somajm

Relationships have a tendency of descending into habits whether one likes it or not and then they become too difficult to break. And my relationship with Chennai was no different. Despite the fact that it was not at all love at first sight. Quite the contrary, in fact. It took me at least six months, excruciating ones, to get used to a place where there are only three seasons: hot, hotter and hottest. We landed in Chennai in the month of June. The very first place I visited was the tailor’s shop to chop off all my sleeves of all my garments. By 10 o’clock we would be jumping up and down with miserable perspiration rolling down our backs. Afternoon siesta became a thing of the past. The floor of the bathroom would be the only place of tolerable temperature. Besides the temperature, the other aspect of Chennai that makes Chennai what it is: aloof and mysterious, is its language. It is a juxtaposition of sounds, alien, to one not exposed to anything South Indian than the dosa. And the str...