Dramatic building

Back to those white-on-blue enamel boards. This building has two of them, both indicating institutions that have had a glorious run on the Madras stage. One of those, I shall save for another post, but this one, sadly, seems to have been relegated to a 'bit-part' these days.

The Sukrutha Lakshmi Vilasa Sabha (SLVS) is one-hundred-and-eleven years old this year. It has been operating from this building for sixty-seven of those years. In the early days of its existence, the raison d'etre of this Sabha was to compete with the Suguna Vilasa Sabha (SVS) in staging dramatic performances. Over the years, both organizations have had to struggle for existence. The SVS has fared a little better on that count, having morphed into a social club, while the SLVS seems to have last opened its doors a few years ago.

Maybe it wants to continue its association with the performing arts - that could be the reason why it hasn't moved out of this building, which once housed Madras' first ever cinema!