In search of the 'quintessential' Chennai..

“How much Chennai have you seen?”

“Oh, you haven’t been there yet?”

“You should eat from Sarvanna bhavan.”

“And the temples, oh it’s a pity if you haven’t visited one.”

“Chennai is not Besant Nagar.”

Do this, do that, go here, go there... I was so tired of listening to all of it since the two months I landed in Chennai, that I decided to go exploring the 'quintessential Chennai'. 

With just one day off in a week, and a dear friend's wish to see the quintessential Chennai in one day, I surfed the net and friend's databases on what could be seen in a day, which at the same time gives the essence of Chennai. Many many searches later, from a list of suggested 50, to 'try-able' 12, to possible 7, the list kept narrowing down. The planner that I have always wanted to be, googled enough information (that's what I thought) and with a ‘not-so-raring-to-go’ friend, P (she had no option though) and a ‘I-want-to-do-most-in-the-list’ friend, S in tow, we started on a early Sunday morning. I love to spend my Sunday mornings, afternoons and if possible evenings too, on bed. So it was as equivalent to giving my life away to do this one day sightseeing. :)

So our ‘list for the day’ (word by word as told to us) was

1. Visit the Kapaleeshwara temple early in the morning and have temple prasadam for morning’s breakfast

2. Take the MRTS to Beach

3. “Enjoy” the pulling and pushing at Ranganathan Street

4. Spend 1000 bucks in T Nagar and get atleast 1000 things for the money you spend.

5. Eat at Sarvanna Bhavan (they forgot to mention what!)

So, at 8.30 a.m we were on our way to Kapaleeshwara (Shiva) temple in Mylapore.

Shakti worshipped Shiva in the form of a peacock, which is why the area is called so (mayil is Tamil for peacock). Apparently, Mylapore is ‘older’ than Chennai. This oldest temple in Chennai is believed to be located on the spot where Lord Brahma installed a Shiva lingam in order to please Lord Shiva who cut off Bramha's head (Kapalam) to arrest his pride. Fresh with this googled knowledge about the area and temple, I rattled on until the bus refused to go further towards the destination. And why was that? There was a chariot festival in the temple and all roads around the temple were blocked. Now, I had heard enough about the devout Chennai-ites to know that this planned quick visit to the temple was going to be anything but quick. There goes my first part of the plan to the drain! Ah, too late to turn back! The god fearing person in me decided to go for it. As ‘luck’ would have it, we saw the quintessential Chennai that we wanted to see but without actually expecting to see it.

The roads were lined with shopkeepers setting up make-shift stalls to sell their wares. The road, without the vehicular traffic, was filled with people of all ages. The women in their temple best and hair adorned with jasmine flowers, never left their man's side. The children walked with their grandparents, pointing out to all the fancy things lining the streets, unmindful to the grandparents talking about the temple. Their talk was shadowed by the occasional booming of the loud speakers over your head announcing missing people and at the same time asking the people to make way for the chariots. All along the stretch, there were many groups offering free refreshing buttermilk to everyone and well, we made the most of it :).

Not knowing the right entry point to the temple made things difficult as the crowd started getting bigger. The roads around the temple called the mada streets were washed and painted with the traditional kolams, for the chariots would pass through them. The crowd regaled each time some generous person threw buckets of water from the houses lining the mada street. This was their way of beating the heat. They also used plastic sachets containing water to cool themselves. I have personally not seen these methods anywhere before. For the first time I also saw red and green flags being used by the priest on the chariot to give instructions to the devotees to pull or to stop pulling the chariot! This reminds me of another 'first' I saw a couple of days before at a Tam Bram wedding. A water bottle with holes in it's cap provided for a method to sprinkle water on plantain leaves for cleaning them before meals. Being a south Indian and eating meals out of a plantain leaf very often, this was indeed new and innovative for me.

