A community event - Sudha Ragunathan Concert

Much like the nurturing of our Puttenahalli Lake, the PNLIT concert featuring Padma Bhushan Sudha Ragunathan on 25th Feb. at MLR Convention Hall was a community event with several volunteers from the locality chipping in. Our heartfelt thanks to them, our donors, Jenesys Technologies, concert sponsor, and to Brigade Hospitality for the venue and accommodation for the artists.  

Here's how the day unfolded ...

The lake and its premises had never looked as clean as it was when Smt. Sudha Ragunathan paid a visit on the morning of 25th Feb. After the visit of renowned ornithologist Zafar Futehally in 2012, she's the most celebrated visitor to the lake to date and it was indeed one we will cherish. About 20 of us, trustees and our well wishers, gathered at the Gazebo to greet the VIP. We escorted her to the Viewing Deck briefing her about what we had done, how, why and when. She listened intently and found the Artificial Floating Islands particularly interesting. The recently planted Nerium Oleander were blooming in bright pink and the water glittered in the sun. Surprisingly the birds were missing though except for a cormorant at a distance.  Smt. Ragunathan was happy to know that volunteers had planted the trees and the shrubs and especially about the mosquito repelling quality of the Vitex Negundo. She readily posed with us for photographs at the lake before leaving.  

At the lake

A couple of residents from South City had cooked a sumptuous lunch for Sudha Ragunathan and party. With a few special invitees from Brigade Millennium joining them, all had a hearty meal over a lively discussion. 

We had begun getting MLR Convention Hall ready from the previous day with Janani from Brigade Millennium making an intricate filigree like kolam at the entrance. She made a more contemporary design of musical bars notes outside the Hall. Above that, hung PNLIT banners depicting the evolution of the lake from a dry ground to a thriving one. Standees of birds completed the exhibition which caught the attention of the audience. 

Rangoli

PNLIT exhibition

Occupying their seats, they got to see a slide show of sights and scenes from Puttenahalli Lake followed by a short film on the reviving of the lake. 

With Sudha Ragunathan, Gautham and Kalai Gautham of Jenesys, Gurmeet Singh from Brigade Hospitality and Usha Rajagopalan, Chairperson, PNLIT lighting the lamp, the evening had officially begun. 

Lighting the lamp

The concert was a good opportunity to release our newsletter and to felicitate our well wishers and CSR partners. Mr. B.V. Satish, former Chief Engineer, Lakes, BBMP received the first copy of our newsletter "Ripples"  from the singer. PNLIT partners felicitated were Robert Bosch Engineering and Business Solutions Ltd., VMWare,  Deloitte Shared Services India Pvt. Ltd., Cisco, BMS College of Engineering and the Community around the lake whose donations enable us to nurture the lake. 

Releasing the newsletter

The trustees welcomed the artists and cleared the stage for the concert to begin. Smt. Sudha Ragunathan gave a short speech appreciating the effort taken by PNLIT to nurture the lake and made an earnest appeal to the audience to support environment and efforts of people like us. This report on the concert is from South City resident and carnatic vocalist A K Venkat. 

The artists

Connoisseur or novice, Sudha Ragunathan wowed us all. Towards the end of the recital, she sprang such a surprise on us that we, trustees, wanted to stand up and applaud! What's the surprise? In the next post!

PNLIT Team