S. Muthiah (1930–2019)

After years abroad – punctuated by occasional visits to a Madras remembered as a leisurely but gracious town of conservative people and large houses with larger “gardens” -- I came “home” to a metropolis in 1969-69, but found it essentially unchanged. True, the town I had known had grown bigger, become more populous and acquired an industrial base. But at heart it had remained the charming overgrown village of the 30s and 40s and 50s; a leisurely, gracious town with quaint old-world values, that had spread itself out comfortably in its quest to retain the spaciousness of the past.
My first assignment on my return here was to prepare “copy” to accompany a street guide to Madras. A brief history of an old British company followd. And out of those quests for information was born my interest in the history of Madras and a need to do my bit to conserve its relics. This slim volume, therefore, is as much a historical guide for those who wish to look around Madras, or wish to find out more about their city, as it is a plea to conserve not only its spacious environment but also its cultural and historic relics, be they Indian or European.… (más)