Reg. No. TN/PMG (CCR) /814/06-08 Licence No. WPP 506/06-08 Registered with the Registrar of Newspapers for India under WE CARE FOR MADRAS THAT IS CHENNAI R.N. 53640/91 INSIDE

• Short ‘N’ Snappy

• Rules of attribution MADRAS • Another heritage walk • 2 pages of letters MUSINGS • Traders & artisans Rs. 5 per copy Vol. XVI No. 14 November 16-30, 2006 (Annual Subscription: Rs. 100/-) The rain in October – That always leaves a battered Chennai (By A Special Correspondent) he monsoons came to to death in an airconditioned TMadras that is Chennai in car stranded in water. the last two weeks of October. The authorities found that I have studied the satellite picture It rained incessantly for two the easiest way to drain the wa- and can’t see any rain clouds over the days and with that the city ter was by opening the man- house so, we can have the party threw up its hands in despair. holes and this only added to the One battered Chennai road – and there are scores more like this. (Photograph outdoors! For the residents of the city it hazards on the roads. courtesy: Nandanam News) brought back memories of the Under a cloud North Chennai and subur- Yet another problem was the not suited to the violent mon- The morning newspaper. last year’s floods at the end of a uprooting of trees. Several fell soons of the South is cited as bountiful monsoon. And, as ban south Chennai, in particu- Everyone has his pet reading pat- lar areas such as Velacheri, were across arterial roads, resulting in another reason. terns. usual, the administration was more chaos. Residents and tree- Chennai also carries with it caught napping. the worst hit. The Taramani Some start with the Sports Page; Link Road, which is used by lovers are of the view that the the legacy of several failed mon- some are inveterate headline- The worst affected were the authorities are themselves to soons when dry lake beds began subways and underpasses, most most commuters going to the readers; and others, displaying all-important IT Parks, was blame for the weakening of to be looked at as ideal sites for a rather Stephen King-ish ap- of them vital arteries for road trees by the covering up of roots encroachment and illegal prop- proach to life, begin with the completely flooded on October transport. While the ones at st with concrete despite a govern- erty development, to all of obituary columns. Vyasarpadi, Perambur and 31 , making it impossible for people to reach their workplace ment regulation banning this. which the administration In Chennai, during the last few Mambalam are old and it can be In addition, the planting of trees weeks, the average citizen, hav- argued that they need structural on time. (Continued on page 6) ing received the cheery news repairs before water can be that the ‘NE Monsoon is active over Tamil Nadu’, invariably drained, it was amazing that starts with the INSAT picture. flooding took place in the sub- To transplant – or Those ominous, distinctly swirly, way on Harrington Road, com- dollops of white bring mixed pleted after many years of inac- feelings. tion and a cost overrun of 30% On the one hand, the rains have over budget and inaugurated hen around 50 mature not? that trees grow and mature over arrived and water problems ap- with much fanfare a few months Wtrees on the Gandhi many years. Where a particular pear solved for now. For once, Mandapam Road in Kottur- tree affects the visibility of a ago. It was then announced that for instance. How best to go Nature and the Human Being puram were shorn of almost all road user and becomes a threat the subway had been provided about it, and whom to involve. are in sync. their verdant, shade-giving to movement on the street, it with two wells to drain rainwa- And, most important of all, a On the other hand, you now need branches, enquiries revealed necessarily should be removed ter, but apparently these had serious call for participatory de- a boat to leave your house. that the Highways was involved or transplanted if possible, BUT failed for some reason. cisions involving citizens in ur- Knee-high water in the living in ‘transplanting’ the trees to in a participatory manner in- room was probably not some- The roads were also very ban planning measures, at least within a campus close by. The volving local citizens/groups, thing architects or builders had badly affected. The very meth- in their own localities. root systems, rather shoddily ex- etc.” in mind. And the thought of ods used for filling up potholes A spokesperson for Nizhal, placing even your smallest toe posed, were peremptorily cor- An urban development ex- – loose debris and stones, with an NGO that speaks for trees in in that unhealthily coloured improper packing – caused big doned off with tape. About a pert feels, “The trees certainly liquid moving menacingly craters to open up. A classic ex- month later, they still remain in were not originally in the road! around your front step creeps you out. ample was the Madipakkam that state. l by But since it was the planners Around ten days ago, a who were responsible for their Those who have unwisely Main Road where the Highways SHOBHA MENON planned outdoor events in this Department had dumped gravel couple of other trees were re- presence on the road, the least season develop an eye-condi- to increase the height of the duced to stumps in front of a they can do is incorporate them tion, which forces them to gaze road to prevent flooding. The school on Besant Avenue by the urban areas, says, “Generally, into future development plans fixedly at the INSAT picture, gravel worked loose and the Corporation authorities. Offi- trees are the first casualties in a sensitive manner.” trying to convince themselves road got flooded, in turn caus- cials confirmed that five trees when roads are widened, sup- Technically speaking, tree that that minuscule ‘clear’ dot on the same road were to be posedly for increasing mobility transplanting involves “remov- in the middle of that thick, ing gridlock. Buses, in particu- white patch is positioned stra- lar, found it extremely difficult ‘transplanted’ at another loca- of traffic. But ‘traffic’ consists of ing a fully grown tree from its tegically over their chosen to negotiate huge chasms, re- tion. The move, however, gen- not only motor vehicle users but original location to a new one, venue. sulting in major traffic jams. In erated much protest from also cyclists and pedestrians. It for the sake of protecting the But Destiny, clearly in a mischie- addition, when water filled the schools and citizens in the lo- is possible to incorporate cer- tree.” This operation should be vous mood, draws its patterns potholes it was impossible to cality. While many felt the trees tain traffic/infrastructure man- carried out in phases after suffi- firmly – in black and white. gauge road levels and many a should not be removed, others agement solutions so that, cient pre-curing (treatment And not even the strongest, long- car and two-wheeler was felt that trees had no place on wherever possible, old trees that includes root and shoot est gaze can lure IT into chang- stranded. roads and had to go. The inci- need not be considered as ‘in- pruning, excavation of the tree ing even the tiniest cloud into a Chennai this year has also dent raised larger issues, and terfering’ with vehicular move- with the ball of earth, etc.) of bright, dry ray. been witness to the ghastly trag- not just about the five trees! ment. ‘Developers’ have to take the root system and canopy by Ranjitha Ashok edy of three people suffocating Whether to transplant or not, into account the crucial fact (Continued on page 6) CMYK 2 MADRAS MUSINGS November 16-30, 2006 Ever rising levels f you thought water and only hindering worship but also bient air? Most likely. And yet I noise are the only two phe- posing a threat to our architec- not many of the area’s resi- nomena whose levels are rising tural heritage. He has de- dents appear to be unduly in the city of Madras that is manded that original road lev- worried, judging by the atten- Chennai, think again. The Man els be restored. But such pleas dance at a meeting called by from Madras Musings, who usually fall on deaf ears. Namma Mylapore, an NGO, lives in a modest bungalow to discuss the issue at the which is about 40 years old, Rising manholes, too Srinivasa Sastri Hall in Luz. speaks from first-hand experi- MMM would like to think ence. he PWD and the Chennai that the rain may have had The road outside MMM’s TWater Supply and Sewer- something to do with the thin house is ‘topped’ every year, age Board (CWSSB) appear to attendance. But, at times, be in a fight to the finish when thanks to it being the route that MMM does wonder about it comes to increasing heights. many VIPs often take when public apathy. MMM, how- Shortly after any road is topped ever, was heartened to see the Armenian Church they go about busily on what- up, the CWSSB sends in its ever errands they go on. The local MLA in the gathering army of diggers, layers and mix- and note his concern over is- Breezing through road is never re-laid, in the ers and raises the height of the sense that the top layer of