Category Archives: Arts, Culture & Entertainment

Ponduru weavers make 360-cubit turban for Lord

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Records, All
A ritual being performed with the 360-cubit turban at Uma Rama Lingeswara temple at Ponduru, before it was sent to the Srisailam temple | Express
A ritual being performed with the 360-cubit turban at Uma Rama Lingeswara temple at Ponduru, before it was sent to the Srisailam temple | Express

Srikakulam :

Apart form the reputation the khadi weavers from Ponduru has earned over the years for their fine craftsmanship, they have another reason to feel honoured on the eve of Mahasivarathri.

Tradition has it that every year, the craftsmen prepare talapagas (turbans) for Mallikarjuna Swamy temple in Srisailam in Kurnool district for Mahasivarathri and the celebrations begin at the temple after the turban is offered to the presiding deity Mallikarjuna Swamy. The weavers also prepare khadi vastram for Goddess Bramarambha  and Lord Vigneswara too.

This time, the weavers have prepared a turban measuring 360 cubits. Carrying the holy turban, a group of 15 people from Ponduru started journey to Srisailam on Wednesday in a mini bus. A celebration marked at the local Uma Rama Lingeswara Swamy temple prior to the group left for Srisailam.
As for the tradition, a weaver’s family take the task of preparing the holy turban and this year, the onus was on the family of Balla Kumara Swamy of Laveti Street of Ponduru. It took three months to prepare the turban, says Balla Kumara Swamy.

“The making of turban starts in the Khartika masam, which is said to be the favourite month of Lord Siva. We started the works on the day of Yekasadi. My entire family took deeksha. During the period of weaving, we eat only vegetarian food, take head bath every day and pray Lord Siva. We, the weavers, believe that our families are blessed ones, if we prepare the holy cloth for the Lord,” Kumar Swamay says.
The endowment authorities pay some amount to the weavers for preparing the turban, but it is insufficient, say the weavers. Some Samaritans also donate for the holy turban too.

source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> States> Andhra Pradesh / by Express News Service / February 24th, 2017

An ode to weaves, crafts

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Business & Economy, Education
Sizzling: Actor Pranita walking the ramp showcasing the collections designed by students at a fashion show in Visakhapatnam on Saturday. | Photo Credit: K_R_DEEPAK;K_R_DEEPAK -
Sizzling: Actor Pranita walking the ramp showcasing the collections designed by students at a fashion show in Visakhapatnam on Saturday. | Photo Credit: K_R_DEEPAK;K_R_DEEPAK –

Students showcase their collections at fashion show

The mood was electrifying at the AU Convocation Hall as models, with smouldering eyes and sensuous smiles, sashayed onto the ramp. The evening was filled with creativity, artistic talent and fashion extravaganza on Saturday as students of Queenz Institute of Fashion displayed their work in the annual designer show. Organised in association with Kanchi Kamakshi, some 32 students of the advanced diploma and diploma courses in fashion design offered by the institute showcased their collections which were uniquely themed to reflect the rich handloom and handicraft tradition of AP.

Creating a line that caught everybody’s eye the young designers added the much needed oomph factor to city’s fashion calendar. The event created a platform for aspiring fashion designers to think out of the box, come up with their own label and make a smart entry in the fashion circuit.

This year, the students had their fashion pulse on exploring different traditional weaves and crafts of the State. Right from spending time with the weavers and craftsmen of villages like Mangalari, Machilipatnam, Dharmavaram and Chirala to creating a fusion of styles that brings out freshness in the fashion scene, the young designers have gone a step further in their pursuit of capturing a different fashion essence.

“The students have spent more than six months in designing the creations. The main purpose of the show is to provide them a platform to innovate and tell the story of a rich textile and craft tradition of AP through the creations. Showcasing their work in the public domain gives them exposure,” said D. Satyaveni, faculty of the institute. The collection was showcased in groups which included cocktail wear, street wear, western party wear, indo-western, traditional drapes and saris. The Indo western collection designed by Sandhya, Padma and Deepti Patnaik was an ode to Dharmavaram silk. Draped in a bright orange and maroon ensemble, actor Pranita was the show-stopper of the sequence.

