Treading water & flying high -all that we did in 2018

Innovate Bengaluru AR embedded special edition is launched at Bengaluru Tech Summit 2018

Karnataka Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy releasing special edition of Innovate Bengaluru at the Bengaluru tech Summit 2018, with Ministers KJ George, RV Deshpande and Priyank Kharge, along with Dr. Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, CMD, Biocon, Kris Gopalakrishnan, co-founder Infosys, Kate Jones, Queensland Minister for Innovation and Tourism, Alexandre Ziegler, Ambassador of France, Riho Kruv, Ambassador of Estonia, and other dignitaries. Also present are Sandhya Mendonca and Aditya Mendonca of Raintree Media

Unveiling the future of print, Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy released ‘Innovate Bengaluru’, an Augmented Reality embedded book at the inaugural session of the Bengaluru Tech Summit 2018 on Nov 29, 2018. Aptly, this innovative media tech product published by Raintree Media and Global Village World is all about Bengaluru’s innovators and innovative ecosystem.

Mr. KJ George, Karnataka Minister for ITBT, Science & Technology, and Large & Medium Scale Industries, says in the book, “We are happy to see Bengaluru's startup and innovative ecosystem being promoted globally in the Augmented Reality Innovate Bengaluru. It is an excellent initiative. Bengaluru is the Startup Capital of India, and we want it to become the Startup Capital of the world.”

Heads of C-CAMP, Bangalore Bioinnovation Centre & ABLE  with the book and the Raintree Media team 

Sandhya Mendonca, Founder, MD & Chief Editor, Raintree Media says, “We are excited to bring the Innovate series of Augmented Reality embedded books to India. We are on a journey to connect innovators across the world and Bengaluru is the starting point in our journey in India. Being a homegrown company, we are thrilled to be at the Tech Summit, which is the ideal launch pad for our Media Tech product. We are now gearing up for the full-fledged edition that will be out in a few months and invite nominations of innovative companies to be featured in Innovate Bengaluru."

Dr.Kiran Mazumdar Shaw appreciating the book, with Sandhya Mendonca, Chief Editor

To experience the Innovate Bengaluru book, readers have to download the Global Village AR app to their smartphones, available free of charge on both IOS and Android app stores. They simply focus the phone on the pages which have the AR symbol and presto, the book starts playing a video.

Dr Taslimarif Saiyed, CEO & Director, C-CAMP

The special edition of ‘Innovate Bengaluru’ contains 30 stories of innovators in Deep Science, Manufacturing, AgriTech, BioTech, Space, Education, Social Impact, Ecommerce and Brick & Mortar, investors, incubators and enablers along with AR videos. It is also available as an ebook.

The stories are also on the web at innovationhubindia.com . The full-fledged book that will have a 100 stories, to be published in March. Innovative companies can nominate themselves to be featured in the Innovate series in Bengaluru and India, at innovationhubindia.com/form/

CII India Innovation Summit 2018

India is at the cusp of an Artificial Intelligence revolution which is going to disrupt all our lives and businesses, said Kris Gopalakrishnan, Chairman, Axilor Ventures, at the announcement of the 14th CII-India Innovation Summit. To be held on July 12 and 13 at The LaLit Ashok, the theme of the summit is “India.AI – Driving the future for the world”.

Speaking at the press conference held at The Taj West End, Gopalakrishnan, who also serves as the Chairman of the CII-India Innovation Summit, said that Bengaluru is the best place for a summit such as this. “Bengaluru is an innovation hub, it has the largest number of professionals in India who use AI. This makes it the perfect place to discuss and debate AI and how it will change every aspect of our lives”, he said.

Focussing on AI and its impact and implementation across industries, the two-day summit will have a unique mix of corporate leaders, government representatives, entrepreneurs and other stakeholders, discussing the effect of AI and its implementation in our daily lives.

