Chennai Travel Guide

Chennai, the first city of the south and capital of Tamil Nadu, called the ‘Gateway to the South’ ; it represents the unforgotten legacy of the Dravidian era and also a culture that is unique to the region. Often  called the cultural capital of India for its deep-rooted traditions and heritage, Chennai is a city younger than its image. What was once a small fishing hamlet called Madraspatnam was destined to rule the entire country when Francis Day set up his office for the East India Company in 1639. Ideal for trading with the sea on one side and rivers Cooum and Elambore on the other, the coastal plain has reigned supreme ever since. Many still call it Madras, but officially it’s now Chennai.It owes its origins as India’s fourth largest city to the colonial period. Established by Francis Day in 1639, the East India company’s post known until 1996, as Madras, became the political and economic capital of British territory in South India clusters of earlier hamlets were incorporated into the growing city, which despite its rapid growth since independence in 1947 has retained something of its distinctive character.It was here that many who went on to build the empire first learnt their trade. As a consequence, the city is replete with much that is of significance in British Indian history. But the much older settlements here has stories to tell too, and so the city is an amalgam of  ancient and modern history. Everywhere one goes in Chennai, one can find history written in every name.

The particularly charming features of Chennai are its allegiance to ancient traditions, no matter how modernized it has become and its willingness to spread out further rather than develop into a multi-storey concrete jungle. The result is a widespread city still open to the skies; a green, airy city with several  vestiges of its rural past; a city that adheres to the leisurely tempo of the life of a world of yesterday; a city whose values of the other day still survive amidst the humdrum bustle of today; a city that still retains the charm, culture, hospitality and courtesies of the ages.

Today , Chennai is an upwardly mobile cosmopolitan city with down to earth traditional values . Many of the Indian languages are spoken in Chennai, though the main language is Tamil. The Tamil people are zealous guardians of their language and have been among the most vociferous opponents to Hindi becoming the national language. For travelers with an interest in the colonial history of India, Chennai has much to explore and abundant transport  options make other  parts of the country readily accessible. It has regained its pride of  place in automobile industry as the ‘Detroit of the South’.

Places of attraction

Fort St. George: It is the fort that grew into a metropolis. The building of the nucleus of the fort was first in 1640 and was the first step towards the founding of Chennai and an Empire. Built around 1653 by the British East India Company the fort has undergone many alterations. It presently houses the Secretariat and legislative Assembly. The 46 mts. high flagstaff at the front is actually a mast salvaged from a 17th century shipwreck.

The fort itself kept growing over the years and is one of the finest examples in India of British military construction. Within its solid walls and sturdy gates is much that is historic. Clive’s Corner is the house where Robert Clive lived and commemorates the Empire-builder who first learnt his trade here. St .Mary’s Church consecrated in 1680 and the tombstones in its courtyard are the oldest British tombstones in India. The oldest Protestant church in the East contains several antiquities not the least being the oldest British tombstones in India and memories of weddings in which Clive and Elihu Yale (benefactor of America’s famed Yale University) Arthur Wellesley (who became Wellington) and Warren Hastings Participated. Wellesley House is where Wellesley lived on his first active military duty. This occupies a place of pride and prominence in Chennai. This bastion achieved its name form St.George the patron saint of England. The Legislative and Secretariat of the Tamil Nadu government are built around a core that was Fort House the home of the first governors of Chennai . This Hall has fine woodwork and black and white stone paving. The present structure a fine example of 17th century British military architecture was mostly built in 1666. The British reclaimed the 24 black Charnokite pillars in 1762 after the French has carried them off to Pondicherry in 1746.

The Fort Museum was once a building that housed Chennai’s first lighthouse first commercial bank and first ‘club’. It has a fascinating collection of memorabilia from the British and French East India Companies as well as the Raj and Muslim administrations. It is now a well-kept repository of tangible memories of early Madras. Fort Museum. Timings:9am to 5pm. Friday holiday.

Government Museum Complex: The museum was established in 1857 and has the country’s best collection of South Indian bronzes both ancient and modern among which beautiful bronze icons of Nataraja, Rama, Sita, Lakshmana and Hanuman are worth mentioning. The museum also has geology and anthropology  sections. The sculptures were unearthed from the Buddhist ruins at Amaravathi. This is on Pantheon Road between Egmore station and Anna Salai. The buildings forming the complex originally belonged to a group of eminent British citizens Known as the Pantheon Committee who were charged with improving the social life of the British in Madras.