The team of young designers Sravani, Nilima, Nirisha and Anisha brought out a cocktail wear designing dresses with the traditional Uppada fabric and crochet. Designers Manisha, Sirisha, Jai and Shanti Priya took the Kalamkari prints of Machilipatnam and designed it in Khadi. Street wear got a fresh look with a fusion of Khadi and Venkatgiri. The collections were fused with Kondapalli toys in handbags and footwear, which are worth a mention.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Visakhapatnam / Nivedita Ganguly / Visakhapatnam – February 25th, 2017

Visakhapatnam gets public botanical garden

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Education, Green Initiatives / Environment, Nature, Records, All

Visakhapatnam :

The city’s first non-private tropical botanical garden has been developed in Andhra University at the botany department block under the watchful eyes of professors J Venkateswarulu, BS Rao and MOP Iyengar.

Way back in 1946, the trio initiated plant growth in the department and specifically scourged the tropical region of north-coastal AP for rare specimens such as Red Sanders. Even today, the garden can be seen in all its full splendour, especially in the courtyard area and is still very well preserved.
However, AU which was once a green haven is now being converted into a haven for ornamental plants which do not even belong to the sub-continent.

The old botanical garden though tiny has retained its charm with more than 40 species of tropical plants and trees.

“The botanical garden in AU is probably the first non-private botanical garden in the city. A lot of people do not realise that till then, Vizag had a whole lot of private garden residences full of exotic tropical plants. However, there was none which could have truly belonged to the public,” professor P Venkateswarulu  said.

After cyclone Hudhud in October 2014, a lot of replanting work was done mainly because much of the old trees such as Red-Sanders and Sweet Tamarind took a heavy beating and had to be replanted again. Regarding the damage done, sources in the department said, “The damage was huge all across the district. However, the botanical garden is back on track.”

Way back in 1946, professors J Venkateswarulu, BS Rao and MOP Iyengar initiated plant growth in the botany department and specifically scourged the tropical region of north-coastal AP for rare specimens such as Red Sanders. Even today, the garden can be seen in all its full splendour, especially in the courtyard area and is still very well preserved

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / News> City News> Visakhapatnam News / by Venkatesh Bayyal / TNN / February 26th, 2017

Face-to-face with writer of a lesson

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Education, Inspiration /Positive News and Features
Telugu writer and traveller Dasari Amarendra with the students of the Government Tribal Welfare Boys High School at Bodlanka in East Godavari district. | Photo Credit: SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT
Telugu writer and traveller Dasari Amarendra with the students of the Government Tribal Welfare Boys High School at Bodlanka in East Godavari district. | Photo Credit: SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT

Students ask him background of the story

It was a pleasant surprise for the students of Class X at the Government Tribal Welfare Boys High School in the agency village Bodlanka, when they got a chance to interact with a writer, whose short-story was part of their syllabus. They posed him a series of questions ranging from the background of the short-story to the lifestyle of the writer during a session that lasted for about an hour. Some of the students even wanted to have a photograph with him. Amazed by their response, the writer also conducted a session on simple methods of learning English.

Dasari Amarendra, a retired engineer-cum-manager from the Bharat Electronics Limited by profession and a writer and traveller by passion, visited the school the other day, located about 70 km from Maredumilli, along with his friends and spent a few hours with the students. In the early 1990’s, he had translated a story for the National Book Trust and a portion of it had been made part of the State government’s syllabus.

During his interaction with headmaster Balu Reddy, Mr. Amarendra mentioned about the lesson ‘Chitragreevamu’ and expressed his desire to meet the students who learnt his story of a pigeon in their classroom.

It took a few minutes for the students to understand the fact that the man in front of them was the one who penned the lesson in the Telugu textbook. “By the time of writing this story, did you know that children would read it for years and answer questions on it in their exams?” asked Ganapathi Reddy, while his friends asked the writer’s intention in penning the story, duration and the immediate response from the readers.

Mr. Amarendra said he had never expected that his translation would become part of the curriculum and he would meet the students one day. Having been impressed with the enthusiasm of the children, Mr. Amarendra enquired with Mr. Balu Reddy about the pupils’ interest in other subjects. After coming to know that the students feel English as a tough nut to crack, he taught them simple methods of learning the foreign language. “The way the residential school is being managed is just amazing and the children here are very enthusiastic and knowledgeable. They promised me that they would speak to me only in English by the Independence Day-2018 and invited me as their special guest of the function,” Mr. Amarendra shared his joy with The Hindu.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> States> Andhra Pradesh / by K.N. Murali Sankar Maredumilli (East Godavari Dist.)

