We may not – indeed, we cannot – like its looks, its smells, its noise. The city ranks staggeringly high among those with a disagreeable climate, a formidable mosquito-to-man ratio, an indestructible population of the most audacious flies.
Its roads routinely get logged at the first and smallest semblance of rain. The rubbish that we throw directly onto their sides – thermocol packing from TV sets , plastic carry bags containing kitchen refuse, food leftovers, medical waste, sanitary pads, used condoms, are our creation, our contribution. It is we who create the huge ankle-length and sometimes knee-length puddles of water on the roads.
And, like in most Indian cities, drinking and washing water in Chennai is short, electricity erratic and traffic a veritable Godavari in spate.
Yet, we still want to live here. Why?
As I felt when reading T.S. Tirumurti’s new novel ‘Chennaivaasi’, this is because life is not objective.
It is about what we receive here, what we are given.
In Thiruvanmiyur, the suburb of Chennai where I live, street-calls virtually set the day. Next to my copy of The Hindu, they are the core of my start-of-day.
Keerai-k-keerai ! Ara-k-keerai,mola-k-keerai,paala-k-keerai,mana-k-keerai,vaazhakkaa,vaazha-p-poo,vaazha-ththandoy Keerai-keeroy!
Very different is a slightly built man, who comes not on but with a bicycle, peddling a single stock-in-trade intoning its name softly – Kolam! Kolam!
Whenever I see a woman washing her tiny vaasal-padi and then on that small surface, despite cares and anxieties, ill-health and a demanding day ahead of her, draw an amazing kolam, I offer her an invisible namaskaram. Perhaps the Euclidean balance of dots and loops, lines and curves on that little drawing give her the inner balance life denies her.
I do that too when crossing a modestly paid woman raking the garbage – created by you and me – into bins and from bins onto trucks.
Where in the world can one have the chance to hear , not just in the great halls of music but at street-temples, Vidwan T.M. Krishna offer the emotionally wrenching Brindavana Saranga with the tremulous passion of a divine supplication, Vijay Siva render an Ahiri with the delicacy of a twilight before moonrise, a 'tanam' delivered masterfully by Sanjay Subramaniam with aortic pulsation and Aruna Sairam, Bombay Jayshree, Sudha Raghunathan, Souwmya, Sangeetha Sivakumar and Nityashree invest in their singing the gold of their great gift ?
And where other than in Chennai can we hear the listeners melt away discussing the recitals' finer points, their 'hits' and 'near-misses'? The dissection is surgical. After all, we are the nation’s musical and medical capital.
If there is one reason above all why I feel what I do about Chennai is that despite irritating exceptions, Chennai has in abundance the one thing that is priceless, nambikkai. And nambikkai is at the core of one person’s respect for another. It is either there, or not there. It has, simply, to be.
Chennai personifies nambikkai.
(Gopalkrishna Gandhi is the former the Governor of West Bengal. He is the grandson of Mahatma Gandhi and C. Rajagopalachari)
Keywords: Madras City, GopalKrishna Gandhi, Chennai culture
I am from chennai working abroad last 9 years,from a middle class family,miss the train journet from nungambakkam to tambaram,miss the thatukadai near brilliant tutorial,mambalam,miss the borrowing of latest books from british council library,miss many more events which all happen only at chennai
The City always had its foul smells. (I used to shiver as a child when the train used to pull in to Basin Bridge), I used to dread the foul smelling and tasting drinking water on visits to Madras. But the worst thing that happened was the gerrymandering. When slums were systematically created all over Madras as vote Banks to change the dispensation. That turned the whole of Madras into a slum. Not all the cosmetic use of concrete and touches of glass can change this fundamental character of this agglomeration of slums and villages.
namma chennai!!!!
Chennai is dubbed by many NRIs(born and brought up in chennai) for
heat,sweating,contaminated air and water and pollution.We do not dispute
because they compare with the countries they work and earn.But
I would like to share my experiences with people in chennai as well as
those NRIs.We spent few months in Dubai and newjersy with our grand children.During the stay we could note that those children had cold and
cough almost all the days,we stayed there.Of course they were active and
cheerful eating and enjoying all the fun there.But when they came to chennai and stayed with us for more than three weeks,they not only did not
have cold or cough but maintained perfect health eating chennai foods and playing inside the house sweating most of the time.
