They hit the headlines for the right, wrong and wacky reasons. The New Indian Express reported on a host of people who mattered -- newsmakers, risk-takers, achievers and failures alike. Here is a medley of people from the state who made it to the front pages:
Movers and shakers
H D Kumaraswamy: Fated to be king, not kingmaker
In a house of 224 legislators, the man with barely 37 seats is the king. HD Kumaraswamy didn’t even field candidates from the JD(S) in all 224 seats, but managed to occupy the hottest seat in the power corridor. With absolutely no effort from his side, the leader who was touted to be ‘kingmaker’ before the assembly elections, was offered the Chief Minister’s chair on a platter by the Congress, that was desperate to keep BJP out of power. “I am done being a kingmaker. This time I will be the king,” Kumaraswamy had said before the elections, and went on to do exactly that.
DK Shivakumar: Success story
Congress’ go-to man has grown exponentially this past year. Such is the confidence the party has shown in him that Shivakumar was sent to manage the crisis in the party’s Telangana unit, ahead of the assembly elections. Shivakumar, who was in charge of Ballari for the party in the bypolls to Lok Sabha, ensured that V Ugrappa -- a first-time candidate -- won with a landslide margin. Shivakumar successfully turned around the Income Tax and Enforcement Directorate’s raids in his favour, playing the victim card and scoring political brownie points. The man who has made no secret of his aspirations to ascend the Chief Minister’s throne, has had his share of controversies as well as successes, with the latter weighing in his favour.
Samay Godika: Young scientist wins Rs 2.9 crore
A crorepati at 16 years of age, Samay, who participated in a global science challenge in San Francisco, won a cool Rs 2.9 crore. The Bengaluru boy emerged winner in the fourth edition of Breakthrough Junior Challenge, with a three-minute video explaining the molecular basis of the circadian rhythm, or the body clock. His interest in the subject stemmed from his personal experience of suffering from asthma. The scholarship that Samay won will cover his scholarship for any university of his choice.
SC Santosh: Daredevil on the superfast track
The fastest Indian biker ever in the Dakar Rally, C S Santosh will once again be part of the three-member Hero MotoSports Team for the 41st edition of the ‘brutal’ rally starting January 6 in Peru. The only Indian to have ever made it to the Top-50 in the Dakar Rally, Santosh hopes to make it to the Top-20 next year. Despite a crash that left him with a bloodied face, Santosh made it to the finish line in this year’s Dakar. Bengaluru’s own daredevil will participate in the gruelling rally for the fifth time.
Fouaad Mirza: Shining equestrian star
In August this year, Bengaluru’s Fouaad Mirza became the first Indian to win an Asian game individual medal in the equestrian event since 1982. The 26-year-old won silver medals in both the individual eventing and team eventing at the 2018 Asian Games. His jumping score was 26.40 while gold medallist Oiwa Yoshiaki’s stood at 22.70. Mirza wowed sports enthusiasts with his impressive skills in Italy, France and Germany before competing at the Asian Games.
Binny Bansal: Big deal and big embarrassment
The co-founder of Flipkart resigned in November this year following allegations of personal misconduct. Binny Bansal even made it to the headlines after seeking a $100 million cash payout from Walmart, the chain retail giant that acquired a 77 per cent stake in Flipkart for $16 billion. Bansal quit Flipkart after an independent probe was ordered into a woman’s allegations of personal misconduct against the co-founder, soon after Walmart’s acquisition. Bansal is now set to launch a startup with former McKinsey consultant Saikiran Krishnamurthy.
Sulagitti Narasamma: Grandmother of home deliveries
The 98-year-old midwife was bestowed with the Padma Shri, India’s highest civilian honour, this year but Sulagitti Narasamma, unfortunately, passed away earlier this week. Narasamma, from Tumakuru district of Karnataka, facilitated traditional natural births and was recognised for her selfless service in delivering more than 15,000 babies over a span of 70 years, free of cost. Illiterate and married at the age of 12, Narasamma learnt midwifery from her grandmother. She delivered the first child in 1940 and has worked largely in the backward areas of Tumakuru.
Sruthi Hariharan: Gritty #MeToo girl sticks to her guns
At the peak of the #MeToo movement, multi-lingual actor Sruthi Hariharan shifted the focus to the film industry. Sruti accused senior actor Arjun Sarja of sexual harassment at the workplace -- an allegation that was met with sharp protests and abusive online trolling. Fans of the Sarja family even allegedly threatened Sruthi and those from the industry who stood by her. While the rift between the actors could not be resolved by the film chamber, Sarja chose to file a defamation case against her. Even as she fights a legal battle, Sruthi successfully opened a can of worms in the film industry, and encouraged more women to come out with their stories.
Past Tense
BS Yeddyurappa: A 55-hour CM
The BJP state president broke his own record for the shortest stint in the chief minister’s office earlier this year. B S Yeddyurappa assumed the CM’s chair for just 55 hours before resigning from the post. On the day of the floor test, minutes before he was to prove majority, Yeddyurappa resigned from the post.
He was fully aware that despite being the single largest party in the state, the BJP did not have the numbers to keep him cemented to the chair.
