Sahityika Admin
The 95th Academy Award ceremony was held on 12th March 2023. This year as Indian documentary The Elephant Whisperers won the coveted award for Best documentary short film and the song Naatu Naatu from the Telugu film RRR won the award for Best Original Song. After Slumdog Millionaire, this was only the second occasion when Indians have won more than one Oscar in a single year.
The Elephant Whisperers, a documentary made in Tamil, won this year’s coveted Academy Award for the best short documentary, written by Priscilla Gonsalves and directed by Kartiki Gonsalves. The film is based on the real-life story of the relation between Bomman & Bellie, a couple in South India and Raghu, a baby elephant. The couple rescued the orphaned baby elephant, devoted their lives to caring for the little animal, forging an unusual family that test the barrier between the human and the animal world. It took five long years to complete the documentary by Kartiki and her unit. Ultimately, their hard work was recognized and rewarded with the Academy Award.
Naatu Naatu from the Telugu film RRR won the award for Best Original Song. “Naatu Naatu” (Native, Local, Wild) is a Telegu song composed by M.M. Keeravani, with lyrics by Chandrabose and recorded by two singers Kaala Bhairava and Rahul Sipligunj for the 2022 film RRR. The entire process of producing the song took over 19 months. Keeravani composed 10 to 20 different tunes based on that particular point in the script. Later, the team finalized this particular tune based on a voting process from their inner circle. The RRR singers had an unforgettable March 12 when they performed Naatu Naatu on the Oscar 2023 stage. The audience applauded throughout the performance and gave the performers a standing ovation.
Restoration of Bhatinda Fort, the oldest surviving heritage fort of India
Prof. (Dr.) Ashish Bhattacharya, 1977 Metallurgical Engineering
Archaelogical Survey of India (ASI) has finally initiated the project of repairing the damaged portions and strengthening fragile sections of Bathinda Fort, considered now to be India’s oldest surviving heritage fort. Several bastions of the fort have collapsed over the last few years. With no repairs for two years due to the Covid pandemic, its condition has deteriorated further. According to ASI officials, even one of the main bastions of the fort partially fell apart in 2022.
The team working with the Akal Society of America, after conducting an extensive two year’s survey of the site had submitted a proposal of repairs to ASI. A major proposed repair work was funded by the former Punjab Government of Rs.12,500,000 (US$275,000) on 21 June 2005 at a ceremony held to mark the tercentenary celebrations of Guru Gobind Sing’s visit to the fort.
The pristine fort, also called Quila Mubarak, has withstood the vagaries of conquerors for at least 1,600 years. The sprawling 15 acres it occupies is a sharp contrast to the serpentine lanes of the crowded Bathinda bazaar that lead to it. More than 100 feet high, it stands tall and proud in the heart of Punjab. It is now listed as a Monument of National Importance by the ASI. “According to the ASI records, the fort may have been built around the 6th century AD as a defence against the invading Hunas,” says Sri Om who oversees the maintenance of the fort as the ASI’s conservator in Bathinda.
The bastion that broke down last year housed the Rani Mahal—a single room where Razia Sultana was held captive. It’s currently closed to the public, and repairs have started. The ASI team is using thin tile bricks and joining them with a mixture of lime and mortar as cement is not used in the conservation of such structures. The fragility of the structure on which repairs are currently underway is posing a huge challenge to the conservators. The walls are patched with at least seven different kinds of bricks, bearing testimony to the different periods of India’s history. Each conqueror subsequently left a mark on the structure. Since mud bricks don’t last long, they were replaced by the smaller nanak shahi bricks at some places and also burnt bricks at other places.
Some facts about the fort
• It was constructed during 90-110 AD by Raja Dab who was the ancestor of Vena Pal. It was constructed by the king to stop the invasion of Emperor of Kanishka by Huns. Qila Mubarak in latter part of the 10th Century was under the rule of Jayapala, of the Hindu Shahi dynasty.
• The first empress of Delhi, Razia Sultana, was taken into captive at this fort as a prisoner after she was dethroned. It is also said that Prithviraj Chauhan wresting control of the fort from Muhammad Ghori add to its allure.
• It houses the Gurdwara Qila Mubarak, which was built in the early 19th century to mark the visit of Guru Gobind Singh, the last Sikh Guru, a century earlier. On Gurupurab and other sacred days, footfall even goes up to one lakh a day.
• When Babur came in India for the first time, he came here with cannons. Four of them are here in this fort that are made up of an alloy of silver, gold, copper and iron
• Fort gets about 4,000 to 5,000 visitors every day, and the number often touches 10,000 on weekends. And no tickets to be bought to see the fort, and unlike most other historical sites, it’s open to visitors till 9 pm.
The fort was built with clay bricks, that were used to make this fort date back to Kushana period when Kanishka ruled over northern India.
The fort stands on elevated ground, with 32 small and four large bastions at its four corners. There is only one entrance to the fort on the eastern face. It is a three-storey structure showing Mughal features. The massive doors are spiked. They are flanked on either side by two of the major bastions. At the top of one of these bastions is the Rani Mahal.
There’s more medieval history on the Bathinda Fort. “Bathinda was the Shahi king Jayapala’s capital. Mahmud of Ghazni captured this fort in the 11th century AD after King Jayapala was defeated and burnt himself on a pyre,” says the ASI’s Conservator.
