My son, who has taken forward all family traditions including a love for Bajjis and Bondas, has settled down in the more cultured parts of Bangalore like Jayanagar. And he just sent me this Google Map of all the Bajji Bonda joints in our lovely city. What do you notice? The place where I live and breathe, Indiranagar, is singularly backward in this aspect. It is so gut-wrenching that I am at a loss for words. A predicament that you can spot on someone's face when he has not enjoyed Bondas or Bajjis for months on end.
I have always held that except Basavanagudi and Malleshwaram, all other localities of Bangalore are culturally in the Iron Age. You may find Kabab corners, Karnataka Pork stalls, Tamil magazine vendors, but you will not find the symbols of famous Mysore culture like:
1. Decent temples of Ganesha and Hanuman hosting Ramanavami festivals.
2. Vendors selling Mysore Mallige, Betel Leaf, Banana Leaf and Elakki Bale.
3. Condiment stores selling congress kadalekalu, hurigalu, Kodubale.
4. Iyengar Bakery and Coffee Works.
5. Bajji and Bonda stalls.
The result? People who live in these backward parts make do with uncultured ingredients of life and pass off as fake Bangaloreans. I have been banished to that state!!! I, born and brought up in Basavanagudi! Bah!!
There is no hope for the likes of me. Unless I visit the heavenly places mapped above and replenish my cultural roots frequently.
PS: Jayanagar, Hanumanthanagar and Rajajinagar came up as lower middle class extensions of Basavanagudi and Malleshwaram in '50s and '60s. Now they flaunt bungalows and emblems of culture too.
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