Bangalore is known as the "Garden City of India" because of its greenery and the presence of many public parks, including the Lal Bagh and Cubbon Park. Dasara, a traditional celebratory hallmark of the old Kingdom of Mysore, is the state festival and is celebrated with great vigour. Deepavali, the "Festival of Lights", transcends demographic and religious lines and is another important festival. Other traditional Indian festivals such as Ganesh Chaturthi, Ugadi, Sankranthi, Eid ul-Fitr, and Christmas are also celebrated. Bangalore is home to the Kannada film industry, which churns out about 80 Kannada movies each year. One of the most notable contributors to Sandalwood, as the Kannada Movie Industry is referred to, was the late Dr. Rajkumar.
The diversity of cuisine available is reflective of the social and economic diversity of Bangalore. Roadside vendors, tea stalls, and South Indian, North Indian, Chinese and Western fast food are all very popular in the city. Udupi restaurants are very popular and serve predominantly vegetarian, regional cuisine.
Bangalore is also a major center of Indian classical music and dance. Classical music and dance recitals are widely held throughout the year and particularly during the Ramanavami and Ganesha Chaturthi festivals. The Bengaluru Gayana Samaja has been at the forefront of promoting classical music and dance in the city. The city also has a vibrant Kannada theater scene with organisations like Ranga Shankara and Benaka leading the way. Some of India's biggest names in theater like the late B. V. Karanth, Girish Karnad and others are residents of the city.
Bangalore also is home to an active presence of Rock and other forms of western music. Bangalore is now also known as the Rock City of India. Bands like Iron Maiden, Aerosmith, Scorpions, Deep Purple, The Rolling Stones, Sepultura, Joe Satriani, Black Eyed Peas, INXS, Uriah Heep. Sting, Michael Learns to Rock, Roger Waters, Mark Knopfler, Jethro Tull and Bryan Adams among others, have performed in the city. Bangalore is sometimes referred to as the "Pub Capital of India".
Cricket is one of the most popular sports in Bangalore. A significant number of national cricketers have come from Bangalore, including former Indian cricket team captain Rahul Dravid and the current Test captain Anil Kumble. Other cricketing greats from Bangalore are Gundappa Vishwanath, E.A.S. Prasanna, Venkatesh Prasad, Bhagwat Chandrasekhar, Syed Kirmani,Sadanand Vishwanath and Roger Binny. Many children play gully cricket on the roads and in the city's many public fields. Bangalore's main international cricket stadium is the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium, which hosted its first match in 1974.Bangalore has a number of elite clubs, like the Bangalore Golf Club, the Bowring Institute and the exclusive Bangalore Club, which counts among its previous members Winston Churchill and the Maharaja of Mysore.
Bangalore is booming, and a look at some of its nicknames says why: "India's Silicon Valley," "Fashion Capital of India," "The Pub City of India," and on. Home to well over 6 million people, and a base for 10,000 industries, Bangalore is India's fifth largest city and the fastest growing city in Asia.The capital of the state of Karnataka, Bangalore is situated halfway between the coasts in southern India. The city was founded in the 16th century, and witnessed great southern dynasties like the Kadambas, the Hoysalas and Vijayanagar emperors. Legend has it that the name Bangalore comes from "boiled beans" (Benda Kaluru), which were served by a humble old lady to a hungry ruler in the 10th century.
Surprisingly, despite some adverse environmental impact of industrial development in Bangalore, another of its nicknames is "The Garden City." That's thanks to many local parks, along with pink cassias, golden acacias, and jacarandas which bloom throughout the city.
Many international visitors come to Bangalore for its excellent schools and universities, such as the Indian Institute of Science. While enjoying the warm weather year-around, tourists can also use the city as a central base for day trips to other Karnataka attractions. And Bangalore doesn't only produce fine silk and software. "The Fruit Market of the South" is great for grapes, mangoes and guavas.
Last but not the least, Bangalore is even gaining the status of the "Floriculture Capital" due to the present boost of the flower export from the city. Due to the rich stone resources Bangalore is also known the "Stone City", especially for its granite deposits.