Chairman of Tipu Sultan Wakf Estate and MLA Tanveer Sait along with Islamic scholars and religious heads seen offering prayers to the tomb of Tipu Sultan at Srirangapatna yesterday.
Srirangapatna :
The 263rd birth anniversary of Tipu Sultan was celebrated in a grand manner at Srirangapatna yesterday.
Chairman of Tipu Sultan Wakf Estate and MLA Tanveer Sait along with Moulana Sajjadin of Jamia Masjid and other dignitaries offered prayers to Tipu tomb.
Speaking to SOM, Sait said that the Government should celebrate the birth anniversary of Tipu Sultan on the lines of Basavanna, Valmiki and other Jayanthis and added that there was no need for a holiday which was put forth by some organisations, but instead remember the day as the day of those who laid down their lives fighting for the country.
The MLA welcomed the announcement of Shadhi Bhagya by the government to the minorities and added that this scheme should be extended to the poor people of all communities.
Stating that there were plans to open a residential school on the lines of Moraji and Kittur Rani Chennamma Residential Schools, he said a proposal in this regard would be given to the Government soon.
A rally was taken out from Ganjam Circle to Tipu tomb.
source: http://www.starofmysore.com / Star of Mysore / Home> General News / November 11th, 2013
M.F. Husain’s “Bhopal”. / Photo: Special Arrangement / The Hindu
The oil on canvas has been valued at £200,000-300,000
‘Bhopal’, Maqbool Fida Husain’s anguished representation of the terrible consequences of industrial negligence in Bhopal, is to go under the hammer on October 8 at the Bonhams Auction House in London.
Husain’s framed and signed oil on canvas, with ‘Bhopal’ painted boldly on the side of the canvas — as if to leave no doubt on which disaster he is depicting — has been valued between £200,000 and 300,000, a press release from the auctioneers said.
“Just as Pablo Picasso’s passion and outrage towards the Spanish Civil War had inspired him to create ‘Guernica’ (1937), ‘Bhopal’ was the result of Husain’s horror at the long-lasting effects of the leak,” the press release said, though attributing the work’s energy to Husain’s own genius that was moulded by life around him. The Bhopal disaster occurred on December 3, 1984 when a poison gas leak from a Union Carbide factory killed around 2000 people.
Headlined by Husain’s ‘Bhopal,’ the October 8 auction of Indian and Islamic art will also auction ‘Bindu’ by Syed Haidar Raza (b.1922) that has been valued between £100,000 and 150,000, and ‘Untitled’ by Francis Newton Souza (1924-2002) valued between £40,000 and 60,000.
Raza started painting the Bindu series in the 1980s. “An act of meditation and the ‘Bindu’ is the centre of calm” the press release says.
Yet another highlight of the auction is ‘Four Figures” by Pakistani artist Sadequain (1937-1987) with an estimated valuation of £45,000-65,000.
This is not the first time that Husain’s paintings have been sold by Bonham’s, which specialises in Asian art. This April, an untitled Husain painting of horses was sold for £205,250; and in 2007, at the height of Husain’s troubles with right wing Hindu nationalist groups who hounded him for painting disrespectful and nude representations of Hindu goddesses, the same auction house sold his ‘Nude Woman’, a masterly painting of the naked female form, one that unfortunately had to find its home outside the country that inspired all his art.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> Arts / by Parvathi Menon / London – September 20th, 2013
The works of 20 artists are on display at a calligraphy exhibition organised at the Barid Shahi Palace Hall in Bidar. / The Hindu
Mohammad Azmathulla goes around old monuments in Hyderabad collecting pigeon feathers lying on the ground. He comes home to clean them and fix artificial pearls at one end.
His real work starts now. He picks up his calligraphy pen to inscribe letters, names of friends and lines from Holy scriptures. “As far as I know, I am the only one who does feather calligraphy,” says the retired railway employee. He is among the 20 artists whose works are featured in the calligraphy exhibition organised in the Barid Shahi Palace function hall in Bidar.
The exhibition is organised by the Shaheen group of institutions and Siasat, the Hyderabad-based Urdu daily.
