Tasty journo titbits

A story that provides opportunities for food tasting is always welcome.

Especially if it involves eating Bangalore's famous K.C. Das rossogollas.

I came back in a good mood, and with a matka full of rossogollas. They were polished off, the matka washed and dried, long before the story made it to print. See? Empty.



The story as it appeared in The Hindu, November 25, 2010.

(It's a pity colourful print layouts are lost in the automatic transfer of articles online.)

Coffee and something new

It's taken me a while to post this:

My story, as it appeared in The Hindu, October 14, 2010.

This has been one of my favourite assignments so far. Sunalini Menon, coffee taster, founder of Coffeelabs and, as the article says, "quality control expert" is a charming lady.

Her workshop/ lab was absolutely fascinating as well. Take a peek at the items behind her in the (unfortunately tiny) photo with that article.

A pity both the photographer and I weren't coffee drinkers. I of course, have a 50% success rate of telling coffee from tea, but that's our secret.

Meeting Maya Rao

My very talented grant aunt Shantha Poti sang at Maya Rao's performances. Years later, a friend, and Ms. Rao's daughter's student taught me a dance with a bit of kathak. So I was glad for the chance to talk to an artist I had heard so much about.

The Hindu Neighbourhood article - 8 July 2010

Daily Dump article: 'She has designs on your garbage'

"One part business, two parts design, a handful of ideas and a lot of garbage."

Update: After weeks of struggling to find a way to put this online, I come across a link to access the article on The Hindu website. 

A few weeks ago, I met Poonam Bir Kasturi, the woman behind Daily Dump, for an article. This is what came out of it.

Jul-22-pdf

She was an extremely passionate person, and I liked what she said. Presumably because we seemed to share a proclivity for free flow of ideas and information.

Composting techniques and designs under Creative Commons licensing - what's not to approve of, I ask!

It was also refreshing to talk to someone who was doing something incredibly innovative, without money as a motive, but far from the NGO altruism.

But, Poonam has me thinking about this again: is a makeover the best way to promote a product or even an idea? Is 'pretty' and 'upmarket'- and every other aspirational word we could use - becoming the only way to sell anything?

(I'm just thinking aloud, I really don't know yet.)

Update 2: Am also mighty chuffed with what Daily Dump has to say about being interviewed by me :D