sues affecting the area. manholes. These form small An action plan was drafted macadam is never removed and platforms that not only wear replaced, for that would at the meeting to save the a challenge out car and two wheeler tyres, market from extinction and involve the road being closed but also pose great hazards, es- for long stretches of time, MMM hopes that something pecially during the rains when will emerge that will be ben- anohar Devadoss’s greet- Thiruneermalai, near Madras, thanks to the speed at which visibility is low. eficial in saving the ethos of Ming cards with their in the mid-1990s. But the our PWD works. After all, The manhole covers, sur- the area. MMM will be the exquisitely detailed pen-and- Armenian Church is an entirely when a road is closed, how do rounded by a small circle of first one to agree that the mar- VIPs cut across the city on ink drawings of historic monu- new work which his daughter concrete, stick out above the ket by itself is no beauty and Sujatha persuaded him to do their errands? So an alternative road surface, thereby ensuring ments this year feature the has plenty of problems in historic Armenian Church and despite his vision being what it plan that benefits all but one no water can drain through terms of drainage or sanita- was devised. Which is simply to them. These are worn down tion. But the proposed acqui- the stately old lighthouse in is now. slap on another coat of tar each over a period of time by the sition and construction is not Chennai, the charming Thiru- He took up the challenge, year on the road, thereby level- passage of vehicles on them. a solution. The real challenge neermalai temple, the impres- made many, very early morning ling the mounds and potholes When they come on level with lies in retaining the market, sive Thirumalai Nayak Mahal visits to the church with (or are they hills and wells?). the road, the PWD comes and making it a living, thriv- in Madurai, and the elegant Sujatha and her friend Joan and The tar has to be laid to the along and slaps another layer of ing public space with good street houses that are vanishing they helped him to “see” the height of the highest mound, tar. The CWSSB then follows civic amenities. which means the road level with its army of diggers, layers from the Madurai city. All cards structure 3-dimensionally. They MMM also cannot help are accompanied by Mahema made rough sketches to show rises by a few inches each year. You get the picture anyway. wondering as to what awaits The PWD is happy and the the Sultan Market on Devadoss’s text and, as usual, him some details and VIP is also happy. But what SHORT Royapettah High Road, near the sale proceeds go to took pictures. He about those like MMM who ’N’ Pilot Theatre, which has also service-minded institutions breezed through live in houses by the side of been suddenly emptied of all like the Aravind Eye Hospi- the work. these roads. Well, they get a SNAPPY its vendors and is locked up. tal, Sankara Nethralaya, A Staff sinking feeling. Something is rotten in the city SPASTN, among others. Reporter To paraphrase Wodehouse, MMM wonders why is that of Chennai. But not many ap- The street houses in in the past the road lay at the in most other countries man- pear to have woken up to it. Madurai and the Nataka bottom of the garden but now hole covers are always an Regulating autos Sala of the Mahal in Madurai the garden lies at the bottom of infinitesimal level below the the road. And when it rains, the ow that was something were done by Devadoss in road, thereby facilitating easy 2003/2004 for his forthcom- gardens are the places where all driving and also ensuring Nthat The Man from the rainwater collects and never proper drainage. Madras Musings thought was ing book, Multiple Facets of drains. It is worse when the road well nigh impossible. But re- My Madurai. He did the old gets flooded and pumps are Saving a market cent noises made in the news- lighthouse in Madras and pressed into service by the pow- papers suggest that the pow- ers-that-be to drain the water. t has all the makings of a ers-that-be are considering Most of the water floods the IJohn Grisham novel. A mar- legislation to restrict the num- nearby gardens and then it is ketplace that has been in exist- ber of passengers in such ve- upto the householders to do ence for nearly a century. Now hicles. Letters have also been whatever they can. Which is a ‘developer’ arrives on the sent out to the manufacturers very little, beyond praying that scene and, having enticed or to work out methods by ‘persuaded’ with his minions the sun comes out soon. which such restrictions can be most occupants, gets the ven- During the recent rains, made effective. dors out and then negotiates an At present, most autos, MMM went row-about and undisclosed price for acquiring found several others in the especially those plying in the the vast property. His aim? To city’s outskirts, appear to same predicament. The only build a (what else) shopping option for such people is to function on the policy of more mall, thereby choking the life the merrier, thereby taking in raise the levels of their gardens out of what is an already con- to match the road. That is all as many passengers as they gested area. can possibly hold. It is, there- well and good till the garden What sends a chill down the comes on par with the ground fore, no surprise to see arms spine of The Man from Madras and legs sticking out in all di- floor of the residence proper. Musings is the fact that not one The old lighthouse. Then what do we do? Raise the rections. In addition, the person in the know is willing to driver also has two passengers flooring, thereby reducing the disclose the name of the pur- height of the rooms? And on either side of him on the A big ‘Thank You’ to 22 of you chaser beyond referring to him front seat, holding on to dear where does it all end? MMM respectfully as a “big developer has visions of himself crawling life, reminding MMM of Ravi with interests in retail”. MMM Varma paintings of old de- We publish below the list of donors who have, between 16.10.06 and 15.11.06, added to into his house when the ground the support Chennai Heritage and its voice, Madras Musings, have already received. We is talking about the proposed picting Vishnu with two floor becomes a mere four feet thank all of them for their support for the causes Chennai Heritage espouses. makeover of the Thanneer- rather unsteadily perched in height. Then, when even thurai Market in Luz, consorts on either side of the — CHENNAI HERITAGE that is gone, we will shift into Mylapore. mythical Garuda. All this is the first floor. And build a floor Rs. 100: Chandrasekaran (Dr.) P.K. (Kerala); Desikan, M.; Perumal, (Dr.) T.M.; Citizens of the area need readily inviting trouble and fa- Prem Kumar, T; Ramachandran, K.S.; Radhakrishnan, M. (Thrissur); Kunneth above it. Presto! A highrise only to look at what has hap- talities. Worse, hosts of chil- (Col.) B.G.; Tamilselvam (Prof.) K. comes up to match the roads! pened to T’Nagar to worry dren are also ferried this way Rs. 101: Jayaprakash, A, Ravindran, Vasanthi Recently, a city newspaper about the future of Luz and between home and school. reported that a resident of Mylapore. Will the stretch of The faith that such users re- Rs. 150: Kailasam, S; Somasundaram, K Kancheepuram has lodged a Royapettah High Road from pose in their guardian angel Rs. 200: Chandramouli, A.L.; Narayanan, K.A.; Raman, G.V. complaint with the PWD that Luz Corner to Sanskrit College and general good luck never Rs. 250: Kris, Usha most temples of that town have soon become another Panagal ceases to amaze MMM. now gone below road level and Park, making it to the news for Hopefully, better sense Rs. 500: Kulasekaran, T.; Rao P. Baskar (Mysore) traffic congestion and high lev- that when it rains most of these will now prevail. Rs. 550: Ravi Sankar, L shrines get flooded, thereby not els of particulate matter in am- – MMM Rs 600: Ranjit Balan November 16-30, 2006 MADRAS MUSINGS 3

