Of our three gardeners, Ramu has been with us the longest and recently completed 10 years of service at the lake. They are all good in their work with each one using a special skill which he has honed over time at the lake. If the lake and the premises look so clean, it is because of these three men.
Saturday, February 3, 2024
A felicitation to cherish
Monday, December 25, 2023
End of the year greetings from PNLIT
We wish you all a wonderful holiday season and a great new year.
Sunday, November 19, 2023
Young Jayant Patwari creates magic at Puttenahalli Lake
He came, he performed and he conquered.
Young Jayant is a whiz of a conjurer; an illusionist with a deceptive sleight of hand and a charmer who combines his magic with theatre and subtle humour. Whether cuffed up tightly with strong clamps or bound and bundled in a bag, Jayant would emerge grinning and free of all shackles in a few minutes. As the ‘Blind Surgeon’, blindfolded Jayant had the head of a headless clown fixed with a swipe of towel! And congratulations to all the volunteers who courageously put their fate in Jayant’s hands; like the five year old who was wholly willing to have his head chopped off into a basket he held! Macabre! But rest assured your life is safe with Jayant! And in between all this fascinating wizardry, Jayant pulls out confetti and silk ribbons out of his mouth or a hat!
Our appreciation and compliments go to Jayant’s parents whose staunch support and encouragement have nurtured this child prodigy who is a national awardee, author of “Covid Thief’, a magician and a kidpreneur. Do get to know more about him at https://www.instagram.com/
Thank you Jayant for keeping us spell-bound.
When 13-year-old Jayant Patwari put up a show in front of a live audience in our Puttakere (Puttenahalli lake), no one would have expected Sorcar’s tricks and Houdinisque escape. I thought he would pull Rabbits out of the hat (pigeons if rabbits are expensive to procure for a free show) and a few more cards and stick-becoming bouquet tricks. On the contrary, our young magician turned out to be a master illusionist, a great stage presence and mesmerized the audience kids and old alike. He performed blindfolded tricks and a couple of escape sequences with aplomb and panache. He identified numbers and played with numbers with a blindfold, removed handcuffs, brought back Clown’s head with his head inside a bag and in the finale, he escaped truly Houdini-style, and came out of a tightly closed sack in less than 2 minutes!
I wonder if he is an adult but created the illusion of 13 years. Who knows? Let's see what new trick he has up on his sleeve.
Monday, September 25, 2023
Report on Bioblitz led by Deepa Mohan & Kaustubh Rau on Sep 23rd at Puttenahalli Lake, JP Nagar
Enjoy this descriptive report of the Bioblitz held at Puttenahalli Lake on Sep 23rd by Deepa Mohan, a wildlife volunteer, a bird educator and an avid naturalist who also led the session along with another naturalist and a biologist Kaustubh Rau.
Sunday, September 10, 2023
Report on the International Literacy Day celebration at Puttenahalli Lake with PNLIT, Snehadhara Foundation and Pratham Books
Magical lands, extraordinary castles, quaint country roads, powerful heroes, ferocious beasts, angelic fairies and more are all possible in the realm of stories and storytelling. And to bring this to life today ( Sep 9th) , Snehadhara Foundation was at Puttenahalli Lake for the 'One Day One Story' event organised in collaboration with PNLIT and Pratham Books to celebrate the International Literacy Day, marking our 10th year of this event together.
Tuesday, August 22, 2023
Report on Photowalk & Workshop on World Photography Day at Puttenahalli Lake
In 1826, a French inventor called Nicephore Niepce made the first photograph, using a pewter plate coated with bitumen, and exposing it to the sun over eight hours. In 1829, Niepce and French artist, Louis Daguerre, developed an improved process that came to be known as Daguerreotype. In 1839, the French government purchased the patent from Daguerre. And on August 19th, 1839, the French government released the Daguerreotype photographic process to the public for free. That is why this date is considered the beginning of the era of Photography.
The photography expert Mr. SK Srinivas (Srini) and PNLIT events coordinator Sapana were cordial and welcoming. Srini began by asking how well each of the participants were acquainted with photography. Most of us were early beginners. We spent a good amount of time learning about the basics of photography and the technicalities of different types of cameras. This was no doubt very useful but it also meant that out of the two hours, the time we got to spend on actually photographing the birds and knowing how to spot them got reduced.
