Chennai
With its wide green avenues, sandy beaches, friendly people and laid-back atmosphere, Chennai (formerly 'Madras') is one of India’s most pleasant cities.
Like all Indian urban centres, it has its share of traffic, crowds, poverty, noise and pollution, but in much smaller bite-sized doses!
The city’s ancient temples co-exist with spanking new technology parks in a sprawling metropolis which is rapidly growing and changing, but is still considered to be the most traditional and least westernised of the big Indian cities (for now anyway!).
From a collection of small coastal villages, in its 350 years Chennai has grown to be the fourth largest city in India. The city’s vibrant economy is fuelled by its automobile and film industries as well as its role as a centre for manufacturing, banking and finance. It is also India’s second IT centre after Bangalore.
Location and how to get there
Located in South India on the south-east coast of the Bay of Bengal, Chennai is the capital of the state Tamil Nadu. Although many still call it 'Madras', the city
was officially renamed 'Chennai' in 1997 as a symbol of the city's identification with its Tamil rather than its British and Portuguese colonial past.
The Chennai International Airport is located 7 kilometres away in the south of the city and has direct international flight connections to all the major airports in Europe and Asia.
Chennai is the gateway to South India with excellent transportation links to the temple towns and historical cities of Tamil Nadu and other South Indian states. Long-distance trains run out of Egmore and Central stations, connecting the city to all major urban centres in India. The suburban railway system links the north to the south of the city and the east to the west.
Language(s)
Tamil is the language spoken by the majority of Chennai’s residents. English is also largely spoken and is the language of business and education.
The People
Chennaiites are friendly and helpful. They will spend hours explaining how to make that perfect cup of South Indian filter coffee and don’t be surprised if they invite you to their home or their cousin’s wedding!
Most of Chennai’s residents are Tamil and over 80% are Hindu. There are also sizeable Muslim and Christian communities, as well as a small Jain population living in the city.
Migrants from other parts of Tamil Nadu as well as other South Indian states have also made this city their home.
Chennai, where film and music reign supreme
Everyone’s heard of Bollywood, Bombay’s film industry, but few know that the Tamil film industry (known as ‘Kollywood’) based in Chennai is much bigger in terms of the number of films produced.
The popularity of the film industry is evident in this city where film stars are akin to gods. Huge film billboards line its avenues, and three of Tamil Nadu’s chief ministers were former film stars! Film lovers can take a tour of one of the largest film studios in Southeast Asia and watch a film shoot in action at AVM studios.
Music and dance aficionados must not miss a visit to Kalakshetra, the famous dance and music school located on a leafy campus in the south of the city. Founded in 1936, this ‘temple of the arts’ has become a renowned school for Carnatic music and Bharata Natyam, the lassical Indian dance from Tamil Nadu. Be sure to visit in the morning when classes are in full swing. (www.kalakshetra.net )
Famous Old Buildings and Museums
Take a walk in the Chennai’s historic centre and you will notice that 19th and 20th century colonial-style buildings co-exist with more recent but somewhat less-elegant modern structures.
Many of Chennai’s great buildings have been built to commemorate important events in the city’s history. Fort St. George was the centre of British power and today houses the Legislative Assembly, State Secretariat and the Fort Museum.
Many important buildings line the city’s shoreline like the lighthouse, the Director General of Police, Presidency College and the University of Madras built in 1857.
Like most Indian cities, Chennai has a myriad of temples and other places of worship which reflect the religious diversity of the city. The 8th century Kapaleeshwarer Temple in Mylapore was built on the site of an ancient shrine dedicated to Lord Shiva.
Parthasarathy Temple in Triplicane is dedicated to Lord Vishnu and is also one of the city’s oldest temples.
Santhome Cathedral, near the seafront, was built by the Portuguese in 1504 on the burial site of St. Thomas.
Wallajah Mosque in Triplicane is one of the biggest in India.
If you would like to catch some of the monuments and touristic sights of Chennai, the Tamil Nadu State Tourism Office organises half-day tours of the city which are somewhat rushed but good value.
Tamil Nadu State Tourism Office
154 Anna Salai
Phone: 2826 9685
Places to Visit
At nightfall the whole city (you would think so, judging by the crowds!) descends on Marina Beach, the second longest beach in the world, to escape the biting heat and enjoy the crisp sea breeze. Watch the fishing boats going out to sea, families dipping their feet in the waves, and children playing on the carousels. Vendours selling everything from tea to toy trinkets and fast food make a brisk business. Arrive just before the break of dawn and watch the breathtaking sunrise. Elliot Beach in the south of the city is another pleasant evening get-away.
The beautiful and vast gardens of the Theosophical Society in Adyar (a neighbourhood in the south of the city), which house the headquarters of the Theosophical Society offer a welcome respite from the noise and chaos of the city. Look out for the famous ‘big banyan tree’ which is hundreds of years old.
