Good morning, Chennai!
☁️ Today’s weather: High: 34 ℃ | Low: 24 ℃ | Cloudy with a chance of some rain.
🧐 Did you know? The Pallikaranai wetland is the only surviving wetland ecosystem in the city of Chennai.
🎭 Mixing hope, politics, and art
The cultural festival, Textures of Traditions, brings together a diverse range of artists for an inclusive event.
What’s it about? In 2023, the two-day cultural event, Textures of Traditions, brought together artists from different disciplines to showcase their talents. There’s now a documentary film that celebrates the festival that showcases cultures from across India.
- The heart of the 40-minute film is culture, art, and politics, much like the Textures of Traditions event itself. It was documented by students of LV Prasad.
- Textures of Traditions brought over 100 artists to showcase building a sustainable industry around the arts. It showcased art forms like Manipuri dance and Nangiyar Koothu.
Future plans: The 2025 edition of Textures of Traditions will be a three-day event with a film festival, a book exhibition, and a platform to appreciate different art forms.
🛵 EV startup enters Chennai
Bengaluru-based River Mobility expanded its operations with its first store in Chennai.
What’s it about? The company is expanding and plans to open 100 showrooms by March 2026. Backed by investors like Yamaha Motor Corp and Mitsui & Company Ltd, the company has opened its first showroom in Chennai.
- CEO and co-founder Aravind Mani said Chennai is an emerging electric vehicle market, and its store here is also owned by the company. The Chennai store is its fourth and second outside Karnataka.
- So far, the company retails only one product with one variant. The Indie is priced at ₹1.47 lakh in Chennai. More products will be added to the portfolio.
Company profile: The company began operations in 2021 and started selling its Indie range of scooters in October 2023. They’ve sold about 1,500 units. The company has 750 employees and has raised ₹550 crore so far. Its R&D facility is in White Field, and the assembly factory is in Hoskote.
🤣 Regional stand-up comedy
Comedian Rajat Chauhan observes that the local stand-up comedy scene is flourishing.
What’s it about? Delhi-based Rajat Chauhan brought his comedic flair to Chennai. An engineer by profession, he quit his corporate job to take up his passion for comedy and called it a blessing in disguise. According to him, the local language comedy scene in the city has flourished.
- This was his third visit to Chennai. He observed that the city’s stand-up comedy landscape has grown, especially Tamil comedians.
- The concepts and jokes evolve over time, and comedy isn’t limited to only youngsters. As people grow older, they accumulate life experiences from which they can draw.
No comparison: The Indian stand-up scene can’t be compared to other countries. It’s still a relatively new concept in India, and the topics are often still basic.
🚍 New buses arrive
The first batch of non-AC low-floor buses for the MTC were flagged off.
What’s it about? The Metropolitan Transport Corporation (MTC) got its first batch of 58 non-AC low-floor buses. These are part of the 100 new buses flagged off by Sports Minister Udhayanidhi Stalin.
- The MTC introduced these new buses on nine high-demand routes. The final routes will be determined after surveying the roads, height of speed breakers, and subways.
- These low-floor buses are disabled-friendly. They have facilities to accommodate wheelchairs with a ramp. The ground clearance is 400mm compared to 650mm for regular MTC buses.
Fight for accessibility: Activist Vaishnavi Jayakumar of the Disability Rights Alliance filed a writ petition demanding the introduction of disabled-friendly buses. In 2005, disability rights activist Rajiv Rajan moved the High Court. He said while low-floor buses were welcome, there should be a change in the attitude of drivers and conductors.
📊 Today’s Poll
(Only subscribers can participate in the polls)
Have you ever binge-watched a TV series?
- I have binge-watched a TV series.
- I haven’t binge-watched a TV series.
❓ Today’s Question
(Only subscribers can submit their answers)
Which country’s cuisine would you like to try?
Reply to this email with your answers.
🗞️ In other news…
- Chennai and nearby districts are expected to get heavy rains for the next few days.
- An Anna University probe identified 676 teachers working full-time in multiple colleges as part of a ghost faculty scam.
- Four Corporation Councillors were warned by the Chennai Mayor for complaints by residents over allegations of bribery.
- Officers on ATVs will soon patrol the city’s beaches to prevent encroachments.
- The Chennai Corporation has begun removing illegal TV and internet cables.
🛋️ Local Lounge
Yesterday’s Poll:
- I enjoy solving puzzles or brainteasers: 69.2% 🏆
- I don’t enjoy solving puzzles or brainteasers: 30.8%
Answers to Yesterday’s Question:
What’s an app that you can’t live without?
Shiva: “Gmail”
Suchi: “None”
That’s it for today. Have a great day!