Men's building

I did say earlier that the YMCA building has a story to tell for itself, after my first attempt was hijacked by the 'founder' of the YMCA in India, David McConaughy. In the early days of its life, the Madras YMCA operated from the premises of the Church of England's Temperance Institute. Within five years, the YMCA was ambitious - and maybe wealthy - enough to think of an exclusive building for itself. Though the foundation stone for this building was laid in 1895, it took five years to be completed. When done, it was inaugurated by Governor Arthur Havelock, who had taken pains to provide constant, detailed inputs to the Government Architect, G.S.T. Harris who was in charge of designing this building.

Maybe those design inputs were a cause of the delay in completing this building, but the larger reason seems to have been a lack of funds. The YMCA then got in touch with John Nelson Wanamaker, a Philadelphia businessman and former Postmaster General of the USA (1889 - 1893), who in 1857 had become the first paid Secretary of the YMCA in the USA. It is said that John Wanamaker gave $40,000 for constructing this building; a biography of his, while it does not mention the amount, credits him as having "... erected YMCA buildings in Madras, India; Seoul, Korea; Kyoto, Japan; Peking, China; Calcutta, India..." and also having an interest in the Allahabad (India) Christian College. Be that as it may, the money helped Namberumal Chetty get on with completing this building.

The intricate detailing with red sandstone - from the quarries of Tada - ensure this building stands out from its neighbours on NSC Bose Road. One wishes that the YMCA ensures those letters (can you see them on the central balcony of the top floor?) also stand out as distinctly!

Fighters at the circle

This statue of kalaripayattu chekavars was installed at the Gemini Circle earlier this year, replacing the rather inconsequential piece which was loitering at this space. This statue is one of the six which were installed around the same time, each representing a cultural facet. While the other statues depict dances and staged performances, this is the only one showing off martial skills. Does the placing of this statue make any statement about the jostling for space around the Gemini Circle?

Old cloth

Somehow, these two stores seem to have been there for ever. Not that I can remember the first time I saw them, but it was ages ago when I was advised that if I wanted any uniform material - for the NCC, or the scouts or suchlike things - General Swadeshis was the place to go. It was one of the many stores which named themselves in a fit of nationalistic fervour - to advertise the "buy local" alternative of those times, I guess. And the shop next to it, named (probably) after the revolutionary poet of the Madras region, Subramania Bharathi, adds to the overall feeling of patriotism on this stretch.

Haven't felt it deeply enough to go shopping there, so far!

Across the water

Standing at the Besant Nagar end of the 'broken bridge' and looking across into the city, it is not a happy sight, really. What should have been undeveloped land around the Adayar Creek area is threatening to become another highrise heaven. The views around - the Bay of Bengal, the Adayar Creek, the lush green of the Theosophical Society lands - are absolutely amazing, so these apartments (on the left) and the office space (I guess, on the right) will command premium prices for sure.

And those are not the only buildings coming up. Can only hope that by the time all the building gets done, there is still something of a natural view left!

Watch out

Of the major cities in India, Kolkata has an enviable crime rate (that's the number of crimes registered under the Indian Penal Code per thousand population) of 82.5, which makes it the lowest among major cities in India. Chennai's record on this is not as enviable; in 2007, the latest year for which data are available on the NCRB website, Chennai's crime rate was 256.9, far higher than even New Delhi or Mumbai. That it is much better than Bangalore (475.6) or Hyderabad (314.3) is scant consolation to a city which prides itself on its police force, one of the oldest in the country.

Of course there are always many reasons touted; Mumbai, New Delhi and even Kolkata have urban populations that are more than double that of Chennai, the Chennai police is more scrupulous about registering cases and the clincher being that the Chennai police has a better record of solving crimes than their counterparts elsewhere. Of the last, I have not been able to find data, though. Like any large city anywhere in the world, Chennai has a part of its populace leading a life of crime and like in any other large city, they find a good chunk of their victims among newcomers to the city. Overawed by getting to the city, their trust is easily obtained or attention easily diverted, which allows the petty criminal to run his trade rather smoothly.

Surely those newcomers would be better off if they could recognize such practitioners from these photographs - but this board at Chennai Central seems to be better hidden than a newcomer's valuables!

Extreme cycling

As on many other streets of George Town, walking up Mint Street is an art; put in a couple of conditions - one, that you will not pause in your steps and two, you will not come into bodily contact with anyone - and the walk can easily be turned into an urban challenge that cannot be easily overcome. Though it widens at certain points, Mint Street is predominantly narrow, the kind of narrowness caused by lack of pavements, vendors sitting on the sides and haphazard parking. People on two wheels - or on feet - will probably travel one-and-a-half times the distance they intend to travel, having to constantly veer off to avoid the traffic and fellow pedestrians.

But here was a set of travellers intent on taking the shortest path to their destination; the little fellow must have been just 6 or 7 years old and he was putting all his might into pedalling, trying to stay ahead of the truck. The truck, in turn was looking for an opening to get ahead of the tricycles and did not seem to be paying attention to the kids - thankfully, one of them jumped off the cycle, bringing the whole set to a halt before anything more damaging could happen!

Public place

Madras celebrated Queen Victoria's golden jubilee in 1887 by raising two public buildings. Sadly, neither of them is in popular use today, but the Victoria Public Hall, in the photograph, is at least accessible and is used by a set of people belonging to the South Indian Athletic Association. Designed for use by the public at large, it has seen a fair number of gatherings, both public and private, under its roof. With a combined seating capacity of almost 1500, split across two levels, Victoria Public Hall was used for balls, stage performances and public meetings; all one had to do to hire the Hall was to persuade the board of trustees managing its affairs that the purpose was related to "moral, social and intellectual welfare" or was "rational recreation".

The building still looks grand from the outside, but the core is rotten. The stairs leading up to the first floor threaten imminent collapse, while the ones going up the tower have already carried out that threat. Designed by Robert Fellowes Chisholm - who had also designed other grand buildings like those of the College of Arts and Crafts, the Senate House of the University of Madras and the Chennai Central Railway Station - and built by Namberumal Chetty, the masonry of the building looks sturdy enough to spring back to life. If you take a look through the open windows, you can see the coloured glass panes above the inner doors, giving you a hint of how wondrous it must have been in its heyday.

Maybe those days might yet come back, with the Corporation of Chennai having taken over this property from the board of trustees. Though they have brought down the perimeter wall - and the old sign saying "Victoria Town Hall", I hope they will restore this building in such a way as to open it up again for public performances!

This is my 500th post about Chennai (Madras) on this blog!