(From Left) Debarati Sen, MD, 3M, Sandeep Maini, Chairman, Maini Group, Kris Gopalakrishnan, Chairman, Axilor Ventures, I Vijayakumar, Former CTO, Wipro & Aman Choudhari, MD, Surin Automotive Pvt Ltd

“The application of AI in governance shall be a gamechanger,” said Sandeep Maini, Chairman, Maini Group. “Ai provides valuable insights and has opened the arena for better governance, as the service agencies and call centers shall be able to serve citizens 24x7 without delay. This shall open the possibility of having better governance across the security systems and service agencies in our country”, he said.

I Vijayakumar, a veteran in emerging technologies, introduced the schedule of the summit. Apart from speaker sessions and exhibitions, the summit includes workshops on Neural Networks and Design Thinking and competitions for innovators and aspiring entrepreneurs.

Debarati Sen, MD, 3M introduced the CII-3M Student Challenge, which aims to identify and encourage young people to create new solutions for a sustainable India. CII-Pitch Perfect, a competition where aspirating entrepreneurs pitch their ideas to a panel of investors, will be happening alongside. The winning pitches will be mentored by the panel, and also receive funding assistance.
For more details, please see: www.innovationsummit.co/conference/

Raintree Media is hiring!

We are an intensely passionate team at Raintree Media, a transmedia company spanning print, publishing, digital and experiential events. We are looking for more people like us and currently offer opportunities in these areas:

• Editorial Trainees: Writers who have the ability to write on a variety of subjects spanning the Arts, F&B and Technology. Required competencies are excellent grammar, speedy reporting, photo/videography and social media. Additional competencies include Adobe Creative Cloud skills, especially Photoshop and Premiere Pro.

• Interns who will have opportunities to learn the entire gamut of editorial skills. The Editor will mentor them personally and we will hire only 2 interns. Apply if you are serious about a career in media and are proficient in English, Microsoft Office and the Internet.

• Marketing Trainees: We are looking for ambitious and energetic Business Development Trainees to help us to expand our clientele and maintain a positive relationship with our existing clients.

Candidates might be required asked to do a written test. Pay will be commensurate with industry standards and will be based on ability & experience. Please send resumes along with a covering letter and references to raintreemediablr@gmail.com.

Its Christmas Time In The City

The morning of December 9th dawned bright and festive as Raintree Media ushered in the Christmas mood with a singalong with popular musicians Stephanie and Michael Fernandes at Project Eve in Jayanagar.

Jingle Bells, Deck The Halls, Santa Claus Is Coming To Town, Jingle Bell Rock, Rudolph The Red Nosed Reindeer, Silent Night, Joy To The World, Felize Navidad, We Wish You A Merry Christmas and many more songs had the guests on their feet.

Ms.Rajni Mishra, former Chief General Manager, SBI, Bangalore South, said, " It is a wonderful feeling to be here at this event to usher in the Christmas spirit; the festival brings the joys of sharing and giving".

From little kids to senior citizens, people of all faiths joined in the cheerful carols and favourite songs of the season. There was an infectious feeling of bonhomie and camaraderie as many voices from different walks of life sang in unison.

Nita Kembhavi, architect, who came with her 13 year old son Arnav, said, "It is a good beginning to the Christmas season; it's been a long time since I had attended a carols singalong, and I also wanted my son to come and enjoy this."

Anupama Mannar, former President of the Inner Wheel Club of Bangalore, said, "I enjoyed singing the carols; it reminded me of my school days. The ambiance was very nice."

Dr.Gertrude D'Souza said," It was a beautiful morning and the singing was superb".

Sandhya Mendonca, Managing Director, Raintree Media, said, "Christmas is more than a festival; it is a feeling and a season of joy and merriment, of love and kindness. We wanted to hold an inclusive event of merry melodies that warm the hearts and leave a smile on the lips".

Stephanie & Michael Fernandes

Sandhya Mendonca & Rajni Mishra

Shan Re

Swapna Mankani

Nita & Arnav Kembhavi

Dr.Gertrude D'Souza

Anupama Mannar

In memoriam: Ashokamitran (September, 1931 - March, 2017)

We were honoured to feature Ashokamitran, eminent author and winner of the Sahitya Akademy Award in 1995, in our book BEST OF Chennai Volume 2. Thank you Sir, for the words.