Located 21 kilometres south of Chennai on the coastal road, at Dakshinachitra Arts Village, you can see reconstructed 19th century traditional houses from the south Indian states of Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka. Watch artisans at work in traditional arts such as ceramics, sculpture, pottery, glass and weaving. (www.dakshinachitra.org )
In 1965 a community of 30 artists founded Cholamandel Artists’ Village as an artist’s colony dedicated to contemporary art. You can have a wander through the art gallery and sculpture garden and visit the artists at work in their studios. Cholamandel is located 18 kilometres south of Chennai on the coastal road. (www.cholamandalartvillage.com )
Motorbike fans will not want to miss a tour of the Royal Enfield Motors factory in Tiruvottiyur where their legendary and über-cool motorbikes are manufactured.
Food and Restaurants
Chennai is the centre for South Indian cuisine, where traditional vegetarian food dominates the menu. If you think vegetarian means boring, you’re in for a culinary awakening!
Sample some delicious South Indian specialities like dosa, idli, and uttappam, made with a mixture of ground rice and lentils which is prepared into a batter and then fermented. These dishes are typically eaten at breakfast or as a light evening snack (affectionately dubbed tiffin) accompanied by sambar (a soup-like sauce made of lentils, vegetables and spices), and mouth-watering chutneys made of coconut, coriander, mint or tomato.
Breakfast or tiffin is not complete without a hot cup of famous South Indian filter coffee with lots of sugar and milk!
Lunch is the most important meal and not surprisingly most of it consists of a lot of rice, the staple food of South India. This is eaten with a variety of lentil and vegetable dishes and condiments served in little bowls placed on a banana leaf or in a large tray-like dish or thali. A generous dollop of hot spicy pickle is a must. Desserts like jalebi, laddoo or halwa are eaten not at the end, but at the beginning of a meal!
Popular chains like Saravana Bhavan, Sangeetha and Vasantha Bhavan offer excellent South Indian-style food at friendly prices. Vrinidavan at New Woodland’s Hotel is another excellent vegetarian restaurant. Rathna Café (126/2, Triplicane High Road, Phone : 2848 0385) has been serving its delicious idlis and vadai for more than 100 years! Annalakshmi (on Anna Salai), with its delicious food and intimate ambience is great for a splurge. To satisfy your sweet tooth, try Grand Sweets in Adyar – the most famous sweet shop in town!
Shopping
For a shopping fix in air-conditioned luxury, visit one of Chennai’s many shopping centres. Citi Centre on Dr. Radhakrishnan Salai near the beach is one of the city’s newest shopping malls where you can find all of the best-known brands.
With over 400 shops on 3 floors, Spencer’s Plaza on Anna Salai is the laargest shopping complex in South India nd one of the city’s landmarks.
To beat the weekend crowds try Ispahani Center on Nungambakkam High Road or Alsa Mall on Montieth Road in Egmore which are smaller but offer a less frenzied shopping experience.
Always crowded, the shopping neighbourhood of T Nagar is the ultimate shoppers’ mecca if you are looking for saris or jewellery. Admire the coveted Kanchipuram silk saris at Nalli’s or Pothy’s. Or join the throng of shoppers in nearby Pondy Bazaar where you can find just about everything you are looking for.
The government emporiums on Anna Salai are good places to shop for gifts to take home, but avoid the private emporiums and their inflated prices. At Victoria Technical Institute you can find exquisite Indian handicrafts at very reasonable prices.
Most shops are open from 10am to 9pm or 10pm. Many stay open on Sundays.
The Chennai December Season
The best time to visit Chennai is in December and January. Not only is this the time of year when the weather is at its mildest, driest, and most pleasant, but it is also when the city is filled with the sounds and rhythms of the December Season of classical music and dance.
To perform during the Chennai music season is considered to be a great privilege for artists as it has become the biggest and most important festival of South Indian music and dance in India and the world, featuring over 2000 performances by hundreds of artists at over 60 venues, with performances running from morning to evening!
Most concerts and performances take place during the second half of December, but many are already held starting around mid-November, and running up to the end of January. The vast majority of concerts are by Carnatic vocalists, accompanied by South Indian instruments such as the violin, mridangam (a double-sided drum), ghatam (an earthenware pot used as a percussion instrument), flute, and veena (a stringed instrument).
But there are also many concerts featuring musicians of other ‘non-traditional’ instruments such as the saxophone, mandolin, guitar and keyboard.
Most of the dance performances feature Bharata Natyam, the classical dance of Tamil Nadu, but other classical South Indian dance forms, such as Mohiniattam, Kuchipudi and Odissi are also showcased.
Compiled and written by Isabel Putinja
Photos by Isabel Putinja
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