The Mumbai attacks of 26/11 awakened an entire nation to become more responsive to terrorism and taught us that, freedom, never comes easy. The students of SIBM Bengaluru, every year, commemorate the sacrifice of the bravehearts who laid down their lives on that dreary night, lest we forget.This year too, Jzaa – the Dramatics Club of SIBM Bengaluru, in association with the Social Responsibility Committee performed ‘Nukkad Natak’ on the 2^nd of December at the UB CITY Mall in Bengaluru, as a tribute to those valiant individuals who stood firm against the terror and flagged the spirit of patriotism and humanity in the troubled times of the Mumbai attacks. The theme for this year’s Street Play was SANGHARSH, which encapsulated the agitation of the people against the social injustices and orthodox beliefs that prevail in the country.

The play unfolded in front of an audience of approximately 700 people. Raw and hard-hitting, the outstanding street play created awareness to value the sacrifice of those who gave up their tomorrow for our today and urged everyone to rise above the evils of the society. The crisp script, catchy phrases, songs and intelligent emphasis on speech left the audience spellbound. Focusing on the atrocities that plague our society, SANGHARSH, appealed to the conscience of one and all to step up and take affirmative action in combating the injustices and not be a mere spectator.

The performers portrayed how change in society does not merely mean reacting-accusing-rioting-forgetting, playing the age-old blame game on the government for mishandling the affairs. It is to find an alternative that will help mitigate the situation.

The chants of “Aatank ho prahaar tu, Aakrosh ki pukaar tu” served as a wakeup call that drove the impetus for change. The students took this opportunity to spread the message of unity and peace and stressed the importance of raising one’s voice for a right cause. Gagan, a theatre enthusiast, who witnessed the performance said, “I have never seen something like this unfold on such a grand scale. The theme touched my heart and the hard work that the students had put in was very evident.”

Ashish, the coordinators of Jzaa, said “The intent behind this play is to convey the message that we as a nation are channelizing our energy in the wrong direction. And, that it’s time to redirect it for the betterment of our nation.”

Nothing is more impactful than a clever mixture of entertainment and an attempt to bring about change and the students of SIBM Bengaluru today made that happen.

About SIBM Bengaluru:

Ever since its inception in 1978, SYMBIOSIS has been synonymous with progress. The trend of progress has been continued by setting up of SIU’s first campus outside Maharashtra at Bengaluru in 2008. SIBM Bengaluru is now one of the leading B-Schools of the country. The focus, now, is on matching global standards of management education. SIBM Bengaluru instills a work culture which is unparalleled among various institutions and provides a holistic approach to management which goes a long way in creating a dynamic identity. Vibrant student associations and committees complement the program with a number of activities involving institute-industry interaction.

SIBM Bengaluru was ranked #28 in India and #1 in Bengaluru according to a survey by Outlook India 2016.

 An extensive range of works representing diversity in contemporary Indian literature, comprising seven collections of poetry, six novels, six short story collections, three works of literary criticism and two collections of essays were announced on Wednesday as the winners of the prestigious Sahitya Akademi Award 2018 in 24 languages.

The awards were recommended by jury members in respective languages and were then approved by the Executive Board of India’s national academy of letters under the chairmanship of Akademi President Chandrashekhar Kambar.

Winners include Anees Saleem in English, Rama Kant Shukla in Sanskrit, Rajesh Kumar Vyas in Rajasthani, Rahman Abbas in Urdu, Lok Nath Upadhyay in Nepali, Chitra Mughal in Hindi and S. Ramakrishnan in Tamil.

Akademi Secretary K. Sreenivasarao said at a press conference announcing the winners that the books were selected on the basis of recommendations made by a jury of three members in each language in accordance with the rules.

The awards relate to books first published during the five years immediately preceding the year of award, between January 1, 2012 and December 31, 2016.

The awards, in the form of a casket containing an engraved copper-plaque, a shawl and a cheque of Rs 1 lakh, will be presented to the authors at a special function in January next year at Kamani Auditorium.

The Sahitya Akademi award is among the most prestigious literary honours bestowed on writers for their works across genres and languages.

The Akademi also announced its Bhasha Salman for the year 2017 and 2018. Yogendra Nath Sharma was awarded the Bhasha Salman for the North zone; G Venkatasubbiah for South zone; Gagendra Nath Das for the Eastern zone; and Shailaja Bapat for the Western zone.

The Akademi will also be hosting a national seminar on Mahatma Gandhi in January next year, tracing his presence in the literary space.

IANS

 A silent procession, floral tributes and a pledge to win the ensuing general elections by the ruling AIADMK leaders marked the second death anniversary of then Chief Minister J. Jayalalithaa here.

Wearing black shirts, Chief Minister K. Palaniswami and his cabinet colleagues, MPs and MLAs and others took out the procession from Anna Statute on Anna Salai here to Jayalalithaa’s memorial on the Marina beach.

Placing a wreath and paying floral tributes, the AIADMK leaders and cadres took a pledge to work hard and win the ensuing Assembly and Lok Sabha elections.

DMK leader and Rajya Sabha member Kanimozhi paid tributes to Jayalalithaa.

“Surviving as a woman in a male dominated political world is not an easy task. Late AIADMK chief Jayalalithaa confronted the challenges and proved successful. The lack of clarity shrouding her final days are very unfortunate and not befitting the leader she was,” Kanimozhi tweeted.

