Disobeying Kempe Gowda's mother's advice has hit Bengaluru hard: book

New Delhi: Modernity and enterprise have made Bengaluru unbearable as elected leaders, administrators and builders have "disobeyed" 16th century ruler Kempe Gowda's mother's advice, says a new book on the city.

In "Askew: A Short Biography of Bangalore", journalist T J S George walks readers through both Bangalore and Bengaluru from gleaming skyscrapers and lively dance studios to colonial-era bungalows marked by quaint little name-stones, from legendary eating places like Koshy's and Mavalli Tiffin Room (MTR) to shining new eateries that serve craft beer.

In the 21st century, the city is trying to cope with the problems that have accompanied its explosive growth and enormous success - crumbling infrastructure, traffic jams, soaring real estate prices, corruption and chaos, says the book published by Aleph Book Company.

Despite the challenges it faces, Bengaluru continues to be one of the world's most distinctive and interesting cities, George argues. Why did modernity and enterprise make Bengaluru unbearable?

"The answer was that Bangalore's elected leaders, administrators and builders disobeyed Kempe Gowda's mother. When the fabled founder of Bangalore set out to build his dream capital in the 1530s, his mother gave him two instructions:

'Keregalam kattu, marangalam nedu (Build lakes, plant trees)'. Gowda made a hundred lakes and lined the pathways with wide, leafy trees," the author says.

He goes on to add that politicians and land dealers of modern times are not like Gowda.

"In about three decades they filled up 2,000 hectares of lakes, and, in the late 2000s alone, felled 50,000 trees. Under their earth movers and power saws, the urban sprawl expanded until Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) became the largest municipal corporation in the country," he writes.

The author says it was inevitable that where writers and artists were so vigorously appreciated, there should be appreciation for good food as well.

"Intellectuals needed meeting places where they could hold discussions over coffee. Nor would routine coffee do. Artists, musicians and wordsmiths were by nature connoisseurs of flavours who could separate the good from the very good.

"A culinary culture developed around Basavangudi, signalling the emergence of a food protocol that was to dominate South Indian cuisine. When Mahalaxmi Tiffin Room opened in Basavangudi in 1926, its superior khaali dosai became an instant favourite.

"In the 1930s, attracted by the large number of students in the area, a student canteen opened in Gandhi Bazaar with a name directly aimed at them: Vidyarthi Bhavan. The exceptional quality of its dosais and coffee quickly won over the intellectual set.

"The great Masti Venkatesha Iyengar would stop at Vidyarthi Bhavan and stuff his coat pocket with a supply of rava vadai before resuming his daily walk to the Basavangudi Club - an act of disloyalty the 'Masti Club' overlooked in recognition of Vidyarthi Bhavan's virtues," George says.