Church was nearing comple- tion. Here is perhaps the most Looking at Heritage beautiful tomb in the cemetery. John “Deaf” Binny, founder of Binny & Co. His tomb, in the Yet another ‘Binny Plot’ dates to June 2, 1864. Sir Vere Henry Levinge of heritage walk the Madras Civil Service who died on March 22, 1885. The development of Kodaikanal owes much to him. in Chennai The Right Reverend Daniel Corrie, who died on February 5, The St. George’s Cathedral Cemetery. here are several walking 1837. He was consecrated as Ttours in Chennai today. the first Anglican Bishop of the to whom the company owed work for some years by a daugh- Mylapore, San Thomé, Fort St. newly formed Diocese of Ma- much for its growth. When ter only less talented than him- George, George Town, Park dras, but held that office for Parry’s headquarters building self, Miss Isis Pogson. He died Town-Periamet, Classical Mu- only 18 months. His name is re- was opened in 1940s, it was on June 23, 1891. sic and Dance Heritage, Tree membered in Chennai through called Dare House. He died on The folder lists 25 gravesites trails in the Theosophical Soci- the Bishop Corrie Anglo-Indian May 18, 1858. with stories to tell. But it prom- ety and Guindy National Park Higher Secondary School. Norman Robert Pogson, ises to add more in the days to are some of them. Unfortu- Mary Patterson is the oldest C.I.E., F.R.A.S. was a most dis- come, as work goes on in docu- nately they are only occasional person resting in the cemetery. tinguished astronomer. He dis- menting every grave in detail. offering, and their volunteer She died at the age of 105 on covered twenty new variable It is to be hoped that the leaders need to team together to October 24, 1838. stars and ten new minor plan- cemetery on The Island of St. launch an organisation that will John William Dare, Esq., ets, four at Oxford and six at Mary’s in the Fort will follow arrange these tours on a more Senior Partner of Parry & Co., Madras. He was assisted in his suit. regular, year-round basis. That heritage-awareness in the city is slowly growing is evi- dent from other walking tours The memorial to Elizabeth de that are being discussed. Mean- Havilland. while, one more has joined the list of those in place. This one is and 8 feet tall is mounted in the called “A Walk Through the belfry on the Gateway and it Historic Cemetery of St. was the custom to toll that bell George’s Cathedral.” This walk when the coffin was lowered is also different from the others; into the grave. The large bell’s your guide on this tour is a well- deep resonant sound could be produced folder that contains heard throughout the city. not only a “route map” but also Apart from Cotton’s grave, a wealth of information. Some some of the other significant of that information is excerpted ones are of: Elizabeth de Havil- here. land, the wife of Major Fiott de There are over 700 identified Havilland, who built St. British graves in this 1.75 acre George’s and St. Andrew’s cemetery, where the first burial Churches. The land for the en- was in 1818. tire cemetery was earmarked by Many of the tombstones and her husband a few years earlier memorials have been damaged when the construction of the The restored Gateway. due to the ravages of the climate and some vandalism. Recently, with assistance from the British Association for Cemeteries in South Asia, London, St. George’s Cathedral Trust has DakshinaChitra at ten repaired and renovated these n December 14, 1996, a rainy day, DakshinaChitra opened at DakshinaChitra, was already on board, and much credit goes graves and made them suitable Oits doors to the public. We’ve come a long way since then. to him and his team for the well-managed centre you see today. for viewing. Those were the days of no tree cover, only sand for pathways and Vikram Parchure, a J. Krishnamurty educator and NID designer, Information about every a centre struggling to be built. I remember the euphoria all of us who was the director for the year, laid the groundwork for our grave has been recorded, with had when we opened. education programmes along with V.R. Devika, and craft devel- the help of List of Inscriptions on We were a small core group guiding those early activities. Gita opment activities. Tombs or Monuments in Madras Ram, Visalakshi Ramaswamy, Geeta Vasudevan, Maureen That first year was a year of transition. Our new staff inter- Possessing Historical or Archaeo- Murari, Kausalya Jagmohan, V.R. Devika and our active board acted closely with our volunteer/collegaues who led and shared logical Interest by Julian James members, M.V. Subbiah, Malcolm Adiseshaiah, Indira Kothari, their vision. and S.L. Rao, among others. The construction was going on in We note with pleasure the large number of craft workshops Cotton (Government Press, full swing. Laurie Baker was the mastermind and my guru, P.T. that have opened up in the city, many of whose owners were par- 1905). Cotton died on June 20, Krishnan, was prominent among those who helped answer all the ticipants in our craft workshops. We emapathise with the many 1927 and his is the very first riddles that construction brings; and, finally, Benny Kuriakose talented folk performing groups who have performed at grave viewed on the route laid came to help along with his team of masons and carpenters trained DakshinaChitra, and are happy to note that many have substan- out for the walk. in the Laurie Baker style. Benny, with his intimate technical tially more programmes today than before. We look back with Also restored is the Gateway knowledge of traditional construction and his architectural know- pride on our major international seminars, our village outreach to the cemetery, which was how, got us moving so we could finally open our doors. programmes, our new Arts Management Internship Diploma completed in 1832. It is on Phew! We all felt great! Twelve years of preparation docu- programme now in its second year, our education programmes, record that in the early days mentation, school programmes, object collections, fund-raising architectural and craft workshops, and on our budding foray into when the congregation was and building had gone into this day. The next morning was some- contemporary art with artists’ camps and exhibitions in our Art thing else. I woke up with the realisation that building was only a Gallery. small, the coffin was not taken part of the job and we now had to run and programme the centre A 10th Anniversary is a time to look ahead and a time to re- into the Church for the funeral for the public six days a week, 52 weeks in a year. We had a evaluate our vision and plans for the future. Our collaborative service. The service was con- vision for our educational and academic programmes as well as projects have been extremely fruitful and we look forward to ducted in a small chapel which how we wanted to help and promote both craftspeople and folk many more such efforts with other organisations, on both formed part of the Gateway, performing artistes, and create awareness about the importance programmes and seminars. Culture has never been static and that has been restored too. A of our architectural heritage. We needed staff and it was clear DakshinaChitra’s programmes reflect that. large bell which is 6 feet wide that except for myself everyone else had too many outside Meanwhile, we still need to finish our Karnataka and Andhra commitments to work on this 24/7. Pradesh sections as well as other projects. So in 1997 the real work began. Staff was hired and immense ‘OUR READERS WRITE’ efforts went into training. Charles, our present Admin Manager Deborah Thiagarajan on pages 4 and 5 4 MADRAS MUSINGS November 16-30, 2006 November 16-30, 2006 MADRAS MUSINGS 5

Hiding beauty roots confessed to by Maghera that their letters which can be acted upon has caused the confusion of sp-a-lling by authorities if found feasible. The rules of t is with a sense of “something right (a as in cat) and prnaaunciation of Reader Sundararaman’s informative Ifinally happening” (MM, Septem- avery alphabetic latter by the and appealing letter was well appre- ber 16th) that I write this letter. My Thaamils who say yell yem yen for al ciated by readers including the father, the late Samuel J. Prabhakar, Nothing seems to be in am an... Editor of Aurobindo Action. But the attribution in his own small way had been fight- These are only a couple of points I reader wants such writers to take up ing this very same battle for many, have excerpted here for the purpose the question of demolishing old many years. Unfortunately, we will of immediate response, taken from a homes and building new flats at Neeti its right place Writing in The Chronicle tend to facts, ideas, or general never see his battle won, but I believe veritable thesis by me that has been Veerassmi Street, etc. l plot lines, yet the copyright laws it is the fight of individuals which of Higher Education, going round the intern-a-t. It is a The other reader has taken ecently, we have been receiving innumerable mutely, from our Metro bus or while acrobatically tell us that the right to create WILL make a difference – slowly but compendium of the ‘diversity in unity exception to the frequent appearance U.S.A., on the issues surely. Rvisitors from the USA, Holland and Finland at steering our two- or four-wheelers. Do we at least raised by Kaavya Viswa- derivative works – for example, (!) of Indian English pronunciation - of letters from only a few writers and the beautiful L&T campus and at the Holck-Larsen drive in the right lane what’s that? Everyone is zip- The particular hoarding, the re- covering pan-national cases, e.g. the so wants them to take a sabbatical nathan’s book, Deborah a movie from a novel – belongs Centre (Museum) here. For most of them, this has ping in the wrong lane, causing traffic snarls. Pedestri- Remembering moval of which he had been fighting retroflex ‘L’ of the Southern ‘tabLe’, from writing. Surely writers who have exclusively to the author. Copy- been their first visit to India and to Chennai. ans everywhere seem to be jumping over 3-foot stone- R. Gerhardt of the Univer- for, is the one at the junction of Pan- ‘circLe’ and ‘cycLe’ vis-à-vis the something pertinent to say about sity of North Carolina right laws