Well, coming back to the chariot festival, we got all pushed around and finally got pushed into the temple too through the east gopuram (tower over the temple entrance with marvellous architecture). Temples for me have to be peaceful. But this environment, thanks to the festival, was anything but that. There were many sub temples within the temple courtyard; that of Ganapathi, Saneeshwara, Murugan, Karpagambal, Kapaleeshwara and many more. Apart from that we also saw the idols of 63 Nayanmars or Saivaite saints for whom the festival was being celebrated within the main temple of Kapaleeshwara.

The 63 Nayanmars 

After paying respect to the dieties, I was waiting to pay respect to my grumbling tummy. Something that everyone has always agreed upon is the fact that the prasadams at temples are really yummy. And this time was no exception. :) We were really content with the humble yet tasty prasad. On our way back to the railway station from the temple, we feared getting pushed back into the temple as there was the chariot crowd in the last leg of the procession which was to terminate at the temple. Braving the crowds yet again (which was an adventure of sorts) and downing two glasses of buttermilk, we finally made it to the Thirumayilai station.

The local train experience was the best part of the day. Trains have always fascinated me and every single journey till now has put me into a pensive mode. This one too was no exception. Intra-city, inter-city, inter-state, I love them all. The journeys give me the solitude and solace even amidst a crowd. There is definitely something about the trains. Let me not dwell on that as it will occupy an entire blog space. :)

The rest of the day was quite uneventful, barring the malai kofta at sarvana bhavan in T Nagar. It was literally koftas in payasam (an otherwise sweet delight), complete with tuti fruti toppings! Beat that! An interesting fact to note in T Nagar is that while half of it has Sarvanna 'some' store, other half contains Jayachandran 'some' store along with others. (And Chennai has its own share of Murugan stores as well :)). Considered a shopping destination, I did not quite find T Nagar very amusing as it was like one big market. Quite averse to crowds, I prefer doing my shopping in a peaceful environment. The heat added to the crowded woes. Though the shopping experience was nothing greater than the ones I have experienced in Delhi and Bombay, one must visit T Nagar for their silk show rooms, some of them which I must admit had a superior ‘drooling quotient’. Tired by the evening, we decided against the advice by Chennai-ites to not to take an auto by taking one. Auto rickshaw rides here have the reputation of costing an exorbitant Rs.200 for a ten minute ride! And how much did this guy charge? Rs.150 for a distance of 12 km and almost half an hour journey! Makes me wonder, if am new to Chennai or if he is new! ;)

So, finally we were done with our list for the day, though not to the nines. The pulling and pushing at Ranganathan street did not happen as we already dealt with our quota for the day at the temple :). We did not spend 1000 bucks in T Nagar either.

Well, next time, I intend to visit my personal favourite-the museums. If not for anything, they will be atleast peaceful. Until then, happy glazing! ;)

Colours of Chennai 

To let go OR to hold on?

After years of knowing what I don't want to do, I was still fighting with my world outside and well,.. inside too. "Should I just cut all my 'fancy' ambitions and get down to reality as advised by the likes of people who have seen more world than me or should I go against the tide like I always have?" the question haunted me.

A friend once told me that I am a rebel for the sake of being a rebel. Now, I did not want to live up to that reputation. Especially, cause I believed myself to be a revolutionary :)

So, when I was being divided in understanding who I really was and illogically (for others) rejecting 'ideas' and offers of 'help' (which my brain intercepted as sympathy), things just happened from nowhere! Well, not really nowhere, but from unexpected quarters and to a large extent from unknown people too.

I was still skeptical when I attended the interview in Chennai and even more skeptical when I got through it. I remember not reacting to the news. Was I so sure that I will get through that I was non-reactive or was I so apprehensive about the whole thing that I was not really sure whether to be happy or sad, and hence non-reactive? Whatever the reason was, my face was largely non-reactive, but the turmoil within is something that no one will ever know.

Braced with the fact that my new year will truly be a new year with new people, new places, new work, new environment, I realised that everything that was new was also totally unknown to me. Ah! The new or unknown never scared me. But the scar of letting go of things haunted me. 

