A Dedication to the Chief
The late Chief, who is always watching over The Man from Madras Musings (MMM), must be having mixed feelings. On the one hand, this tract is not about the city he chronicled but about the country he loved.
MMM is sure that while the Chief’s first instinct might have been to reject it, on second thoughts he would have approved. And so, Chief, this passage is dedicated to you with many chuckles from MMM about the way you said Kalambu for Colombo and the sing-song Tamil you spoke on the few occasions you did.
The Emerald Isle in Sight on a Flight from Madras
MMM had visited the emerald isle down south a few times even when the Chief was around. But the most recent trip was by far the most comprehensive tour of the country. Sadly, the Chief is not here to hear MMM recount his experiences. And let it be noted MMM remembered the Chief in practically every town and location. One of the first things to strike a visitor from Madras-that-was-Chennai is the short distance. A mere 45 minutes and you are in a foreign country. Almost disappointingly brief, with no jet lag to use as an excuse. Throw in a two-hour check-in and emigration process at our own Chennai airport, and the whole journey feels anticlimactic.
The next striking feature is the greenery. No wonder the place was christened the emerald isle. Whoever coined the phrase was inspired.
Civic Discipline as a Creed when compared to Madras
But greenery pales before two other aspects that impressed MMM. The first is civic discipline. Cross the strait and you are in a land with no piles of rotting garbage and no stray dogs fighting over them. This reminded MMM of something an animal lover in Chennai once said: the problem is not with animals but with the way we cast our rubbish high, wide and plentiful. In Serendib, this was absent. The few dogs seen were emaciated, no doubt for want of a steady diet from overflowing bins.
Before animal lovers rush at MMM, let it be said he is one of them. At this very moment, he is sheltering a cat and her freshly delivered litter. (Ah, that explains it he is a cat lover and therefore a dog hater, will be the new interpretation!)
Order on the Roads, Not in Madras
The second striking feature was traffic discipline. Streets in many Sri Lankan cities were as narrow and as full of vehicles as ours. And yet everyone was patient. No honking, no lane-cutting, no aggressive forcing ahead. And still, traffic moved. Contrast this with how we behave here at home.
No Posters, No Clutter
Another revelation was the absence of posters political, cinematic, or religious. The temples and shrines MMM visited were unmarred by the chaos we consider inseparable from places of worship. And yet, the crowds were just as heavy.
A Lesson for Us in Madras
It seems to MMM that our political lords and masters, instead of dangling Singapore before us as the holy grail, could simply look next door. Why not see what Serendib is doing right and implement some of it here? But then, perhaps, that would not sound as glamorous.
This article appeared in Madras Musings–https://madrasmusings.com/vol-35-no-11/short-n-snappy-229/
My book, Chennai, A Biography can be ordered– http://- https://sriramv.com/2021/12/27/how-to-buy-autographed-copies-of-chennai-a-biography-from-outstation/
Very Nice article. Hope this discipline is followed in our city as well. Wishful thinking I suppose in the D_______N Model.