An Unwelcome Visitor 

Bangalore: We were surprised to find this bird perched atop our budgerigar cage one Sunday afternoon. This is bird of prey, a Shikra. It was looking intently at our pet budgerigars. I bet it was relishing the thought of grabbing one of the budgies and having it for lunch. Thankfully, our cage has very narrow gaps so the Shikra couldn't attack the budgies with its sharp claws or beak. It was patiently waiting on the top of the cage to see if there was anyway it could get at the budgies. We managed to click a photo of it before it flew off to perch on a tree opposite the balcony.

 

We did not want to take any chances with the budgies' safety so we put our clothes dryer in front of the cage. Hopefully, the metal structure will keep the budgies safe from the preying eyes of the Shikra.

 

We checked in the The Book of Indian Birds by Salim Ali. The Shikra that paid us a visit was a female. The female Shikra is brownish with a black barred tail. The male is blue grey and white barred brown below. Its habitat is Subcontinent, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Nicobars, according to the book.

 

It was nice to get a photo of the Shikra, but I don't want it preying on my pet budgies. So, Ms. Shikra please don't come again.

 

 

Piya Behrupiya



This is about Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night. It is happening in Hindi and the show is happening at Ranga Shankara, Bangalore, on October 6, at 3.30 pm.

Useful information: When you come please note. No late entry. No refund on tickets. Children below 8 years not allowed. No photography \ videography.

Adapted by Amitosh Nagpal.

Directed by Atul Kumar.

The Company Theatre.

There was a girl who was a boy. And there were lots of songs like Segario. The actors were very good. The audience were laughing and clapping.



Bheemeshwari

Bheemeshwari is about 130 km from Bangalore and it is 3 hours by bus or car.  Bheemeshwari is on the banks of the Kaveri river. You can stay at the Jungle Jungle Lodges http://www.junglelodges.com/bheemeshwari. Please do not swim in the river because there are crocodiles and whirlpools. Jungle Lodges has adventure sports like Burma Loop, Zip Line, Parallel Walk and Kayaking. You can also go on coracle rides in the river. In the mornings you can go trekking. Beware of monkeys, because they may run off with your stuff.


Rain clouds gather over the Kaveri