“It is very difficult to write on feathers as they are slippery. The pen gets stuck in the feathers and the letters can be distorted. That is why no one else seems to do this,” he said.
The artist has painted hundreds of names and sayings from Holy scriptures in English, Hindi and Urdu. He usually uses a single colour. But some times, he coats the feathers in a light shade of colour and uses multiple colours for the writing.
So does spot painter Abdul Lateef Farooqui. He creates stunning portraits in less than five minutes. Interestingly, he does not ask them to sit before him, but keeps observing and drawing sketches while they are doing something else. “I keep a bunch of sheets ready always, as I would be attracted to a face and feel like producing a caricature anytime,” he said. He has perfected the art of using geometrical designs in calligraphy. He also draws lines and letters on paintings of events described in the Holy Quran and other scriptures.
However, the master of the group is the 86-year-old Abdul Nayeem Saberi. He not only produces great works of calligraphy, but also trains young people in the art. He has trained more than 2,000 young people in the last 12-15 years.
Mr. Saberi also teaches young people how to make pens from bamboo shoots. He also helps women’s groups who recreate the calligraphic designs in embroidery and other craft forms.
The exhibition also displays wood work art where pieces of discarded wood pieces are joined to produce replicas of buildings or monuments.
Artists have produced copies of the original images of the house of Prophet Mohammad, the Kabah and the holy well at Makkah.
Some artists use a style that includes English letters, numbers and geometric designs. Some rearrange letters to create images of birds, animals and nature.
The Siasat trust was promoting the art of calligraphy among youth, Editor of the daily Zahid Ali Khan told The Hindu. He said their art works were showcased in exhibitions in New Delhi, Bangalore and Hyderabad. “We are training more than 300 women in various types of handicrafts and home industries. The trust also offers a total of Rs. 1 crore in scholarships to students per year,” he said.
“We are working at providing an online platform for artists to sell their wares,” said Managing Editor of the daily Zaheer Ali Khan.
Shaheen education society secretary Abdul Quadeer, spoke of plans to organise calligraphy classes for youth. The exhibition concludes today.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> National> Karnataka / by Special Correspondent / Bidar – November 05th, 2013
Salar Jung Museum in Hyderabad and (top) the British musical clock, one of the rare clocks housed there
Hyderabad’s Salar Jung Museum plans to evaluate & tabulate its antique clock collection.
The Salar Jung Museum in Hyderabad, will begin work on evaluating and tabulating its clock collection, considered by clock enthusiasts as among the finest in India. Speaking to dnaover the phone from Hyderabad, Dr Nagender Reddy, director, Salar Jung museum said that this would be the biggest such exercise since the clocks were taken over from various private collectors in the 1960s.
“We want to do it in a scientific way, to add value to what is already a glorious collection of more than 400 of the rarest clocks in the country. It is a tedious and delicate process which includes the showcases that hold these clocks, evaluating the individual parts. All of this has to be done in such a way that no damage, whatsoever, comes to the clocks,” said Reddy. The process would be done along with the Lucknow-based National Research Laboratory for Conservation (NRLC), which is the apex body in the country for the conservation of cultural heritage.
The plan to evaluate the clock collection has already begun creating excitement among watch-lovers with Dr Reddy admitting that several people had contacted the museum to be part of the process. However, he said that it calls for a lot of formalities at various levels of the government as outsiders are not allowed to be part of these processes.
dna has learnt that among the people who have shown willingness to be part of the process is a senior railway officer from Mumbai. Saurabh Mitra, an Indian railway accounts service officer with Western Railway. Mitra, a watch enthusiast and collector, however, refused to comment.
About Salar Jung Museum
The museum was established in 1951. A major portion of the collection was acquired by Salar Jung III. In 1958, it was taken over by the Indian government. It is now run by an autonomous board chaired by the governor of Andhra Pradesh.
source: http://www.dnaindia.com / DNA / Home> Mumbai> Report / by Binoo Nair / Place: Mumbai, Agency: DNA / Friday – November 08th, 2013
Marking the birth anniversary of Tipu Sultan (Nov. 10), a Sadbhavana Yatra from Mysore to Bangalore began here this morning.
