Mylapore ; Jacks at our backs!

After I saw the clusters of the tender jack fruits in Palathope (Mylapore) last Sunday, I think I have been looking at every tree in every bungalow I come across on my way!

It was a great scene at Luz Avenue today. The corner house, where we went to meet an old friend (later we came to know that he has shifted to a crowded place and to a gated community on the OMR), has many trees.

 A hearty scene in the heart of Mylapore.

One among them is this jack fruit tree!

I remembered the good old days we spent in Cuddalore, a coastal now now famous for its Silver beach. It was then a quiet place, though it was the district headquarters and housed a beautiful Collector's bungalow. Cuddalore is still a district headquarters, just that the name of the district is Cuddalore now and then it was South Arcot.

The summer vacations used to be fun with evenings at the quiet beach which used to submerge in the dark at around 6 in the evening and there were a very few roadside lights on way back home. 

So the most part of the days were to be spent at home.
And there was this sweet guest at every vacation.

 The jackfruit.
Appa used to get the best ones from Panruti, known for the sweet fruit.

I don't remember bringing a whole fruit to home after that, cutting it with gums all over the hands, drying up the seed for the next day sambar ...

Naturally it was a great sight for me after a long gap of 25 years! Sweet memories.

Swami Vivekananda’s gift to Madras

The first building of the Ramakrishna Math in Mylapore (on what was Brodie’s Road)

