Good morning, Chennai!
☀️ Today’s weather: Sunny weather for the day.
🧐 Did you know? Chennai got its first General Post Office in 1786. The first Postmaster-General was AM Campbell. The building was near Fort St George Square.
🚴 No room for cycles
Cycling is a dangerous prospect for many Chennaites with no dedicated cycle lanes.
What’s it about? Taking a cycle is a risk for many as they struggle to avoid getting hit by motorists, who are often intolerant. Despite many areas in the city having broader pavements as part of the Smart City Project, there are no cycle tracks.
- While many cities have dedicated cycle lanes and encourage people to use bicycles, the Chennai Corporation hasn’t tackled this issue. There has been no project proposed or meaningful discussion about it.
- Efforts to make pedestrian-friendly roads haven’t included plans for cycles. Some streets only have broken sections of painted cycling lanes. The Deputy Mayor visited the Netherlands a few months ago and observed exclusive cycling tracks.
Past efforts: The previous government’s infrastructure plans to set up cycling tracks were abandoned. Most of the 1,200 bicycles are unused. Markings on roads have been worn out as the Corporation seemed to have no interest.
🛍️ Kathipara’s Urban Square
The Kathipara Urban Square has become a new hangout spot for families and kids.
What’s it about? While the flyover at Kathipara junction is busy with traffic, below, families and kids have a good time shopping and eating. Urban Square is a place where families can spend time shopping and taking a breather with more facilities in the offering.
- BNR Estate’s Uptown has taken the land on a long-term lease from the Chennai Metro. The company wants to make this an “eat, play, and shop” spot with 24×7 facilities.
Future plans: Uptown plans to add more fashion stores, food outlets, and a gaming zone. The roof will also be changed, and a walking space will be added. The company also wants to attract fashion brands and have a co-working space with indoor and outdoor seating. A similar concept will be tried out in Madhavaram and Nolambur.
💻 Breaking barriers with tech
HashHackCode aims to help underprivileged women and those with disabilities.
What’s it about? The Chennai-based social enterprise launched its new venture called Cherized to employ women from underprivileged backgrounds, people with visual impairments, and neurodivergent students. The initiative will provide web solutions like web designing and data processing for clients.
- Cherized aims to be an inclusive space. The company brought in senior citizens and persons with disabilities to help train them in coding and get them familiar with the technology.
- HashHackCode founder Manu Sekar said enterprise cloud courses for the visually impaired and beginners classes for seniors were a way to teach them the basics.
Future plans: The company doesn’t want to limit its reach to Tamil Nadu. The initiative currently has a team of 20 and is growing to expand operations across India. Manu said he wants to bring in people from other parts of the country remotely.
🎨 Artistic past
.jpg){kind=link}
PS Nandhan’s retrospective show takes you down memory lane of his artistic life.
What’s it about? At the DakshinaChitra Museum, PS Nandhan’s early paintings, sketches, scrolls, and large-format sculptures are part of the retrospective he always dreamt of. The retrospective takes visitors through each decade of his life as an artist.
- The narrative of the show begins in the 1960s with his paintings sporting crowded frames and defined figures reminiscent of the Madras Art Movement.
- His works move away from linear progression and don’t conform to the traditional ways. Through the pandemic, he worked on large sculptures. Now, he uses ceramic and clay.
Beginnings: As a six-year-old in Madhuranthakam, he was fascinated with clay. Nandhan lived and worked at the famous Cholamandal Artists Village for six decades.
✨ Things to do…
Here are some fun and interesting things to do in the city over the weekend!
- Open Mic 4.0 presents the battle between the 90s vs 2k this Saturday.
- Young readers can listen to a book reading by author Cauvery Kesavasamy this Saturday.
- The Naa Solli Suthala Bhoomi Tour brings original content from various artists with a live performance.
- Untouchable is a live standup performance from comic Manjeet Sarkar.
- Lock the box allows readers to get books at a low price, happening at the Marina Mall this weekend.
🛋️ Local Lounge
Yesterday’s Poll Results:
- There is a public park in my locality/near my house: 80.0% 🏆
- There isn’t a public park in my locality/near my house: 20.0%
That’s it for today. Have a great weekend!