Thursday, March 17, 2005

What's in a name...

Madras... Chennai? What's the difference people ask? I suppose there is none to most... But to me, the name Madras evokes so much... it was the birthplace of my everything... I suppose it still is...

How did such a backward little fishing village become so much more? People from Delhi, Bombay, even Bangalore look down upon us... What do they know? Have they been witness to our secret smoking spots, carefully selected after days of trial and error, and then us having to move on again once the residents became edgy... Have they spent night after night hanging out at Marina beach and Elliots beach and numerous other nameless beaches on the East Coast Road... Have they known the simple pleasure of eating sensational bread omelette outside of IIT and making fun of the cows... Do they know the relief of not having to worry about any crime more serious than an auto driver trying to rip you off... And have they known the people that made every night more fun that the last...

I suppose Delhi and Bombay and Bangalore have their own versions of all these things but for me Madras is where it's at and where it always will be...

And Chennai is just wrong!!

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