Jayalalithaa passed away on December 5, 2016 after being in Apollo Hospital here for 75 days.

IANS

Dr Saudi Mohammed Alsati, Saudi Arabian ambassador met chief minister HD Kumaraswamy at Vidhana Soudha on Tuesday, December 4 and informed that Saudi Arabia will be shortly opening its consulate office in Bengaluru.

Mohammed Alsati expressed that nowadays many numbers of people are travelling from Bengaluru to Saudi Arabi hence people seeking Saudi Visas has doubled. In order to meet such demands, they have decided to open a consulate office in Bengaluru.

He further informed that hundred years back a woman from Bengaluru had opened a school for girls at Mecca and requested that he would be very grateful if the government shares information of her descendants living in the city so that they can honour the family.

PTI

 Prime Minister Narendra Modi led a high-profile crowd in congratulating newly-married couple actress Priyanka Chopra and American singer Nick Jonas at their reception here on Tuesday.

Modi arrived here amid tight security to be a part of the special day of the actress, who first made India proud by winning the Miss World crown in 2000, and then became a leading Bollywood actress, followed by a rare successful crossover into Hollywood.

The PM, who was escorted on stage by Priyanka’s mother Madhu Chopra, was dressed in a white kurta-pyjama with a black Nehru jacket. He remained on stage for about 10 minutes, meeting Nick and Priyanka’s families with folded hands and exchanging pleasantries.

Priyanka introduced her brother-in-law Joe Jonas and his to-be-wife, “Game Of Thrones” actress Sophie Turner, to Modi saying: “Inki bhi shaadi hone waali hai (They are also going to get married).”

The couple of the night posed with panache. Priyanka dazzled in an elegant white bejewelled ensemble with a multi-layered diamond necklace and earrings, with her hair neatly tied in a bun complete with white roses. She flaunted the “chopra” — traditional red bangles worn by a Punjabi bride — and sported vermillion. Nick was dressed in a velvet dinner jacket and completed the look with a bow tie.

The venue, the Durbar Hall at the Taj Palace Hotel, was done up elegantly with exotic white and soft pink flowers, and the “NP” icon, which has remained a staple throughout the couple’s wedding, stood out on the elaborate stage.

Candles flickered away at different spots of the venue which was enlivened by the sound of live music and a free flow of cocktails and a wide variety of food.

There was also an element of quirk with a vintage car which read “Just Married”.

Guests, which mostly included Priyanka’s family members, also saw veteran designers Ritu Kumar and Ritu Beri, along with Fashion Design Council of India (FDCI) President Sunil Sethi, in attendance.

Kumar was touched by Priyanka’s invitation.

“I remember Priyanka had come to me first before she was going for the Miss World pageant, and I had told her to wear a lot of ethnic wear. She wore some of my designs. I am very happy for her. She has come a long way,” Kumar told IANS.

The gala evening was preceded by a three-day extravaganza in Jodhpur’s majestic Umaid Bhawan Palace, where Priyanka, 36, and Nick, 26, exchanged wedding vows as per Christian and Hindu rituals in two separate ceremonies.

Their pre-wedding rituals at the celebrations, which saw participation from just a little over 200 guests, included a “mehendi” ceremony. There was also a friendly cricket match between the two families, as well as a glitzy and power-packed musical evening.

Of her wedding, Priyanka, a National Award-winning actress who has made her name in Hollywood as the lead star in American show “Quantico”, told people.com of her wedding: “I love that our wedding was a religious mash-up.

“We took beautiful traditions that we both grew up with and personalised them in a way that made sense for us. It’s been incredible to find the commonalities between our beliefs and figuring out how to blend them in a respectful and meaningful way.”

IANS

 For the first time since the Sabarimala temple opened on November 16, there has been a sharp increase in the number of pilgrims.

One reason attributed for this is that the protests of the Sangh parivar against the Supreme Court ruling allowing women of all ages to enter the temple and the arrest of its senior leader K. Surendran has shifted to the state Secretariat.

The Congress-led UDF is going hammer and tongs against the Pinarayi Vijayan government in the Kerala Assembly.

According to official figures, on Monday a record 79,098 pilgrims arrived at the temple while till 1 p.m. on Tuesday 40,000 pilgrims has made it to the hilltop shrine.

Yet, the pilgrim flow is much less than what the temple town normally sees during the festival season.

In the previous season, the average number of pilgrims visiting the shrine was around one lakh during the two-month pilgrimage season.

The Kerala government has promised to implement the apex court’s verdict that struck down a hitherto tradition of not allowing girls and women within 10-50 years from visiting the temple.

On Tuesday, a three-member High Court appointed observer committee consisting of two retired judges and a serving Director General of Police arrived at the temple town to inspect the facilities and the arrangements for the pilgrims.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday paid tribute to the country’s first President, Rajendra Prasad on his birth anniversary.

“Tributes to the first President of India, Bharat Ratna Dr Rajendra Prasad. A man of high talent, and symbol of simple life-high thinking Rajendra Babu will always be a source of inspiration for the citizens of the country,” Modi tweeted in Hindi.

Prasad was born on December 3, 1884 in Siwan, Bihar.

He held the highest office in the country from January 26, 1950 to May 13, 1962.