Ihave been a regular visitor to the Ramakrishna Math in Mylapore from when was a student in the latter half of the 1980s. The peace and quiet of the premises, not to speak of the meditative atmosphere in the two shrines, still attract me. I also like browsing in the bookstore which visitors can enter from North Mada Street facing the Kapaleeswarar Temple tank. The other way is from inside  the campus. The store offers subsidised books*, from the  short to voluminous reads. on a wide range of spiritual and  The Madras branch publishes two monthly magazines, the Vedanta Kesari in English since 1914, and the Ramakrishna Vijayam in Tamil for the past 92 years. Both magazines are printed in-house. The in-house press, set up in 1983, has facilities to print books of the coffee table type too. The library in the Vivekananda Centenary building in the other corner of the premises still retains its spaciousness and old-world charm. The present library has a 49-year-old history. Above the library is a hall where I remember listening to a talk by Swami Ranganathananda, who is known to have declined the Padma Vibhushan as it was conferred on him in his individual capacity and not on the Ramakrishna Mission. Sri Ramakrishna Mission’s Universal Temple in Mylapore Adjoining the library (there’s greenery in-between) is the Sri Ramakrishna Universal Temple consecrated on February 7, 2000, after taking a little more than five years and Rs. 70 million to build. A few steps below the ground floor level of the temple is the 600-seat Swami Ramakrishnananda Auditorium named in honour of the monk who arrived in a steamer on the shores of Madras in March 1897 to establish the Math first at Ice Houseand, then, at its present premises in Mylapore in 1907. An interesting aside about the name Ramakrishnananda is that, though Vivekananda (earlier Narendra) wanted to take the name of Ramakrishnananda, he gave precedence to his brother-disciple Sashi for the exemplary manner in which he had served their Master, Ramakrishna, and the way he carried on with his worship after the master passed away. Swami Ramakrishnananda’s 14-year stay in Madras resulted in the setting up of branches also in Bangalore and Trivandrum. Madras has the distinction of being the oldest branch of the Ramakrishna Math and Mission. The architecture of the Universal Temple, the face of the Madras math, so to say, is inspired by the temple in the Belur Math, the headquarters of the Mission near Kolkata, which took shape using the guidelines left by Vivekananda who envisioned a temple that would symbolise the openness of his Master, Sri Ramakrishna, to all faiths. As a wandering monk travelling through much of India, and parts of the East like Japan and China and parts of Europe and America, Vivekananda imbibed knowledge about the places of worship of different faiths and incorporated them into the temples of the Ramakrishna Mission. A few diverse architectural elements from various schools and regions incorporated into the Universal Temple, mentioned in an article by G. Venkatramana Reddy, the honorary chief architect of the temple, are: the gateway, which reflects the Vijayanagar style; as you step inside, in front of the Universal Temple you see a garden with a lawn bordered on all four sides by low walls illuminated by lamps like the Mughal monuments of Agra and Delhi; the main portico of the temple, is at a height of ten feet from the ground and is reached by a 16-feet-wide stairway supported by four ornamental columns rising to 20 feet, is inspired by the facade of St. Peter’s Cathedral in Rome; and the motifs on the columns are like the ones in Jain temples in Gujarat and the tombs and mosques of Gujarat. The symbols of the six religions which historically held sway in India are carved on the wooden doors of the temple as a sign of welcome to worshippers of all faiths. On entering the prayer hall, you walk into the nave leading to the sanctum where the marble statue of Sri Ramakrishna in a seated posture greets visitors. The nave divides the hall into seating areas, on the left and right. Almost at both extremes of the hall are the columns and, finally, the aisles, parallel to the nave, leading to the shrines of Swami Vivekananda and the Holy Mother Sarada Devi on either side of the sanctum. The portraits of 16 disciples of Ramakrishna, including one of Mahendranath Gupta, who recorded the conversations of Ramakrishna in Bengali, are fixed on the four sides of the two central columns on each side. The lay-out of the hall is influenced by the Buddhist chaityas and the open design of the sanctum resembles one of a church. Over the entire nave, the roof is shaped like a pointed arch ribbed and vaulted. Sandstone slabs from Rajasthan and white stone slabs make up the exterior of the temple which has just been freshly painted to coincide with the completion of 12 years of the temple and the 175th birth anniversary of Sri Ramakrishna. The central dome, or vimana, over the sanctum rises to a height of 102 feet. There are many vimanas and images of Hindu deities installed in niches around the temple. Greeting the eye everywhere around the campus are plants, shrubs, trees and flowers. In fact, standing on the side stairways on either side of the temple and looking at the colours of the flora, I’m reminded of the words of the Japanese poet Basho. “The temple bell stops but I still hear the sound coming out of the flowers.” The site of the first building of the Mission, which was raised in 1907, is of historical interest to visitors. Worship in the old shrine, consecrated in 1917, continued till 2000, interrupted briefly in 1942 when the daily worship was shifted to Uttiramerur during World War II. There is an image of the Holy Mother Sarada Devi on the ground floor of the old shrine. Having briefly volunteered at the charitable dispensary and diagnostic centre on the campus, I know it buzzes with activity centred on the 600 patients coming in the mornings. Only certain diagnostic services are offered in the evenings. Around 20 doctors offer different services at the centre which started in 1925 when retired civil surgeon Dr. B. Raghavendra Rao volunteered his help. The Ramakrishna Math and Mission has restored Ice House (Castle Kernan), which was leased to it by the Government of Tamil Nadu in 1997. In the nearly 90-year-long interim between 1907 and 1997, the Ice House served, among other purposes, as a Home for Widows set up by Sister Subbalakshmi, a teacher trainees’ hostel, and a working women’s hostel. Between the early 1990s till 1997, the Ice House was left to the mercy of the elements, having been partially abandoned and kept under lock and key. It took 11 months and Rs. 6.5 million for the Math to renovate and restore Ice House, preserving its architectural style. Now, as Vivekanandar Illam, it houses a permanent exhibition on Indian Culture and Swami Vivekananda. * Literature in the print and multimedia format can be ordered online from the Math’s website. T.K. Srinivas Chari: Madrasmiscelleny: Mar  1 -15 2012 Vol XXI NO. 22

Remembering Old Mylapore

What was Mylapore like in the 1930s, 40s and 50s? 

I certainly did not know it, not even during my occasional visits to Madras in those years — San Thomé High Road was the closest I got to it in those years — and, so, was delighted to get a word picture from a little booklet that recently came to me from a resident of East Mada Street who has lived there from 1933. 

The author, V. Kedar Rao, a former Deputy Secretary in the Union Railway Ministry, calls his reminiscences of the area The Mada Veedhis of Mylapore 

. Brief though the booklet is, it is packed with facts, particularly about those who lived on those streets — including several leading advocates and many Tanjore Maharashtrians — and about life around the temple. 

Those wishing to lead Mylapore Walks will find a wealth of information in these pages which perhaps could be got from vkrao1933@yahoo.co.in.

Two stories that caught my attention included one that made me regret how all of us forgot last year a significant event in Indian history that had occurred 125 years earlier on what was then West Mada Street and is now R.K. Mutt Road. 