provide broad protec- theon Road (coming from Handloom wall kerbs instead of using subways or over-bridges. tion for authors and publishers by Northern ‘tabal’, ‘circal’ and - listen important subjects or who offer inter- Some of them were students of Civil Engineering Commerce has developed to such an extent that there makes several points that House) and the left turn into Casa carefully - ‘saa-ee-kal’ — the esting thoughts on the themes of who had come on a study tour called ‘Rising India assuming that their work will not Major Road. It has blocked the view is a flower/vegetable vendor, dosai cart, cycle puncture are valid even in India. RKN and MKT ‘cawkanut oayil’ relishing pewer Madras Musings deserve a place in its Study Tour’. As a proud Indian, I sought their views shop, motorbike service outlet, Murugan provision or be copied without compensation, of the beautiful old Art Gallery for This feature only Kairalites saying ‘soarry I am lait’ as columns. It is the subject, not the on the country and the city – and matters that sur- cigarette shop, almost right outside every home! recently reached us yet they still permit fair use, such many years. The ‘new’ landscaping of they pick up the plait at a dinner writer that is material. prised them. They liked the hospitality, were amazed as copying excerpts for criticism, tall trees and high compound wall has meeting the Kannadigas who are If you go through the letter col- at the cultural diversity, the growth in infrastruc- While Netas look at the vote banks and the babus through the American done the same (especially for pedes- Information Center, comment, or parody. Trying to indignant at the Cal-i-culated harms umn of any newspaper or magazine, it ture... But soon there was a big ‘BUT’ which made seek ‘copy-book’ solutions within their dusty files, no trians)! So much for aesthetics! a very large hole that drained off all the words that Chennai. define the scope of fair use can done againest them by the neighbours will be found that the names of some one wishes to remedy the situation or has a will to be a maddening endeavour, but Sabita Currimbhoy (it is neighbourers in Punjab) the writers appear frequently. It is not had appreciated India. clean up the city – except the team from ‘Onyx’, which Telugus, the Uriyas and the UP- anybody’s fault that some want to tirelessly engages itself in cleaning up a part of the hy do smart students we would serve our students well 2/157, Karikattu Kuppam “IN CHENNAI, THERE SEEMS TO BE NOTH- by at least alerting them to the Muttukad Village 603 112 wallahs laughing at the Malayalees write and others don’t. ‘Culture Capital of India’. W commit plagiarism? Why saying seero for jeero - the number ING IN ITS RIGHT PLACE” THEY LAUGHED. known ends of the spectrum, to M.R. Pillai Apart from realising that ‘Cleanliness is next to would a top high school writer – What’s in a name? they were taught in their iskools and I sought clarification on this ‘across-the-baord’ so accomplished that she would give them some compass to guide collezes. H 64/3, Central Avenue Godliness’, shouldn’t we also be aware that every over- dampener. seas visitor should leave our shores as a Brand Ambas- eventually attend Harvard – them in determining when and hat’s in a name, MMM asked Sahree there iz no space here for Korattur how they may use another’s con- Wa few weeks ago. Indeed, how even mentioning the cap-a a - bilities Chennai 600 08 Their answer was quite obvious to us all We see sador for India? But what we’ve done is to successfully commit professional suicide by come no political party has come for- it every day, and have developed such a high toler- paint a soiled image of our city and the nation. Are we publishing text copied from an- tent. of the vhery knowledgeable Maha- Should we – or not? We should not expect our stu- ward to rename the Buckingham rashtrians, of the snake-bar visiting ance level to it that we ignore it. right in calling ourselves Singara Chennai or, for that other author’s popular novel? In R.K. Narayan M.K. Thiagaraja Bhagavathar matter, using this prefix for any other Indian city? dents to absorb these complex Canal after a local political leader! behnkers of Amdavad, let alone the read with interest the article reading the gotcha press cover- Perhaps if the name were to be “JUST LOOK AT YOUR STREETS, AND ALL rules on their own. If we stop to s one whose family members have lived in Purasawalkam for 90 shupaarb language of the Best Ititled ‘From Madras Cavalry to ALONG THE RAILWAY TRACKS THE FILTH (We in our family ensure that no litter is thrown age on Kaavya Viswanathan’s changed to “EVR Periyar Canal”, we th Ayears and had known well both the renowned author R.K. Narayan Vengalies – Oh God I seem to have Scotland Yard’ (MM, October 16 ). out of the window – at home, or in car, bus or train. novel How Opal Mehta Got look at our cultural environment might possibly see some improvement IS EVERYWHERE. EVERYTHING IS IN THE through the eyes of Ms. and the famous Tamil film star M.K. Thiagaraja Bhagavathar, may I treepped - that was just a shleep of Disappointingly, there is not much WRONG PLACE IN YOUR COUNTRY. WHY?” Every bit of the junk and refuse has its own rightful Kissed, Got Wild, and Got a Life, to the canal. the toang! relevance to Madras except that Sir Viswanathan and her peers, we suggest that Government honour them by installing statues in their place and we wait till we come across a garbage bin. I can’t help wondering how honour at Purasawalkam? Why Purasawalkam? Ranjit Balan I am assuring hereby that I vill be Edward Bradford served the Madras There are no pavements, as they are dug up for Is that really tough?) We should start penalising every will see that the concepts of pla- days or vendors and shopkeepers have ‘confiscated’ much Ms. Viswanathan knew M-103/20, 30th Cross Street yable to be submit-ting a full-ler pre- Light Cavalry for a brief period of 3 offender – issuing a challan for messing around and giarism and copyright are As a child and during his early school days R.K. Narayan lived at No. sentation, if so deemed fit by the years. Surely, the article could have them to serve as their year-round ‘sales-counters.’ As about copyright infringement 1, Vellala Street, his maternal uncle’s residence. His maternal uncle, Besant Nagar, Chennai 600 090 collecting fines instantly. NGOs should rope in many and plagiarism while she was counterintuitive. Copying is es- yesteemed edit-tor, but after the been shelved rather than published. a result, pedestrians fight with danger on the roads, as unemployed youth to be licensed collectors of such sential to learning. When a tod- T.N. Seshachalam, was himself a Tamil scholar and ran a publishing The Indian ways yelections. cycles, two-wheelers and four-wheelers occupy no writing. We don’t send our high- house. His son, T.S. Sridhar (aka Bharanidharan and Marina) was also S. Raghavan official fines (they can get a commission on their col- dler repeats a word, it is great Note: All the ‘spelling mistakes’ parking zones; vehicles keep coming in the wrong lection of fines). school basketball stars onto the a well-known Tamil writer and wrote on religion and theatre. ide “I’ll keep practising my Tamil Ranga Flats cause for celebration. That same are INTENDED! direction, crossing yellow lines without a qualm. Steel court without teaching them the Vspelling ’yem, yay, gee, haich, 33, Gangai Amman Koil Street Every stretch of road/area has a ward administra- child will learn to write by copy- Narayan’s autobiography, My Days, and Sridhar’s Chinna dividers, more intent on advertising the local saree rules of the game, but I fear that Vayathiniley cover life in Purasawalkam vividly, describing the streets yee, yar, yae’!” — Devi Maghera ‘Nahupoleon’ Valasarawakkam shop than a message from the city police, often jut tion head. He should be made accountable for any- ing letters seen in print. In high th too often we send our high- and establishments near their Vellala Street homes. Narayan’s Vellala (MM, September 16 ). Chennai 600 085 Chennai 600 087 hazardously into the road. Unwanted pipes, bricks, thing amiss (from an open drainage to a sewer remnant school and college, students My ribs continue to be tickled, as left uncleared on the road). Three warnings and he school writing stars to college Street residence was in those days a busy place, with several visitors daily EDITOR’S NOTE: Point made. EDITOR’S NOTE: We agree construction debris, and posters or cowdung cakes memorise their lecture notes and must be those of many non-South should go home. and graduate school without calling on T.N. Seshachalam, whose publishing house ‘Kala Nilayam’ Shall we leave it at that? with reader Raghavan’s point regard- on telephone junction boxes – they are all ugly sights teaching them the academic redeliver this content back to was a flourishing establishment. I feel the name Vellala Street can be Indians, to hear or read such time- every day. Not to talk of the people’s passion to in- honoured, good-natured jibes. Let me ing the lack of content about Madras V.S. Ramana and legal rules that govern their