May be this would be the experience many grand parents in chennai.
doodu
chennai
19 th aug
This reminds me of the fanatic "Namma chennai singara chennai" mindset of one of my classmates. As Rohit above mentioned. What is the big deal about it. The auto-walas fleece you. It is hard to find people who talk with respect. The conductor spoke some arrogant word when I asked if there is vacancy in the middle seat. Oh! and talk about taking change in the bus. Everyone knows that in Chennai, as long as you just mind your work, no one will mind you. But there is another another angle to that. To put it the other way, you can also say you should keep shut in chennai when outside and I know chennai-ites understand what I just said. You have to manage all that while bearing sultry hot weather (I really mean it, but I agree they can't do anything about it). And talking about nambikkai.. well, sounds like a movie dialogue! Trying the feel good factor on yourself?
Everybody has a romantic attachment to the small things in one's
surroundings in his/her city. Everybody loves their city in their own
way. What's the big deal?
Despite the hustle and bustle of a modern city,there is still space for a morning walk, affordable housing,rows and rows of eateries and restaurants, to fill your palate, 24/7.This is not the case in other metros in our country.Having had the experience of touring most of India and some foreign jaunts , I can say with certainty that there is no other place on earth to fill the taste buds and expectations of visitors/tourists.In the so called western countries, you have to die with bland food,you cannot stand the food habits of South asian countries.
I may sound a bit hard in talking about food than other issues. but that is the truth. It is no wonder Saravana bhavan is making waves in dubai, London and singapore.
We moved to besant nagar 8 months back and a walk at the Elliot's beach every morning
has become an integral part of my life now.
The plight of the beach is appalling. The general public, think it is the duty of the government
only to keep any place clean. People during their evening time there drop everything on the
beach and walk home. The stalls that are there don't ever think that they have to do their
might to keep the beach clean.
The shooting stall has all the blown up balloon pieces strewn all around. He can't spend 10
minutes to clean it up when he leaves. Same with the bajji shops or fish shops. They don't
see it deem fit to have a waste basket and ask their customers to drop the plates into it and
later remove them.
The public leave the used water bottles, paper cups and what not, wherever they have been
sitting.
Some application of mind from our end can keep the beach and the surroundings spic and
span. We shod take an initiative to keep Elliots beach clean. Am in.
Like GKG let us also give invisible namaskaram to people who care to keep their surroundings clean to the extent they can.Kolams in all splendour as one walk across streets early in the morning thrills our spirit as active members seem to be women outnumbering men.The glance here and there and a smile to fellow-women in a similar predicament,women get all information of their neighbourhood and national/international news before newspapers arrive.Menfolk probably sink into chairs or sofa to sip hot coffee to read the day's Hindu and never lift their head till they get warned about approaching rush hour.Incidentally this is the hour collection agents of credit cards,chits,finance companies and banks choose to put head of the family under pressure to cough.Madrasis are neighbourhood conscious.If we don't have electricity or water and it is the same with neighbourhood 'appaada' is pronounced before and after services are restored. What mr.Siva Kumar refers is probably 'thoor varayalaiyo'
I entered into Chennai in 1959. After education and some years of work
lived in Bengaluru for some years. But where ever i lived my mind was
fixed in Nanganallur, Chennai. Then i had to move to Delhi and hoped
every year (have been living for 25 years)to return to Chennai. When I
realized God has other plans, i have got fixed with Lord Krishna. Now i
have no fixation for people, place, things etc. I can live any where
now.