Avarekai comes to town! Food Street celebrates Avarebele Mela

 The Good City takes you to V V Puram in Bangalore where the winter special hyacinth bean, locally popular as Avarebele, has a street food festival in its honour for 17 years in row. 

Also, don't miss the quick guide to popular dishes!

Read the article & see the video* too 

The Sajjan Rao circle in Visvesvarapuram is ringed by many temples. The oldest are the Subramanya temple, which is also the most famous, the Venkataramana temple and Sathyanarayana temple.

If the devout come to offer prayers in the morning, they are equally fervent come evening.

They are headed not to a temple but to a lane that leads off Sajjan Rao Circle, Old Market Road, that has become famous as Food Street.

It is the place to savour local delicacies* like paddu, akki rotti, kodbale and a variety of dosas slathered with butter. In recent years, popular street food from other parts of India have also found their way here.

Today, we are in luck as the famous avarekai festival is going on. Avarekai or the hyacinth bean is a winter favourite and is supposed to have antimicrobial, anti-fungal, anti-inflammatory, appetite suppressant, antispasmodic and even aphrodisiacal properties.

Did you know that Avarebele has an African Connection ?

It is believed that the hyacinth bean is from Africa and was brought to India sometime between 1600-1500 BC 

Once a year, avarekai is the 'Queen' of the menu, headlining every dish. Avarekai is commonly used in popular dishes akki rotti, uppittu and saaru. For the duration of this food fest, all the familiar favourites are there but with an infusion of this bean.

The avarekai dosa - a dense utthapam-style dosa liberally sprinkled with avarekai and served with a spicy saaru, avarekai holige, avarekai jalebi, avarekai idli, avarekai vada, avarekai kodubale, avarekai nippattu, avarekai bhaath and even avarekai cutlets!

           

 The traditional sweets like

      holige & jalebi also have 

  avarekai  in them! The only dessert that has so far escaped avarekai is the gulkand; made from rose petals, it is as unique as this Food Street, avarekai or no avarekai.

      

A quick guide to popular dishes on Food Street

Paddu, also known as gulliyappa in Kannada, paniyaram in Tamil and gundponglu in Telugu, this cute little dumpling made of fermented batter of urad dal and rice is a cross between an idli and a dosa.

Akki rotti is a roti made of rice flour that is patted on to a plantain leaf and released on to hot tawa.

Uppittu or upma is made of roasted semolina, cooked vegetables and seasoned with curry leaves and mustard seeds.

Saaru is a nourishing broth made with tamarind and jaggery extract, with dal or greens or just pepper.

Holige is a sweet flatbread made with split yellow gram, plain flour, jaggery or sugar, cardamom powder and/or nutmeg powder and ghee.

The avarebele mela is on from Jan 5 - 15, 11 am to 10 pm at 

V V Puram, Malleswaram & Nagarabhavi.

'A masterpiece- a book to be tasted, again & again'

Full text of the address by His Excellency  Dr K Rosaiah, Governor of Tamil Nadu at the release of BEST OF CHENNAI VOLUME 2, at the ITC Grand Chola, Chennai on 7.7.2016

           It is a pleasure to release the International Coffee Table Book “Best of Chennai Volume 2” published by Raintree Media and Global Village Partnerships.

            At the outset I congratulate the Raintree Media for its “The Best of Series” books published in 40 countries. I am happy that Raintree Media is doing this excellent work of showing the world the many achievements of Indians    from    different parts of the country. I am pleased to learn that the first volume of the Best of Chennai was published in 2009 and today they are bringing out the second volume. It is amazing to see the growth of this city over these years and the increasing success of its people and organizations.

          Tamil Nadu especially Chennai is known for its rich heritage and tradition. Chennaipattinam - Madras - the present Chennai is the first city of South India and the capital of Tamil Nadu. It is a historic land of ancient culture. Today Chennai is a manufacturing hub with numerous IT Parks, Automobile and Pharmaceutical companies.

