Victoria Public Hall

This crimson red building was a reminder to get off the bus during the mid-80s for my badminton training at the Corporation Indoor Stadium—now the Nehru Indoor Stadium. Back then, my journey would begin outside the Ega Theatre -waiting on the roadside to catch the MTC Route 15 or 15B bus. As the bus rattled down Poonamallee High Road—past Kilpauk Medical College and the grand old Dasaprakash Hotel—you didn’t tell the conductor you were heading to Victoria Public Hall. To every commuter and bus crew in Madras, this familiar transit landmark near the Ripon Building was universally known as the Picnic bus stop or the Ripon bus stop. While generations of young athletes and daily commuters used it as a visual milestone, none stepped past its gates as the building had slowly slipped into decades of neglect.

Fast forward to today, those familiar red walls have finally awoken from their long slumber. The old Picnic hotel structures on its leased land are long gone, cleared to make way for the underground Chennai Central Metro station, but this heritage hall has been saved.

Following a massive ₹32.62-crore restoration under the Singara Chennai 2.0 project, the Greater Chennai Corporation has now officially reopened its doors to the public. The building has been completely transformed into a dynamic civic and cultural museum, ensuring its spaces echo with life once again. Visitors can now explore the ground floor's immersive exhibits showcasing Chennai's theatrical, sporting, and political evolution, as well as the magnificent first floor, which can seat 300 guests for grand cultural events.

The Victoria Public Hall is a striking masterpiece of Indo-Saracenic architecture, constructed between 1883 and 1888 to commemorate Queen Victoria’s Golden Jubilee. Designed by British architect Robert Fellowes Chisholm and built by legendary local contractor Diwan Bahadur Namperumal Chetty, it quickly became the cultural epicenter of colonial Madras. The hall is renowned in history as it hosted historic public addresses by Swami Vivekananda in 1897 and Mahatma Gandhi in 1915. It was also the cradle of regional social evolution, serving as the birthplace of the Justice Party in 1916 and also hosting Chennai’s very first public motion picture screening in 1896. Complete with vintage, Madras-themed outdoor photo spots featuring classic trams and rickshaws and with an audio show, this revitalized masterpiece seamlessly links the 1880s with the vibrant energy of modern Chennai.

This place definitely did, and will continue to, sojourn my nostalgic days walking around the lanes of this crimson town hall. It stands as a living bridge between the 80s youth who used it merely as a landmark to get off for daily sports practice, and the curious visitor who returned today. 

In a rapidly changing city, it reminds us that while time moves relentlessly forward, our memories are deeply anchored. When young, we rarely pay attention to the soul of such heritage spaces we pass through, but as matured adults, we look much more closely...

Escape To Thekkady, Kerala

Periyar Reserve, Spice Gardens, and Lake Safaris make Thekkady the ultimate Kerala escape, which can easily be combined with nearby Vagamon for a complete regional itinerary. 

This beautiful detour was an addition to our Vagamon weekend trip. Because our visit to the Periyar lake safari was unplanned, we had to wait in line for spot tickets and could only secure seats for the afternoon cruise. Yet, every journey holds its own unique charm, and this impromptu drive to Thekkady was no exception. 

Leaving behind the misty meadows of Vagamon, a scenic 1.5-hour drive covering roughly 45 kilometres via Elappara and Kuttikkanam took us down a winding, roller-coaster road framed by lush green streams and rolling tea estates. Nestled in the stunning Cardamom Hills, this area perfectly blends wild nature with agricultural beauty, where local spice plantations sit right next to the deep, protected Periyar Wildlife Sanctuary.

To reach the safari itself, visitors must leave their private vehicles at the Anavachal Parking Area and board the mandatory forest department shuttle buses. These eco-buses transport you directly through the protected forest zone to the boat landing and back. 

The highlight of this travel circuit is the 1.5-hour boat safari on Periyar Lake. This sprawling 26-square-kilometre artificial reservoir was formed in 1895 after British engineer John Pennycuick constructed the Mullaperiyar Dam across the Periyar River to divert water to drought-prone regions. This historic project submerged a dense river valley, leaving behind the iconic dead tree trunks that still poke above the water's surface today and transforming the man-made lake into the vital heart of a thriving forest ecosystem.

