Madras Musings

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Curiosity-driven Research, Curd Rice & Pickle

You may be familiar with MS Blue, the distinctive shade of blue, named for the legendary Carnatic vocalist M.S. Subbalakshmi, but now “Mas Blue,” is all set to wow the world of art. “Mas” comes from the initials of Prof. M.A. Subramanian, the material scientist from Madras,...

Bionote

The poem Bionote, K.Srilata says, was written on a sort of impulse. “It was triggered by a comment I heard from a friend of mine – quite a culture-vulture himself – about another writer based in Bombay. My friend said that this writer was “so...

Luz House

The name engraved on yellowing marble called out to me. “Luz House,” the very name had gravitas, a certain ring to it. My errand was somewhere near this landmark address in Mylapore, and I had little time to linger. Still, the old-Madras style house sign...

The Bird That Changed a Canal’s Course

In 1836, T.C. Jerdon, a 25-year-old surgeon, arrived in the Madras Presidency. After training at the General Hospital, he was sent to treat troops battling insurgency in a district nearly halfway to the Calcutta Presidency. Once the rebellion was quelled, he joined his cavalry regiment...

Casteless Collective & Modi Mastan

The stars twinkled overhead, and sparks flew from the embers of corn sellers’ coal stoves at Besant Nagar Beach. It was a typical Sunday evening crowd—families, couples and vendors. But at the far end, in the Urur Olcott fishing village, something interesting was underway: the...

The Best Little Bird Sanctuary in India

If you went to school in Chennai, chances are you have visited the Vedanthangal Bird Sanctuary, some fifty miles south of the city. As an eighth grader, I went there on a school excursion for the first time. Oblivious to the birds in the distance,...