IAGB SPOTLIGHT

IAGB Community Spotlight on NEKK

From left to right – Sumana Madhu (entertainment lead), Mamta Kudlugi (secretary), Sharada Deshpande (entertainment lead), Jyothi Rao (President), Usha Rao(Treasurer), Chithra Poornima (Events & Facilities management), Rani Dwarki (Food Community lead)

Our community spotlight this month is on New England Kannada Koota(NEKK). Yogita Miharia of IAGB spoke to Mamta Kudlugi, the current Secretary of NEKK.

Yogita: Thank you Mamta for taking the time to talk to IAGB. First of all, I would like to tell our readers about your all-women’s Executive Committee! How cool is that!! How did it happen?

Mamta: It happened very organically. Couple of us who were going to run for various positions asked other women members and we all just came together to form the Executive Committee. It was so exciting and amazing when that actually happened. We have had a lot of women on the committee before, including women presidents, but this is the first time it is an all-women’s team. 

Yogita: Tell us more about the history and mission of NEKK

Mamta: In the year 1973, few Kannada speaking people got to know each other and decided to meet for a picnic. Since the turnout was good and there was interest in further meetups, they decided to formally create NEKK in 1974. At that time, it was mainly students who came to the US to study. 

The mission of NEKK is to bring people from common backgrounds together, especially when all of us are outside of our state and country so that we can celebrate festivals, culture and traditions. 

Yogita Tell us about NEKK events. Which one is your flagship event?

Mamta: We have four functions every year. Ugadi is in April, then summer picnic, followed by Ganesha pooja in Sept. In late Nov/early Dec, we host a combined event for Children’s day/Deepavali/Karnataka Rajyotsava. Ganesha pooja is our flagship event. It is right after summer and an excellent way to meet each other after the vacations. 

Yogita: Please tell us more about the Children’s Day event.

Mamta: Children’s day event is when our kids come and showcase their talent on stage. We call it “Mandaara got talent”, which is basically competitions in various categories for kids. This is a great way to involve children of various ages and keep the stage reserved exclusively for them. In the other 2 indoor events, the performances are mostly by adult members. 

Yogita: How have you been working around COVID restrictions in terms of hosting events and keeping the members involved?

Mamta: Surprisingly we have been doing more than we expected. The current EC took over in summer 2019. The last in person event was in Feb 2019 called Dasa Vachana Day, which is a smaller musical event dedicated to prominent music composers of Karnataka. COVID hit right after that. Our Ugadi was held virtually. This year we hosted a Mother’s Day special, in which 4-5 men cooked live from their kitchen, and shared their recipes. Obviously, we had to skip the picnic. Ganesha pooja was again a virtual event, and we brought in professional dance drama performances from Bangalore. We also hosted an event where a panel of doctors addressed questions of members regarding COVID. We also had a session on Stress Management & Wellness, where our President Jyothi Rao demonstrated yoga techniques. Seva Mandaara had their workshop too, which was virtual. Our Children’s Day is happening on Dec 5th. All in all, as you can see, we are hosting more events than what we would do in normal times. 

Yogita: Any other initiatives of NEKK that you would like to tell us about?

Mamta: NEKK strongly believes in social responsibility, for which we have our Seva wing – Seva Mandaara. It was started around the summer of 2013, it was one of the first of many focus groups that was started during that term. The other focus groups were- Jnana Mandaara, Chitrakala Mandaara, Yuva Mandaara, Kreeda Mandaara & Sahitya Mandaara. 

Some of the key initiatives of Seva Mandaara are supporting schools in rural Karnataka for various things like improving school infrastructure, donating necessities to schools, building classrooms, bathrooms, etc. We hold 1-2 fundraisers annually. ‘We have conducted a few Microsoft Azure Certification workshops where Seva Mandaara members have taught week long sessions (one even virtually during covid), other Technical skill developing Programs, open to both Nekk members & non-members. Proceeds from all Seva Mandaara activities are donated. Most recent workshop was online and the funds were donated to the Black girls coding program. We also conduct cultural programs with professional performers and donate the proceeds. We did the Green initiative for the first time ever during 2020’s Dasa Vachana Day, where we used reusable plates, spoons & asked members to bring in their water bottles. The EC team with help from few other members, distributed the cleaning of the dishes job among ourselves. It was very fulfilling. We also have associations with food pantries in the local area, where we donate food and clothing.

Yogita: Going back to the all-women’s team, what are some of the differences that you have seen with that vs the teams that you have been part of in the past? Any challenges you have faced?

