Black and white images of Valluvar Kottam, Mount Road, Madras High Court, Royapuram Railway Station, Egmore Railway Station and Chepauk Palace flashed on the wall screen of the Taj Coromandel building on Friday from 7 to 10 p.m.
The passers-by also got a bird’s eye view of old Madras. It was a different Chennai filled with empty roads.
The Madras Flashback Event, organised by The Hindu in association with Taj Coromandel, celebrated World Heritage Week by displaying some of the vintage pictures of Chennai.
The Central station surrounded by a sea of autos made everyone nostalgic. “It was so empty at that time! Now with the Metro Rail work, it is a horror to travel by that area,” says Darshini Sundar, a young textile designer. The event also showcased pictures of The Secretariat, The Reserve Bank, Senate House, Victoria Public Hall and PWD Building. The screening was accompanied by music that created a mood of nostalgia.
“Pictures included those clicked in both the pre- and post-colonial eras. These images are rare to find,” says Narayanan, an artist. He has come to show Nirtin, his ten-year-old son, the pictures of the city he grew up in.
“I know every nook and cranny of Chennai. My favourite part is George Town. That’s where Chennai, the city, starts. Our pin code is 600001.” But the old picture of George Town displayed here is so much more spacious, he said. “It was a relief to know that a few buildings like the Madras University have still retained their charm. It’s good to know that some things never change,” said Darshini.
“These buildings are a part of our history and we cannot walk away from them.”
