BY DR KAUSTAV BHATTACHARYYA

‘Namma Bangalore’ is a freshly published bestselling book by the prolific Bengaluru author Shoba Narayan which has been making waves in the literary and intellectual world.

At a recent literary afternoon event held at the plush, five-star Hotel The Oberoi in the city eminent citizens of Bengaluru gathered for a Literary Afternoon to launch and discuss the book ‘Namma Bangalore along with the author Shoba Narayan.

The event was adorned by the gracious presence of Her Highness Pramoda Devi Wadiyar of the distinguished Mysore Royalty.

The event was moderated by the author herself Shoba Narayan with an esteemed panel of speakers including that of Dr. Krithi Karanth and Prasad Bidappa. Dr. Krithi Karanth is the Chief Conservation Scientist and Executive Director at the Centre for Wildlife Studies and Adjunct Faculty at Duke University and National Centre for Biological Sciences, Bengaluru with 45 awards in her fold for her pioneering work.

Prasad Bidappa is an iconic fashion Guru who has been a pioneer in the Indian fashion industry for nearly 4 decades and is an alumnus of the prestigious National Institute of Design, Ahmedabad.

The author Shoba Narayan is a prolific writer and columnist having written 6 books and numerous articles along with academic teaching experience in both India and abroad, and had won the James Beard Award and Pulitzer fellowship.

The literary afternoon was kicked off with an introduction by our very own Dr. Kaustav Bhattacharyya, regular columnist and commentator at the Country Squire Indian Edition.

The formal launch of the literary afternoon was initiated by Pinky Padmaraj of the Oberoi Hotels in her capacity as the Marketing Communications Manager along with a brief introduction of Dr. Kaustav Bhattacharyya. 

Here is an excerpt from the exposition delivered by Kaustav at the  literary afternoon. 

“Good Afternoon!! Namaskara!! Ladies and Gentlemen!! A very warm welcome to this Literary Afternoon’s program, a book launch and discussion around the latest book authored by Shoba Narayan titled ‘Namma Bangalore’!!

We are very honoured and delighted to have a very Special Guest amidst us gracing the occasion, Her Highness Pramoda Devi Wadiyar!! A very warm welcome to Your Highness Pramoda Devi Wadiyar!!

In my younger days while attending seminars or events in Bengaluru I was always intrigued by the way a moderator would often say ‘Our Beloved Speaker needs no introduction’ or ‘this evening’s panel needs no introduction and then would plunge into a rather long introduction right after having said that the speakers need no introduction.  I always dreamt of an opportunity to introduce a Panel that ‘needs no introduction’ and now I can proudly claim that this Afternoons Panel truly needs no introduction. An esteemed panel of eminent personalities from different walks of life of Bengaluru/Bangalore.

At the very outset of this Literary Program, I would like to dwell on for a while about the Cultural and Intellectual world or universe of Bengaluru and why so??

• How do you explain that on a crisp, genteel, winter afternoon we have such a distinguished audience; the absolute crème de la crème of Bengaluru gathered here to attend this literary program?? Having taken the trouble to navigate the heavy traffic and driving down here, they all have come over here to listen to Shoba Narayan and participate in this conversation.

• How do you explain that one of the most posh, plush five-star hotels of the city, Oberoi have made such fantastic arrangements with the top management including the General Manager Mr. Amit Khare working very hard to put together this event??

• How do you explain the success of smart, bright authors like Shoba in writing bestsellers like ‘Namma Bangalore’ while at the same time engaging with the wider audience or readership??

There must be a magic in this city’s intellectual and cultural world apart from the fact that this world is energized and receives patronage from a large, actively bibliophilic, erudite section of the Bengaluru society.

How does this city Bengaluru provide inspiration for such creativity?? The proverbial muse…..

Well as Bob Dylan would have said, ‘the answer is my friend blowin’ in the wind…’ the City’s literary inspiration or muse for the authors is in the ‘air’, ‘everywhere’; in its enticing rich physical landscape of heritage buildings, in its Flora and Fauna what Shoba describes in her chapter titled as ‘Nature’; Parks, Birds, Wildlife, Lakes, Gardens and in a more ethereal form in its glorious past, the History of the City.  In its culinary treasures from Masala Dosa to Biriyanis to Pastas and Pizzas and Grills and Roasts.  In its ‘Drinks’, the liquids which we consume which again is the title of the chapter in Shoba’s book; coffee, wine, beer and its locales like the Beer Pubs, Wine Bars, Coffee Houses, Chic Cafés and tea-rooms, the City is emerging as a ‘Gastronomic Delight’.  And then its bookstores, libraries; Bengaluru has probably one of the widest choices of libraries including the neighbourhood ones or what’s called ‘lending libraries’.  In its cultural treasures like museums, art-galleries, theater-spaces, performing arts centers and yes in its plain simple daily life and living!! Most importantly in its conversations….lively and lovely they are!! Interestingly all these themes or sources of creative inspiration or ‘muse’ have been discussed with each of them being assigned as distinct chapters in Shoba’ book ‘Namma Bangalore’.