Srini also talked about how human activities are damaging Bangalore lakes, their ecosystems and the fauna dependent on them. We were fortunate to have the right venue for the photo workshop. Puttenahalli lake, JP Nagar is indeed a "hidden gem" as described by the participants and I fully agree.
We are grateful to Srini and the organisers for this opportunity. I would request him to conduct more photography related events for participants with different levels of skill. This will help us to become better nature photographers.
-Osama Ansari
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On the occasion of World Photography Day (Aug 19) about 20 of us met at Puttenahalli Lake in JP Nagar 7th phase. The objective was to be given a few basic lessons on photography and how to plan and execute good photos by Mr. SK Srinivas (Srini).
-Srivastha Yajaman
Wednesday, August 2, 2023
Remembering the Lalbagh Legend - Mr. Vijay Thiruvady
We are deeply saddened to say that in the passing of Mr. Vijay Thiruvady yesterday, 1 Aug.2023, we have lost a dear friend and the city, a renowned botanist and historian.
Tuesday, July 25, 2023
Puttenahalli Lake Upstaged by Tripod and Friends - Report on the book launch
Tripod Finds a Friend and Other Stories by Dr. Roopa Satish and Anitha Murthy was released by Usha Rajagopalan at Puttenahalli Lake on Saturday July 22nd.
The interactions between Usha, the authors and the audience were engaging and never ending! It was indeed so absorbing that no one paid heed to the drizzle that started when the discussion was underway. Each one simply picked up their chair and shifted to the gazebo. For once, the star of the event was not the lake but Tripod and its authors.
Read below some of the feedback we received on this event and the book. The first by a 13 year old who’s clearly a Harry Potter fan!
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Meeting a wildlife veterinarian who can speak …... hm..mhm.. PARSEL TONGUE!!!
-- Just an attempt to make it spooky (I hope it was) --
So, ignore everything that is spooky. Now let me tell you that there’s an endangered animal known as the “Tripod”. Tripod? What’s that? Read on to find out!
It was an exciting day, filled with happiness and a day filled with “chirps” all along the Puttenahalli lake, as I stood in front of a gathering of wildlife enthusiasts, curious readers, and writers. Here is what I learnt from the conversation between Dr. Roopa Satish, Ms. Anitha Murthy, and Ms. Usha Rajagopalan:
• I got to know about the Red Eared Slider invasion in the lake.
• I got to know a lot about the amazing patients whom Dr. Roopa Satish has rehabilitated at the Bannerghatta Wildlife Rescue and Rehabilitation Center (WRRC).
• I heard this astonishing tale of her giving CPR to a snake. Yeah! That was when I found out she knew Parsel tongue.
• I got to know a lot about the snake bites and also got helpful tips to save the mother snake at my apartment complex from people who want to kill it.
• I finally found someone who could help me save a Rose-ringed parakeet that was caged and beaten up by her owners.
For now, I look forward to reading the book and knowing more about wildlife to achieve my dream of becoming an owner of all types of pets and also be a forest officer. Lastly, I found out there were 2 lovely dogs in the lake that like to interact with everyone. Thank you PNLIT (Puttenahalli Neighbourhood Lake Improvement Trust) for such an eye opener session and a learning opportunity.
By V. Ramanujam, 13 years
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Tripod Finds a Friend and other stories by Dr Roopa Satish and Anitha Murthy is not an ordinary book. It is a squeeze of the life experience of a Vet and her bubbling passion for wildlife. The subtext of the book is Stories of wildlife rescue and rehabilitation. They are heartwarming and at the same time revelatory for city dwellers like me. We also got to know about many faceless unknown champions who are driven by their passion to save wildlife and create shared and safe space for non-human species.
Did you know that in our urban vicinity we have animals like Slender Loris, Pangolin, and Fox? How would you distinguish a Turtle, Terrapin and Tortoise? You might have spotted a Civet cat and Mongoose but mentioned them interchangeably without a second thought? Thanks to our commercial celluloid projections and popular beliefs, do you think of snakes as reptiles, slithering and dangerous for human beings? What is the difference between poisonous and venomous?