The yatra was launched from the Town Hall premises by MP A.H. Vishwanath in the presence of Sir Khazi of Mysore Moulana Mohammed Usman Shariff, Prof. Bhashyam Swamiji of Sri Yoganarasimha Swamy temple, Tipu Sultan Sadbhavana Yatra Committee President Mohammed Ali and others. The yatra will pass through the thoroughfares of city before proceeding to the tomb of Tipu Sultan at Gumbaz in Srirangapatna, where special prayers would be offered to the tomb.
Later the yatra would proceed through Mandya, Channapatna, Ramanagar to Bangalore and reach Ravindra Kalakshetra on J.C. Road where Chief Minister Siddharamaiah would receive the Yatra Jyothi.
MLAs Tanveer Sait and M.K. Somashekar, former Corporator M.Shivanna, Showkath Ali Khan and others took part in the yatra function.
source: http://www.starofmysore.com / Star of Mysore / Home> General News / November 14th, 2013
AR Rahman’s music is remembered throughout the world for its charm and variety, but now, even his name will be remembered as a road’s name. A street in Markham, Ontario, Canada is named after him. It will be called ‘Allah-Rakha Rahman st’.
AR Rahman, who is also known as the Mozart of Madras, has been honoured for his contribution to the world of music and arts.
He is one of the few Indians to have won two Grammy awards and two Academy Awards, yet he retains the humility of a common man.
A street in Canada is named after AR Rahman. He has been honoured for his contribution to the world of music.
The music maestro made history when he became the first Indian to win two Oscars in a year, 2009, for Danny Boyle’s ‘Slumdog Millionaire’, the rags-to-riches story of a Mumbai slum-dweller. Rahman had also bagged two awards at the 52nd Annual Grammy for his song ‘Jai ho’ from the same film.
source: http://www.ibnlive.in.com / IBN Live.com / Home / November 06th, 2013
Seen are (from right) Rajyotsava awardees Dr. Vasanthkumar Thimakapura, Bannur Kempamma, Dr. N. Rathna, Dr. V. Lakshminarayan and My.Na. Gopalakrishna with City Congress President C. Dasegowda, MDCC Bank President C. Basavegowda, MP Vishwanath, MLA Tanveer Sait, ZP President Mahadevu, Mysore District Kannada Sahitya Parishat President M. Chandrashekar and others during the felicitation ceremony at the MP’s office at Govt. Guest House in city this morning.
Mysore :
Rajyotsava awardees from the city and district — Dr. V. Lakshminarayan, Dr. N. Ratna, My. Na. Gopalakrishna, Dr. Vasanthkumar Thimakapura and Bannur Kempamma — were felicitated at a function organised at Mysore-Kodagu MP’s office at Government Guest House in Nazarbad here this morning.
MP H. Vishwanath, speaking on the occasion, said it is a matter of delight that the Government has identified and awarded the achievers who have excelled in their own fields.
Pointing out that the State Government had chosen the Rajyotsava awardees purely on merit, without giving way for the interference of political or external forces, Vishwanath said the government’s action had only enhanced the value of Rajyotsava award.
NR constituency MLA Tanveer Sait, who presided, said the Government’s action of selecting the awardees based on merit, was a sign of better prospects for the State.
Tanveer Sait called for more developmental works in the city so as to make it a model one for the entire country.
He also stressed the need for making Mysore a bigger educational hub, with the city already known for providing quality education besides making rapid strides in the educational field .
Mysore District Kannada Sahitya Parishat President M. Chandrasekhar was the chief guest.
source: http://www.starofmysore.com / Star of Mysore / Home> General News / November 07th, 2013
While Hyderabad has transformed into an urban metropolis, mushairas and Urdu poetry have survived the test of time. Mohd. Ziauddin Ahmed Shakeb, historian and Urdu-Persian scholar, traces the history of Urdu poetry in Hyderabad
(Courtesans singing ghazals…)
During Nizam’s time, Urdu had a very special position — it was spoken by everyone, everywhere. All sign boards, shops, post offices, hospitals, railway stations were written exclusively in Urdu. There were three main languages during the time — Telugu, Maharashtra and Kannada; and while Urdu was compulsory, education in a native language was allowed till high school.