Today, most people in the area only know of the biggest apartment block-cum-commercial complex in the area, its name Vishwakamal . 

But it was in the mansion (presumably of the same name) that was on the site of this busy hive that 17 eminent persons good and true met in 1888 and drafted the plan for a national Indian movement.

 The proceedings of that meeting and a subsequent meeting sowed the seeds for the birth of the Indian National Congress. Sadly, the plaque stating that bit of history vanished with the house when it made way for the highrise.

Dewan Bahadur Raghunatha Rao, who hosted the meeting shortly after he retired from Government service, lived in that house from 1831 to 1912.

 He rose from a Translator to the Madras Government (1856) to Deputy Collector, Town Police Magistrate (Madras), and Dewan of Holkar. Down the road from him (where the Nehru News Mart now is) was an even larger mansion, Madhav Baugh , home of Raghunatha Rao’s cousin and another participant in that historic meeting, Sir T. Madhav Rao.

 This palatial home of the Tanjore Maharashtrian who had served as the Dewan of Travancore,

Indore and Baroda between 1857 and 1882, passed on to his eldest grandson, R. Venkat Rao, who graciously lent it to relatives and close friends for weddings.

 And a wedding held there brings me to my second story, that of E. Vinayaka Rao, who celebrated the marriage of his daughter there.

Vinayaka Rao, the father of the author of the booklet I received, was a classmate in Kumbakonam of that mathematical genius Srinivasa Ramanujan.

 They corresponded with each other till Ramanujan’s death. Some of those letters from Cambridge are now in the Ramanujan Museum in Royapuram.

 Vinayaka Rao studied Mathematics at Pachaiyappa’s College and then taught there for a few years while studying Law.

He later became a leading advocate of the Madras High Court. In 1929, he bought a house in East Mada Street and named it Shivner , the fort where Sivaji was born.

 The family still lives at the same address though the old house was replaced by a new one in 1997.

Like other buildings in the area, Shivner was served with DC electric supply. When the supplier, the Madras Tramways and Electric Supply Co., a British firm, began changing to AC supply, Vinayaka Rao was one of the hold-outs — and the Company, because of contractual terms, could not do anything about it.

 The English General Manager finally came to meet Vinayaka Rao and tried to persuade him to accede to the change, even offering to replace the DC fans with AC fans. AC finally came to Shivner in 1943.

Vinayaka Rao, a founder of the Mahratta Education Fund in 1912, was also a founder of the National Liberal Foundation, a political party active till 1947, and was closely associated with the Servants of India Society, the South Indian National Association and the Ranade Library. Apart from advocacy, he was known in legal circles for his book on the Transfer of Property Act.

S Muthiah H 3 Nov 2014

Vignettes of villages: The making of Madras

Mylapore Temple 1906. Photo: Vintage Vignettes

Anusha Parthsarathy writes about the important areas of the city that were once prosperous villages

What was Madras before it became the city we now know? 

There is a lot to explore, if one decides to walk down the farthest corners of a city’s history. 

There were many villages like Mylapore, Triplicane, Thiruvotriyur, Pallavaram, Poonamallee and Egmore that existed in different forms before they melded into the expanding city of Madrasapatnam.

The Early History Of The Madras Region by K.V. Raman explores this area from the Palaeolithic Age.

 Much later, during the Sangam Age, we find that this region, along with modern-day Chingleput, South Arcot and North Arcot came under two divisions — Aruvanadu and Aaruvavadatalainadu.

 These divisions came to be called Tondaimandalam or Tondainadu, after the conquest of Tondaiman Ilam Tiraiyan, who lived around the same time as Karikala Chola.

In the Mackenzie Collections: A Descriptive Catalogue of The Oriental Manuscripts and Other Articles Illustrative Of The Literature, History, Statistics And Antiquities Of the South of India, it is said that Tondaimandalam was first home to the Kurumbas, or wild tribesmen, who are also mentioned in thePurananuru as being war-like people.

 K.V. Raman writes that the Kurumbas had their headquarters in Puzhal Kottam (modern-day Puzhal) and most of today’s Madras falls under it.

Triplicane

The greatest source of information about the ancient village of Triplicane comes from works of the Vaishnavite Alvars, who not just sang extensively about the 8th Century Parthasarathy Swami temple but also about the area, its inhabitants and their culture.