‘Kara Master’ felicitated

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Records, All

Srikakulam :

Tales, a part of human life, are becoming extinct in the current mechanised era. However, Kathanilayam, started 20 years ago, houses more than a lakh stories in Telugu and in English. The only library in the country,  preserving more than one lakh stories, is the brain child of Kalipatnam Rama Rao, popular as Kara Master. The 20th anniversary of  Kathanilayam was celebrated in Women’s College in Srikakulam on Sunday.

Addressing the gathering, district collector Laxmi Narasimham said, “Kathaniilayam which has the rarest collection of stories in all genres is the only library having such stories.” He said that the district people should be proud of Kathanilayam. On the occasion,  Kara Master said: “A Bengaluru-based software company came forward to digitise the stories. The digital storage would serve the future generations.” Later, the writers and government officials felicitated Kara Master.

source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> States> Andhra Pradesh / by Express News Service / February 13th, 2017

Vizianagaram theatre fest a huge success

Arts, Culture & Entertainment

Visakhapatnam/Vizianagaram:

The massive success of Nandi Natakotsavam reflects the renaissance spirit of the town.

The festival drew crowds from districts of Visakhapatnam, Srikakulam and Koraput in Odisha. P Kameswara Rao, lecturer in Telugu from Maharajah’s College Vizianagaram, said, “It is not just the quality of the plays but the mood and enthusiasm of the public that makes this festival truly worth while.”

On February 13, the three major draws were the plays Yuvanika, Kotha Pravahaalu and Yuga Karthalu. All the three plays are based on social themes and the need for dynamic change. K Jairam, DPRO of Vizianagaram noted, “The fact that social plays are drawing large crowds is a clear indication of the maturity of the audience.”

The festival has augured well for local businesses as well, especially the book stores in the Prince of Wales market. PS Gupta, who owns a book store in the market, said, “A lot of youngsters are suddenly taking interest in the old books published and written by authors of Vizianagaram. This is huge boost to the town.” TNN

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / News> City News> Visakhapatnam News / TNN / February 14th, 2017

AIR Tirupati vows to be more interactive

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Records, All
A view of the All India Radio station in Tirupati.
A view of the All India Radio station in Tirupati.

Its FM station completes 26 years of existence

Staying in touch with listeners and designing programmes in tune with the public demand is the vow taken by the All India Radio’s Tirupati station.

Come February 1, 2017, the FM station completes 26 years of existence. On the occasion, the station has announced to offer special programmes by meeting the people at the grassroots.

The Tirupati station touched a milestone four months ago by launching Sri Venkateswara Suprabhatham and other rituals live from Tirumala from 3 a.m. to 6 a.m. The programme has been receiving tremendous response from all over. Also, scholars from Sri Venkateswara Vedic University render Vedic chanting for five minutes at 6 a.m. “Ours is the station that works for the longest duration in the State,” says station director Nagasuri Venugopal.

The five-minute Sanskrit news bulletin is also getting good response in Tirupati.

Apart from a tower at its Annamaiah Circle premises in the city, the station has another tower on Tirumala hills, operating on frequencies 107.5 MHz and 103.2 MHz. Thanks to its high altitude, the programmes reach places as far as Amalapuram (East Godavari), Bhongir (Telangana), Tiruchirapalli (Tamil Nadu) and Bengaluru. “We have dedicated listeners who write to us regularly from Telangana and Coastal Andhra districts,” Dr. Venugopal has pointed out.

While the private players are focussed on city-specific developments, youth and film music, AIR Tirupati concentrates on inculcating values in children, reaching out to women through ‘Vanithalokam’, farmers at ‘Chenu-Sedyam’ and local litterateurs in ‘Prabhatha Rekhalu’. Dr. Venugopal has announced launch of more localised content in the forthcoming days.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> States> Andhra Pradesh / by Staff Reporter / Tirupati – January 31st, 2017

Chaso award to bepresented to Vemanavarsity professor

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Education

Vizianagaram  :

Chaso Sphurti Sahitya Trust will present ‘Chaso Sphurti Puraskar’ to senior assistant professor in Yogi Vemana University M.M. Vinodini, a writer and critic, for projecting, through her writings, the effect of caste discrimination in society. This was announced at a press conference here on Tuesday by trust founder Chaganti Tulasi, a writer herself.

She said that the puraskar would be presented to Dr. Vinodini at a function to be organised on the occasion of the 102nd birth anniversary of Chaganti Somayajulu (Chaso) at Gurajada Zilla Gradhalayam on January 17, 2017 by B. Rama Rao, secretary of CCLA.

