Chennai - is a wretched city. And I use the word wretched with all the love and reverence that the word doesn't deign to carry. Chennai evokes mixed emotions almost as much as Mumbai does, but I guess a few degrees less on the passion scale. No other Metropolitan city in India comes close when it comes to defining character. Kolkattans outshout but that hardly changes the truth. Delhi has few takers. Bangalore is a mosh pit. Hyderabad is like a blunt blade with the pulse of a 90 year old.
Chennai evokes hatred as much as it does appreciation - simply because no one deigns to humor the occasional north Indian who has stumbled across this weird city with as much as a schmidgen or Hindi. Athu Sellathu.. The Lingua France is Tamil, rest be damned . I just read a quote from 1959 in the Deccan yesterday which had Nedunchuzhian of the DMK saying : English should be made the language of operation all over India. 50 years later we've regressed into a Mulayam Singh wanting the abolishment of computers. Bravo Democratic India!
The CSK team seems to reflect the laid back intensity of the city. There are no people running behind buses, waiting for trains or simply in a hurry to go someplace. Everyone seems to have time to stare at the odd traffic accident, provide advice to total and complete strangers, and sometimes go forth and help people in need - it has all the essential qualities of a quaint town just with better roads and richer people. Of course there is a huge degree of indiscipline and it just frustrates you so much you could be bald with the callousness of people.
The IPL team reflects the attitude of the city. Filmy stylish, flashy but mostly chilled without a hint of pumped up intentsity and aggro. Trying to coast on hard work rather than brilliance. Watching L Balaji's run up is next only to hearing a Mercedes Engine crank up :-). And commentators and player after player acknowledge the sportsmanship of the Chennai crowd as opposed to the extremely partisan crowds elsewhere in India.
Chennai is no Mumbai - it clicks for those who want life in a little slow mo. Give me idli-vadai over zunka-bhakar anyday.
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