Articles by Roopa Pai
March of history: Bengaluru’s fateful vernal equinox
The anniversary of what can be called the “fall of Bangalore,” passed us by on March 21. The last stand by Tipu Sultan’s forces at the Bangalore Fort ended At 11 pm on March 21, 1791
Published on Mar 25, 2025 08:30 AM IST
A shot at history: Twelve decades on South Parade
MTR celebrated 100 years with a book launch, highlighting iconic Bangalore brands like GK Vale, Mysore Sandal Soap, and GG Welling, a historic photo studio.
Published on Mar 11, 2025 06:13 AM IST
The pen as sword: A short history of rebellion
A short story collection "Heart Lamp” by Kannada writer Banu Mushtaq was one of 13 books on the longlist of the International Booker Prize
Published on Feb 27, 2025 07:20 AM IST
Jai Hind! and its Karnataka connection
In 1943, when Subhas Chandra Bose took over the INA, a military unit under the Japanese made up of Indian soldiers captured by the Japanese army during WWII, he chose “Jai Hind” as rallying cry.
Updated on Jan 28, 2025 06:50 AM IST
Church bells and school bells: A Christmas story
When the Bangalore Cantonment was first conceived in 1805 as a dedicated British military station, only factories had churches
Updated on Dec 24, 2024 06:12 AM IST
Painting history: The legacy of Robert Home
Among Home’s lusher oils documenting the Third Mysore War are the famous ‘The Death of Colonel Moorhouse at the Storming of the Pettah Gate,’ and ‘Lord Cornwallis Receiving Tippoo Sahib’s Sons’
Updated on Dec 13, 2024 06:58 AM IST
Ee Mannu Chinna: A Karnataka Cornucopia
After the first Indian GI tag was awarded to Darjeeling Tea in 2004, Mysore Silk became, in 2005, the first product from Karnataka to get a tag
Updated on Nov 26, 2024 05:42 AM IST
Tiger, Tyger: A Tipu Sultan birthday story
On November 10, the 274th (or 273rd) birthday of Tipu Sultan was celebrated peacefully in his erstwhile capital, Srirangapatna, amid heavy security
Updated on Nov 12, 2024 07:04 AM IST
Hope, healing and hospitals: A Deepavali story for all
In 1833, a few months after cholera, a disease endemic to India since 1817, reached French shores for the first time, the very first allopathic dispensary in the city, opened in the Fort area of Bangalore
Updated on Oct 31, 2024 05:00 AM IST
A Bengaluru man in a Vijayanagara prison
Dhanteras provides the perfect opportunity to talk about coins, the very first minted in this city, which got their noble minter, Kempegowda I (KG I), the founder of Bengaluru, into a rather hot mess
Updated on Oct 15, 2024 07:36 AM IST
The Sundarams: Bangalore’s first couple of aviation
In 1935, Capt V Sundaram became a licensed pilot. In 1937, he became the first Indian to get a commercial pilot’s licence. In 1950, his wife Usha Sundaram became PM Nehru’s personal pilot
Updated on Oct 01, 2024 06:30 AM IST
The first ladies of the Kannada Kadambari
Born in 1917 in Mysore, Kannada’s first woman humourist T Sunandamma’s delightful writings were first published in the legendary Kannada humour monthly, Koravanji, in 1942
Updated on Sep 17, 2024 06:58 AM IST
The silk root: The international story of Mysore silk
The festival of janmashtami also means that it’s time to pull out the silks after months of slopping about in jeans and dri-fits in Bengaluru
Updated on Aug 27, 2024 05:04 AM IST
Girls getting schooled: an old Bengaluru story
Not Sophia High School, Canarese (Kannada) girls’ school on Mission Road predates Sophia’s by, hold your breath, over one hundred years.
Updated on Aug 16, 2024 05:16 AM IST
A Mysore nawab and his French Connection
The French East India Company (EIC) was late to the India party; it arrived in 1664, well after the British EIC (1600) and the Dutch EIC (1602).
Updated on Jul 30, 2024 07:00 AM IST
A Gujarati bride for a Mysore prince
A quick glance at the marital alliances of the Wadiyars since 1900, when Krishnaraja Wadiyar IV (16) was married to an 11-year-old princess from the Kathiawar region, shows a significant number of princes and princesses from royal families of Gujarat and Rajasthan joining the royal Mysore bloodline
Updated on Jul 16, 2024 04:02 PM IST
A yoga story for International Yoga Day
One of the pioneers of ’Hatha Yoga’ was Tirumalai Krishnamacharya, widely regarded as the ‘Father of Modern Yoga.’
Updated on Jun 20, 2024 08:58 AM IST
A Canadian crop doctor in Bengaluru
Leslie Coleman set up the Hebbal Agricultural School (today part of the University of Agricultural Sciences (UAS), on the same campus) in 1913, and served as its first Principal
Updated on Jun 04, 2024 07:34 AM IST
The swimming sensation of Kempambudhi Kere
Bengaluru's rich swimming legacy dates back to the 1920s, with notable champions like Nisha Millet and Dhinidhi Desinghu leading the way.
Updated on May 07, 2024 08:12 AM IST
A magnificent Mysorean and his flying machines
India’s first aviator SV Setty dreamt of building India’s first aircraft in Bangalore, but WWI (1914-1918) put his plans on hold.
Updated on Apr 26, 2024 08:18 AM IST
Desperately seeking water: An old Bengaluru story
Water security, not just for agriculture but also for drinking, became a serious priority for the Mysore government in 1880s
A stadium located at (and in) the city’s heart
The win was also a nice tribute to the beloved stadium that celebrates its 50th anniversary this year
Updated on Mar 13, 2024 02:26 PM IST
The dazzling 20/20 vision of Ram Krishna Baliga
In 1976, The Times of India reported on the vision of KEONICS to make Karnataka the 'electronics state.' RK Baliga played a key role in establishing Electronics City in Bengaluru.
Updated on Feb 29, 2024 09:00 AM IST
Books and the Ooru: A Valentine’s Day love story
Sudha Murthy reiterated that what had first drawn her to ‘Murthy’ was how voraciously – and eclectically – he read
Updated on Feb 15, 2024 09:08 AM IST
Why Bengalureans have been good sports
Bengaluru’s vibrant sporting culture is not acknowledged as much as its podium-finish performances in other races, including IT, biotech, education, aerospace, microbreweries, or start-up unicorns
Updated on Jan 31, 2024 08:34 AM IST
Dehave Degula: The game-changing ideas of Basavanna
There is no denying the ever-present need to showcase Basavanna’s liberal, inclusive ideas in every kind of forum
Updated on Jan 16, 2024 08:00 AM IST
An Anglo-Indian corner of a Bengaluru field
Whitefield was conceived as a home for Bangalore’s Eurasian and and Anglo-Indian communities
In Bengaluru, ghosts of Christmases past
Once again, the old Cantonment churches will draw legions of the faithful to midnight mass to celebrate the birth of the Christ Child.
Updated on Dec 19, 2023 08:47 AM IST
Bangarada Manushya: The legacy of Dr Rajkumar
To Kannadigas, November 15 marks a bittersweet anniversary – it was the day on which, 23 years ago, their beloved Annavaru, ‘Natasarvabhouma’ Dr Rajkumar, who had been abducted and held hostage by the dreaded bandit Veerappan, was finally released
Remembering Rashtrakavi: A Kuvempu tribute
November is a good time to remember the greatest Kannada poet of the 20th century Kuvempu, who passed 29 years ago on the 11th of the month.
Updated on Nov 07, 2023 03:52 PM IST
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