Let us see some histrionics of this city, fondly called ‘Madras’ and then an incident that happened with me when I first got to Madras.
The Madras city is one of the oldest and the capital of the state Tamil Nadu in India. It the country's fourth-largest city. It is located on the Coromandel Coast of the Bay of Bengal. It has an estimated population of 7.45 million by the 2005 census. This city of Madras is the 367 year old city and is the 34th largest metropolitan area in the world.
The beautiful city of Madras was founded in the year 1639 when the English or the British brought it from Naicker. In the year 1640, the foundation of Fort St. George was laid and it still stands today as one of the important landmarks in the city of Madras or so called Chennai city. In the year 1679 the St. Mary’s church was completed and stood erected, a year later the Madras City Municipal Corporation was inaugurated and the first place to be annexed to this city is Triplicane. So, triplicane is the oldest place of the city.
The city has seen being invaded by the French, Dutch, and British at regular periods of time and history is evident of these facts. But not only these people the great king Hyder Ali Khan who proved a treat to the British in the South have also tried to invade Madras in the 18th century and due to his victories and a few other Nawab’s we can see the mosques erected in and around the old city.
Madras has the longest coastline of 12 kilometers and the Marina beach, which is an important tourist spots in the city, is the second largest beach in the world. The beach begins at Fort St. George in the north and ends at Besant Nagar in the south. The beach has stone statues that adorn the roadside area of the beach. The Statue of Labor is of great significance on this beach and it one of the known landmarks in the city. The beach holds the memorials of M. G. Ramachandran and C. N. Annadurai, former Chief Ministers of Tamil Nadu. This city is accessible by all ways of transport, such as road, water, air and train.
Talking of travel, I am reminded of an unforgettable episode of mine. I already have told you I came to madras when I was studying in seventh standard and at that time, the Tamil I knew was very little limited to the basic requirements of the man, such as food and water.
My childhood started in Calcutta, so was forced to a common language and was driven to speak in English and the other option of language was Hindi of which I just beginning to learn. In home, both my parents being educated there was no necessity to speak in language that I wasn’t used to. So the usage of my mother tongue, Tamil was reduced maximum and knew very few words, such as amma, appa, thanni, pasikithu, naan pogannum, vidu, po, va...etc.
I could not make out complicated sentences and usage of verbs and consonants, so I knew very little or meager in Tamil.
Being in a Central Board Syllabus Education and thanks to Kendriya Vidhayalaya (KV), my second language was Hindi and the scope of learning my mother tongue got ruled out very early[I really regretted later of not having learnt my mother tongue!!!]. I got transferred to a KV in Madras and happily, I and my sister started to new school, new environment, new people, new teachers, everything new.....
It being the first day to school, my dad who was in the Central Government job and the head of an institution head dropped us in school in his official jeep. Since, we did not own a vehicle then and said he would come to pick us up in the evening after school.
With no such information of my dad’s phone number or address of my house in my little brain and the responsibility of my sister, I felt proud in my mind and tried to handle the situation with great charm and addressable nature set to my first day.
My school was in a place called Pazhavanthangal, and the name of the school was Kendriya Vidhayalaya (KV), Meenambakkam right opposite to the runway of the International Airport in Madras. From my school we could see several aircrafts taxing on the runway before takeoff and while landing. We in school during our Physical Training sessions used to sometimes stand watching it from our play ground.
It was a Saturday, the day we (I and my sister) went to school and it was a second Saturday of the month and as a rule at that time they had half-day school and during my school days eventually the second Saturday got declared as a holiday.
We both were in school and it being the first day we did not know what to do and with all new things got lost in its mystery and were like frightened chickens. All classes went well with introductions to the Class teacher and other subjects and I hated that day as I had to often stand and repeat every piece of information to every other teacher.
The last class of the day was Chemistry class. It is part of the subject called SCIENCE and the three parts of the subject such as, Physics, Chemistry, and Biology was handled by three teachers who internally managed the class schedule.
I stood and explained my story to the chemistry teacher Lalitha, as well and when I finished she asked me the intelligent question, “Do you know your way back to your house?”
I just stood there looking at her wide-eyed knowing not what to say, after a minute I managed to say, "Yes, maam, I know my dad will come in the evening after school.”
She started laughing and I wondered why, in fact got irritated by her laughter, thinking in my mind why is she laughing? She very cleverly said, “You don’t know today is second Saturday and the school works only for half-a-day, as if an intelligent and possible discovery by her.”
I told her, “OK, I will leave by afternoon then.”
She said, “I appreciate your braveness, child. But how will you go?”
I told her, “Maam, if you tell me how to go from here I will go by myself, no problem. Otherwise I will ask somebody and then go.”
I don’t know what she felt in her mind she said; “You are really a brave girl. And addressed the class and said, look at her, she does not know the place and still she is not afraid, you should all be like her. Be brave.” I felt happy at her words but I did not know how I will be able to do that but somehow thought I will be able to do. I just relied on my internal guts.
Then she asked my mother tongue and she started speaking to me in Tamil. I told her I can’t understand much Tamil, at which she really kept hand at her hand and said, “Iyoo Rama.” She asked me if I had some money to return home, I said no. Then again, she said another “Iyoo Rama.”
She asked me to come to the staff room after the class for money and then leave. I had no clue of which buses go or how to go...somehow I knew from the fragment of conversations between my mom and dad that the place where we stayed was called Ekkaduthangal.
I did not want to go and ask her for money, so I asked a girl or boy not sure, next to me for some money. I promised him/her to return it the next day. Nobody gave me; at last one small girl from the last bench came forward and gave me One Rupee coin.
I did not know how much will the ticket cost...anyhow I took it from her and thanked her for the money and informing my teacher I started my journey to home along with my sister.
We reached the bus stop, my sister started crying and she was afraid how we will go. I kept assuring her that we will ask every other bus that stops at this place if it goes to Ekkaduthangal and then climb in and go. I kept her spirits high, talking to her.
Then a bus stopped, it was named 18N. I asked the conductor if this bus will go to Ekkaduthangal and he said, ‘Yes’. I helped my sister get in and then got in and found a place and sat there. Then the conductor called for tickets then I went to him and asked him for a ticket to Ekkaduthangal. He asked me how many? I said, ‘One...’then he asked me for your sister, I told him she is a small child so no ticket for her.
At this the conductor laughed and said no you have to buy for her also. I said, ‘Oh! ‘He started saying something in Tamil and I said I don’t understand Tamil.
He asked me my mother tongue, I told him and he said, “Tamil ponnu anna Tamil theriyathu....”
Everyone in the bus laughed and he said, ‘For the tickets it is 0.75p + 0.75p, you have to give me Rs 1.50ps’
At this I really got scared and said, in whatever language I could manage that I had only One rupee and he kindly took that rupee and asked me will I give him the change tomorrow. I told him yes and also asked him to show me the stop. He said, ‘yes, he will.’
Then after we got down, we went home and narrated this to my parents and other relatives as well and I became a hero [oops...heroine] in my house.
PS: The next day the same conductor was in the bus and I offered him the 50ps he took it and said, “Thank you, for the help you did yesterday.” I did not know if he understood what I said but he attempted to talk to me in English after that for few days....
I happened to live there after so many years in a place called Nanganallur, which is excatly the other side of Pazhavanthangal and whenever I used to pass my school the first thing that comes to my memory is this very day of school.
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