Why Chennai Must Be On Everyone's Bucket List

They say that a place attains true sanctity when there is a beautiful blend of its proud history and its rich culture with its diversified environment. With an ever rising rate of urban and modern settlements, we can surely agree that there are not many cities that truly hold on to their roots. Sure change is important, but each place has its own vast history of traditions. To be able to preserve that requires the understanding that we must uphold our age-old practices and values as a strong base and then accommodate the modern setting along with it, not the other way around. What better city than Chennai to pose as an example for this traditional-modern setup.

Being born and brought up in this beautiful city, most of how I am going to paint Chennai ‘s picture to you may come off as slightly biased (typical Madrasi ego, can’t help it!) yet all that I am going to be telling about why everyone must visit Chennai, will surely have you add this wonderful city to your bucket list. Through the course of convincing you to come and fall in love with my city, I shall also mention the places you need to visit to get the true feel of Madras.

Everyday Life:
Days in Chennai start earlier than you can imagine. You can literally step out into the streets at 4:00 am and you will find riksha-wallas up and ready to have you dropped to your destination.

Around 5:00-5:30am do take a rick till the Marina beach to catch the morning vibe of the city. You will find groups of young and old people gathered for yoga, laughing-therapy and what not. The sunrise by the shore of Marina is a sight so surreal that it is best experienced than explained.

As you walk past in silence through the streets, with the morning breeze tickling your ears, you will find street vendors who sell flowers making garlands, chit-chatting about their day-to-day lives. Walk further down and you will find a road-side tea shop’s owner making bajjis for the day’s lot with the radio by the table playing old MGR and Sivaji Ganesan’s songs (both veteran Tamizh actors). This sight is best seen during the Margazhi season, around December, when your early morning walk will be even better with your ears resonating from the middle-aged and old women down the road singing karnatic songs and hymns to Goddess Andal, as they decorate their doorsteps with kolam (rangoli). By now, the temples would have started with their daily routine. You can walk back home hearing the sound of everyday prayers, fading with the busy buzz of the market-place.Although most of what I described may seem more specific to Mylapore (considered the city’s oldest and the most traditionally-rich area), trails of this vibe can be felt all around the city.

Working men and women usually get back home by 7 in the evening, the city can be seen busted with life mostly till around 9 to 10 pm, you can say that Chennai sleeps and wakes up early! (That doesn’t mean we have no nightlife, as I said Chennai is a blend of the old and the new, there are various pubs and bars that open their doors late night in case you crave for some hard-core partying!)

Food

Need I give you another reason to visit Madras after food? From luxurious cuisines to street food, the city has it all. I personally feel that the real taste of its cooking lies in the road-side shops and in its street-food culture, at reasonable rates even. The typical dishes from ‘idli vada sambar’ to the sentimental filter kaapi (yep, don’t argue it is filter ‘kaapi’ not ‘coffee’) will have you drooling over its special dishes. Here are the places you must visit in Chennai for the best food experience:

1.)Ratna Café (Best breakfast in the world): How to include Ratna café in your itinerary? Wake up in the morning, catch sunrise by the Marina beach, take an auto, drop by Ratna café and order a plate of idli vada sambar, pongal and a cup of filter kaapi. There lies the true feel of experiencing Madras. Best morning, I promise.

2.)Chamiers Café:For those who crave for a rather lavish breakfast, Chamiers serves you among the best continental breakfast to start your day the English way, with the classiest and coziest ambience possible.

3.)Karpagambal Mess and Rayar's Cafe: Both located in the heart of the city, Mylapore, these small hotels are considered among the oldest and are of great sentimental value for the die-hard Madrasis (Hint:Me!)

4.)ITC- Grand Chola: Moving towards the more luxurious side of the food experience, this well known star hotel attracts many for its first-class service and amazing cuisines. ‘Avarthana’ is a south-Indian cuisine restaurant in Grand Chola and is said to provide finger-licking dishes in their menu. So you could probably eat from the old hotels for breakfast and lunch, snack on the road-side chaat and various other dishes in the evening, and hit Grand Chola for a classy dinner by night!

5.)Burma Bazaar: Getting its name from its majority of Burmese immigrants, the ‘Aatho’ in Burma Bazaar is said to be among the best street-food dishes served in the city.

6.) Sowcarpet: This area near The Chennai Central railway station is a famous one for sweet-sellers providing you with the best of freshly prepared sweets whose taste you will never forget!

This is out of the heart of a typical TamBrahm girl (Tamizh Brahmin), hence all the vegetarian options. It is known that Chennai is home to an amazing variety of non-vegetarian platter, being a coastal city the sea-food here is loved by all! Dindigul Thalapakatti is a very famous non vegetarian family restaurant having branches all over the city, it is pretty famous, check that out as well!

Extra tip: When you go to the beach, you will find several local stalls selling bajjis and roasted corn (MUST TRIES!) One must not come out of the beach without a plate of Molaga (chilli) and Capsicum bajjis and ofcourse, freshly prepared ice cola!

The Arts:
I could go on and on about the little things that add life to Chennai, but by far the largest perk of coming to this place is that you will be able to experience every other art form flourishing:

Music:
Chennai is known as the capital for Carnatic music. Having been the land where musical legends have performed and left a mark, there are people who shift to Chennai solely to pursue their passion for this age-old art. There are umpteen number of Sabhas and concert halls that can proudly proclaim a very busy schedule of kutcheris (Carnatic musical concerts) every other day through the year. The musical scene is richer in Mylapore where you can walk into any concert hall at any day and you will always find some kutcheri or the other, being enjoyed by a very passionate and a receiving audience. Although I have never really been able to understand the true essence and experience of the Karnatic music and kutcheris, I can assure you that a visit to Chennai devoid of a concert is a visit to Chennai incomplete.

Dance & Theatre:
It is no secret that the artistic environment of Chennai is dominated by the Carnatic Music culture, yet you cannot deny the fact that the other art forms bud in Chennai in their own special way. Being home to Kalakshetra one of the most famous dance and craft training schools in the country, Chennai has it all. It is so with theatre as well.

Last but not the least; I cannot talk about Chennai without talking about cinema. Not only for wider opportunities, but it also homes a large appreciative and passionate audience. One Rajinikanth movie is all you need to get high on the Tamizh industry and feel the real vibe of the fan-group in here. (Although this movie culture is not unique to Chennai but to all of Tamizh Nadu, it doesn’t hurt to boast about the craze for films we have here!)

I could go on and on talking about this wonderful city. From Kapaleeshwarar Kovil (Temple) to Santhome Church and from Paarthasaarathy Kovil to 1000 Lights Mosque; from the kutcheris to the rock-concerts; from the traffic in the Mount Road to the never ending road of ECR with sightings of resorts and get-aways, from shopping in the local shops of T-Nagar’s Pondy Bazaar (which by the way, another must-visit place) to the lavish designer shops in Nungambakkam, from the short, crowded and busy streets with the small and old houses of Mylapore to the quiet and luxurious lanes with bungalows in the Boat Club Road. One week in this city, and you will realize that Chennai is not just a city, it is an emotion.