Bhatinda fort played a crucial role during the tumultuous period. Muhammad Ghori stormed its bastions in 1191 AD. “Bathinda was then ‘Tabarhinda’. Although some historians debate that Tabarhinda being either Bathinda or Sirhind, most agree that the Tabarhinda referred to in medieval texts is Bathinda,” says Sri Om. Ghori’s move forced Prithviraj Chauhan to rush to Tabarhinda and wrest the fort back in the famous First Battle of Tarain.
More than a century later, in 1240 AD, Malik Ikhtiyar-ud-din Altunia, the Governor of Bathinda under the Delhi Sultanate, imprisoned Razia Sultan in Qila Mubarak. Her lover Yakut died. But in this fortress prison, the childhood friendship of Razia Sultana and Altunia blossomed again. The two reconciled, raised an army, and raised a rebellion against the nobility but failed.
The Bathinda Fort has a main hall, attached side rooms, and balconies. There are very few rooms, says Gurdeep Singh. “It can be said with certainty that this fort was not designed to hold a large population unlike other forts. It could have been used to temporarily give reprieve to travelling or warring armies,” he adds. Situated on top of another raised structure to the right of the gateway is the Gurdwara Qila Mubarak, built by Maharaja Karam Singh of Patiala. “Some of that portion needed repairs, so the Guru Granth Sahib was shifted to a raised platform in front of the gateway inside the fort. This raised platform was probably originally a muster and parade area,” Singh adds.
Since the raised platform space is more open, the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC), which manages the gurdwara continued to have the Guru Granth Sahib on the raised platform instead of shifting it back to the original spot. “Visitors pay obeisance both at the original spot and the place where the Guru Granth Sahib has been housed,” says Singh.
There’s an interesting story behind Guru Gobind’s visit to the fort. It is said that the people of Bathinda asked the Guru to visit it. They believed that a monstrous creature destroyed the houses in the surrounding village and lived inside the fort. Guru Gobind Singh communicated with the creature, asking him what he wanted. The latter told the Guru that he had been starving for long and that if somebody fed him, he would leave the fort forever. The Guru then asked for a bull to be brought from the nearby village Nat Banger. After eating what the Guru offered, the creature left the fort and the village in peace.
“For the history buff and tourists, Bathinda Fort links ancient India to medieval India, and for the hundreds of residents of Bathinda, it’s that quiet, serene place everyone flocks to at the end of their day,” says Gurdeep Singh of ASI, caretaker of the fort.
Indian Girl wins IBA Women’s World Boxing Championships
New Delho witnessed exciting days of the 13th IBA Women’s World Boxing Championships at K.D. Jadhav Indoor Hall, from 15 to 26 March 2023. 23 nations participated in the tournament. Gold medallists earned $100,000, silver medallists $50,000, and bronze medallists $25,000. The overall prize fund was $2.4 million.
Commonwealth Games gold medallist India’s Nitu Ghanghas became the first World champion (48kg) and Saweety Boora (81kg) both won gold medals. Nitu beat Mongolia’s Altantsetseg Lutsaikhan while Saweety beat light heavyweight rival Lina Wang of China. Both of them hail from Haryana.
Nitu and Saweety overcame two top seeds in semi-finals – Kazakh minimum weight Alua Balkibekova and light heavyweight Emma-Sue Greentree, respectively – while light flyweight Nikhat Zareen beat Colombia’s Ingrit Valencia, and middleweight Lovlina Borgohain won against Li Qian of China.
India’s Lovlina Borgohain won her maiden World Championships gold medal (75 Kg). The Tokyo Olympics bronze medalist defeated Australia’s Caitlin Parker via a split decision in a closely fought final bout. She had won the World Championships Bronze in 2018 and 2019, put behind the disappointment of losing in the quarter-final stage of the Commonwealth Games last year to reign supreme in New Delhi 2023.
India’s Nikhat Zareen won 2nd world championship gold medal in 2023 IBA Women’s world championships after defeating Vietnam’s Nguyen Thi Tam by 5-0 unanimous decision in the 48-50 kg category. She is 2 times World champion, won gold medal at the 2011 AIBA Women’s Youth & Junior World Boxing Championships at Antalya. Then she won gold medals at the 2022 Istanbul, and now in 2023 New Delhi. She also won gold medal at the 2022 Birmingham Commonwealth Games.
Indian BCCI Introduces Women’s IPL (WPL)
This year, BCCI have introduced Women Premier League (WPL). The participating teams are Mumbai Indian, Delhi Capitals, Gujrat Giants, Royal Challengers Bangalore, and UP Warriors. The tournament started on 4th March and to be concluded on 26th March. Right from the opening day, this tournament has become a hit as more and more people are taking interest in it with every passing day. It seems that like IPL, WPL will also have a very positive impact on Women’s cricket in India and, a large number of talented cricketers will benefit from this tournament.
Arch rival Liverpool wins over Manchester United by 7-0 in EPL
The rivalry between Liverpool FC and Manchester United is known as the most fierce in Englisg football. Fans of both the teams around the world eagerly wait for this encounter.
This season, Manchester United were displaying better quality of football and were ahead of Liverpool FC by 10 points. They were clear favourite in the encounter.
But to everyone’s surprise, on 5th March, underdog Liverpool FC displaying extra ordinary skill and power, trounced Manchester United by a huge margin of 7-0.
Incidentally, this was the heaviest defeat of Manchester United in more than 90 years.
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