Brand Mangalore and education

Brand Mangalore: Shaken and Stirred

By Harish Bijoor

Once upon a time, not so long ago, Mangalore was a quiet little coastal town in Karnataka. Well known for its culture, its dance, its music, its coastal cuisine (that has many a person, including the writer, salivating) and more.

Outside Mangalore, you heard of the city as the destination you had to go to when you wanted an engineering or medical seat for your son, daughter, sister, brother or cousin. Or if you were headed to some very revered temple spots.

Over the last 5 years however, Mangalore has been making news. And this news is not all about how it is emerging to be a tourist destination of much impact. Not because the area boasts of a rich eco-heritage, but for reasons completely different and completely chaotic.

We had the now-famous Pub attack led by Pramod Muthalik, followed by the reactive Pink-chaddi campaign. The latest piece of turd to hit the ceiling is the Padil home stay attack on youngsters celebrating a birthday party, with friends, cake and beer. And in-between we have had sundry church attacks, desecration of altars, pulling out of couples that looked “not married” out of buses and beating them up as well. And possibly what’s been swept under the carpet of fear is much more than what’s been reported to date in media.

Every event listed above had Mangalore make news in a big way. In a negative way that has had Brand Mangalore painted as a small little town with hordes and hordes of ‘goondas’ roaming the streets, all looking to impose a Taliban-style living.  All looking to inflict a regressive and retrograde style of living altogether. The city has also managed to earn for itself an image of being totally young-unfriendly!

Now, I do believe this is where the brand disaster really starts. A “young-unfriendly” Mangalore is really a big worry to carry as an image-tag for Brand Mangalore.  Let’s remember two things. 54% of the population of the country (including Mangalore as well) is below the age of 25.   Add to it the fact that Mangalore and its surrounding areas that cover Manipal, Surathkal and more are younger still. 

Let’s also remember some facts. Greater Mangalore (the area that includes Mangalore and its surroundings) today boasts of colleges of higher education that attract students from all over India and indeed all across the developing world at large. The listing is mind-boggling. Here goes. 17 Engineering, 6 medical, 5 Dental, 14 Physiotherapy, 19 Nursing, 13 Industrial Training, 6 Hotel Management, 9 Polytechnics, 6 Hotel Management, and the list goes on.

The point to note is that Mangalore is much more than what Mangalore was. Mangalore today boasts of a Diaspora audience of young people from all over. All younger than 25.

Mangalore is therefore one of India’s biggest educational hubs. Mangalore hosts not only all these colleges of higher education, but also hosts students from all over. Add to it the fact that the hearts of many a parent and relative lives and beats in Mangalore, where their wards now study and live. Mangalore has therefore a heart that beats for it all over India and elsewhere. Mangalore is insular no more.

Events such as the ones that have rattled the name of Brand Mangalore in recent days rattle not only the local citizenry and the people of Karnataka, but they rattle many a brand sentiment all over. Brand Mangalore has earned for itself in recent years the image of being intolerant, insular and young-unfriendly. This cannot remain. This can only prove negative to Mangalore as an education hub of significance.

Let’s remember what happened to Australia and its image in recent years with the issues that had killings and allegations of racial slurs all across. Parents and students alike, when they think Australia, they think thrice, if not twice. We don’t want Mangalore going that way as well. Or do we?

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Harish Bijoor is a brand-strategy specialist & CEO, Harish Bijoor Consults Inc.

Twitter.com @harishbijoor

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Bangalore Rage!

The Rage of Bangalore



By Harish Bijoor


Bangalore is an attitude.

A city is really an attitude. A reflection of the collective attitude of its people. In many ways Bangalore is not about this now sprawling BBMP area of 740 sq km. It is not about the eclectic mix of its people. It is not about the ethnographic mix. It is not about its varied food habits. Not about its varied dressing habits. Not about its many languages. Not about the 10,000 plus expatriates who have adopted the city as their own. Remember, the city boasts a third of the expatriate population in India. The highest single cluster of expatriates anywhere in India.

A city is really the aggregate of the attitude of its people. What is the mindset of the Bangalorean at large? What is her world-view? What is her civic-view? Is she inclusive in her mindset or exclusive? What is her social attitude? How is her economic attitude fashioned? And what of his Religious attitude? How is his political attitude?

It is therefore all about attitude. A city is defined by the attitude of its people. Attitude as reflected in behavior. Attitude as portrayed by the actions of its peoples. Attitude as displayed on the sleeves of the people who make up this city.

Who makes this city then? An eclectic mix of the haves and have-nots. Bangalore boasts of a large population of industrial workers. Textile workers even. Auto-rickshaw drivers (1, 21,000 at last count), drivers of every kind who make for the travel comfort of this city. Servants and cooks and home comfort-enablers of every kind. Sweepers in the formal sector, and indeed a whole host of rag-pickers and beggars and street-singers and street-acrobats in the informal sectors.

The city ticks on with its complement of tech-workers. A big chunk of the 16 lakh population of tech-workers in the country have made Bangalore their home. Add to this people from every part of the country who work within the confines of the many enterprises in end-to-end-services, the BPO industry, retail, marketing, manufacturing, aviation and more. Name a business vertical of significance, and we have it here in Bangalore.





If you speak a region, we have them all here. Literally every one of our many States is represented in this microcosm that is Bangalore. The languages are multifarious today. From the biggest non-local chunk contribution of Telugu (12% plus), every language that is spoken in India is here. As is the food of these many regions. Add to it the many foreign languages and cuisines. Sushi is now found in as many as 19 different restaurants in Bangalore. And Korean cuisine in as many as 11.

We are a mixed city then. A healthy mix from everywhere. A mix that has found Bangalore a pleasant place to be, sans the jingoism that mars many a city elsewhere. The Kannadiga is the most hospitable and inclusive person there is. Embracing everyone into the myriad folds of the city. Bangalore is a ‘bisi-bele-baath’ all of its own. A very tasty one at that.

As I write, the city remains what it was, inclusive. What worries me though are incidents that seem to come up every now and then on our roads. Road-rage for a start. These incidents are small in number but deep in the anguish they cause among those exposed to it.

If the city is an attitude, road-rage is a stress-induced manifestation of the attitude of a city as well. There was a time when road-rage manifested itself rather politely in this city. I have personally seen instances where people have gotten out of their cars with folded hands and apologized to those who they have upset. Gone are those days. This is getting to be an angrier city. Why?

Road-rage seems to be inversely proportional to the education of its peoples. We are a reasonably well-educated city. The most educated seem to get the most angry on our roads. And road-rage seems to be a vent-point. A point where the issue of the “outsider” and the “insider” seems to manifest itself suddenly. When someone gets angry, very angry, the first shout that seems to emerge is in the mother-tongue of choice. And this is where it all starts. This is where language comes in, one opposing the other. And this is where the status of the “insider” and “outsider” comes in. And this is precisely where the government machinery and its possible biases come in as well. To the chagrin of the affected.

The attitude of the city needs a balm on the roads, particularly as our traffic-snarls increase. The snarl is really in us. We need to very consciously control this animal. Shall we make a conscious effort? And let’s educate one other person on this. Just for a start.

We need a public program that educates us about road rage. Any takers?
Harish Bijoor is a brand-expert & CEO, Harish Bijoor Consults Inc.
Email: ceo@harishbijoorconsults.com