Visiting old places or meeting old friends is always nostalgic. I recently went to Chennai, where I have spent a good part of life, on some personal work, and felt like going back in time. Only I have grown in many ways. The local buses, the yellow coloured autos, mount road, spencer’s plaza, my friend Janardhanan… are all same.
Talking of sameness, the menu of 95% of the restaurants are still the same: Idli, wada, dosa, masala dosa, rawa dosa, onion rawa dosa, chapatti kurma, parotha kurma, pongal, idiapam… everyone knows what to expect, but all of them still display them as specialties on menu boards or display boards outside the restaurants. The weather seemed more difficult at the onset, but soon got used to it.
Some things have surely changed there. My favourite Sathyam Theatre is a cool multiplex now. The City Centre Mall is a class act. I was surprised to see many auto drivers conversing in Hindi.
I missed some of my old friends there like Mahalaxmi, Rita, Gayatri, Nirmal, who have shifted to other cities and missed meeting some friends who I am no longer in contact with like Varalaxmi. It all felt like yesterday, and to think that I was visiting the city after more that 7 years. How quickly time flies? Life is truly very short. Still every body is on a fast track. Strange!
Felt very nice reading ur blog, almost a trip down the memory lane for me as well, me too waiting to see Chennai in its changed form. Things are always same, people, food, clothes etc its we who make it special. Nice reading, thanks rajesh, waiting for more.
ReplyDeleteafter all these years, when i think about what i miss about chennai the most, it is always people. Rajagopal, Jana(meeting his wife and daughter at lunch at his home was terrific), and of course you are special.
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