Chennai, India’s 6th largest city by population, turned 380 on August 22. ‘Madras Day’ is celebrated every year with nature walks, history tours and cultural festivals.
The city was established on August 22, 1639 when the East India Company purchased land for trading around the fishing village of Madrasapatnam. It came under the Mughal rule in 1687 and became a naval base during the British Raj. After independence, it served as the capital of Madras state which was renamed Tamil Nadu in 1969. Madras was officially renamed as Chennai in 1996.
There are a plethora of events lined up for foodies, nature enthusiasts, and quiz masters. The Madras Week, which is celebrated from August 18 till 25 starts with a heritage walk where writer Thamizhmagan will take a tour of the famous film studios in the city like AVM, Prasad, Karapagam, and Vijaya Vahini.
On the same day, a food walk through the oldest villages of Madras like Triplicane, Mylapore, and Pursawalkam will take place. Sridhar Venkatraman, the organiser of the food walk event, says people of all ages are participating in these events. “I hold these food-walks in historical places to give people some familiarity about the area. There is no age barrier for these events and it’s free. People want to explore different kinds of foods and I’m just guiding them in terms of selecting an area and eateries which is reasonably popular,” he said.
