My Favorite Memories of Madras: Guest Post by Author Sundari Venkatraman

From the author of one of the most beautiful and thoughtful books I have ever read, ‘The Madras Affair’, here comes her guest post where the author shares her favorite memories of the city that was ‘Madras’. Readers Muse thanks the author for her time and for giving us beautiful books J

READERS MUSE:

What are your most favorite memories of Madras?

Author Sundari Venkatraman:

Hello Dhivya,

Thank you so much for hosting me on your blog. I am mighty thrilled to answer your question as Madras is where I lived as a kid and teenager till I got married and moved to Bombay.

As I have said this before, I will say it again. You can take me out of Madras, but you cannot take Madras out of me.

Topping the list of favorite memories are the visits to Marina Beach. I love the gorgeous blue Bay of Bengal; walking down the long stretch of sand to reach the waves foaming from the sea. It used to be a rare treat as we always went as a family and it was possible to get everyone together maybe only two or three times in a year. But these were truly cherished moments. We used to go near Kannagi statue and have a gala time getting wet. My parents used to have a difficult time getting us back out of the water.

Then there were those walks in the many by-lanes of Nungambakkam with a school friend. Sunday evenings when most of the people where glued to the rare treat of Tamil movie on TV, my friend and I used to walk for hours, talking. The roads used to be empty with a rare car or two passing by. The bliss of the silence is unimaginable. I loved those walks.

Okay, this one may not be the best thing to talk about with the floods lashing Chennai just now. But I loved the rains in those days. It used to rain heavily over barely three to five days max. Our school shut off with the first big shower. My friends, my sisters (I have four) and I used to get together at my house and play cards. We used to yap our heads off, sipping hot tea in the verandah, sometimes accompanied by hot bhajji. Carefree days indeed!

One more memory that I can’t miss mentioning here: Bunking school with my elder sister and taking off to matinee shows with our Grandma. Every week used to have a new release and it really didn’t matter if the film had a good review or not. Grandma used to love films and she had inculcated that quality in my sister and me. We used to take off on the weekly treat without fail. Today, the school would have probably dismissed us. But those days, the rules were not too strict. Bunking school was never more fun.

I am so glad that I am able to portray a bit of the city I grew up in to my readers in the form of The Madras Affair. Would love to hear what you readers have to say about my book.