Madras - 'Namma Chennai Chance-illa'
Madras (now Chennai) is all set to celebrate its 375th birthday on 22nd August. As the D day is around the corner, there are celebrations and festivities galore, everywhere and for everyone. I have been following the Times of India ‘Namma Chennai Chance-illa’ campaign for some time now and here is a list of some of my chanceilla moments in Madras. Having spent the first 25 years of my life in this ancient city, I have witnessed things and activities unique to Madras. Madras is a place for all and has something to offer for all, whether you are extremely conservative or ultra-modern.Irrespective of whether you were brought up in the urban hifi part of Madras or did your schooling in a convent, you couldn’t possibly have missed the Tanglish words which are an indispensable part of the Madras vocabulary. Just adding a ‘la’ to your English or a ‘fy’ to your Tamil qualifies you to pass off as an undisputed Madrasi. Words that you will never find in the dictionary like chanceilla, mokkai,