Mangaluru, 26 Oct

The Mangaluru Chapter of the Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH), in association with Art Kanara Trust, hosted the launch of the book “Red Cherries on the Canara Coast: The Story of Cricket in Mangaluru and Udupi” on Saturday at the Kodialguthu Centre for Art and Culture, Ballalbagh.

Speaking at the launch, former minister J Krishna Palemar reminisced about Mangaluru’s cricketing legacy, saying the book “revives a forgotten heritage that deserves a place in every home.”

Veteran umpire Kasturi Balakrishna Pai, felicitated at the event, recalled decades of preserving scorecards and documents, vowing to continue his efforts to protect Nehru Maidan as a cricket ground.

Author and Times of India’s former associate editor Jayanth Kodkani traced the region’s cricketing journey from the colonial era to the present, noting that the Mangaluru-Udupi region has produced stalwarts.

The event also opened a week-long exhibition of rare archival photographs chronicling a century of cricket heritage along the Canara Coast, open to the public till 1 November, from 11am to 7pm. Copies of the book are available at a special price of Rs 700.