What Chennai Means To Me

Thanks Vj Eshwar who gave us another wonderful writeup on "What Chennai means to him". You can read more of his works on http://destination-nil.blogspot.in/2013/01/what-chennai-means-to-me.html

"Change is the only constant thing" and Chennai lives up to these wise words.

I hated Chennai when I first landed here from Kumbakonam. Coming from a quaint little town one can understand my inhibitions with the city and it's culture. But after living here 
for close to 2 decades am in absolute love with the city, with all it's flaws. Can never understand when people crib saying this city is harsh, hot,humid,dirty and corrupt - my counter question has always been " is your city not the same?"..And ofcourse like I always say - one can get down late in the night at Koyambedu or Central, can take a public transport and still reach home safely.

From Madraspatinam to Madras to Chennai - the journey so far has by and large been great and we Chennaites have adapted to some of the changes. Yes something is amiss when 
I pass through where Saffire theatre & Woodlands drive in used to be.. Chennai to me means - the city that has made me what am today. I don't know if i can cover everything that's possible but to some extent I think these are the standouts for me definitely

1. Kollywood aka Kodambakkam,  - How can one forget that this is the land that brought out a huge difference in the world of cinema -Sivaji, MGR, Kamalhaasan, thalaivar, A.R Rahman, Maniratnam & Isai Gnani,Aachi, nagesh & MKB to name a few. Our movies speak for itself - diwali, pongal pudhu pada release iladha celebration ila :) From black & white to colour to the latest era in film industry we have seen it all.. thara ticket vaangi whistle adicha paartha padangal evlovo :D. We surely can boast about AVM Studio & Gemini film circuit that still stands tall and proud in Vadapalani. Am sure 90% of us would have started watching in local theatres, slowly moved to devi, Mayajaal sathyam complex and now completely moved on to IMax and PVR. 

2. Kalakshetra & other Sabhas - I have never in my life seen anything as inspiring like Kalakshetra - always in awe with the place on how they balance different cultures &traditions with evolving ones. As for sabhas like Narada Gana Sabha, Music Academy and the likes - mid dec to pongal is the best time for one to catch their favourite carnatic artist croon or see their favourite classical dancers perform across the city. Marghazi 
masam kalai kattum engoorla :)

3. Marina, Presidency College & the neighbourhood  - Well being a chennaite one can never be without mentioning Marina - world's second longest beach with it's new beautified look. Anyday anytime you can find people and am always surprised by the fact that there are people who still visit just the MGR & Anna Samadhi :) Presidency with it's famous gaanas (oru pakkam vanga kadal indha pakkam gaana kadal) and kadalai in marina..ahaa adha madhri oru sugam edhuvum kedayadhu..

4. Mylapore to Triplicane - Triplicane Ratna Cafe has been my usual haunt after cricket matches that used to be played in Marina or after a visit to Kapaleeshwar / Parthasarathy temple or after a tired shopping at Rasi Silks. Love their sambhar idli and vada, to this date I pay a visit to their velachery branch whenever am in Chennai. Mylai Karpagambal mess is another fav place we used to drop by and Eashwari lending library ki jai ho, have read tons and tons of thrillers to that point I exhausted their list and after a while actually moved to their Adyar branch.

5. Shopping area - It's a shoppers' paradise and we mean it literally.. Ranganathan Street, Pondy Bazaar, Purasaiwalkam,Sowcarpet,Spencer Plaza, Prince Plaza and Pantheon road to name a few places that will suit anybody's budget and pockets. Right from my college days pondy bazar has been a favourite place to shop and I still follow the tradition. Ofcourse on the flip side we have City Centre in Mylapore, Khader Nawaz Khan Road, NH Road with it's Shilpi, Cathedral Road with Kalpasree & the new found love EA to name a few for the high-end shoppers

6. All the pettais - From Chrompet - Saidapet to teynampet to sowcarpet to kannamapet it's always been "pettai rap" :)

Ripon Building, Spencer Plaza, Central Station, Burma Bazaar, Jam Bazaar, Anna arch,Saffire theatre & Woodlands Drive ( that are no longer there),MCC, Loyola, Ethiraj, Stella, IIT M, IT Corridor, ECR, OMR, local EMU, MTC and ofcourse the upcoming Chennai Metro Rail Project are a few things that the city is proud of. From tea stall to qwiky's to cafe ashvita - the city has moved on slowly at it's own pace and has caught up with latest trends. Having said this I also would like to mention that like every developing city we face issues like irregular electricity, water supply, from potholes to no roads, flooding, autowallahs who rip you, corrupt politicians and ofcourse the main deterrent for many - our weather.. but these are minor irritants and a small price to pay. I would any day prefer the hot hotter hottest weather of Chennai to cold, colder coldest of Bangalore or Delhi. This city like many have mentioned has a tendency to accept anyone who come here to make a living or to settle down. No wonder I love these lines from the song in Marina "Vanakkam Vazha vaikum Chennai pidikudhunnai unakku eedu iliye" which roughly translates to there's no match to Chennai. Which is the same sentiment I'll always share no matter where I live. Home is where heart is and for me it is in SINGARA CHENNAI :) 

I know this is yet another lengthy blogpost when compared to some crisp ones here but I just can't stop talking about Chennai :)

Over to Melani Rayen who loves music, books, clothes, shoes and who has just entered marital bliss. Melani writes at http://thechickenpuff.wordpress.com/