"Musical and medical capital!" Delightful description of Chennai. Pleasanty surprised to know this Gandhi-Rajaji grandson is at home with Thamizh. As a journalist I have interacted with Rajmohan, the writer's elder brother, when he was a Rajya Sabha member. His Tamil is minimal. Though I have seen this writer at some Rashtrapati Bhavan functions, I have not interacted with him.If only Chennai were mosquito-free and fly-free and a little more agreeable weather wise! One cant have everything in life. which city is free from weather blues? Imagine Delhi from May to September and December-January! We hardly have three months of comfortable weather in the national capital. Yet many love the city. As they say, the place grows on you. May we expect more such pieces from Gopal Gandh?
Beautiful and enjoyable narration of the Madras city and its life, by Shri Gandhi. Though I could get an overall sense of the word "nambikkai" appearing at the concluding of the article, I am eager to know the exact meaning of the word. Will anybody please help me out with this? Originally belonging to AP, I too had had few years of my life associated with, mainly with the city Trichy, and Madras, while studying at REC-Trichy, wayback during 1978-80. The sense of belongingness experienced, due to the hospitality extended by the native people during those years, I still remember and narrate with delight whenever I get an opportunity. How strongly I wish those values to revisit the society today?
A sentimental articel! ... I was expecting something unique to Chennai. You can find all this in Bangalore too and many other Indian cities. Only a small percentage of people are actually literate in the music you talk about. We keep praising our cities and the country inspite of all the deficiencies we have. This is not nationalism or pride; this is forced ignorance. Celebrating squalor and poverty?
Mr.Gopal Krishna Gandhi's article on Madras (now Chennai but still many refer to the city fondly by its age-old name only ) made me recollect the years i spent there.the heat is torrid the rains when it comes brings water-logging and putrid smells with it, but yet it was a lovable experience to be there.I do try and squeeze in a few days of trip to the place though my children or even my wife ( God bless her ) just dont like it.
for Mr. Gandhi the city means Nambikkai but for me it is an ANUBHAVANAM- an experience par excellance. My only fervent hope and prayer to Lord Kapaleeswara is that the crop of political creatures who rule in turn there do not make a "bloody " mess of the place!!
I entirely agree with Mr.Gopalakrishna Gandhi's observations on
Chennai. As a visitor from Mumbai I have only one problem. As soon as
I arrive in the city from Mumbai my encounters with auto drivers are
often unpleasant. After much cajoling, haggling and receiving public
swear words the auto drivers take me to my destination as if they are
doing me a great favour. I wish the government comes down on these
auto drivers with a heavy hand and crack the whip. If they can be made
to accept fares according to meter which is fair to both the public
and the auto drivers, it will be a win win situation. Will the
authorities act?
The city creates space for all. The pub crawlers at the Park and those who hang out at
Tasmac outlets, the kutchery addicts to the movie fans, to retailers at Ranganathan street
and the IT crowd. Every upscale neighbourhood still has space for a tea stall that serves
the common man. And the city has spread, to the IT corridor on OMR,a huge auto cluster
from maraimalai nagar to oragadam to sriperumbudur, an electronics industry cluster,a
petrochemical industry cluster. The city is nearly 100 km north to south and 50 km east to
west. I would probavbly say the city is socio-economically more inclusive,and let's everyone
feel comfortable in their skin.
Talking of Madras of the years gone by brings back in my memory something interesting which even today I have a good chat with my father who has a fine sense of humour. We were living those days in mylapore and some days we used to see a man in the hot afternoon sun shouting something. But it was always very intriguing what he was saying - he could not possibly be selling anything as he is not even carrying anything except a very small packet, God knew what it contained. But as curiosity got the better of us after enquiring the man explained he would be able to retrieve any thing which had fallen in to the well. What exactly he was saying alas i do not remember! Incidentally we did make use of his services. Those were interesting days!
Sivakumar
iam happy to see such a simple person like Gopalakrishna Gandhi, taking his stroling in t he beach ,which shows the peace and transquility of chennai and its suburbs for its people of Tamiland.and thanks Ms Jayalalitha, for her good adminisration too,inspite of various political parties remainig in the state.
and it is a surprise to hear and see, that regualr life goes amongst poor and poorest making their livelihood,without minding what is goiine on elsewhere.it is good.
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