Anyways, with all kinds of encouraging words from family and friends, I managed to reach Chennai. But now, beyond 'reaching Chennai' it was completely unto me to prove myself that am a revolutionary and not a rebel.

Inhibitions to get out of old scars are so much that we sometimes refuse to get out of it. That is exactly what I did- refused to help myself get out of it. I wanted to dwell in it and I kind of liked myself in that state. But me being me, I could not just go on that way. Oh ya, hating my job sometimes made me feel good but sometimes worsened the situation. There were times I found reasons to quit it and go back. But I knew for sure I did not want to go back. Like always, I knew what I did not want. :) And well, I did not want to be the quitter too. But then, everything was going wrong. That is how it is always, isn't it?

And then I chose to see things beyond what my eyes could see. Life suddenly became simply more beautiful. The feeling was not attached to my job, nor the place, nor the people. And the best way to prove it is the fact that my Facebook updates are no longer about how much ‘I love Mysore’, ‘miss Mysore’, ‘am in Mysore’, about Mysore and so on. I remember the times when people would ask me what happened when the word 'Mysore' did not turn up in my updates. Mysore was so much a part of Lakshmi Krishnan..... until now. No, I am not not saying Chennai has replaced Mysore.. It never will..

What has happened is that I have grown beyond the attachment for people, places and things..

What has happened is that I have learnt to let go of people, places and things..

What has happened is that my state of mind (read peace) is not because of people, places and things..

But what should not happen is that I should not forget to hold onto people, places and things..because, there is a lot of difference between 'letting go' and 'holding on'.

I want to let go and hold on...

THANK YOU!

Wokay!!

So I am on yet another journey...

And this time after all the ups and downs, life has not come to a stand still..

A month into the new journey and I am still in the process of getting into d groove..

But before I move on, a thanksgiving!

So, after all that cramming, and crying and chaos, my pg exams got over!!

It was one experience!!!

But thanks to few special people, its a cherished memory now. :)

I had abundant support in college -Archana ma'am, you rock! Wonder what Vydehi Opath would have been without you.. Your family made me 'family' and that says it all! 

Jayalakshmi ma'am, Dorothy ma'am, you were among my strongest supporters. Thanks for believing in me and my abilities. Thanks for lifting up my sagging spirits! And HOD ma'am was the surprise package! If not for that golden one month off that you gave me maam, forget topping, I doubt if I would have cleared! And I will always remember your kindness ma'am!

Divya, a special thanks to you! You were God sent! Being awake with me through the nights as though you yourself were giving exams, spending restless moments with me, calming me in those tense situations, praying for me and many more.. I can't thank you enough! I hope and pray I get a chance to help you the way you did.

Amrita, anything that I say about you would be less.You have made me the positive person that I am. You tuned my attitude so that I can face the world alone. Thanks for everything! A single paragraph won't suffice for you :) nor will it do justice ;) Our relationship is beyond words! :) Thanks to uncle and aunty too! They made me feel like family!

Mahesh, Chaitra and Satish- thank you for believing in me and for making me believe in myself. Your blind faith in me is something I might never come across again in life! Thanks for the energy U guys gave me-literally too! :) The home food was sometimes the only highlight of the day! :)

Honey, Lavi, Aziz bhai- thanks for all the smiles and help!

Subhada, my room mate, my outing mate, my food mate, my support mate, my prayer mate,ah.. I can go on and on.. But it still would not cover the two years that we stayed under the same roof..sharing every single moment and thoughts. The movies, shopping, starring at stars, Saturday nights of music and much much more.. I would need a book to write about you! Thank you for taking care of me. :)

Sweta, Shalini, Manjula, Ramya-hostel life had LIFE in it because of you guys..6 months with you people were among the best I ever had!! You guys rock!! And so does Jaganath mess ;)

Srihari, you showed me the world, or rather what the world ate ;) Had some of the best food in life wit you. Life outside the gates of Vydehi was colorful and stomach full coz of you! ;)

Varsha & Suman-You guys made me like Bangalore outside Whitefield! Life was pure fun & one hell of a party with you guys!

