Happy Birthday, Madras !
I raise a toast to the city that raised me. Happy Birthday, Madras !
I have lived in this city since 1983. My earliest memories are of school mornings in KK Nagar at JRK Matriculation School, and later the long walks and friendships at Asan Memorial Senior Secondary School. Madras shaped my childhood, my habits, and the way I still look at the world. Even after all these years, the city continues to feel like home in a way no other place does.
The official name changed to Chennai years ago, but in my heart it remains Madras. That older name carries the weight of history, the salt air of the Marina, the quiet dignity of its old buildings, and the easy rhythm of a city that once grew under the British flag yet developed a soul entirely its own. Madras is not just a name to me; it is a feeling.
Out of that affection I started a Facebook page called My Madras. Through it I share stories of the city’s British-era past and gather people who still prefer to call it Madras. The page has become a small community of those who refuse to let the older name fade completely.
So here is my simple wish on this birthday: may Madras continue to hold its old charm even as it grows, may its streets keep their stories, and may those of us who love it keep speaking its name with pride.
Happy Birthday, Madras. Thank you for everything.
Madras Day (also called Madras Week) is celebrated every year on 22 August.
It marks the founding of the city of Madras on 22 August 1639, when the British East India Company obtained the grant of land from the local Nayak rulers to establish a settlement that later grew into the city we know today.
The celebrations usually stretch into a full “Madras Week” with heritage walks, talks, photo exhibitions, food festivals and cultural events across the city.