Siddaramaiah: Hurt, but not retired
One of the very few chief ministers in the state to have completed a full five-year term, Siddaramaiah had to eat the humble pie after a humiliating defeat in Chamundeshwari constituency. He managed to barely scrape through in Badami. His clout in the Congress, albeit hasn’t dwindled. The party chose to make him part of the Working Committee- the most important decision-making body of the Congress.
Nirmala Sitharaman: The angry minister
The temper of Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, who is also an MP from Bengaluru, made it to the headlines after she lost her cool over change in itinerary during her visit to flood-hit Kodagu district. While the Union minister’s broken Kannada made way for great memes, her 2-minute face-off with district in-charge minister Sa Ra Mahesh found space on all regional and national media platforms.
Nowhera Shaik: Out of sight, out of mind
She came with a lot of bling and jazz into the Karnataka assembly election foray, but vanished without a mark soon after. Nowhera Shaik, the founder & president of the All India Mahila Empowerment Party and a diamond entrepreneur, made it to the headlines during the elections with her luxury lifestyle and promises of a new era of politics, but soon went ‘out of sight, out of mind’.
Matrimonial agency’s gaffe
A matrimonial ad agency was slammed after it put out a controversial advertisement listing “beautiful girls” under “Young achievers category”. The ad prominently featured in newspapers called out for “ultra-rich families” to participate. After severe backlash accusing the advertisement of promoting sexism and elitism, the company called it a “mistake”.
Future Focus
Yash: Star finds entry into big league
Yash has turned out to be the biggest goldmine for the Kannada film industry this year with his movie KGF. The mammoth moneyspinner is not only the first Kannada movie to be dubbed in five different languages, but is also a massive hit across all languages. Yash is riding high on his inclusion into the Rs 100-crore club, with KGF creating a record of sorts. The actor also made it to the headlines for his NGO Yashomarga’s work with farmers. With KGF, Yash has managed to cross territories and identify himself as a pan-India star, making 2018 a year of success for him.
Tejaswini Ananthkumar: Taking centre stage
With the demise of her husband and former Union minister Ananth Kumar, BJP and followers of the late leader are looking at Tejaswini Ananthkumar to take on his mantle. A well-known face in the constituency, Tejaswini -- who also runs the NGO Adamya Chetana -- is being touted as BJP’s best bet to win the Bengaluru South Lok Sabha constituency. While she is yet to make a formal announcement about joining politics, her increased activity on the social media indicates a possibility.
HD Deve Gowda: Patriarch with a purpose
The brain behind the Congress-JD(S) coalition government in Karnataka, H D Deve Gowda could very well emerge as a frontrunner for the Prime Minister’s post after the 2019 elections. At a time when the Congress is attempting to build a united front against the BJP, parties like Trinamool Congress and Telangana Rashtra Samithi are looking towards an option without both national parties. Whichever way the arithmetic of parties works, 85-year-old Deve Gowda will be a crucial link in forging an alternate political option, if not an acceptable face for the PM’s post in 2019.
Abhishek Ambareesh: His father’s son
Touted to be a sure shot superstar, Abhishek Ambareesh will make his debut on the silver screen in 2019. The demise of his father -- former minister and Kannada matinee idol Ambareesh -- has catapulted Abhishek into the spotlight. Much like his father, the actor aspires to take a leap into politics eventually. In an industry that is slowly picking up the pace to compete with others, Abhishek is expected to make waves.
Preetam Gowda: Novice no more
This 37-year-old beginner surprised everyone, including his own party, by winning the assembly seat in JD(S)’ bastion Hassan. Seniors in the party believe that Preetam’s victory could begin the wave of change for BJP’s prospects in the old Mysuru region, since the last time it won the Hassan seat was in 1999. For the party, that has largely been limited to North, Central Karnataka and Bengaluru, a breakthrough at the grassroots level in Mysuru, Mandya and Hassan districts is no small feat. A senior BJP functionary likened Preetam’s win to B S Yeddyurappa’s first victory from Shikharipura that turned the tide in favour of the BJP in the entire Malnad belt.
Sachin Bansal: Start (up) afresh
The co-founder of Flipkart is back with a new venture -- BAC Acquisitions Private Limited. Bansal, who bagged about $1 billion (over `7,000 crore) from his stake sale in India's most valued startup during the Flipkart-Walmart acquisition, holds the majority share in the new company. He has opened a new office in Kormanagala, the same location where he opened Flipkart's first office in 2007. Through his new venture, he is likely to invest in more start-ups in the country, and will be closely watched in the business circles.
Devdutt Padikkal: New Challenger
All of 18, Devdutt Padikkal made heads turn when he made his first-class debut for Karnataka in the 2018-19 Ranji Trophy. The teenager was bought by IPL team Bengaluru Royal Challengers for next year’s IPL. Padikkal first caught the attention of cricket enthusiasts after smashing tons for the Bellary Tuskers in the State cricket premier league. He was soon picked up for Nationals Under-19 team. Padikkal is expected to be an asset for RCB in the upcoming IPL series.
Sanjana Ramesh: Scoring high
Emerging as a force to reckon with in the world basketball circles, Sanjana Ramesh (17) has bagged a year-long scholarship programme with the Northern Arizona University (NAU) women’s basketball team for the 2019-20 North American Division I college season. The Bengaluru girl -- who had captained India’s U-16 side to a Division B victory in the FIBA Asia Cup -- also emerged as one of the two Most Valuable Players (MVP) of Basketball Without Borders earlier this year.