‘The Best of Chennai Volume 2’ highlights the positive aspects about the city of Chennai and the state of Tamil Nadu. When I browsed the book, the unique feature which I found is that it nicely depicts the bouquet of the culture, architecture  and the commerce of Tamil Nadu especially Chennai, which speaks volume of  its greatness. The nice and cogent presentation on the achievements made by several talented people in various specialities of Chennai deserves a special mention.

 Chennai has a rich cultural tradition and the book not only says about the various art forms but also brings to light the artists, writers, musicians, film makers and actors who are part of this rich legacy. Chennai is also known for sportsmen and women of repute, who have brought pride to the state and the country in a wide range of sports like chess, tennis, squash, motorsports, watersports, football and cricket.

Apart from the beautiful and excellent photographs, there are outstanding images of artwork in the book. I am happy to learn that they are by eminent artists Achuthan Kudallur, S Nandagopal and K.Muralidharan. Above all, Chennai is known for its very successful businesses. As the 'Gateway to the South', it has had grand and eventful past. The remarkable part about this book is the information it carries about organizations in various sectors and their contribution to the economy. These establishments have created a strong foundation for the growth of the city of Chennai and the state of Tamil Nadu. I am also happy to read about the young entrepreneurs who are breaking new ground in business.

I am sure that the interviews given by many eminent people for this book, and their views will inspire the readers of the younger generation to achieve more. I appreciate the good and excellent work done by Raintree Media and Global Village Partnerships in publishing the ‘Best of Chennai Volume-2’.

            I congratulate Smt. Sandhya Mendonca, Editor-in-Chief and her entire team for bringing out this masterpiece. I am sure the “Best of Chennai Volume - 2” will be among the best international coffee table books and it will adorn every lobby and sitting room.       

I conclude with the words of Francis Bacon, English author & philosopher, “Some Books are to be tasted, others to be swallowed and some books are to be chewed and digested.” 

‘Best of Chennai Volume 2’ is one which can be tasted again and again.

                      My greetings to you all. Jai Hind.

****

SHE Collective @ Casa Cottage, March 19

There were lilting verses and bold strokes of colour, there was a shared sensitivity and lifting of spirits. On this warm midsummer morning, many of the city's cognoscenti gathered to hear poems from an eminent poet and many aspiring ones, to admire the art of a celebrated painter and to encourage budding artists.

SHE COLLECTIVE's morning of art, poetry and affirmation at Casa Cottage highlighted the efforts by the Dream India Network to provide safe havens to very young girls who are in peril in this city.

“I am just a little bit of energy that adds to the universe’s glow” Kavitha Rajasekhar reading out her verses from SHE Vol 1

Artist Shan Re creating a beautiful piece of art

"As for women, the gods said, ‘Let them be strong rooted, like trees’. For it is they who shall hold the ends of the world together", eminent poet Poile Sengupta reads her works

Anindita Sengupta reads from her book "City of Water"

"You, the Son of God, Pieta draped on my lap, Look into eyes

dripping with piety." - Mini Naidoo reads her poem "Pieta"

 Dr Elizabeth Cherian Paramesh reads her poem "Avala Payana"

"Strong and resilient, yet a much gentler form", Zarine Kharas reads from her poem "I am a woman"

Musten Jiruwala, CEO, TechMust Software reads his poem "Mehez Ek"

"You seem to remain in me forever  / Just a dream - too good to be true."
- Guthi Jambunath reads from his poem "You"

“Art is poetry on canvas, Poetry is spoken art” says Sandhya Mendonca, Managing Director, Raintree Media and the catalyst of ‘Under the Raintree’ and ‘SHE COLLECTIVE’

The warm hearted Benjamine Oberoi whose heart beats for India’s disadvantaged.

Bhushan Oberoi makes a persuasive pitch to support the Dream India Network.

Sister Margaret & Father Edwards have knit together a network of safe homes
to take care of young girls at risk.

Guests in rapt attention

Art lovers are delighted at the display