Bharat sir, I owe my 'topper' status to you! Thank you! Thanks for bringing me out of one of my difficult phases.

Santosh, you have been there through thick and thin! I would not have survived Vydehi without you! I owe my pg seat and pg degree both to you! Thank you for taking all the crap! You were the only one who could take it! :)

Sudhee sir, Shashidhar sir,Radhika ma'am, Usha ma'am, Srinivas sir, Jeevan sir, Priya maam, Santosh sir, and all who taught me-thank you for being the selfless teachers!

Sudhee sir- You are the reason why I am an oral pathologist today! From inspiring me to teaching me, you have been the very reason of my professional stature today. I bow to you sir!

Abhishek Bhadranna, Abhishek Jahagirdar, Revanna, Afreen, Sushma - Thanks for being the friends in need, for all the professional help and others too..

Sijy, Shaheera, Krishnaveni, Imran, Manasa, Supreeta, Shazaib, Geeta, Bhavya, Surendra - thank you! :) You all added more colors into my life!

And I thank everyone who gave me a reason to smile :) I owe those happy hours of my life to you! :)

My backstage crew- uff!!! We did it!! :) Appa, Amma, Adarsh and Anna, we did it! :)

Thank you God.., for being there and letting all these wonderful people be such an important part of my life!

Good Morning Chennai!

'Trriiiinggggggggg' rang my alarm and I got up with a start to switch it off so as to not disturb my new roommates. The usual me would get up only at 9, snooze the alarm and hit the bed again. I looked at the watch. It showed 6 and it so told me to sleep. Divided between luxury and necessity, drowsy eyed, I fought my way out of bed. Had my bath (yawn, I still want to sleep), got dressed (yawn, I still want to sleep) and waited for my roommate/guide to get ready (yawn, I still want to sleep). During the wait I decided to explore my hostel terrace. Pulling my legs beyond me (as my legs were still sleeping), I reached the terrace after four flights of stairs.

The view awaiting me was something I did not expect. I saw the blue, the blue of the sea as far as my eyes could see...,where that 'blue of the sea' met the 'blue of the sky'. The sea seemed calm from that distance while I was sure it was roaring down there. The sun rays glistened on the seemingly calm sea and on to my face. No, now I was not yawning. My sleep was gone (obviously!) and I faced the sea and the sun and stood for long. 

All thoughts racing by, though I wished I could keep it calm. 

All thoughts splurging about, though I wish I could keep it still. 

All thoughts jumping at each other, though I wish they kept to themselves. 

And as I stared at the distant blue horizon, it somehow calmed my thoughts within. Now, that's where Chennai scored a brownie point over my previous place of stay, Bangalore. 

And that was my first day in Chennai :) 

Chennai, I hope I like you. And I hope you like me too.. :)

Happy New Year 2012!

So, the year starts from January 1st again....

I still remember how 2011 started...

Head bang start to the year, partying and dancing away till 3 in the morning; 

bonded with people whom I never thought would b mine, 

but lost people who were 'mine' (where they really mine in the first place?),

long lost friends - some came back, some did not..

learnt bowling from a friend who can make me happy and sad,

watched innumerable movies with a new relationship - 'the roomie',

had fun, went to parties and life restarted after 4 pm..

Mc Donalds outing with friends who care to share,

bajji outings and midnight maggi sessions,

feasted on non-veg after a loong hiatus..

been live witness to Master Blaster's 96th century in a thrilling cricket match,

tried rebonding in vain, learnt to have patience like hell, 

tele-teaching and forgave people,

lived through legal complications and likely legal issues (phew!),

became predictable in my surprises and started having crushes again :)

rubbed things the wrong way, but still glad that mistakes happened,

hearts broke and tears fell,

traveled 3 hrs to watch a 90 min movie, 

because I realized people and their company matter more than anything else...

bunked coll, went 4 a movie, lied and got caught red-handed,

made a movie and have ever since appreciated every scene in every movie,

faced defeats and success in the same place and time,

saw good times and bad ones too,

won a 1st prize and was still not happy,

had a surprise just the way I wanted and was still not happy,

finally learning that God knows best! 

got pampered to the core and walked alone when the going was tough,

Made my nest, my space and yet broke down within the confines of my space

submitted my dissertation and realized I can do things all alone, 

that I can live life all alone!!! 

