AFOVA New Letter 2 of Year 2021

Section 6 - Memoirs CV 2 No. 02 / 2021 Page 160 of 332 8 A Collage Called Chennai Wg Cdr S Harshavardhan Genre: Reminiscence hennai fascinates me. Born in Kerala, this is the city where I grew up and did my entire school and college education. I left Chennai in 1975 to join the Indian Air Force. Barring an annual sojourn of couple of weeks, I have been out of synch with this city. I returned to Chennai for good in 2006 when I took premature retirement from IAF. It has been fifteen years since I got back and let me tell you, Chennai continues to fascinate me even more and more with every passing day. “In what way Chennai is different? My answer is an endless list. Which factors change the dynamics and make the difference - The people, culture, cuisine, beaches and sea, attitude, climate? To identify and zero in on which of these factors make the difference is easier said than done. It would be wise to conclude that it is a combination of all these factors. For me, Chennai is a Collage – it is a unique place made up by its people, culture and tradition. While people of Chennai might correlate the uniqueness of Chennai to its Music festivals, filter coffee and Sundal, I have my own set of observation which makes Chennai unique. Daybreak Daybreak in Chennai is one-of-its-kind compared to the other places in the country. There are many facets of Chennai that one gets to see at daybreak (provided one is up and about) which cannot be experienced in the rest of the country. As dawn gives way to sunrise, the sky over Chennai at most times of the year is overcast with the cool breeze coming in from the sea. The cool breeze does not give any comfort because you start perspiring from the crack of dawn and this is exclusive to Chennai. One does not get to see a flurry of activity at daybreak but the early birds intensely involved in their chores and have a resolute purpose. My observation is that it is the women folk of Chennai who are more active at day break compared to the men. C