The vegetable market at Triplicane as seen in August 1981.

Chennai by Rina Kamath also reiterates this and adds that inscriptions from the temple suggest that the main temple was built first by a Pallava king in the 8th Century and later additions were made by the Cholas and Vijaynagar Empire.

 Although there is another school of thought that says that the temple was already there during the 8th Century and that the kings only reconstructed it. Triplicane itself was a tulasi forest with a lily pond. A whole village lived in this vicinity.

In K.V. Raman’s book, we note that Pey Alvar, a contemporary of Budattalvar, picturesquely describes Triplicane and its temple saying that the corals and pearls that are left behind by the sea, like bright lights, illuminate the whole of Thiruvallikeni in the evenings. 

This is where the reference to the sacred lily tank comes from, and also the reference of Triplicane being near the sea. If the town is named after a tank, it means that the temple and its tank formed the nucleus around which a town evolved.

Raman also says that a Sanskrit work of the 17th Century Viswagunadarsha by Venkatadhvari, calls Triplicane Kairavani.

 The famous Pasurams of Thirumangai Alvar, on the other hand, give an insight into the inhabitants of Triplicane. 

He describes Mayilai- Thiruvallikeni as a place possessing storied buildings. A Thennan Tondaiyarkon is credited for having built those buildings, rampart walls, gardens, pavilions and more. While the exact identity of the Tondaiyar is unknown, Raman contemplates that it must have been either Pallava king Nandivarman Pallavamalla or his son Dantivarman (who reigned over the area).

Mylapore

“Here rose the potent city, Meliapor Named in the olden times rich, vast and grand: Her sons their olden idols did adore As still adoreth that iniquitous band”– Cameons, The Lusiads (1572)

Mylapore was not just a town of peacocks but a city of many names. Marco Polo described it as a ‘little town’, John De Marignolli called it ‘Mirapolis’, a Catalan map dating back to the 14th Century called it Mirapor, Nicolo Conti (who visited in the 15th Century) named it Malepur, the Arabs called it Maila and Greco-Roman geographer Ptolemy wrote about an important place on the south coast called Maillarpha.

 Of the Nayanmars, Appar calls it Mayilappil and Sambandar calls it Madamayilai. Sekilar in Periyapuranam calls it Thirumayilapuri.

 In all, it seems that this city was an active ancient trade port visited by explorers and traders from all over the world.

The Early History Of The Madras Region says that Nayanmars, Appar, Sambandar and Sundarar, who lived in the 7th and 8th centuries, sang about Mylapore, according to the Periyapuranam. 

There are, of course, contentions as to whether the ancient Kapaleeswar temple that is situated in present-day Mylapore was located closer to the sea. It is said that the temple that stands now dates back only three centuries.

 K.V. Raman says that the structures of the present temple, including the kalyana mandapa, judged from the corbels, seem to belong to the late Vijayanagar period (16th or 17th Century). He also says that, even though the temple was visited and sung about by the Thevaram composers, there are no old inscriptions in the temple.

 Arungirinathar, the author of Thiruppugazh, refers to the temple as being situated near the sea. And so, Raman concludes that the old temple might have been abandoned due to encroachment of the sea.

An epigraph dating back to the Chola period states that Mylapore once had a street named Madavidipeerunderu.

 A 12th Century inscription mentions Mylapore as Mayilarppil (the majestic strut of a peacock). Post this reference, Mylapore was associated with peacocks. 

The streets are praised for their palatial buildings in religious literature. Raman notes that it must have been a rich town since he who sings about it spoke in glowing terms about the beautiful mansions and the general prosperity.

 Sambandar, in Pumpavai Padikam, talks about the festivals celebrated there. He mentions that the people of Mylapore would take a bath in the sea on Masi Magam (which is still observed).

H Anusha Parthsarathy Oct 22,2013

Kapaleeshwar Temple - Mylapore

The Kapaleeshwar Temple at Mylapore, Chennai is a real treat. You mustn’t miss a visit to this Shiva temple, which is a fine example of 8th century Pallava architecture. It's the oldest temple in the city. You can even find fragments of inscriptions dating back to 1250 AD. That sounds like a real long time to me.

