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The Hindu
31-07-2025
- Business
- The Hindu
Hyderabad's new organic store champions sustainable living
Chennai-based social enterprise Tula India is making its way to Hyderabad with a new venture, The Conscious Living Store (TCLS). Opening on August 1 in Kukatpally, the 350 sq. ft. store brings together organic groceries and handmade clothing, all in line with Tula's philosophy of sustainability — from farm to fabric, and with absolutely no plastic packaging. The three-day launch will include workshops and sessions with experts on conscious living. Run by engineer-turned-ecopreneurs Jyotsna and Rakesh Vegella, the newly-wed couple say they are not the founders, but are simply 'replicating what's already been beautifully done by Tula, with a little mentoring from Ananthoo sir,' referring to Tula's co-founder. Rakesh, who specialises in organic food, and Jyotsna, a designer with Tula, wanted to combine their interests but were not sure what kind of eco-friendly business to start. It was Ananthoo who suggested bringing the Tula concept to Hyderabad. 'One of the biggest issues with organic stores is the plastic packaging. Even if the product is organic, we end up consuming microplastics from the packaging itself,' says Jyotsna. That is why customers at TCLS are expected to bring their own cloth bags and containers. The store is split into two sections — organic groceries on one side and handspun, handmade clothing on the other. The food section stocks around 65 items, including several varieties of rice, millets, wheat, pulses, cold-pressed oils, sweeteners, spices, and a few toiletries. The clothing line features everyday wear for men, women, and children, including newborn sets, dhotis, and towels. Due to space constraints, the launch and workshops will be held at a nearby community hall. But the focus, Jyotsna says, goes beyond retail. 'We want people to build conscious living into their daily habits, it should feel natural, not like a chore.' The team plans to continue monthly talks and workshops at the store going forward. Uzramma, founder of Malkha Marketing Trust and Narsanna,founder of Aranya Agricultural Alternatives are to launch the store on August 1 at 11 am followed by talks and workshops by experts. For more details check out their social media pages.
The Hindu
23-07-2025
- Politics
- The Hindu
Chander and Jyotsna Mohan's ‘Pratap: A Defiant Newspaper' emboldens patriotic legacy
In 1983, Punjab was teetering on the precipice of a communal conflict between Sikhs and Hindus. Amidst this tension, an innocuous parcel was sent to Pratap Bhavan in Jalandhar, headquarters of the revolutionary Urdu Pratap and Hindi Vir Pratap newspapers. Soon after delivery, an explosion shook the office — the parcel contained a bomb that had injured one and killed two. This haunting incident was neither the first nor the last Pratap faced until its closure in 2017. Now, four decades after the parcel bomb, journalist and author Jyotsna Mohan and her father Chander Mohan revisit their family's fiery past in their latest book, Pratap: A Defiant Newspaper (published by Harper Collins). Jyotsna paused her book tour at Odyssey bookstore in Adyar, Chennai, for a meaningful conversation about the story, behind this story. At the center of Pratap: A Defiant Newspaper lies family history — persevering through remembrance — from the recollection of various events surrounding the newspaper, to the personal experiences of Chander's father Virendra, who was Bhagat Singh's jailmate before the latter's unjust hanging. But the book is by no means simply a personal tale — it is an account of a newspaper held together by a belief that truth is, simply put, non-negotiable. Interspersed with personal accounts and news reporting, the book is a look into a generation of principled journalists dedicated to truth and not to playing sides. Jyotsna's great-grandfather Mahashay Krishan, the founder of Pratap, reportedly said: 'News editors and journalists are not vendors. We are not here to sell the news. We have one duty and that is to be upright and to speak truth to power.' The father-and-daughter duo certainly remains uncompromising in this belief throughout their book. Jyotsna has seen the evolution of journalism through her 30-year stint in both newsrooms and newspapers. When asked about the importance of legacy and defiance in the arena of journalism, she says, 'Defiance to me is the act of speaking up. Not necessarily being anti-establishment, but about flagging the uncomfortable and speaking about what is wrong.' She says defiance is a rare quality in journalism today, since it almost always comes with a personal cost. Her own family's experiences and Pratap's unfortunate closure are a living, burning example of this. This story was one kept buried for years within her family, and Chander questioned whether anyone would even want to read it. But Jyotsna believes otherwise, that the book plugs a gap in the collective memory of Punjab's troubled past, reaching further back than most mainstream accounts. 'It's not just a North Indian story,' she says. 'It's a story anyone, anywhere, can connect with.' In its defiant telling, Pratap: A Defiant Newspaper becomes more than just a chronicle of one family's legacy — it becomes a meditation on what journalism once stood for, and what it can still be. As the media navigates increasingly difficult terrain, this book reminds us that the act of bearing witness is not always loud, but it is always vital.