professors on exams, often with- changed to R.K. Narayan Street without any difficulty, particularly as To write or not? in it. But was that reason enough to stall a deity, or to defecate almost anywhere and ev- out the expectation of attribu- there are only a very few Vellalas living there now. Most of their old add and subtract a point or two to erywhere. Head, Corporate Communications creative work. the above piece: refer to the letters of two re- shelve it? We’d like to hear from tion. The ability to repeat back mansions have been converted to big flats and there are many apart- other readers whether they’d like Larsen & Toubro Limited – ECC Division Ms. Viswanathan’s book was ments occupied by Jains and Marwaris in the street now. There are also Yae,yee, yef/yuf, hech (not Ispected readers (MM, September As if these are not enough, unauthorised cinema what they learned (generally th similar articles occasionally or Mount Poonamalee Road, Manapakkam inspired by two novels that reso- many commercial establishments. The statue of R.K. Narayan can be haich), yel / yul, yem / yum, yen / 16 ) wherein they had some com- billboards, political party hoardings, flag poles, cut- nated with her own experience: without attribution) is richly re- yun, wo / vo, and yes make up the plaints to make against certain con- whether they feel such articles have outs and buntings of leaders (yesterday’s and today’s Chennai 600 089 warded. installed at Kelly’s Corner, which can be made a roundabout. Medavak- no place in Madras Musings. & Chairman Megan McCafferty’s Sloppy kam Road, Branson Garden Street, Purasawalkam High Road and Kelly’s complete kin. And they are NOT tributions to your letter column. – so much for our love for sycophancy) compete for Public Relations Society of India Firsts and Second Helpings. She We encourage our students to Road join at Kelly’s Corner. An alternative site for the statue would be just Tamil; they are, rather, South One of the writers chose to dub Oops! the rest of the area. The cable TV revolution and readily admits to having read the recycle objects and ideas they the Otteri Road, Purasawalkam Road, Miller’s Road Junction, which is Indian — Telugu, Kannada, those writers who dwell on heritage broadband links have brought their own woes – we Chennai Chapter matters as “armchair heritage enthu- eptember 11,... Subramania have telephone wires, electrical connections, TV novels three or four times. Many get from others. Discarding pa- very near Vellala Street. Malayalam too. But nota bene, ‘yar’ for ‘r’ is NOT siasts” and too old. Once, they are at “SBharati’s birthday...” (MM, cables precariously trailing from pole to window to EDITOR’S NOTE : How about the members per and plastic in appropriate re- R.K. Narayan’s maternal aunt’s husband Dr. T.S. Tirumurthi used passages are so similar that the one of them. It must be Maghera’s an advanced age sans power and in- October 1st): Oops! That’s his death building. What an ugly transformation of the city of the Public Relations Society of India, Chennai young novelist was accused of ceptacles has become a routine to visit the Vellala Street house from his Nungambakkam bungalow. responsibility in our schools. Stu- fancied over-generalisation, like in fluence to take an active part in any anniversary! He was born on Decem- skyline! Chapter, launching a drive spearheaded by the plagiarism and copyright in- The area where he lived is now known as Tirumurthi Nagar. movement for protection of heritage. ber 11th. organisations they represent? dents create collages and sculp- the case of ‘yapple’ for ‘apple’ uttered As we begin and end every day, we witness these, fringement, and her public com- While Narayan lived in Purasawalkam during his early boyhood, by Amitabh Bachchan learning En- But what is wrong if with interest N. Balu tures from discarded items such ments about those charges re- M.K. Thiagaraja Bhagavathar was in Kilpauk (the Purasawalkam end of glish from Jaya Prada in what-was- and knowledge they give valuable J4, Adyar Apartments HIG flect genuine contrition and as milk jugs and magazines. We Orme’s Road) during the later part of his life in the late 1940s and early that film. It must be the pnjaabee and acceptable suggestions through Chennai 600 085 confusion. assign them to groups to share 1950s. His bungalow was in Orme’s Road just opposite Sylvan Lodge In college basketball, the rules ideas. We teach them that great and Bain’s School, a few yards from the Waddell’s Road junction. are not taught once during a writers recycled ideas they The bungalow next to MKT’s was owned by Govindarajulu Naidu, An outstanding chemist as educationist brief orientation and then forgot- found in other great works. A former Vice-Chancellor of Venkateswara University. Newtone Studios high-school student will learn on Kilpauk Garden Road was promoted by Jithan Banerjee (the well- ten. They are repeatedly dis- eyyadupakkam S. Gnana- scholar – a rare honour and a PhD with NSG as the super- and construct question banks, Review, published from Madras, NSG as the chief supervisor) was that Shakespeare brilliantly re- known cameraman), Dinshaw K. Teherani (sound engineer – Dinshaw’s cussed as the season progresses. Npragasam, Professor of privilege for college lecturers visor. which were scientifically tested with zeal. His clarity of the the only centre in Madras offer- cast the plot of Tristan and Isolde brother was the owner of a famous Irani Hotel on Mount Road), F. As we push young writers into Chemistry, Loyola College even today. Soon after his post- and validated. I have a faint feel- concept and articulation of ing this facility at that time. In to create Romeo and Juliet. She Nagoor (the famous art director), R Ramanathan Chettiar, and M.K. As a teacher of chemistry the creative arena, the rules of (between the 1950s and 1990s), graduation in Chemistry, NSG ing that NSG’s chemistry ques- credit-based education are the 1990s, NSG was awarded the may also learn that Thomas Thiagaraja Bhagavathar. If my memory serves right, the name Newtone NSG excelled, but many the writing game should get the Studios was suggested by Bhagavathar. who passed away recently, was a appeared for the Indian Civil tion bank was published by S important milestones in Indian Theo Mathias Best Teacher Jefferson could not have drafted colleagues within college and same attention. Plagiarism rules committed teacher, a strong Service examination and was Chand & Company sometime in university education history, Award by the All-India Associa- the Declaration of Indepen- The statue for M.K. Thiagaraja Bhagavathar can be conveniently outside found it hard to tolerate are not there just to deter literary chemist and, above all, a power- selected for the Indian Police the 1980s. Because of his Ameri- although, sadly, much of these tion for Christian Higher Educa- dence without recasting the placed at the roundabout where Barnaby Road, Orme’s Road, Miller’s his brutal frankness. He never thieves. They are codes of Road, Flower’s Road and Dr. Alagappa Chettiar Road converge. ful thinker and intellectual. Service. However, he rejected can post-doctoral experience have been forgotten by the tion, New Delhi, recognising his thoughts of other great philoso- accepted mediocrity. Even the honour designed to nurture aca- that offer, because he felt and also because of his deep people of the present. The key contributions to higher phers such as John Locke. We The statue will face the famous Ponniamman Koil. Bhagavathar was NSG, as he was fondly steel man of Loyola College, the demic integrity by teaching stu- he would need to be a ‘servant’ commitment to better teaching Educational Testing Service, education in general and to would serve our students better himself a great devotee of Samayapuram Mariamman. Near the Ponni- known, graduated in physical- late Rev J Kuriakose, principal dents to honour the voices of amman Koil end of Miller’s Road is Viswakarma Bhavanam, home of the (arising from ‘service’). Instead, in colleges and universities, NSG New Jersey (USA), which chemistry education in Loyola if we enriched these lessons with inorganic chemistry in the 1950s, between 1971 and 1983, was not others on the way to finding their community’s sangam. Thiagaraja Bhagavathar belonged to the he joined Loyola College as a contributed immensely to the conducts GRE and other similar College in particular. The world discussions about plagiarism and having studied with the then spared by NSG at several own. Viswakarma community. Lecturer in Chemistry. In design and development of col- tests across the world, recognised of education is the poorer copyright laws so our students doyen of Indian chemistry, the academic board and committee Copyright law cannot be un- V. Theetharappan spite of his outstanding lege autonomy – a ‘new’ thought NSG as the Chief Supervisor for today with the passing away of would understand the principles late Rev Lourdu Yeddanapalli. meetings. The most significant derstood without thoughtful re- Kasi Aircade, 32, VOC Street academic ability, for some in the late 1970s and early 1980s. Madras-based tests in the 1970s. NSG. that govern their work in differ- After graduating, he went to contribution NSG made to flection, because it contains Kaikkankuppam unknown reason, NSG never For several years, NSG edited This recognition was important Anantanarayanan Raman Valasarawakkam Georgia Tech, Atlanta (USA), chemistry education was to many contradictions. Copyright pursued research actively; only a nearly 100-year-old profes- because, outside USEFI Charies Sturt University, PO 883 Chennai 600 087 as a Fulbright post-doctoral research on examination reform protection is not supposed to ex- (Continued on page 7) one student graduated with sional journal Educational (Madras), Loyola College (with Orange, NSW 2800, Australia CMYK 6 MADRAS MUSINGS November 16-30, 2006

