No Country For Ambulances

Something happens to Chennai at around 6 in the evening. As though someone rang a giant school bell over the city, students, workers, teachers, parents and kids dash out onto the street, and simultaneously rush home. And like most people, I ended up in the passenger seat of a car, peering out at the endless pair of glowing red backlights in front of us.

Just as I was about to rant about the traffic, a faint wail caught my ear. I strained for a moment, until it became louder. An ambulance siren. My friend glanced at the rear view mirror and chuckled, perhaps more out of sympathy than apparent sadism. “That guy is screwed,” he remarked.

The Chetpet Story

A rush of wind. Bustling crowd. Screeching rails.

That's all I remember of the first time I used the Suburban train in Chennai.

Over the next few weeks, my white-knuckled grip on the overhead railing loosened; my posture slackened; I finally took my eyes off the entrance of the compartment.

I looked around, and noticed The Chetpet Story for the first time...

'Tamil Mattum Pesungu'

 The following is merely my personal observation, and not in any way intended as a slight against any particular group or community.

While glancing through an edition of The Hindu on a sweltering Sunday afternoon, I happened to read a small article. Nothing much, just about how the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, M. Karunanidhi had instructed all the Civil Service officers in the State to prepare documents in Tamil.

Two thoughts crossed my mind.

Is This Seat Taken?

 I got my first culture shock within three weeks of reaching Chennai. I know, it was pretty exciting. My cousin and I decided to have dinner, one Sunday, from National Durbar, a restaurant opposite the Chennai Central Railway station.

It’s a good restaurant, populated by middle class people, and normally extra busy on weekends. As a result, we arrived and saw that all the tables were occupied. I sighed, and decided to hang around for a little while longer. You know, just in case anyone suddenly swallowed whatever he was eating, and decided to make way for me.

The New Way To Hangout

This is part of a new phase in Laptop Diary, since for the next three years I'll be in Chennai. Hoping to revive the blog with stories of my college life. Let me know what you think....

There is a good chain of juice shops in Chennai, called ‘Fruit Shop’. Trust me, the juices are better than what the generic name suggests. It’s a great place to hang out, or just grab a drink to go.

One evening, a few friends and I decided to gather there. Guys dropped by in twos or threes, and soon, about ten of us were sitting around the small shop, ordering our usual drinks. Once that was done, we began talking among ourselves about nothing in particular. It took me about ten minutes, but I finally realised that something was odd.