So,.. lived through such contradictions the entire year. 

God, what an year!!!! Thanks for being there all throughout! :)

Déjà vu!! Not my mistake, blame it on the magic of Mysore!! :)

This is something I have shared with people on and off.. And this is something that I will keep sharing.. :)

Post my graduation, like all others (or at least like most of them) I too sat and blindly prepared for my Post Graduate entrance exams. Born and bought up in Mysore, all I wished for was a PG seat away from home (Crazy!). And so, here I am, doing my post-graduation in Bangalore.

Happy to be away from home, and have all the freedom I could have, I was raring to go to a new place, a new college, a new environment, a new experience….So, I am not really eager to come home in the weekends (courtesy : the traffic snarls I have to endure before I get to Majestic from Whitefield!!). But then, I invariably end up coming to Mysore because Mysore is irresistible!! :) Mysore is a lovely place and I am in love with it more than ever. It’s an amazing feeling to get down at the railway station and see the yellow board ‘MYSORE’ with the marvellous Chamundi hills at the background. Even with my eyes closed, I can recognize Mysore and its warmth. The air here is distinct and definitely has something peculiar and ‘namma’ feeling in it!

As I reach home, home-made food welcomes me. Next morning it’s the traditional morning trek to Chamundi hills with friends and the customary breakfast at GTR. Try telling a Bangalorean about this, and pat will come the reply, ‘‘Chamundi betta? We also have Nandi betta’’!! Huh?? Come on!!!! What & where is the comparison!?! That is when I realize that the beauty of Mysooru can’t be explained. For it is not a place that can be described, it is a feeling that can only be experienced. :) Everything in Mysore has more to offer than what meets the eye. Even the routine Mysore palace which leaves every tourist spell bound is spectacular and even more beautiful than what the regular eye can decipher. From the ‘quaint sun ray’ view of the palace at 5.30 a.m on my way to II puc tuitions to the ‘mid-night’ view enroute to Chamundi betta for those memorable drives… I have seen most of the ‘views’ and believe me, the manifestations are magical! :)

Well, as less eager as I was to come home, I would be even less eager to get back to Bangalore. Very reluctantly I reach the railway station by 4 on a Monday morning. But by the minute I reach the station, am all rejuvenated! I love the railway station, especially at that time when everyone is sleeping warmly in their beds. It gives me a feeling of getting into an adventure. I love the silence, the train’s whistle breaking the silence, the darkness, the cold, and the wait… the place where many journeys begin and where many end. I reach Majestic by 7 and college by 9, and then the grind begins, until next Saturday, when again it’s a journey back home…

The best part of my PG life, however, seems to be my countless train journeys. The rush to board the 3’o clock Tippu express, which gets me home in 2 and a half hours flat; the serenity of the Mandya-Mysore stretch, the lush green paddy and sugarcane fields, with the occasional spotless white cranes, the wide expanse of our lifeline Cauvery and her tributaries beneath me, the village rustic with his herd of sheep, the rare peacock, the slight drizzle, all, as seen and felt through my foot board seat…Spectacular!! :) 

All said and done, I am just waiting for my course to get completed and get back home, to get back to Mysore.. Well, the countdown has already begun.. 298 days to go!!! :) Mysore, am waiting to grow amidst you once again!!! :)

Why? Why?? Why???

With the moon above, as I travel,

I cant help but marvel,

At God's marvellous creations,

And His hand crafted situations.

Is there an answer to every 'why'?,

Or is it most of the times answered with a lie?

Is it for a lesson or only the pain?

Oh my!! My questions start again!!!