We learned these and more in a mesmerizing interaction with the authors. Dr. Roopa Satish enthralled the audience, kids and grown-ups alike, with her animated storytelling, dark humour and sometimes narrating the harrowing experiences in a lighter vein.
It was good to see how young readers in the gathering seemed to understand the subject matter better than adults. This is a positive sign that our civilization will progress forward along with the doomsayer's prediction of the climate crisis and global warming.
This book is well-written, and tightly edited but it deserves better print quality. I hope the authors will take care to correct the text alignment and fonts in the next edition. Nonetheless, such shortcomings did not make the stories any less interesting. Soon after the book was released and discussions began, the sky opened up and mother nature showered her blessings. Kudos to Dr. Roopa Satish and Anitha Murthy for bringing out such a wonderful compilation of real stories from the wild. Such stories need happy endings. Let the world of Tripod, Mooshie and their ilk educate and create greater awareness among us, and make us sensitive and responsible humans.
By Gautam Saha
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I attended a book launch on July 22nd of Tripod Finds a Friend, and other stories co-authored by Dr. Roopa Satish and Anitha Murthy. I am a sucker for children's books, and Tripod... is not only beautifully written - thrilling, compassionate, with a touch of crime - it is filled with fun-facts and learning. One learning I had from the book was about "imprinting" - never touch a baby wild animal with bare hands, or cuddle it (no matter how much affection you feel for it) because you transfer your germs onto it and it may not be accepted back by its clan and this can be disastrous for its survival.
At the book launch event, it was an absolute pleasure listening to Dr. Roopa Satish speak. Her passion for her work (which is as niche as it can get) and her compassion for all things living, including snakes and humans, is palpable. She shared many interesting anecdotes, and facts, about human animal interaction, which had everyone in the audience captivated and wanting to know more.
Anyone who is looking for their next guest speaker at a corporate event, I would highly recommend inviting Dr. Roopa Satish i.e. if she can drag herself away from performing intricate surgeries on terrapins or mouth-to-mouth resuscitation on cobras!
By Lalana Zaveri
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Picture credits - SK Srinivas and Nupur Jain
Sunday, June 4, 2023
Event Report of Family Fun Gardening Day @ Puttenahalli Lake, J.P Nagar, on June 3rd 2023
"Bringing the community together" gardening session happened at the lake today (Saturday, June 3rd). It was a great start to a sunny day in a beautiful place. A snakebird (darter), a purple heron, a grey heron and many small and mid cormorants were out and about. Maybe a large school of tiny fish was the reason for these large birds' diving sorties. Privy to all this was a 3.5 yr old, who enjoyed this and more while raking with his tiny hands!
We invite you to bring your children next month. Let them have fun and learn to care for nature.
Sunday, March 12, 2023
Musical evening organized by PNLIT and Sargam on March 11th at Puttenahalli Lake, JP Nagar - Event Report
A musical afternoon was held yesterday, on 11 March 2023, at the Puttenahalli Lake organized by SARGAM, a group of singing enthusiasts from South City together with the PNLIT. The program held at the Gazebo was a live singing of mostly film songs to Karaoke tracks on the theme of Water bodies and Birds.
As much as the singers were good and kept the audience interested, the ambience made it all even more magical. The atmosphere was friendly and informal and with the beautiful Puttenahalli Lake in the background it was a very enjoyable afternoon. There was a gentle cool breeze blowing across from the West to East right across the lake which made for a very comfortable afternoon indeed. Any apprehension one might have had about sitting out in the open - the mercury is definitely climbing in Bangalore as it would in mid March - was quickly dispelled with the zephyr that very kindly decided to grace the event. SARGAM members and the singers from the neighbouring Brigade Millennium, Adarsh Rhythm and Brigade Palm Spring apartments made the most of the occasion.
On the whole the event turned out to be a very pleasant and enjoyable afternoon for the audience and participants alike. Thanks to PNLIT the lake is now a community asset that provides a home for a variety of flora and fauna along with being a lovely clean lung space for morning walkers and a great venue for community events.
By
V.Srinivasan
Mr V.Srinivasan is a resident of South City and also a member of SARGAM.