I was sifting through I love Chennai's page and
that is when it struck me how much I miss Chennai. Having been there all my
life, I can surely say I'm a true Chennai'ite at heart. Even when I was a 6 hour drive from home, in Bangalore, I would always wait for the long weekend when I can come
home to my Chennai. We do have a reputation for being noisy, dirty, our
"fleece even the locals" auto-anna, the heat, the humidity etc., but
you have heard that innumerable times haven't you? Let me talk about the
Chennai I miss.
The people themselves:
You know of corrupt cops and honest cops, in Chennai you
will meet a new kind of cop. The friendly "Mama", the name which
refers to Uncle in English but doesn't justify the sarcasm and colloquial twang
in it. He is the guy who books you for no apparent offence saying "If you
go to court it is 1000 rupees, but we can settle it here", its always
Rs.1000, I don't know why. But he is also the guy who doesn't stop women or a
family of 5 on a two wheeler. We Chennaites are approachable, friendly people,
just talk to us with a smile. And we wear our hearts on our sleeves. We can
rant to complete strangers about "The Man" and quote off "The
Hindu", we have grandpas who look down upon our westernization but won't hesitate
to help us out if we are in trouble. We have our slum kids who will try to
steal from you but would gladly give his "karavadu varuval" for free if you
take a picture of him. The "couples" who make out on the beach and
the people sitting at a distance and making fun of them.
Scene podum figures:
I have to dedicate a whole topic to girls. I have travelled
a fair bit in India and now being in Europe, I realised the hardest woman to
please is the Chennai girl. They are analytical to a fault, the best bargainers
who can put wall street traders to shame, have pani puris from the roadside and
can handle a Sheraton spread with equal élan, are "obedient" while
having fun, modern yet traditional and the worst part is, they somehow know it.
And hence the term "scene podum figures" I'm sure you Chennai boys
will understand. I'm still to come across a girl in Europe who is as feisty as
a regular Chennai girl. And I miss having conversations with girls who can have
more grey matter than just, well matter.
Night outs that don't work out:
The best places in Chennai were discovered when we were not
allowed into parties in plush hotel pubs because we were "stags". Here in
Europe you do just one of two things : You either go eat or you go drink. And
the drinking holes are open all the time. There is something exhilarating about
the time limit in Chennai, because you know all the places which are open after
that time. Let it be the Ascendas Omlette shop or the hole in the wall "Dosa
kada". And when you have roamed the entire Chennai twice without getting
entry anywhere it seems like it was all worth it when you and your friend share
a 1/2 tea and say "Mama, namakku mattum yenda edhuvumae workout
aagamaatingudhu?" (Why doesn't these things never workout only for us?) and laugh our heads off (In the meanwhile we
would have been to a hundred other places which we wouldn't have gone to if we
had gotten into the pub anyways)
The film industry:
"Thalaaivaaaaaa", aah, how I miss that sound. We
are the only people I know who would die for an actor. The manic fervor, the
"paal abishegams", the aarti during the premiere, the camaraderie
shared over an inaccessible man doing superhuman things. The excitement of
having gotten tickets for the first show, the anticipation leading to it, even
the man in Sun TV announcing the trailer. This is the place where movies can
bring people closer and help them forget everything else and share joy, pure and
simple.
Chennai the place:
People in other states have only very few options open to
them, when I was in Bangalore it was either Mall/Coffee day or the Cinemas. Chennai
knows how to have fun. The Beaches are the first thing people notice, but
things go beyond that. Broken bridge, theosophical society, the zoo, the
estuaries, the open lakes and the holy grail of everything else, ECR. Here we
have miles and miles of resorts, ATV rides, go-carting, theme parks, boat rides, archeological digs
and some of the best beach house parties and world class cuisine, and the
incentive is, at the end of this is the holy grail of the holy grail,
Pondicherry. :) You are never short of things to do if you are jobless or bored
in Chennai.
Friends:
We take friendship seriously. I believe Barney Stinson wrote
most of his "Bro Code" studying us. We bond over everything, figures,
love failures, exams, studies, bikes, booze, tea, sandwich and even beedis. And
we are always there for each other. How often have I decided to just
"go" somewhere with a friend, penniless? How often have I roamed the
streets in the night having no clue where I was at 2 in the morning? How often
has some friend or the other picked me
up and said "Vidu machan" (Let it go dude) when I was down in the
dumps. If you had ever forged a friendship in Chennai, it's for life. We are the
sort of people who like getting you into trouble just to see your reaction, but
we are also the first people to be there to bail you out too. Friends from
Chennai are friends for life no matter how long it's been or how huge the
distance.
Home is where the heart is:
You ache to get back to the place where you have made the
best memories. My family lives there, I had my heart broken for the first time
there, I have had my bones broken for the first time there, I have played
barefoot in the 40 deg sun and I have tried lighting firecrackers in pouring
rain, I have laughed and cried on its streets and have flattened coins on its
railway tracks. I have been offered food by beggars and shown the door by some
of my best friends. I met the woman of my life there.
I have lived in Chennai and I survive everywhere else. And I know there is no other place I would rather be, than in Chennai, my home.
