I come from the heart of South India – Tamil Nadu. Being born and brought up there, the fact that I am a malayalee sometimes escapes me. Apart from the fact that Chennai gave me my education and my closest friends, the city has taught me a lot and has made me the person I am today. Let me state some instances -
-The auto rikshaw drivers who taught me the art of bargaining, so much so that I shock the same kind in other cities who charge me half the rate for the same distance.
-The Tamil movies and their super stars/universal stars/mega stars, which taught me to appreciate good looks, drama, dialogue delivery (that comes to use during family quarrels), and some don’ts to dressing and fashion.
- The culture which engulfed me in its arms and gave me the opportunity to learn the language, some history, and ofcourse Bharatnatyam and carnatic music.
- The beaches and the peanuts for being irreplaceable elsewhere
-Satyam Cinemas – for value for money! all the movies and the great ambience that jus gets better by the day..
- Saravana Bhavan and the five other me toos that followed (that were equally good or better even)!
- The politicians who taught me that life is all about giving to others (no matter what the hiding agenda may be).
-T.Nagar which taught me the true meaning of claustrophobia to the extent of making me tolerant to any form of physical torture from my childhood
-And last but certainly not the least, the Tsunami which taught me to appreciate the importance of luck, as I recall escaping the calamity by a day!
Sometimes I wondered how it would be to move away from Chennai as I felt I would never be able to understand what other cities had to offer or enjoy my stay in them. Education gave me a reason to explore the city of Pune, which was a clear disappointment though my campus experiences will be memorable and close to me.
However, the exception was Bangalore, the city that I never thought I would love equally. The two months I spent there, was thanks to my internship, my friends and all the lovely eating joints we haunted! Bangalore is definitely a city I would want to explore more in the future!