At this stage I wish to reminiscence my own personal encounter with the city of Bengaluru. My own personal tryst with the city’s intellectual and cultural world dates back to the early 90s, and if I may capture it or attempt to capture it in poetic terms it would be a ‘Tango of the senses’ or ‘Waltz of the senses’, well I thought of saying the ‘Rave Party of the senses’ or ‘Trance dance of the senses’ but I was warned that I am speaking to a respectable audience at the Oberois. And if I were to distill the essence of that encounter or experience it would be ‘intoxicating’ which leaves you ‘inebriated’ after every encounter even when consumed in a mild dose like homeopathic medicine drops.

One of my most vivid memories is that of evening strolls through the leafy, verdant boulevards of Defense Colony or Indiranagar with retired and few serving Gentlemen professionals like Bankers, Engineers, Civil Servants discussing History, Literature, Philosophy with the wafting of the enchanting aroma of the moist earth after a spell of showers or drizzle; the heady fragrance of the Gulmohar tree flowers or Pink Poui, along with the moist green leaves emanating strong odour. One of the most fascinating aspect of Shoba’s book is the imagery of ‘SCENT’ associated with a city, inspired by the Palestinian poet Mahmoud Darwish who mentions ‘cities are smells’.  As very nicely pointed out by Shoba that ‘Bangalore is the smell of red earth and falling rain’ as I recollect from the early 90s.

I found this concept of ‘smell’ as a literary trope expressing imagination very fascinating and hence would like to expound a little here.  Gérard Lenclud, a French anthropologist terms the odour or smell sensation as ‘une expression inexprimable’, an inexplicable expression and he proceeds to mention that odours unleash the symbolic activity of our imagination which makes ‘olfaction’ potentially fruitful for poetic creation.  ‘Odours’ are sensuous, hyper-subjective experiences or as Alain Corbin, the French Historian writes in his ‘The Foul and the Fragrant’, ‘Olfaction’ is the ‘revelatory agent of the co-existence of the subject with the world’.  So Shoba did a marvellous job of enlightening her readers about ‘smell’ as a sensation about cities so keep sniffing and writing!!

And then few more memories springing forth:

• Spending a good couple of hours in a Dastkar market with Prasad Bidappa and learning about the heritage of Indian textiles.  I never seen anyone more passionate about India heritage than Prasad and I recollect a funny anecdote; a lot of the shoppers would walk up to him asking for his suggestions about the garments or textiles they were buying and I turned around and told Prasad that ‘why don’t you tell them that you are off-duty?’.

• Experience of being tutored by Theater legends like Rattan Thakore Grant whom I knew as Partrick about the art of postures, body movements as part of the acting techniques.  Partrick/Rattan Thakore Grant is no more with us on this earth but his memory lingers on in my mind.

• Discussing the type-written script of Mahesh Dattani’s  plays while being driven around in a car and attending few of the plays.

• Reading abstract, obfuscating British magazines and English books at the old British Council Library and attending lectures on Keats or Romantic English poetry by visiting academics from the UK followed by a cuppa coffee at the Koshy’s café downstairs with the late PK Srinivasan, the journalist with an encyclopedic mind and his coterie.  I recollect one anecdote; there was a British Professor making a presentation on John Keats the poet and during the QnA session there was a lady in the audience who posed a question to the Professor if John Keats was a satisfied poet to which he retorted that ‘unfortunately he lost his telephone number’.  So there was humour in this Cultural, Literary world of Bengaluru!!

• Attending film-festivals like the Special on Merchant Ivory productions held at a cinema on MG Road.

And finally those post-screening convened sessions at salubrious locales discussing and deconstructing the films, plays or books over something much stronger than coffee.  I was very glad to read about those delightful substances in the city, the HIGH-SPIRITS(no pun intended) in  Shoba’s book adequately covered!! One can go on an intellectual binge!!