Subsequently, Urdu poetry was a social phenomenon. Almost all the Nizams were great poets. And they used to have one poet laureate in their court. For instance, Nizam VI had Nawab Mirza Khan Daagh as his tutor in poetry. Daagh was brought up in the Red Fort under the last ruler, Bahadur Shah Zafar and had read out in mushairas (poetry symposiums) in front of Mirza Ghalib! He came to Hyderabad and stayed for several months, and at that time, there was great reception to his poetry. He was hoping that he would be invited by the Nizam, but he wasn’t. After three-to-four months, he left Hyderabad. That is when the Nizam’s order was issued that he should be brought back, and paid from the day he landed in Hyderabad! And so, Nawab Mirza Khan Daagh was given an audience, and subsequently, he was appointed as the Nizam’s tutor. The poet laureate’s salary shot up from 400 to 1,000!
While he represented Delhi School of Urdu, there was another major school, the Lucknowi School. The chief of the school, Amir Meenai, also came to Hyderabad, but soon was caught up with pneumonia and he passed away here. But he had a large number of scholars with him, and one of his students, Jaleel Manikpuri, was appointed as the Nizam VII’s tutor. And he would write beautiful poetry.
“Nigaah barq nahi, chehra aftaab nahi (her looks aren’t electricity, and her face is not the sun)
Wo admi hai magar dekhney ki taab nahi (She is just human, but no one has the courage to look at her)”
Since Urdu was a language understood by a majority, there was fantastic poetry written even by Hindu poets, in Urdu as well as Persian. One of the Prime Ministers of Hyderabad, Sir Maharaja Kishen Pershad, used to write in Persian and Urdu, and even have mushairas at his palace. And so it was that there were hundreds of Urdu poets in Hyderabad.
(As told to Apuurva Sridharan)
source: http://www.articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> Life & Style> Books> Languages / TNN / by Apuurva Sridharan / November 12th, 2013
Janata Dal (S) supremo H.D. Deve Gowda pays floral tribute to a portrait of Tippu Sultan during a programme organised by KPJD(S) and JD(S) minority wing on his 264th birth anniversary at JD (S) in Bangalore on Nov.11, 2013.
source: http://www.prokerala.com / Pro Kerala News / Home> News> Photos
M. Sharif is supporting the police by providing 5,000 complaint boxes. Each police station will get 50 boxes which will be placed at ATM centres, hotels, schools and colleges. / Photo: K. Murali Kumar / The Hindu
The city will soon have 5,000 complaint boxes in public places to act as the eyes and ears of the police and help them maintain law and order. People can tip off the police and give information through the boxes to be installed at hotels and ATM kiosks.
Dedicated Servants of India, a city-based non-governmental organisation (NGO), led by 92-year-old retired army school teacher M. Sharif, is supporting the police by providing 5,000 such boxes.
According to Mr. Sharif, with 100 police stations in Banglaore struggling to maintain law and order, the complaint boxes would help in building local intelligence network effectively, he says.
He said many residents were apprehensive about approaching the police even to pass on information. Such information could remain suppressed. Now, they can remain anonymous and at the same time tip off the police, he said. The complaint boxes would act as deterrent and instil a sense of fear among anti-social elements, he said.
The information could be related to anything. For example, it could be a complaint against a government official or a civic representative. The police officer can pass it on to the department concerned. “Repeated complaints against an official would draw the attention of higher ups,” he said adding this would also improve accountability among officials. The letters in the complaint box would be picked up by the beat police and delivered to the station house officer for action.
Each police station would get 50 boxes which would be placed at ATM centres, hotels, schools and colleges.
The NGO with the help of philanthropists has so far collected 2,000 boxes.
Additional Commissioner of Police (Law and Order) Kamal Pant termed it a good idea of police-public partnership. “We have already started this scheme as a pilot project in some parts of the city and it is doing well. We are planning to cover the entire city soon,” he said.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Bangalore / by Imran Gowhar / Bangalore – November 13th, 2013