To transplant – or Transplanting tips (Continued from page 1) Aftercare to assist the tree to pecies amenable for transplanting: Those that have a natural start a new life in fresh sur- skilled gardeners under a Sfibrous root system, like coconut, toddy palm, bottle palm not? roundings plays a major role. and plumeria. Also those that have the capacity to produce ad- trained horticulturist. “The success of transplant- ventitious roots (that originate from any other part other than Many factors need to be con- 1.5 m) had to be removed (be- ing depends upon the age, the tap root) and aerial shoots, including the banyan, peepul, yel- sidered when severing roots of cause of machinery not being size, the shape of the canopy, low tecoma, maramalli, portia, lagerstroemaia, kassod, polyalthia, coral wood tree, and pungam . established trees, horticulturists available for transplanting the health and the species of the point out. It is very important them, the process being very tree; also climate, season and Trees that rarely respond well: Gul mohur, copper pod, rain to know the location of various expensive, anticipated poor sur- time (of the day) of transplant. tree, Indian nedlar and neem. kinds of roots. Key factors to vival rate, etc.), 145 were to be If a tree is very old, say, 40/50 Soil samples of location need to be checked before transplant- successful results from severe transplanted. The process in- years, it will generally be huge ing. Calcareous soil with a high pH value is inadvisable for relo- root pruning include: a tree spe- cluded pitting; rubber wrapping and have a defective trunk and cation. cies with adequate health, ad- so that at least 50% of the roots main branches. Cost and effort Post transplanting care is very important for survival. equate moisture in root area, were protected; and 0.2% root of transplanting will be very NOTE: A tree older than 20-30 years has a slower capacity healthy carbohydrate reserves, treatment of copper oxychlo- high and success rate low. Also to produce new roots, slower cell division and greater hormonal proper timing and knowing how ride, or carbondiazime, to avoid the transplanted tree will be imbalance. A tree with a trunk diameter greater than 1.2 m, is to judge a tree that should not any harmful microbial infection weak for a few years and hence not likely to prove a successful transplant. Hard wood trees (like be severely root-pruned. But are as fungicide. Before replanting, susceptible to damage due to tamarind, neem, vilvam etc.) are slow-growing, transplanting is the authorities aware of all these storm or even high winds. Its time-consuming and post-maintenance care high. the roots were dipped in a root- SM factors? ing hormone like indole acetic resistance to disease will also be very low.” The Tamil Nadu Road acid solution of 100 ppm. The a more sensitive plan. Why not, ported to have been prepared Development Corporation average cost was Rs. 3000 per The Highways Manual for instance, a pavement under and the Government was to (TNRDC) has been taking tree (mostly on machinery and brought out by the Highways the trees, and a service lane at constitute a Tree Authority in some tree-sensitive measures in manual labour). Within three Department in 1957 includes a the corner? It is time for holistic specified urban and rural areas. its IT Corridor Project. V. months, white roots formation section on tree issues. But it was management solutions!” T.K. Initially, the law was to cover six Ramkumar, Manager-Land- indicated success and survival. last updated way back in 1987. Shanmugasundaram, Chief En- Municipal Corporations and scaping, TNRDC, says, The entire process can be com- Transplanting, a relatively new gineer, Highways, strikes a posi- was to be later extended to the “Though originally the idea was pleted within 48 hours using the concept, has not even been tive note: “The idea of incorpo- rural areas. The Tree Authority to remove 386 trees, and plant above method.” However, of mentioned. rating traffic/infrastructure in an urban area would include four times the number (as in- the 145, only 92 trees survived. A statutory rule of the management solutions wher- the Mayor, District Forest Of- structed by the Forest Depart- Elsewhere, relocation of 35 CMDA requires the Highways ever possible to save trees will ficer/Wildlife Warden, Honor- ment), we decided, in March- trees in the SIDCO office cam- Department to get permission definitely be considered. And ary Tree Warden, Corporation April 2005, to realign the roads pus, at the Kathipara Junction, from the Corporation Commis- we will be happy to work with Commissioner or the Chief Ex- to accomodate 67 trees in the necessitated by the flyover con- sioner to remove trees for wid- NGOs who can share their re- ecutive Officer, besides a Coun- central median (all these were struction, has been a complete ening roads, subject to the sources in this field.” cillor. Carrying out a census of planted in 1962 by the late vet- success. All 100 trees trans- condition that they are trans- Prof. P. Dayanandan, for- the existing trees and obtaining eran horticulturist Inder Sen).” planted into the Army Canton- planted. Though the first expe- the number of trees from private ment Area four months ago on merly HOD, Botany, Madras The TNRDC’s Right of Way rience of transplanting for the Christian College, says, “It’s a houses, specifying standards for (ROW), of 41m, included ser- account of the Airport Flyover Highways was in 1993 along the the number and kinds of trees Project, have survived. matter of knowing which tree to vice roads, footpaths, and a ECR, no clear-cut guidelines transplant and at what age, so to be planted in each locality, planted strip. Fiftyeight trees in Organic farmer S. Natesan have been provided yet for the that threshold of damage can be laying down guidelines for the the RHS carriageway were re- says, “Before attempting to contractor in charge of the minimised. A Rain Tree is very planting and transplanting of tained after further realigning. transplant a tree, you have to transplanting. difficult to transplant. But a trees during the construction of Then came the transplanting is- have a thorough understanding A senior horticulturist feels, palm can be moved even upto new roads or widening of exist- sue: Where, When and How? of the science of trees, their “The trees in Kotturpuram 25 years. Wherever possible, ing roads were some of the du- Ramkumar says, “Institutions in anatomy, the function of the could have been handled better. trees should be transplanted ties prescribed for the Author- the area (NIFT, the Regional various components of trees, To minimise root shock and into a safe location, say, a park, ity. Labour Institute, Tidel Park the soil, the climate, the season temperature shock, such trans- where they can be monitored. While the Act is still to be etc.) all showed their interest in and the cost involved. Spraying planting operations should be The relocating authority should passed, the Corporations and saving the trees. Though 82 of water and cladding the tree carried out during cooler times, clearly indicate where the tree other urban local bodies have trees (more than 80-100 years trunk with water retaining fab- and when the ground is wet. It is being transplanted. We can not on their own tried to old, with trunk girth more than ric enhances the success rate. should also be in a sensitive, use this kind of occasion to gen- envolve a systematised tree phased manner so that the tree erate more tree awareness – protection code – that lays that is relocated will suffer less public announcement of the down sensitive guidelines and trauma and has a better chance species, where transplanted, in- provides information for OUR ADDRESSES of survival.” vite interested groups for view- everyone concerned with such A senior management con- ing/monitoring, publish infor- issues – for trees in urban ar- sultant suggests, “The trees mation about the tree etc!” eas. How many more trees will For matters regarding subscriptions, donations, alongside the road in Kottur- Back in 2003, a draft legisla- have to go before their protec- non-receipt of receipts etc.: Chennai Heritage, puram (that are to be trans- tion — ‘Tamil Nadu Preserva- tion can be ensured by the au- 260-A, TTK Road, Chennai 600 018. planted) can be incorporated in tion of Trees Act’ — was re- thorities?