Mamta: It has been absolutely wonderful in all ways possible. We love when the 7 of us on the EC get together for a meeting. I would say probably my best experience. 

Our biggest challenge was the pandemic but we have pulled off a wonderful Ganesha event. The Mother’s Day event was something that was never done before. This has been an opportunity for us to explore new things, and everyone on the team has been very supportive. Diwali was particularly different for all. We missed meeting each other face to face, and as women, the motherly instinct to bring joy to the community kicked in big time. So, we decided to do Diwali sweets for all the families of NEKK. We ordered mithai from India and the EC members took on the task of delivering to the doorsteps of every family. I would say this was something we all thought of and agreed upon immediately being the emotional lot we all are. I wish I could express the priceless joy we all felt of meeting someone you haven’t seen for several months and give a boxful of goodness. 

Yogita: Please tell us about yourself and your journey with NEKK

Mamta: I came to the US right after I got married and have lived in Massachusetts for 27 years. I live in Wellesley with my husband and have 2 adult kids. I was born in Bangalore and grew up in Bihar and Tamil Nadu. My husband and I have been associated with NEKK for almost 24 years! I have held various positions in the Executive Committee in the past too. My husband Murali is the Seva Mandaara lead for the current 2 year term. We have made a lot of friends through NEKK, it is our family here. 

Yogita: Would you like to share with us some memorable moments from your NEKK journey?

Mamta: I would like to share my memories of one NEKK member that I remember and miss the most. Mr. Rajendra Rao, who was a father figure to so many of us. He and his wife Renuka were one of the first people we met when we came to the country. Rajendra Rao was one of the founding members of NEKK. He was a pillar of the community who everyone adored. He loved kids so much and was always very encouraging to them. The Children’s Day event was his most favorite one. Every NEKK event, he would be the first to come and last to go, and recorded the entire event through all these years until he turned 80, couple years ago, when he passed away. NEKK has Rajendra Rao President’s award that is given to one outstanding kid of the NEKK family during Children’s day event.

Yogita: What message would you like to give our readers?

Mamta: I would like to urge the Kannadigas out there to come get involved with NEKK. It’s a nice place to meet your kind of people who speak same language and follow the same traditions. Keeping up your own culture and heritage through such an organization is really cool. Attend a function and get involved. We hope to see you. 

Please visit http://mandaara.org/ to learn more about NEKK.

–Yogita Miharia

GUEST COLUMN

The Evolution of Locations in Bollywood​​

– Anish Desai

If any of you have been long-time Bollywood fans like I have been, I am sure you have noticed the evolution of locations in Hindi movies over the last several decades. 

I started watching movies as a very young kid in the late seventies and eighties and made it a point to catch up on some of the older ones on our Sony Betamax VCR as well. My memories of the fun movies from the 60s are of a dashing Shammi Kapoor going to hilly locales in India like Kashmir, Shimla, Mussoorie and Nainital, where he would woo a young pretty heroine like Saira Banu, Sharmila Tagore or Kalpana, partake in some melodious songs until the interval at which point a Pran or Premnath would make his entry to make things interesting and then all would be well at the end. So Indian “hill stations” were the go-to places back then and this trend continued well into the early eighties. 

Somewhere around the seventies Mumbai (or Bombay back then) became the staple representation of all things urban in the movies. This trend of course started much earlier as witnessed in classic songs like “Ae Dil Hai Mushkil” but Bombay came into its own at around the same time as Mr Bachchan and became synonymous with all things action. Think Deewar, Zanjeer, Majboor, Amar Akbar Anthony, Don and Shaan. The motor-cycle rides on Marine drive, various “bastis”, and Juhu beach are all landmarks in various Amitabh movies that many of us who grew up in that era have etched in our collective memories. 

This Bombay became “the” Mumbai somewhere around the eighties (officially in 1995 though) and the city became the backdrop of several crime and mafia potboilers, Parinda being perhaps the most iconic of them all but one can also add Arjun, Satya, Nayakan (or its Hindi remake Dayavan) and several Mahesh Bhatt movies like Naam, Sadak and Kabzaa. 

At around the same time Delhi was popularized (mostly) by Yash Chopra as the place of opulence in movies like Kabhi Kabhie, Trishul, Silsila and Chandni. The wide roads, the local flavor and various historical monuments made for some very scenic background even as recently as in Fanaa. 

Talking about Yash Chopra, he arguably has had more influence than any other filmmaker in setting trends for movies as far as locations were concerned. His iconic Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge essentially kicked off two completely separate trends: one was that of Punjab and its “mitti di khushboo” (translates roughly to “feel/flavor of the nativity”), and the other was, of course, the “NRI” movie. 