Cruising these waters gives us a front-row seat to wildlife gathering at the shoreline, making it highly likely to spot herds of wild elephants, sambar deer, gaur (Indian bison), wild boars, and smooth-coated otters. The lake is also a haven for vibrant birdlife like darters, egrets, and kingfishers resting on the submerged trees. 

To experience this smoothly, my advice to travellers is to plan a comprehensive itinerary, touring aromatic cardamom and pepper plantations and watching traditional Kalaripayattu martial arts in the evening. 

The park schedules five daily boat departures at 7:30 AM, 9:30 AM, 11:15 AM, 1:45 PM, and 3:30 PM, with the 7:30 AM morning slot being the absolute best for spotting animals in the crisp air. Because seats sell out rapidly, booking tickets well in advance online via the Periyar Tiger Reserve official website or the KTDC platform is highly recommended, costing around ₹150–₹255 for adults plus separate sanctuary entry and shuttle bus fees. 

The Chariot of the Sun, Konark, Odisha

Our visit to the Konark Sun Temple was part of a wedding trip to Odisha, and our tight itinerary could only squeeze in a few hours at this magnificent monument. 

Yet, the moment we approached it, we were met with an unparalleled visual treat. The entire structure is sculpted from Khondalite and Chlorite stones that beautifully shift colors in the changing sunlight, turning from a dusty golden amber in the afternoon to a deep, dramatic bronze at twilight.

This sensory masterpiece is a class apart of 13th-century engineering. Built around 1250 CE by King Narasimhadeva I of the Eastern Ganga Dynasty, the temple was erected to celebrate his military victories and assert his right to rule. Today, every square inch of the temple walls reads like a piece of "poetry in stone," featuring remarkabe carvings of celestial dancers, royal hunting processions, mythical beasts, and uninhibited erotic art.

The Sun temple structured like a chariot, is most famous for the brilliant harmony of art and astronomy. Its seven rearing stone horses symbolize the days of the week, while its twenty-four monumental wheels act as precise astronomical sundials that also represent the twelve months and signs of the zodiac. 

Historically dubbed the "Black Pagoda" by European sailors, the temple’s massive two-hundred-foot main tower collapsed over the centuries due to shifting coastal sands, severe cyclonic storms, and the loss of a mythical central magnet that legends say held its iron beams in perfect balance. Following sixteenth-century military raids and subsequent abandonment, the structure fell into dereliction. To prevent the complete collapse of the surviving assembly hall (Jagamohana), British engineers stepped in and filled its interior entirely with sand in 1901.

Beyond the shifting sands, a haunting local folklore hangs over this monument—the legend of Dharmapada. 

It is said that 1,200 artisans labored for twelve years but could not fix the temple’s heavy crown stone (kalash). Facing execution by the king if they failed, the chief architect’s twelve-year-old son, a prodigy named Dharmapada, secretly climbed to the peak under the cover of night and solved the structural puzzle. Yet, to protect the craftsmen from the king's wrath and ridicule, the young boy leaped from the temple's summit into the river below, trading his life for their glory. Locals whisper that the main tower ultimately fell because it was built upon the tragic tears of Dharmapada's sacrifice.

Today, this long-sealed monument is undergoing an extraordinary revival. The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) has commenced a delicate project to extract the century-old sand using non-vibrating mechanical tools and robotic trolleys. By safely relieving the immense internal pressure and installing a hidden steel framework, scientists hope to prevent an internal cave-in. Through this high-risk mission, archaeologists aim to protect the surviving architecture, discover hidden 13th-century panels, and finally decipher the exact physical causes behind the tragic fall of Konark’s grand tower.

As twilight faded and the first evening lights began to glow against the stone, the grand silhouette of the temple left a timeless impression. In its quiet majesty, Konark stands as a connect between the terrestrial and the cosmic—a stone chariot frozen in place, yet carrying the eternal spirit of ancient India forever forward into the light.