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To Narendra Modi. From the Maharaja of Mysore
As the words I, me and myself trip off the ads, lips and trolls of the man who thinks he will rule India soon, a sobering blast from the past. …
T.S. Nagarajan, a legend and a gentleman: RIP
churumuri records with deep regret the passing away of the legendary Mysore photographer, T.S. Nagarajan, in Madras this morning. He was 82 years old. Younger brother of the equally accomplished …
Did R-Day Tipu tableau insult Kodavas & Jains?
ARUN PADKI writes: 65 years after to the day when the Constitution of India was adopted paving the way for the birth of Republic of India, has the government of …
When the Maharaja’s son failed an examination
Star of Mysore editor-in-chief K.B. Ganapathy reproduces this delightful anecdote from the January issue of the Kannada magazine Uthana, published by Haldipur Vasudeva Rao: “Mysore Kingdom was being ruled by …
How the Maharajas shaped Mysore & Mysoreans
The rest of democratic India that is Bharat—indeed, the rest of Karnataka that is not Mysore and Bangalore—will not understand the fuss over the passing of Srikantadatta Narasimharaja Wodeyar, the …
Wodeyar got more than what he leaves behind
As Mysore observes a spontaneous bandh, as plebs and celebs spill platitudes, as newspapers and TV channels plunge into panegyrics, Dr Prithvi Datta Chandra Shobhi of the department of history …
Srikantadatta Narasimharaja Wodeyar: RIP
churumuri records with deep regret the passing away of Srikantadatta Narasimharaja Wodeyar, the scion of the erstwhile royal kingdom of Mysore, in Bangalore on this the 10th day of December, …
Another petty ending to a ‘world-famous’ Dasara
K. JAVEEN NAYEEM writes: No you have not read me wrong and I have not made a mistake in what I have written. I did say ‘petty’ and not ‘pretty’. …
A feast for the stomach—and a feast for the eyes
From Mukhwas, a just-published book on Indian food through the ages, by Alka Pande: “Kanteerava Narasaraja (Wodeyar) of Mysore (1638-49) enjoyed tasteful bites served by charming women. The women had …
Why the Mysore Palace doesn’t run out of water
There are hundreds of engineering colleges around us. There are hundreds of “experts” ventilating on some issue or the other. But every summer it is not uncommon for brand-new localities …
Mudde, saaru & mutton chops with the Maharaja
What other people eat—and how, and how much—has long been an object of human fascination; increasingly so in the age of the modern media, where food is the new sex, …
What the lights ‘n’ sights of Mysore hide from you
“Doorada betta nunnuge” (from afar, even a distant hill looks smooth) is an old Kannada saying. The sight of the Mysore palace with the Jayachamarajendra Wodeyar circle in the foreground, …
Mysore Mallige for ‘Maharani’ on day of glitz, gold
On the first day of Dasara 2012, the scion of the erstwhile royal family of Mysore, Srikantadatta Narasimharaja Wodeyar, dressed in traditional robes, sits on the throne at the main palace …
8 reasons Karnataka is wrong on Cauvery issue
Like a bad penny, the Cauvery “dispute” returns to the national discourse every few years with both the “riparian” States involved the story, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu, making the same …
What Kannada racists can learn from a Raja-Rishi
The silhouette of Jayachamaraja Wodeyar, the 25th and last maharaja of Mysore—a “raja-rishi” (statesman-saint) in the words of a certain somebody—on Wednesday, as a sad and silly storm over a …
Lessons from Hungary 8 months into a centenary
U.B. VASUDEV writes from Tampa, Florida: We went on a tri-country tour of Denmark, Germany and Hungary recently and as usual took a few photographs. Here are two photos of …
Why does Mysore need Jamshedpur for water?
KIRAN RAO BATNI writes: The price of water has gone up by at least five times in Mysore, which is a stone’s throw away from the Krishna Raja Sagara dam. …
German visionary behind our vanishing beauties
SHASHIKIRAN MULLUR writes from Bangalore: The heat has gone up and the dust has risen. Everywhere dry leaves have covered the ground, but Bangalore was beautiful this Sunday morning from …
Mysore Dasara CDI: a prism of the past in water
On the seventh night of Navarathri, the Mysore palace stands in what newspaper caption-writers would call “all its resplendent glory”, the streams of water shooting out from the fountain forming …
Should Bollywood have a place in Mysore Dasara?
ROHITH BATNI writes: Come 2012, for some, “Mysore Dasara” could mean a train between Mysore and Dasara. Yes, that’s how far the Mysore Dasara celebrations have been steered away from …
77 years ago, when the Mahatma came to Mysore
Long before self-serving rath yatras and road shows became trump cards in the boardgame of Indian politics, Mahatma Gandhi went around the country campaigning against untouchability. The Mahatma’s magnificent mission …
Naada habba with an eye on the North and West
The 401st Dasara is upon us. On the first day of the nine nights, U.B.Vasudev in Tampa, Florida, forwards a panoramic picture of the main Amba Vilas palace in Mysore, …
Five Hindus and a Christian invade Mysore palace
All decked up in their traditional attire, the elephants for the Mysore Dasara—Balarama, Arjuna, Abhimanyu, Sarala, Mary and Ganga—arrive at the main Amba Vilas palace to a grand reception on …
‘Where is Malgudi? Where we all wish we lived’
On the 10th anniversary of his passing away, The Guardian, London, has a long piece on the legendary creator of the fictional town of Malgudi, R.K. Narayan, with churumuri‘s own …
A tale of two roads paved with debris & hubris
E.R. RAMACHANDRAN writes: This is a tale of two roads in Mysore: the Janata marga and the Raja marga. The Janata marga is the Krishnaraja Sagar road, in short KRS Road. …