Let’s start with the latter. Starting in the mid-nineties (and for more than a decade since), stepping into a theatre to watch a movie made by Yash Raj, Karan Johar, etc, meant taking a tour of some of the most picturesque locations in the UK and other parts of Europe, as well as later the US, Australia, Malaysia and of course my first home Dubai. In an extreme case, a Tamil song Poovukkul from the movie Jeans was actually shot in China, the US, Italy, France, Egypt and India. And Yash Chopra has single-handedly given such a huge boost to Switzerland’s tourism industry that they have feted him multiple times: including naming a train after him, putting up his bronze statue and giving him the title of Ambassador of Interlaken. 

The other trend of course was the Punjab “effect”, which was originally started in the Doordarshan serial by Ramesh Sippy Buniyaad but came into its own in DDLJ. After that every third movie had a “Parjaiji” (sister-in-law) and no-one leaves the house without doing “pairi pauna” (touching the feet) of their elders like in Pyar Toh Hona Hi Tha, Jab We Met, Dil Bole Hadippa, Mausam etc. 

Coming to the most recent trend in Bollywood, the funny-love-story-set-in-a-small-town-in-North-India has become a genre in itself. This was arguably started by Band Baaja Baaraat (YRF again). The most noticeable part of these movies is that they are set in non-metro towns like Kanpur, Bhopal, Varanasi, etc. Also, everyone speaks in the local dialect and there are a whole lot of characters with very strong opinions, witness: Bareilly Ki Barfi, Badrinath Ki Dulhania, Tanu Weds Manu, Sui Dhaaga, Shubh Mangal Saavdhan and Bala. Admittedly most of these movies have some brilliant actors and are generally scripted very well. 

So, the question now is what is next? Where will the next set of “trendy” Hindi films be shot? Will there be a lot more of the traditional Bollywood movies, or are we all moving towards Web Series? Personally, I hope that we still get to see at least a dozen movies every year that make the trip to Ithe theatres worthwhile. As to where they actually take us… I am looking forward to finding out. 

FROM THE DIRECTOR’S CORNER

Samosa Caucus

-Sanjay Kudrimoti

Public service is innate to Indian American culture. Most Indian Americans are active in public service via their community service and through active participation in various nonprofit and charity organizations. Probably the most prominent way until date Indian Americans have contributed is via their skills. Indian Americans have been forebearers of innovation in the fields of health care, technology and education. Hence a natural progression can be seen now in the landscape of the elected body. 

Governance in America is primarily bottoms-up. The real day to day issues regarding public concerns are addressed and handled at the local level. In the recent 2020 elections there were 36 separate ballots that featured an Indian name. Of these 36 contests, Indian Americans representing both political parties won in 17 races – a 47% success rate. Of these 17 candidates in the win column, nine of them are women (53%). Closer to home, a very dear friend of IAGB and a member of New England community – Mrs. Latha Mangipudi retained her seat in the New Hampshire State Assembly. Ms. Kesha Ram is the first woman of color to be elected to the State Senate in Vermont. Jenifer Rajkumar is the first South Asian woman to be elected to the state assembly in New York State.  Two Indian American candidates, Rik Mehta in New Jersey and Sara Gideon in the state of Maine were the winners in the primaries of their respective parties for the seat in the august body of US Senate but failed to make it to the win column (see table below).

 The US House of Representatives now has four congressmen, all four reelected to their seats (two from California and one each from Illinois and Washington). Six other candidates (three republican and three democrat) were in the running for US Congress but did not make across the finish line. But the promise these candidates showed was in their ability to raise funds and run a competitive race across board. It is just matter of time when the samosa caucus will keep expanding across all states in US. 

While the successes for Indian Americans are significant down ballot, election of Vice President Elect Kamala Harris has been the most prominent in the history of US. The first woman, the first person of color ever to be elected to the post of vice presidency has Indian American background. 

While at this moment we all can celebrate the ‘representative’ nature of Indian Americans – it is the ‘governance’ that matters. India is one of the fastest growing economies of the world and the largest democracy. US – India relationship has been friendly across all administrations in the past few decades but there is lot of scope to strengthen the ties even more. India as a trade partner is a win-win for both economies. The other bigger concern for both countries is in the area of China’s dominance and threat from terrorism. India and US have common interests and goals and threats. It is imperative that Indian Americans with electoral wins and their ability to leave their fingerprints on the policies of US government work towards a strong US – India friendship ties and we see tangible progress in all areas of concern.