BEER, BOOKS AND CONVERSATIONS: A CITY'S CULTURAL SOUL

FEMALE GAZE SANDHYA MENDONCA I find my city becoming duller by the year.

Where have all the interesting people gone? Time was when writers, actors, journalists, playwrights, and politicians - all the literati would gather at Koshy's for long-drawn-out conversations. One could just stroll in and be able to join any table and be sure of an interesting conversation. Mercifully we enjoyed the place and people before the time of selfies (which we are also very much of guilty of in recent years). Imagine trying to talk to Girish Karnad or Ram Guha or Prakash Belawadi these days. You wouldn't get five undisturbed minutes with them let alone a leisurely chat for an hour or more.

Many people's initiation to Bangalore began here, and many acquaintances blossomed into friendships and more. People like me grew up, had kids, and used it as an unpaid creche, with affectionate old waiters plying the kid with milkshakes while one dashed off to meet a deadline on a story.