For non-receipt of copies, change of address, and all other circulation matters: MADRAS MUSINGS, C/o Lokavani Hall-Mark Press Pvt. Ltd., 122, Greames Road, Chennai 600 006. THE RAIN IN CHENNAI

On editorial matters: The Editor, MADRAS MUSINGS, C/o Lokavani Hall-Mark Press Pvt. Ltd., (Continued from page 1) up from a few hundreds to 2000; trative Service (IAS) officers to 122, Greames Road, Chennai 600 006. turned a blind eye. These erst- now, it is refusing to grant take care of the flood relief work while lakes are the locations drainage facilities, adding to the in Chennai, but it was clear that No personal visits or telephone calls, please. Letters where the maximum flooding residents’ woes. whatever was being done was takes place, owing to the topog- In the meanwhile, by Octo- only a temporary measure to al- received will be sent from these addresses every st raphy of the area. Government ber 31 , with electricity failing leviate suffering during the couple of days to the persons concerned and you will in many parts of the city and the present floods. Unless a coordi- get an answer from them to your queries reasonably is now faced with a dilemma. Should it rescue those ma- fear of epidemics breaking out nated approach is organised be- quickly. Strange as it may seem, if you adopt the ‘snail due to contamination of tween the various departments mail’ approach, we will be able to help you faster and rooned or simply ignore them? In one particular case, residents groundwater, the powers-that- right through the year, it will be disappoint you less. stated that Government kept be swung into action. The very difficult for Chennai to Tamil Nadu Government set up look forward to the monsoons. – THE EDITOR quiet when the number of households on a lakebed went a team of ten Indian Adminis- November 16-30, 2006 MADRAS MUSINGS 7

vember 26 (at the Museum Theatre). Subscriptions and contributions November 25: Warli Paintings l Since Volume XIV, No.1 (April 16, 2003), Madras Musings has been Workshop: Make a Christmas priced at Rs.5 a copy, ANNUAL SUBSCRIPTION: Rs.100/-. Please gift with a difference! Deco- make out your cheque only to CHENNAI HERITAGE and send it, rate a terracotta vase with together with the COUPON BELOW, to CHENNAI HERITAGE, 260-A, this beautiful tribal art from TTK ROAD, CHENNAI 600 018 or C/O LOKAVANI-HALL MARK Maharashtra. The workshop PRESS PVT. LTD., 122, GREAMES ROAD, CHENNAI 600 006. will be conducted by Surya An ANNUAL SUBSCRIPTION of just Rs.100 covers only a part of November 19-25: To com- from the College of Arts (at Natarjan (at Dakshina- our costs. Corporate support and YOUR support will continue to be memorate the World Heri- Vinnyasa Premier Art Gal- Chitra). essential for Chennai Heritage and Madras Musings to play a greater role in creating awareness about the city, its heritage and its envi- tage Week, the crafts shop at lery). Till November 30: Chasing the DakskinaChitra will exhibit ronment. We therefore look forward to your sending us your contri- November 21-30: Vinnyasa Reality, a solo exhibition of butions IN ADDITION TO your subscriptions. classic and authentic heritage paintings by Rm. Palanippan. Collection, an exhibition of If in the coming year Chennai Heritage receives repeated sup- products. (at Apparao Galleries). paintings and sculptures (at port from those of you who have already made contributions, and if Till November 20: A Print Vinnyasa Premier Art Gal- Till November 30: A solo many more supporters join the bandwagon, we will not only be able exhibition by Cynthia of lery). painting exhibition show by to keep Madras Musings going, but also be able to continue aware- Chennai (at Dakshina ness-building exercises on on-going projects as well as undertake November 24: A Time for B.O. Shailesh(at Ashvita Art Chitra) Gallery). one or two more such exercises. Christmas: A dramatic musi- Therefore, please keep your contributions coming IN ADDITION Till November 20: Exhibition cal with a 40-strong cast writ- December 2-3: Mosaic Mural TO YOUR SUBSCRIPTIONS. If, say, you send in a cheque for Rs.500, of paintings by R. Sounder- ten by Paul McCusker and or- Workshop to give old ceramic we will treat Rs.100 of it towards subscription to Madras Musings for rajan, R. Mahesh, M. Deiva- chestrated by David T. Cly- tiles a new life! The two-day 2005-06 and the remaining Rs.400 as contribution towards the sigamani. A Sathish Kumar, desdale. It is directed by workshop will be conducted causes Chennai Heritage espouses. Sabarish, Swaroop Shankar Michael Muthu. Proceeds to- by Bo Shailesh (at We look forward to all readers of Madras Musings, and those and B. Dinakaran, students wards social causes. Till No- DakshinaChitra). newcomers who want to receive copies, sending in their subscrip- December 4-14: N. Murthy tions. We are indeed sorry we can no longer remain a free mailer. from Karnataka will exhibit — The Editor landscape paintings. (at the DakshinaChitra Art Gallery). CHENNAI HERITAGE December 6: Shapes, a jazz con- 260-A T.T.K. ROAD, ALWARPET, CHENNAI 600 018. cert with Wolfgang Haffner – I am already on your mailing list (Mailing List No...... ) / I drums, keyboards, program- have just seen Madras Musings and would like to receive it here- ming; Christian Diener – after. bass; Sebastian Studnitzky – trumpet, piano/keyboards; l I/We enclose cheque/demand draft/money order for Rs. 100 (Ru- and Frank Kuruc – acoustic, pees One hundred) payable to CHENNAI HERITAGE, MADRAS, as electric guitar. Wolfgang subscription to Madras Musings for the year 2005-06. Haffner is one of the drum- mers most in demand all over l As token of my support for the causes of heritage, environment Europe. In 2002, he formed and a better city that Madras Musings espouses, I send Chennai the Wolfgang Haffner Band eritage an additional Rs...... (Rupees which has now played in ...... ) more than 50 countries. (At Please keep / put me on your mailing list. Dublin at the Park Sheraton by pass - 7.00 pm.) Name : ...... Address: ...... The rules of attribution ......

