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Last two decades have seen “eating out” grow manifold in India and restaurants catering to every taste bud, and all possible “global cuisine” opening up. Along with the burgers and pizzas, the idli, vada, sambar have also kept pace. By-product of the booming “eating out” culture has been the number of food writers, researchers and bloggers. They wouldn’t leave the humble idli to the Tamilians, but say, hey trace its origins, it came from, sometimes Arabia, sometimes Indonesia. But, idli’s famous restaurant created accompaniment sambar has a story of its own. The Udupi boys had brought it to Mumbai, and Matunga Gujaratis queue up to slurp them, and many have tried to credit the Marathas for our “saambhar”. I have always been doubtful of the sambar lineage being traced back to the Shahaji Bhonsale’s kitchen in the Thanjavur palace. Though the story by now is very popular, let me recount it here, straight from the social media post that is attributed to historian and writer...

The rail station at Khajuraho is relatively new, and it isn't still very well connected. I took a train from Varanasi and the scheduled arrival was 5.20 am. I knew nothing about the station, and was hardly prepared for the journey. As I have done in the past during some of my solo trips I thought I would spend the time at the station till the dawn and then step out to catch a rickshaw. But, it was winter and I had no idea if the station had a good waiting room. I went to sleep and not quietly, but cursing the person in the next seat for he was playing some you tube clip with the phone audio. By CR Pushpa - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=51825812 Next morning the train reached Khajuraho ahead of its scheduled time. As I was getting out of the compartment the guy who was in the next seat asked if I was going into the town, and my destination. He said there is an auto that has to come to pick him up and there is another more per...

This post should be in Tamil. But, it is in English for two reasons. One, I can type faster in English. Two, I do not know how many Tamil readers would like to read this post. This post also comes two months late. I met Tamil writer S. Ramakrishnan in February, at the Gateway LitFest. I was asked if I can be present at the festival for the session in which he would be speaking, to be an interpreter. I was in two minds. How can I say no to one of the contemporary writers I have been following since the days of his serials in Vikatan, whose writings I liked? But Sanjay Subrahmanyan was singing at the Chembur Fine Arts that evening, which I was in no mood to miss. I had told the organizers that even if I am not required for the session, I would like to come over to meet S.Ra. I hunted for ‘Upa Pandavam’ the first book that I had read of S. Ra and it had made a big impact on me. Coming from North Tamil Nadu with a rich tradition of Mahabharata recitals and therukoothu ‘ U...

                                                                 Badami Cave III  Discussing the ‘Vishnu Cult in Karnataka’ Shrinivas Padigar gives the first epigraphic record to establish that the Badami Chalukyas could have been Vaishnavas or Bhagavatas – the Mudhol copper plate record of Pulekesi I’s son Pugavarma from Malkhed that records renewal of grant to god Varahidevasvamin. This Varaha temple he infers could have existed much before the 6 th century inscription. Their affinity towards Varaha is evident from the fact that the royal emblem of Chalukyas was the boar. The Mangalesa Kalmane or the Mangalesa Cave in Badami records the direct affiliation wherein he is called a “parama bhagavata”. That cave, Badami Cave III has the all important inscription that helps date (dated 578 CE, reign of Kirtivarma...

                               Surya from Nuggehalli temple  Today is Ratha Saptami, I miss the related festivities at Kanchipuram. This year, I have had a “discovery” as precious as the “Dwadasa Adityas” in Varanasi last year. The Kanakaditya Mandir at Kasheli, near Ratnagiri in Maharashtra. I was at Ratnagiri recently and was so thrilled that we were going to a Mandir that houses a deity who had “fled” Gujarat during the persecution somewhere in 13 th century. Somehow no one in the trip with me was even discussing the temple, and we went to a pre-historic site which was the main agenda of the trip, but we didn’t go anywhere near the temple. I was disappointed. I thought I would go as soon as I can – then I came across a write up that said starting Rata Saptami they have a week-long festival including a rath festival on the Ratha Saptami day. I quickly checked train tickets, thought will make...

From politicians to Bollywood stars, many are at the forefront of their support to Jawaharlal Nehru University protestors. Beyond that the loud voices criticizing the government over the attack by masked men at the University are three eminent professors – Ramchandra Guha, Pratap Bhanu Mehta, and Raghuram Rajan. Being teachers in renowned universities they should know it better. Violence at any educational institution is despicable. So is it in JNU. Was the masked attack by men on students, teachers, and destruction of property the first instance of violence? Prof Guha, Mehta, who was till recently a vice chancellor at Ashoka University, and Rajan Finance Professor at Chicago University and also a founder of a new university in India, Krea, should know very well that the violence did not begin with the attack by masked men. The first violent protests happened against the fee hike at the JNU. See here a snapshot from the recent Indian Express article on the JNU fee hike....

A morning to remember from Kashi  I felt like an original explorer that morning. I missed getting out by sunrise as I had planned. But, being a winter morning, it was still not too sunny when I ventured out at 8, and the streets were just getting a little busy in Varanasi. I got into an electric auto rickshaw and asked for Adi Keshav mandir. The driver drew a blank, and then I told him Raj Ghat. Still, he wasn’t too convinced. I opened up the GPS and told him to head straight towards Raj Ghat. I knew the best way would have been to go to Assi Ghat and take a boat ride rather than rough it out on Kashi’s streets. Just laziness or my dizziness in looking down into water while getting a boat, I avoided it. It was a pretty long ride, and once close to the right turn towards Raj Ghat we asked for Adi Keshav mandir and got directions. The GPS took us straight up to the lane inside where the temple is tucked in clearly. We crossed the archaeological ruins of the ...