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Registered with the Registrar of Newspapers for India under R.N.I 53640/91

Vol. XXXIV No. 20, February 1-15, 2025

Regular Articles

The politicisation of heritage – a necessary evil in present times?

-- by Sriram V.

Last week saw the CM of Tamil Nadu laying the foundation stone for an open-air museum at the Keeladi archaeological site, another for a ­museum at Gangaikondacholapuram and launching a website on the Keeladi excavations. TN archaeology has never had it so good as far as Government support is concerned. But the heavy political overtones […]

Chennai mourns the loss of thousands of Olive Ridleys – Could this not have been prevented?

-- by Varsha V.

Recently, Chennai was left shaken by the mass deaths of Olive Ridley turtles whose remains were strewn along its coastline. News reports say that dozens of carcasses were found in Marina Beach, as well as at sites between Neelankarai and Besant Nagar, Neelankarai and Kovalam, and Napier Bridge and Foreshore Estate. The death toll is […]

Heritage Watch: A Bridge on the River Adyar

It was in 1728 that Coja Petrus Uscan built the first bridge across the Adyar. It was named the Marmalong Bridge after the village of Mambalam that was the closest settlement. In 1783, William Hodges executed a painting of the bridge, which is our OLD.

Short ‘N’ Snappy

– WMM

Airport adventures The Woman from Madras Musings was walking through the airport with a marked bounce in her step. She was feeling relieved at making good time; the city she was flying out from was an unfamiliar place, and she had no friends or family – or credit card, for that matter – to count […]

Giving Legal Rights to our Rivers

-- by Sriram V

How would it be if the Cooum, the Adyar and the Buckingham Canal and the rest of our long-suffering waterways and waterbodies were to sue us in court? The imagination boggles at the possibility. And yet, this may be reality if not tomorrow then certainly in a few years. If this were to happen, it […]

Civic body earmarks funds towards cow sheds to tackle stray cattle

-- by Varsha V.

To tackle the persistent issue of stray cattle, the Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC) has earmarked a budget of approximately Rs. 12 crores towards the establishment of new cow sheds and the renovation of existing ones. New sheds will reportedly come up at Shenoy Nagar, Tondiarpet, Madhavaram and Sholinganallur while renovation will take place for current […]

Our Readers Write

Munro Statue With regard to the picture of the statue of Munro published in MM, September 16th, 2024. Decades ago by the mid-1950s – this narration about the Munro statue used to be told: “A very proud British officer took his son – aged less than ten years – daily to see the Munro statue. […]

Short ‘N’ Snappy

– MMM

Song and Dance The Season of Music ended on January 1, and then came the Season of Dance. The Man from Madras Musings, very much a music buff, usually gives the dance performances a wide berth but not so this year. His good lady, also known as She Who Must Be Obeyed, has a great […]

December Music Season needs structural changes

-- by Sriram V

It has been around for 97 years, for the first such season was in 1927. Since then, this annual fixture on Chennai’s social and cultural calendar has had its ups and downs, more ups than downs – that is until the COVID pandemic. Since then, technological leaps and drastic changes in the modes of offering […]

The POSH Act – Let down in spirit, Application reforms the need of the hour

-- by Varsha V.

The Anna University sexual assault case has demonstrated yet again that our city and State have a long way to go in creating truly safe, inclusive places of work and study. A brief review of the facts – in December, an Anna University student was sexually assaulted on campus. She had been in the company […]

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