First day on the job becomes the last day of his life

It was the first day at work for Mahesh (35) at the Kailash Bar and Restaurant.

However, even before he could cherish the first-day experience, billowing smoke that broke out at the bar snuffed out his life along with his four other colleagues.

Earlier, Mahesh used to work at the Hamsa bar close to the Kailash bar.

He had taken leave at the year-end to visit his native Mukikere in Channarayapatna, Hassan. He returned only to find that he had lost his job. With his friends' help, he joined the Kailash bar on Sunday.

"Mahesh went to native to invite his relatives for his one-year-old niece's naming ceremony," said Boregowda, his uncle.

It was the first month for Keerthi (24) at the Kailash bar - another victim, who hailed from Mandya.

He was about to collect his first salary and celebrate his birthday on January 10 (Wednesday), his friend Narasimhamurthy told DH.

Earlier, Keerthi was working at the Udupi Hotel in Balepete area along with his brother Kiran. But Keerthi opted to work at the bar as he did not like the job at the hotel.

His brother brought him to Bengaluru from Jaipura village in Ullenahalli in Mandya.

Rangaswamy worked at the bar for over five years while Prasad was working there for three years. Both were related to bar cashier Ramachandra.

Manjunath (45) was a farmer and a native of Honnashettyhalli in Channarayapatna.

"My brother owns an acre of farmland in our native, but he abandoned his fields and came to Bengaluru as it was drought there," his brother Devaraj told DH.

Manjunath's daughter Vidhya is a second PU student and son Dhanush is studying in eight standard, he added. He had come to Bengaluru around 10 years ago and did odd jobs around the city market area. He had joined Kailash bar two months ago, Devaraj added.