She said that eminent writers and critics like Dr. Ketu Viswanadha Reddy, Prof. G. Srinivas of Hyderabad Central University, Dr. Rayadurgam Vijayalakshmi (Chennai), Hrishikesh Panda, noted stage writer from Odisha and others would participate in a literary conclave to be conducted from 9.30 a.m. to 5 p.m. on that day.

She said that the trust had been presenting the award for the past 22 years to writers and critics who had been closely associated with Chaso’s writings.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> States> Andhra Pradesh / by Correspondent / December 20th, 2016

Club to celebrate centenary

Arts, Culture & Entertainment

Troupe will conduct day-long programme on theatre

City-based theatre troupe the Young Men’s Happy Club is celebrating its centenary at the newly built Dantu Kalakshetram Auditorium here on December 20.

The troupe, in association with the State government’s Department of Culture, is conducting daylong programmes on theatre. Veteran playwright, theatre and cinema artiste Gollapudi Maruti Rao will convene a roundtable on the contributions of the club to the fields of theatre and cinema. Veteran theatre artiste Burra Subrahmanya Sastry, retired professor in theatre arts from the Hyderabad Central University, Modali Nagabhushana Sarma, playwright, director and critic Pativada Satyanarayana, writers C.S. Rao and Akella and K. Santha Rao of the Praja Natya Mandali will participate in the programme, which will be followed by quiz and elocution on theatre for college students.

Club president Dantu Surya Rao, at a press conference here on Sunday, said a good number of artistes and technicians trained by the club proved their mettle in the film world. “Prominent among them are Anjali Devi, S.V. Ranga Rao, Relangi, Suryakantham, music directors Adinarayana Rao and Satyam. Even today, artistes and technicians from the club are participating in theatre competitions and winning prizes,” he said.

The legacy would be continued and the Dantu Kalakshetram Auditorium that was built with financial support from the government and corporate firms would become the perfect stage to perform the plays and playlets.

Deputy Speaker Mandali Buddha Prasad is to be the chief guest at the public meeting to be held on the occasion of the centenary from 3 p.m.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> States> Andhra Pradesh / by Staff Reporter / Kakinada – December 18th, 2016

The forgotten history of Sunkarimetta Church

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Historical Links, Pre-Independence, Records, All, Uncategorized, World Opinion

Sunkarimetta :

It’s impossible to miss sighting a beautiful hilltop church around 108 kilometres from the city on the Vizag-Araku route. Tourists travelling to Araku usually get down to have a look at the scenic church of Sunkarimetta. Especially during Christmas and New Year, the otherwise tranquil church comes alive with prayer services and hundreds of visitors. But not many know the historic and geographic significance of this building that dates back to the 1930s.

The Sunkarimetta Baptist Church, located exactly 12 kilometres from Araku and Ananthagiri, is situated at an altitude of 4,236 feet above sea level. It is considered the highest point of the Eastern Ghats in Visakhapatnam District. Associated with the rajas of Jeypore, it was also from this church that Christianity first started spreading in the Agency areas in the first half of the 20th century.

The three-and-a-half-acre land for the construction of the only church in this area was given by Maharaja Vikramadeo of Jeypore, Odisha, to the Samantha rajas – the Burudi and Karthika families – who were one of the first converts in the region. Built in the backdrop of the Second World War, it was constructed between 1936 and 1939 by the British who were confident of a victory in the world war by defeating the Axis Powers. The chief engineer of Vizag-Araku Road was also instrumental in building the church. The church was designed by Canadian architect Ralph Edward Smith.

Speaking about its history, executive committee member of the church Karthik Raj Kiran said, “There’s not much recorded history about this church though it is the only church in this area catering to about 5,000 members today. In those days, it was a tax collection point. Built in the Gothic style of architecture, no sand was used for construction of the church but it was built using lime mortar and local rocks powdered by bullocks. Some of the seats in the church existing today dates back to the 1940s. The painted glass decoration inside the church is gift from retired Andhra University professor Ratna Raju. It can accommodate around 100 people at a time inside. On Sunday mornings and during Christian festivals, the church gets crowded.”

The church has remained intact in its original form for around 80 years. The bell tower is the only addition that was made nearly a decade ago. Since the hilltop church renders a beautiful view of the scenic surroundings of green valleys and cultivated fields, distant grey-blue hills and winding roads of the Eastern Ghats, shootings of Telugu films have also taken place in its premises.

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / News> City News> Visakhapatnam News / by Sulogna Mehta / December 18th, 2016