The British Society in Chennai used to meet in the Pantheon. Its 18th century buildings and grounds have over the years been developed into the Connemara Library-one of the country’s three National Libraries the National Art Gallery –a beautiful building of Jaipur –Mughal architecture the Government Museum with its fabulous collection of bronzes and the Museum Theatre a quaint theatre out of the gaslight era are a few attractions in this complex. The main building has a fine archaeological section representing all the major South Indian Periods including periods including Chola, Vijayanagara Hoysala and Chalukya .It also houses a good ethnology collection. The bronze gallery has a superb collection Chola art and modern among which beautiful bronze icons of Nataraja , Rama, Sita, Lakshmana and Hanuman are worth mentioning. One of the most impressive is the bronze of Ardhanariswara the androgynous incarnation of Shiva. The museum also has geology and anthropology sections. The Amaravathy Gallery contains rare second century marble sculptures which depict important events in the life of Gautama Buddha.

The National Art Gallery exhibits several beautiful paintings which include 16th and 18th century ones from Rajasthan the Mughal Period and 17th century Deccan art. There are bronzes from the 11th and 13th centuries and handicrafts from the 11th and 12th centuries.

Valluvar Kottam: A unique bit of modernity in the city is this huge auditorium that draws its inspiration from the great temple builders of Tamilnadu’s past. A towering temple car in stone dominates this huge memorial hall to the poet-saint Thiruvalluvar whose classic work the Kural is reputed to be about 2000 years old. The standing memorial to immortal Tamil Saint philosopher is shaped like a temple chariot in Thiruvarur. The imposing stone chariot here is seen on the cover of this folder. Timing:8am to 5pm . Closed on Friday and national holidays.

MGR Film City : Set up by Government of Tamilnadu MGR Film City is a specially designed place near Taramani Adyar to serve the film industry. It houses several sets of artificial scenarios like of forest waterfall market place etc. are built but serve as background for the shooting of films besides dubbing and re-recording theatres. In Chennai MGR Film City is one of the biggest studios and it is the only one that is routinely open to public.

Birla Planetarium: Built in the memory of B.M. Birla the well known industrialist and visionary the planetarium in considered to be the most modern in the country. The Birla Planetarium at Kotturpuram situated between Adyar and Guindy is the most modern Planetarium in the country. It houses a fully computerized projector which depicts the heavens on a hemispherical dome. The Planetarium presents to the visiting public and students audio-visual programmes on various themes in astronomy. Adjoining the planetarium is the Periyar Science and Technology Museum which is of interest to the students and other science enthusiasts Programme Timing: 10.45 am, 1.15 pm and 3.45 pm English 12.00 Noon and 2.30 pm Tamil.

Krishkintha: Novadaya Mass Entertainments Ltd. have opened the first theme amusement park “ KISHKINTHA” in Chennai. Situated 28 kms. south of Chennai near Tambaram and spread over 110 acres; this park offers various exciting rides and attractions.
Timing: Weekdays 11.00am to 7.00pm
Sunday and holidays: 10.00 am to 8pm

Kapaleeshwarar Temple : This ancient Shiva Temple off Kutchery Road in Mylapore is constructed in Dravidian style and displays the architectural elements found in the famous temple cities of Tamil Nadu. The temple was damaged in 1566 when the Portuguese took over Mylapore. The Vijayanagar Kings rebuilt the present temple in the 16th century. The magnificent 37 meter high Gopuram depicts many a legends with beautiful carvings. The ‘Aruvathumoovai’ festival is celebrated in March/April. It has some beautiful sculptures among which the bronze idols of 63 Saivite Saints
( Nayanmars) which adorn the outer courtyard are rare specimens. The temple is open for puja (worship) 4 am to noon and 4 to 8 pm daily.

Crocodile Bank: 42 kms south of Chennai is the Crocodile Bank where several species of Indian and African crocodile and alligators bred in captivity in additions to native species of turtle are kept in open pools. Visitors can view the reptiles from close but safe proximity. There is also a small snake farm here that conducts demonstrations of venom extraction.