Madras day- celebrations all around the city for the city

The idea of Madras day was born when a group of Chennai lovers got together a few years ago to celebrate the city and its traditions and culture history. Though it’s called the Madras week which is celebrated from Aug 16 to Aug 23 the events starts from August to mid to September all around the city.

Chennai Corporation, the oldest municipal body in India, was established in 1688. Madras is one of the oldest cities.  Madras was the chief settlement and it was here that almost virtually everything in modern India - the first municipality, the first technical school, the first western style of Education - began. After that they grew elsewhere but the beginnings were in this city.

From one of the early settlements of the British East India Company to a vibrant metropolis retaining its cultural moorings, erstwhile Madras (Chennai) has come a long way. On Saturday, the city celebrates its 376th birthday. It was on August 22, 1639, when Francis Day, a colonial administrator, had struck a deal with a local Nayak ruler over a strip of land where Fort St George, which houses the Tamil Nadu legislative assembly is today. 

Chennai (the name was changed from Madras in 1996 by the Karunanidhi government), which is the capital of Tamil Nadu and home to over 5 million people so it is called the ‘Detroit of India’it is city with a vibrant cultural life and economic progress.  Chennai was first named Chennappanaikan, in memory of the Nayak’s father, and later its name was changed to Chennapattinam, from which the current name has been derived.

Madras Day focuses on the city, its history, its past and its present and the core team motivates communities, groups, companies and campuses in the city to host events that celebrate the city. Heritage walks, school exchange programmes, talks and contests, poetry and music and quiz, food fests and rallies, photo exhibitions and bike tours and more are the ways in which the city is celebrated.

Having so many reasons to love our city for its variety of culture, fashion, tradition, beach and what not? Anyone who loves the city is free to join so let’s celebrate our city.