There's legend behind this temple as well. Folklore has it that Lord Shiva pinched off one of the heads of Brahma so as to nip his pride. (He’s four-headed, remember... the Lord of creation…) In penance, Lord Brahma built a Shiva Lingam, known as Kapaleeshwarar, at this spot.

The quaint courtyard of the Kapaleeshwar Temple houses a small shrine of Goddess Parvathi in the form of a peacock, worshipping her consort Lord Shiva. Images of 63 Saivaite saints – the saints who worship Lord Shiva - called the Nayanmars adorn the outer courtyard. Each made in stone. But it's the gopurams atop the various gates that are alive with sculptures, painted in happy, bright colours. A roit of happy colours, I must say.

The temple has other shrines dedicated to Lord Ganesha, Lord Muruga and smaller shrines dedicated to other forms of Shiva - Annamalaiar, Sundareswarar and Jagatheswarar. The stone works are a marvel, detailed and intricate. You'll wonder how many patient hours have gone into the making of these sheer masterpices... Look at these two examples below.

Now here's a tidbit that might amuse you. Did you know thatMylapore has existed for thousands of years long before Madras came into being? I was surprised, because there is no beach near about Mylapore. Didn't Madras come to form as a little fishing village somewhere near Parrys? Or did I get my history wrong? Nevermind. Mylapore is still a treat.

There's something else. Apparently, the original 8th century Shiva temple was built by the Pallavas on the shores of Chennai. But it was destroyed by the Portuguese and was re-built as a church 300 years later. Guess which church? The Santhome Church! Now I'm not sure of this. Like I have already said elsewhere, I'm no historian.

Oh, and did you know that a shrine at the Kapaleeshwar temple with an image of a peahen (a female peacock, if you will…), is where Mylapore derives its name from? Mylapore is also called Maylai or Tirumaylai. That had me confused when I first came here to Chennai, about when the so called flying train used to ply only between Beach and Mylapore stations. When the train stopped at Mylapore, which is where I had to get off, I stayed on because the name board at the station read Tirumaylai!

Confusing, I know. But don't miss the Kapaleeshwar temple when you are in Chennai next. Right near the temple is this restaurant,Saravana Bhavan, where you must pop in after, for some divine vegetarian food. And some ice cream, if you haven’t yet tasted guava or jackfruit flavours.

But that's before you feed the fishes at the temple tank.

  Thanks Raju Rajesh Chennai 26 Aug 2014

Mylapore :Sri Karpagambal Mess

An evening in the heart of Chennai’s temple town, Mylapore. I walk out of the Kapali temple with a friend, cross Rasi (after pausing to admire the gorgeous silks on window display) and head purposefully to Karpagambal Mess. Outside, a blackboard with the day’s ‘specials’ – Ghee Rava Pongal and Ghee Bombay Rasapuri. And several other nei (ghee) dishes that sincerely promise to clog your arteries.

As you enter, first the gleaming packets of badam halwa and palkhoa on the cash counter and to the left, the aforementioned Bombay Rasapuri.

 The smell of ghee and sugar wafting in the air and the sound of feeble protests from the employees when we whip out our cellphone for photographs. Welcome to the Mylai Sri Karpagambal Mess, established circa 1953 and still patronized by Chennai’s mamas and mamis with a taste for the real stuff – keerai vadai, adai, rava khichdi and the more newfangled rasapuri type sweets. I am told the breakfast, especially the pongal is to die for.

 Also the thengai poli which appear and disappear within minutes some time in the late morning.

There is now a small AC room which we choose over the more democratic sit-where-you-find-space tables in the mail hall. 

But then, what do we know? And then, the mini orgy begins, the waiter looking at me disapprovingly when I firmly say, “podi dosai but no nei” ending with lukewarm (the only disappointment) filter coffee in steel tumblers.

But there is no escaping its laidback charm – the large well-lit paintings of the gods and goddesses covering the walls, the colourful displays of sweets, the cheeky waiters who rapidly reel out the menu and the old men in veshtis catching up on the day’s gossip.

 If you want to experience a slice of old Madras, then go here. Now, while it still exists.