Bookstores formed an integral part of our existence in the Cultural and Literary sphere of Bengaluru attending Poetry sessions at the R&B bookstores, book readings by Vikram Seth and Khushwant Singh and going on a book browsing spree to Premiers, Select and numerous other bookstores on Church Street.

Finally a few words about this venue, Hotel Oberoi and its place in the Bengaluru City’s Cultural and Intellectual world.  Personally for me and many of us its more than an address, an oasis in the heart of the bustling metropolis of Bengaluru with its lush, green gardens, a genteel reminder of the epithet ‘Garden City’ usually attached to Bengaluru and a place where you may be dining next to eminent authors, historians and intellectuals.  A place where you are allowed the indulgence to while away a few hours in the early afternoon sipping your Herbal Chamomile tea in large quaint bone-china pots while pouring over the pages of rare books bought at a second-hand bookstore on Church Street with no compulsions of ‘dressing up’ for a five-star and not be evicted!! Believe me this even surprises my family!! This is while you are served a modern, snazzy, cool, contemporary dining fare of great food.

Now let me summarize and describe the City’s intellectual and cultural world in succinct terms:  Bengaluru’s cultural and intellectual world is like a kaleidoscope; diverse with an array of multiple offerings and experiences with each being unique.  These encounters leave you enriched with endless insights and impressions which is amply evident in its glowing form in Shoba’s book ‘Namma Bangalore’.  

The next distinct characteristic of Bengaluru’s cultural and intellectual world is ‘Modesty’.  Shoba is the epitome of that attribute; an understated sense of elegance and excellence, accessible and affable to the wider citizenry interested in reading and not just confined to the intellectuals and cultural elites.  This world unlike that of many other cities have no Hype, no Deification and no strict hierarchy of eminence.  Ladies and Gentlemen the city’s literary legacy include the likes of Shivram Karanth, RK Narayan, Girish Karnad, UR Ananthamurthy and AK Ramanujam to name a few from the glorious galaxy of litterateurs, and yet the modesty is frightening!!

What does this world offer to us??

In Bengaluru we went out and still go out within this vast rich cultural landscape with its wide repertoire of offerings; Theater, Literature, Fine Arts, Music, Dance to seek and experience Beauty.  We seek and often obtain Self-Enrichment, yes I scoured for a word which could encapsulate this pursuit or encounter with Bengaluru’s intellectual, cultural and literary world and settled for SELF-ENRICHMENT.  This pursuit of Beauty in Culture is what Sir Roger Scruton, Arts and Aesthetics Philosopher termed as ‘EFFING THE INEFFABLE’ in one of his essays, ineffable being the elusive world of arts and culture which often cant be adequately described and captured in words but only experienced. 

And now for a few words about Shoba the author…..

Arthur Schopenhauer, the German philosopher in an essay speaks about the 2 kinds of authors; those who write for the subjects sake and those who write for the writings sake and Shoba belongs to the first kind who have had thoughts and experiences which seem to them worth communicating and we have ‘Namma Bangalore’ by Shoba Narayan.

According to Schopenhauer, ‘It is only the author who writes absolutely for the sake of the subject that writes anything worth writing’.  And I would add worth reading!! The book is the impression of its author’s or Shoba’s thoughts, ‘impress of her own mind’ based on observations and experiences.

Now before I handover the stage or pass on the baton for this Literary Afternoon to Shoba I wish to quote from Shakespeare’s ‘As You Like It’ a few lines which captures for me the very essence or spirit of raison d’etre of a robust cultural and intellectual world and of the pursuit of a creative spirit including that of an author. 

And I thought no literary afternoon in Bengaluru, about Bengaluru is complete without Shakespeare.  One of the finest explanations or expositions on Shakespeare I have heard was in this city from the eminent playwright the late Girish Karnad.

Here it is:

“I have neither the scholar’s melancholy, which is emulation; nor the musician’s, which is fantastical; nor the courtier’s, which is proud; nor the soldier’s, which is ambitious; nor the lawyer’s, which is politic; nor the lady’s, which is nice; nor the lover’s, which is all these; but it is a melancholy of mine own, compounded of many simples, extracted from many objects, and, indeed, the sundry contemplation of my travels; in which my often rumination wraps me in a most humorous sadness.”

 …….As You Like It, Act IV, Scene 1

Thank You Ladies and Gentlemen for the attention!!!