(Continued from page 4) acters from those movies appear our students to the reality that Note: Overseas postage Rs. 550/year extra. Cheques for overseas on an endless array of products, sometimes copyright laws also postage alone payable to M/s. Lokavani Hall-Mark Press Pvt. Ltd.. All ent contexts. They need to such as breakfast cereals, prohibit copying smaller other cheques to ‘Chennai Heritage’. learn that they can still work clothing, toys, and video games. portions of a work. within those principles to create Most students do not know that It is quite possible – and I new works inspired by their cre- it takes hours of negotiation and believe likely – that Ms. Viswa- ative heroes. boxes of trademark and Senate House Conservation Fund nathan’s editors and advisers When the school day ends, copyright licences to make all l pushed her to write and publish The Senate House Restoration and Management Trust appeals to students are inundated with an this borrowing appear so seam- without first taking the time to all alumni of the University of Madras and heritage lovers every- infinite quantity of recycled less. The recording industry’s explain to her the basic where to contribute to the Senate House Conservation Fund which content in popular culture. lawsuits against students who principles of plagiarism and the Trust is managing for the purpose of restoring Senate House to They listen to music that uses pirate digital music may have copyright. Much of the alleged its old glory and maintaining it thereafter in the same condition. famous riffs from other songs. taught our students that Cheques should be made out to the Senate House Conservation copying in her work is not They read books that are turned copying an entire work can get Account and sent to the Registrar, University of Madras, Chennai verbatim lifting but the creative into movies, and then the char- them in trouble. We must alert 600 005. Contributions are eligible for benefits under Section 80-G recycling of ideas. The rules of of the Income Tax Act. what can be borrowed and Dear Registrar, READABILITY PLEASE when attribution must be given are complex and require I am pleased to enclose a cheque for Rs...... Dear Readers, vigilant attention. She as my contribution to the restoration and maintenance of As letters from readers increase, we are receiving more and more confessed to The New York Senate House. Kindly acknowledge receipt. hand written letters, many of them in a hand so small and illegible or Times: “I feel as confused as Name: ...... anyone about it, because it large and scrawled as to be unreadable. Often this leads to our Address: ...... discarding a letter, particularly if some part of it is unreadable. happened so many times.” It is so unfortunate to see a promis- If you wish us to consider your letter for publication, please type it with ...... ing young writer taken out of enough space between lines or write it using a medium hand, clearly the game because she did not ...... dotting the ‘i-s’ and crossing the ‘t-s’. understand the rules. My hope ...... Many readers also try to fill every square centimetre of a postcard is that this incident will space, making reading or editing impossible. motivate parents and educators I am an alumnus/alumna/heritage lover and wish the project all success. My college was ...... Please help us to consider your letters more favourably by making to remember that creative work them more legible for us. has its rules and, if they want to Date: ...... Signature: ...... THE EDITOR stay in the game, our students should know them. 8 MADRAS MUSINGS November 16-30, 2006

(Continued from last gation of religion or of relation- fortnight) ship. The great idea that keeps The traders and them together appears to be to he Government Oriental attain more dignity. The right TManuscript Library has hand claim exclusive right to published a book titled Idangai have a Pandal under which to Valangaiyar Varalaru (edited by perform the marriage ceremo- Dr. S. Soundarapandian) in the artisans nies; and they maintain that the which four different manu- left hand have no right, in their scripts have been given. marriage processions, to ride a They are: horse, or to carry a flag upon 1. Idangai Valangai Puranam Komuttis, pearl divers, different “The Left Hand consists of 4. The Tailors which there is an image of (D. 2793) types of hunters, Muththa- the following nine castes: 5. The Sandara caste - they Hanuman. The left hand assert 2. Valangai Sariththiram raiyas, Muhammadans, Kam- 1.The Panchalars, which are Mohammedan artisans a right to all these and appeal to (D. 462) mas, etc. include the five classes of me- 6. The Gujarati caste, mer- the copper plate already men- 3. Edangai Valangaisathi A treatise in German called chanics or artificers chants from that district tioned and they further assert Varalaru (D. 2751) Ostindien Seine Ceschichte Cul- 2. The Chettis, or merchants, 7. The Kamatigaru caste - that to them belongs the higher 4. Puthuvai Edangai ture and Seine Bewohner von who they say belong to Vysya people of the vysya caste rank, because the Goddess Valangai Varalaru (D. 3196) phillip van Mokern says that caste 8. The joiner or Jaina placed them on her left side, From these it is seen that there are nine castes in the Left 3. Weavers 9. Shepherds or weavers, es- which in India is a place of there were 98 castes in the Hand division and they are 4.Oil millers who drive their pecially of wool honour.” Right Hand division and 98 in hunters, weavers, merchant mills with two bullocks 10. Potters James F. Kearns concludes, the Left Hand division. chettis etc., and in the Right 5.The Gollur caste - people 11. Washermen “It is difficult to say what the Valangai Sariththiram (D. Hand division are potters, who are employed to carry 12. Palankeen bearers origin of the division was, but it 462) was written by Vedanayak washermen, palanquin bearers, money 13. The Padma-Shahalya- does appear to have been Sastry, a Christian convert, at a sect of Muhammadans, etc. 6. The Palvanlu caste vadu caste caused by some person or per- the request of Colonel Colin The Indian Antiquary of 7. The Palavantu caste - both 14. The Barber caste sons who were strangers to Mackenzie, who was respon- 1876, on pages 353 and 354 cultivators, but not of 15. The tank diggers Southern India; and from the sible for codifying the caste sys- 16. The painters fact that Muhammadan artisans tem in South India. (During his 17. The Gullaru caste, people form a portion of the right hand time, a massive team of who herd cows and buffa- division, we may conclude that draughtsmen and illustrators l by K.R.A. Narasiah loes it cannot boast of a very great collated material researches on 18. The Whalliyaru caste, who antiquity. These Muhammad- historic architectural sites, are the warriors of this di- ans were a necessity to the right Hindu caste customs, folk tales, vision; they commonly hand because in time of fighting plant life and their various re- talks about the LH and RH Karnataka speak of themselves in the no Panchalar would work for gions.) According to this study, castes. The correspondent, 8. Hunters Tamil country as them.” the valangai people are Vellalla James F. Kearns (an S.P.G. mis- 9. Tanners and shoemakers. Valangais, but are the well- However, during the rule of and all castes which are with sionary) states, “In the village of “The Panchalars command known Pariahs. the Company in Madras, the them. Edangai or Left Hand Sathur Periil, there reside a the entire body, but the tanners “The origin of the division of Left Hand castes were the trad- caste comprises Kammalars and large number of Panchalars or and not their warmest support- the Hindus into right and left ing communities and the Right all those castes that are with five classes of mechanics, who ers in all difficulties, because in hand is overlaid with fable. The Hand castes were artisans. The them. claim their descendency from matters of dispute they are very oldest Hindu account attributes heads of the divisions were use- According to these docu- Viswakarma and call them- adroit. it to the Goddess Kali, at the ful to the English for their con- ments, some of the known selves Viswa Brahmins, affixing “The Right Hand caste con- founding of Kancheevaram, trol over the other natives. castes in RH division were: ‘acarya’ to their names; they sists of 18 castes: and it is said that the Pagoda While the glossary of Edgar Chettis, Vellalar, Kalimpu also wear the thread. They not 1. The Bangaru caste – this there contains a copper plate, Thurston does not specify the chettis, Telungu chettis, only set the claims for them- embraces many occupa- having upon it an inscription, LH and RH castes, Maclean in Malumi, Malayamans, Maravar, selves but for all the Viswa- tions and many Hindu that accounts for this division of his glossary has stated (Vol III Tuluvar, Malayalar, Ampattar, karmas of the South. They per- castes. They are mainly castes. Both sides refer to this Glossary page 1036-37) that the Kollan, Thachchan, Thattaan, formed their functions with one traders or shopkeepers plate but neither has produced disputes were centred on Kalthachchan, Kuyavar, Naavi- of their men acting as the priest; 2. The Wodigaru caste, the it, and therefore its existence “Conjeevaram where there are than, etc., and the LH division they opposed the Brahmanas”. Sudra cultivators may be doubted. to this day special halls for both comprised, among others, the He also quotes a German 3. The oil millers who drive “The castes of which both the parties.” following known castes: Brah- book and says the castes were their mills with but one sides are composed are in no mins, Vanniyas, Hill kuravas, divided thus in Seringapatam: cow way bound by any mutual obli- (Concluded)

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