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Karnataka Today newsletter: Arundhati Nag on 20 years of theatre space Ranga Shankara, and more

As Ranga Shankara, one of Bengaluru’s cherished theatre spaces, gears up to celebrate its 20th anniversary this month, its founder, theatre and film personality Arundhati Nag, finds herself in two places at once. Contemplating the past and the realisation of a dream, and envisioning a bigger, brighter future with the support of the government and corporate patrons.

The iconic venue is commemorating its milestone two decades with the Ranga Shankara Theatre Festival — an unforgettable month-long celebration, from October 10 to November 10, that will feature 20 plays over 20 days. Amid preparations for the RSTF, Nag takes some time off to share her ambitions for the space while remaining committed to keeping it accessible to all. Find excerpts of her interview here and read all about the theatre festival here.

A division bench of the Karnataka High Court stayed a single judge ruling, which had held that the relationship between ANI Technologies Private Limited (a company which operates taxi aggregator and other services under the brand name OLA) and its drivers is that of employee-employer, and hence the company has to abide by the PoSH Act when complaints of sexual harassment are received against its drivers.

The vacation bench passed the interim order on a writ appeal filed by the company, which had questioned the single judge’s September 30 verdict. The single judge had passed the order on a petition filed by a woman, who was a victim of sexual harassment by a man, who impersonated a driver attached to the OLA platform, while travelling to her workplace in August 2018.

The Karnataka government’s four-year-old decision to purchase former Chief Minister S. Nijalingappa’s residence at Chitradurga and convert it into a memorial has been delayed due to a legal issue.

While the former Chief Minister’s grandson, who has got the right over the property, is ready to sell it to the State Government, the sub-registrar wanted all the legal heirs of Nijalingappa to be present for registration. Hence, process has been delayed, according to an official.

Bengaluru Namma Metro fare is likely to go up by 15-25% soon since the Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Limited (BMRCL) has released a public notice inviting citizens to submit suggestions to the Metro Rail Fare Fixation Committee (FFC) about revision of fares.