Charukesi Ramadurai "s Article on Mylapore 26 Aug 2014

A food-walk with tradition - Mylapore

Apoorva Sripathi navigates the ancient streets of Mylapore, so that you know where to get luscious kozhukattais, brightly-coloured vadacurry, crunch sundal, and that perfect cup of filter coffee

Rayars Mess. Photo: Susanna Myrtle Lazarus

Rayars Mess

This hole-in-the wall joint, established 70 years ago, still runs to a packed house. There are queues and there are queues. The one outside Rayars Mess reminds me of the crowd of devotees snaking their way up the hill at Tirupathi. When I finally get a chance to go inside the cramped room that seats 16 people (clearly meant for eight maximum), and sample the fluffly, oversized and crispy vadais, I realise why this place is an institution. Since they were out of Mysore bondas, I settle for their sweet — a piece of gulab jamun that is cloyingly syrupy; but it rounds off the snack just as well.

Cost: Rs. 9 for one vadai and Rs. 12 for the sweet

Sri Karpagambal Kabali Sweet Stall

While this 30-year-old stall is not associated with the legendary Karpagambal Mess, it is known for its excellent onion samosas. Tiny and crisp, they are filled with deep-fried and slightly caramelised onions. In seconds, I polish off half the packet. The unevenly-sized mint pakodas (ask for pudina pakodas) are even more addictive. And the best part is they don’t leave irritating traces of oil on your fingers.

Cost: Rs. 20 for 100 gm of samosas and Rs. 28 for 100 gm of mint pakodas

Jannal Bajji Kadai

As the name states, this place is known for its delectable bajjis that are served through a jannal (window). Situated on the same street as the Kapaleeswarar Temple, you have to jostle past motorists, walkers, shoppers and visitors to the temple. A plate of four vivid orange-coloured bajjis, served with white coconut chutney dotted with flecks of green chillies gives enough zing to compensate for the bajjis’ blandness. That said, the bajjis are soft and satiate you easily.

Cost: Rs. 20 for a plate of four

Mami Tiffen Shop. Photo: Apoorva Sripathi

Mami Tiffen Shop

With Vinayaka Chaturthi round the corner, it’s no surprise that kozhukattais are the flavour of the season. The 44-year-old Mami Tiffen Stall captures this essence through its posters advertising the different varieties that are on offer (they even have special packs). The tiny white dumplings are contrasted with the sweet brown filling of coconut and jaggery — the result is a spongy burst of flavours in my mouth. The kaara kozhukattai is half-moon shaped and the filling tastes like rice upma. However, one of the highlights of the evening is the highly spiced podi dosai; the red chillies amongst the podi makes me reach out for water. And more sweet kozhukattais.

Cost: Rs. 30 for five pieces of kozhukattais and Rs. 30 for podi dosai

Kalathy News Mart

If it’s rosemilk then there’s just one place you need to be. Kalathy News Mart or Kalathy Kadai has been around for more than 85 years and it still serves refreshing rosemilk and goli and paneer sodas. Although battling the crowd to place your order is a tough task, the rewards are worth it. The candy pink rosemilk is simple, sweet and milky and is served with or without ice. The paneer soda has a faint smell and taste of rosewater that gives it a festive edge; it isn’t too fizzy and after all that I’ve eaten it helps me digest.

Cost: Rs. 12 for a glass of iced rosemilk

Senthil Softy Zone

Every area has a place for quick-eats and Senthil Softy Zone is Mylapore's. The place has flavoured milk, milkshakes, fresh fruit juices and of course, soft serve ice creams to quell the heat on a hot afternoon along with a variety of puffs (baby corn, cheese, paneer), samosas and sandwiches that are a hit among the young crowd. The mint lime juice, especially, is much sought after.

Cost: Rs. 9 for a glass of mint lime juice

Leo Coffee Mocha

No self-respecting food walk that involves a majority of south Indian tiffin and breakfast dishes is complete without a serving of filter coffee and it is fitting that I head to a place that is known for its coffee powder for more than a hundred years. Except that this kiosk is only five months old informs a woman behind the counter. Leo Coffee that is right next door has introduced several such stalls across the city. There is a blackboard that lists the several hot and cold beverages, written in coloured chalk. The only disappointment is that coffee isn’t served in davara-tumblers because paper cups make more sense. But that doesn’t take away from the fact that it is aromatic, dark and frothy — all the makings of a good filter coffee.

Cost: Rs 15 for a cup of coffee

H 24 Aug 2014