It was 2002 june, when i stepped in to our RAJADHANI Bengaluru, which has fascinated me whenever i used to see its pictures and images on TV.
I was there for about 2 months on my interneship in Doordarshan Kendra, after completion of my P.G in Masscommunications. Those 2 months taught me enough and at the end i was compelled to return from Bangalore due to family commitments.
Sincethen, I have been working in a kannada daily in mangalore. My editor had asked me to undergo 10 days training in legislative assembly and council reporting 3 months before. And last week i had the opportunity to cover sessions again, for one week.
2 months in 2002, 10 days in this february and one week in July....my understanding of Bangalore is growing gradually. Its different from Mangalore in many ways if i take it professionally too.
Bangalore teaches one a lot and one can get good exposure to under many conditions which are helpful in growing oneself. And one can gain knowledge about state's overall affairs. A senior reporter of our news paper told the same to me and asked me to shift over to bangalore.( But my personal problems might not allow me to shift at present, i explained my inconvinience with him.).
He was right in many ways, there is a tendancy in journalism that whatever a district reporter does, goes unidentified in the eyes of many reporters who are located in big cities. But for the sake of reputation and fame, and offcourse professional growth, one has to compromise with personal interests, habbits. The mechanical wheels of urban life in cities like Bangalore curb one in doing any other activities other than his profession. There is a danger of being attatched to urban life, which may act as a filter through which one can't see the struggles of common man in rural areas.
So I felt i could stay back in my place and justify my profession well. Hope there are at least few voices which will support my views, even if i found out to be incorrect:)
Sakat cool maga: One gets up and looks like he attaches wheels to his legs and plunges in to the river called urban life in Bangalore. His looks, actions even his smile becomes almost plastic. I am not going to generalise, but i've seen many of my friends, unable to come out from this urban life circle. Except their profession one can't expect from them anything. They don't want their old friends, they think they can't maintain relations, whenever they get time, they silently keep themselves aloof from others, some go for shopping, and some to thetres.
Even in buses, people look like suffering from unknown personality disorders, and they rather behave strangely, or they don't behave at all! You can see apathetically sitting youngsters with headphones on, tense looking mid age women, pale eyed call centre employees.
I've wondered many times in bangalore, even when a bike rider fells down, or hits to other vehicle, and is crying out of pain, no one bothers, even to look at the sight of accident!
Still life goes on... The picture was same when i visited bangalore in 2002, its same even now...Eventhough life is placid, radio mirchi yells....sakat hot magaaa!!!
I was there for about 2 months on my interneship in Doordarshan Kendra, after completion of my P.G in Masscommunications. Those 2 months taught me enough and at the end i was compelled to return from Bangalore due to family commitments.
Sincethen, I have been working in a kannada daily in mangalore. My editor had asked me to undergo 10 days training in legislative assembly and council reporting 3 months before. And last week i had the opportunity to cover sessions again, for one week.
2 months in 2002, 10 days in this february and one week in July....my understanding of Bangalore is growing gradually. Its different from Mangalore in many ways if i take it professionally too.
Bangalore teaches one a lot and one can get good exposure to under many conditions which are helpful in growing oneself. And one can gain knowledge about state's overall affairs. A senior reporter of our news paper told the same to me and asked me to shift over to bangalore.( But my personal problems might not allow me to shift at present, i explained my inconvinience with him.).
He was right in many ways, there is a tendancy in journalism that whatever a district reporter does, goes unidentified in the eyes of many reporters who are located in big cities. But for the sake of reputation and fame, and offcourse professional growth, one has to compromise with personal interests, habbits. The mechanical wheels of urban life in cities like Bangalore curb one in doing any other activities other than his profession. There is a danger of being attatched to urban life, which may act as a filter through which one can't see the struggles of common man in rural areas.
So I felt i could stay back in my place and justify my profession well. Hope there are at least few voices which will support my views, even if i found out to be incorrect:)
Sakat cool maga: One gets up and looks like he attaches wheels to his legs and plunges in to the river called urban life in Bangalore. His looks, actions even his smile becomes almost plastic. I am not going to generalise, but i've seen many of my friends, unable to come out from this urban life circle. Except their profession one can't expect from them anything. They don't want their old friends, they think they can't maintain relations, whenever they get time, they silently keep themselves aloof from others, some go for shopping, and some to thetres.
Even in buses, people look like suffering from unknown personality disorders, and they rather behave strangely, or they don't behave at all! You can see apathetically sitting youngsters with headphones on, tense looking mid age women, pale eyed call centre employees.
I've wondered many times in bangalore, even when a bike rider fells down, or hits to other vehicle, and is crying out of pain, no one bothers, even to look at the sight of accident!
Still life goes on... The picture was same when i visited bangalore in 2002, its same even now...Eventhough life is placid, radio mirchi yells....sakat hot magaaa!!!
4 comments:
A really good post. I agree with you that life can get hard inthe city. But if you really make the effort, you can have a life here too. It is easy to dismiss the city as mechanical but if you sift the top layer off, underneath lies a life, just like in a village, just like in a town. You just have to carve a little corner for yourself.
A very well written post though.
Hot...and not hot...with the night clubs working overtime......with people from other places trying to settle here....they make it all the more difficult. On the contrary...it is not as u said....folks here are indeed kind and helpful....i've seen it myself.... i guess it's not so....when u go elsewhere...like say madras....where one is treated rudely if tamil is not known or understood...
mouna..
yes, i may not be true, but its just my perception of bangalore. if i am there for one or two years, i can perceive it better
This was a good write about my dear Bengalooru. I agree with Deepa in that there is still a lot of life left in the city if one were to dig deep enough.
Keep writing. Keep lighting.
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