friendship. Later, he became a junior artist and a popular film producer.”
(as told to S.A. Raju born in March 1932, studied at the Elementary School in Singanallur and later at Sarvajana. As a teenager he joined the Pakshiraja Studios and worked there till 1965. As a founding member of Chamundeswari Studios in Bangalore he worked there till 1980 and then moved back to Coimbatore. He was in-charge of a storage facility of picture and sound negatives of notable films, cameras and other studio equipment. Before retiring, he worked as cinema projector operator at Krishna and Raja theatres. His favourite films include Aryamala, Utthama Puthiren (where P.U. Chinnappa played a double role), Shantaram’s Jhanak Jhanak Paayal Baje, and Sivakavi and Haridas, with M.K. Thyagaraja Bhagavathar in the lead role.
I REMEMBER
The filming of the tiger and leopard fight scene in Malai Kallan. A huge pit was dug up inside the Paskhiraja Studio and Puli Govindarajan controlled the animals.
source: http://www.TheHindu.com / Home> Features> MetroPlus / by K. Jeshi / Coimbatore, April 02nd, 2013
Wellington Lake in The Nilgiris thrown open for boating on Thursday / Photo: Special Arrangement / The Hindu
Wellington near Coonoor which was hitherto known within the country and abroad mainly for its long association with the defence sector and the presence of two of the most prestigious establishments of the Indian Army- the Defence Service Staff College (DSSC) and the Madras Regimental Centre (MRC) — would henceforth be linked to the tourism sector also.
The Wellington Lake in a picturesque spot of the barracks was thrown open for boating on Thursday.
Inaugurating the facility, the Commandant, MRC, and President, Wellington Cantonment Board (WCB) Brigadier S. Suresh Kumar said that it would be promoted as a tourist spot. Shortly it would feature a children’s park, he said adding that a restaurant overlooking the lake would come into being, later.
MUSICAL FOUNTAIN
Efforts are also on to provide a walking plaza and install a musical fountain.
The lake would also be used for imparting training in watermanship for soldiers.
Brigadier Suresh Kumar acknowledged the contribution of the district administration and others in the execution of the scheme.
source: http://www.TheHindu.com / Home> News> National> Tamil Nadu / by D. RadhaKrishnan / Udhagamandalam, March 30th, 2013