Indian Express
05-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Indian Express
Hidden stories: how a reluctant performance paved way for Jyotsna Bhole to become a trailblazing Marathi actor
In July 1933, a radical piece of Marathi theatre was staged in Mumbai. Andhalyachi Shala (School for the Blind) was a vehicle for a group of intellectuals to cast a woman as a lead to oppose men playing women's roles in theatre. It was written by S V Vartak and produced by the group Natya Manwantar, whose member Keshav Vaman Bhole, better known as Keshavrao Bhole, was an eminent Marathi music director and critic. He had had only one woman in mind to play the lead, his wife and vocalist Durga Kelkar who came to be known as Jyotsna Bhole after their marriage. 'When my father asked her, she firmly said she wasn't interested… She wouldn't dream of diverting from her music,' says Vandana Khandekar, the couple's daughter. At Keshavrao's urging, Jyotsna took up the lead role – becoming a pioneer among women theatre actors. 'At the show's opening, the audience showed up with bhajjis in both hands, ready to haul these at the actors to show their disapproval. However, they saw the whole play without making a sound. They congratulated my mother and she loved the bhajjis so much, she ate everything the audience brought,' says Vandana. 'She could learn everything by ear' An exponent of Hindustani classical music and an eminent singer-actor, Jyotsna Bhole, whose death anniversary is on August 5, was a trailblazer. Her journey to winning the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award and the Lata Mangeshkar Award, however, started from the small village of Bandivade in Goa where she was born on May 11, 1914, as one among 14 children. The musical heritage of her surroundings as well as her siblings' performances turned her towards the art form from an early age. 'When her sisters practised, she would sit and listen. She could learn everything by ear. It was her elder sister, Girijabai, who recognised her talent and brought her to Mumbai, where both girls trained under Vilayat Hussain Khan and later Khadim Hussain Khan of the Agra Gharana,' says Vandana. Jyotsna quickly rose to fame through school competitions and was invited to perform at the British Broadcasting Service Radio. After Class 4, she left school to dedicate herself to music. Hooked on Keshavrao Bhole's songs During the 1930s, Keshavrao was an up-and-coming musician and playwright in Mumbai's cultural scene, especially talented in bhavgeet music – a light classical form that blends poetry and music. 'The songs impressed Jyotsna and drove her crazy! It was something she had never heard before, and she was keen to learn them,' says Vandana. When Keshavrao was finally convinced to teach Jyotsna, it was the start of a relationship that would last a lifetime. They married in 1932, when Jyotsna was 18. The couple had four children, Kishor, Suhas, Anil, and Vandana. After her first play, Andhalyachi Shala, Jyotsna refused to act again, choosing to focus on her music and family. It was not until eight years later that she would return to theatre. When Keshavrao produced and directed a play, he encouraged Jyotsna to be his heroine. Stepping back into the shoes of an actor in 1941, she witnessed peak fame a year later, through her role in Kulavadhu, a play inspired by Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen's A Doll's House. 'She toured the country extensively. Keshavrao told her to pursue her passion and make a name. He promised to stay at home and take care of the family,' says Vandana. By the time Jyotsna left the state in the 1960s, she was among the most sought after singer-actors. Jyotsna takes the lead Despite her limited education, Jyotsna was inspired by her husband's works and wrote, composed, directed and acted in her musical, Aradhana. She published a letter book, Antarichya Khuna, composed of letters she had written to her daughter as she travelled to Britain and Europe, performing in places like London, Paris, and Germany without speaking much English. In 1988, her touching autobiography, Tumchi Jyotsna Bhole, was released in Marathi. At home, Jyotsna insisted on being the regular parent who was involved in her children's upbringing. 'Every Diwali, she would insist on making each sweet herself. Every birthday, she would throw parties for our friends,' Vandana recalls. The Jyotsna Bhole Swarotsav, a music festival held in her memory since 2008, saw its 14th edition hosted on June 26-27 this year. 'We celebrate the work she did for the Marathi Sangeet Rangabhoomi,' says Adhish Paigude, an organiser. The festival, which features musicians and artists inspired by Jyotsna, is organised by the Srujan Foundation and Nanded city. This year's artists include Kalapini Komkali, Jayateerth Mevundi, Shounak Abhisheki, and Yadnesh Raikar. 'To pay tribute at her festival with my violin means so much,' says Raikar, as Komkali adds, 'Without her songs, the morning never felt complete.' Antara Kulkarni is an intern with The Indian Express.
Hindustan Times
22-04-2025
- Politics
- Hindustan Times
The paper that roared: Book by Chander Mohan, daughter Jyotsna chronicles the legacy of ‘Pratap'
A compelling specimen of journalism as resistance, Pratap: A Defiant Newspaper traces the tumultuous journey of one of India's most fearless publications. Co-authored by father-daughter journalist duo Chander Mohan and Jyotsna Mohan, the book turns the spotlight on the pivotal role of Urdu newspaper 'Pratap' and its Hindi counterpart 'Vir Pratap', which had a long and eventful history. Launched by Mahashay Krishan on March 30, 1919, and ably carried on by his son Virendra and later his grandson Chander, it was a torchbearer against the British Raj that covered all the major events during India's struggle for independence and after, until it wrapped up in 2017. In Pratap: A Defiant Newspaper, Chander and Jyotsna weave together the incidents and personal experiences of the paper's founder and editors, as well as landmark events of Indian history, from Independence to the Emergency and Operation Bluestar. 'The paper was not just reporting news; it was shaping the national conscience,' says Chander, who believes that the history of 'Pratap' and people related to it needed to be told. Asked if the authors see any parallels between the newspaper and contemporary journalism, they respond in negative. 'Not at all. Times have changed, readers have changed, and the profile of journalists has changed,' says Chander, who, along with his daughter, took more than two years to complete the book. Talking about the particular chapters that deeply resonate with him, Chander says, 'Though all chapters carry equal weight, two of them are important to me. The one that tells the story of the parcel bomb, which ripped through the Pratap's office in Jalandhar, claiming two lives in 1983, and the other one that explores the relationship between Mahatma Gandhi and Bhagat Singh.' For Jyotsna, the part of the book that delves into the period of militancy in Punjab is the one close to her heart. 'My grandfather's first-hand accounts were exceptional. And you know a good story when you hear one. It became pertinent to us to document those stories and bring them out for the people to read,' she adds. A tribute to the power of the press, Pratap: A Defiant Newspaper is available at local bookstores and Amazon.
