70 sq.km?
Much has been written, discussed, commented and analysed about dear old Lonely Planet’s little rant about Madras, so I shall not flog that horse any further. Except to point out one teeny, weeny, itsy-bitsy piece of factual error. Chennai only 70 sq.km? DUDE!
Even ignoring Chennai’s current urban sprawl/suburban extensions, the city proper is 172 sq.km# large. And it has been that for at least 15 years. Tip for the writer: Negative biases go down much easier when they are coated with factual accuracy.
#: Dilip points out that current city limit is 181 sq.kms.
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October 20th, 2009 at 1:39 am
181.06 Sq. KM. from CDP chennai. Linke here.
Lonely planet seems to pull things off its ass often.
October 20th, 2009 at 6:57 am
wow. seriously, if I didn’t read a few blogs incl yours, I would not have known about Lonely Planet’s fiasco at all.
That fact alone is startling me and I shall now retire to ruminate over it. Maybe even over a post. Who knows, these days am scrambling to write one-a-day, yes, just like the Vitamins.
October 20th, 2009 at 11:38 am
Quit cribbing all ye. It’s true. The city has a few things to offer very select groups of people, but largely, let’s say, uninviting, IMO.
October 20th, 2009 at 11:48 am
Ishwar: Be that as it may, but 70 sq.km is WRONG and in true xkcd fashion…
October 20th, 2009 at 1:22 pm
you know what this city needs. A campaign like I-heart-NYC, t-shirts, caps, designer lungis, thalappakattu turbans and all. And Ravages, you are the man for it.
October 20th, 2009 at 1:31 pm
Ishwar,
Perhaps what it offers, ye liketh not. That IMO is the shaky foundation on top of which all critical reviews of all cities rest.
For instance, a bloke from Jaipur might not enjoy the monthly (brilliant) harikatha renditions at the Besant Nagar Pillaiyaar temple, OR enjoy eating freshly caught crabs on the Mahabalipuram beach. His benchmark for enjoyment might involve malls and movie halls showing the latest Akshay Kumar flick.
I think most large cities offer a lot to those with an open mind and willing to look for it.
October 20th, 2009 at 9:05 pm
[...] Gopalakrishnan at Selective Amnesia points out that the Chennai city proper is 172 square km large, not 70 square km as claimed by Lonely planet. [...]
October 21st, 2009 at 2:33 am
Hmmm comments on that post are as good as your bangalore vs chennai one. Crazy people.
October 21st, 2009 at 6:01 pm
Much has been written on this on Blogs & Twitter. It might be surprising for plenty that I actually came out in support of Chennai!
Let us look at it objectively. It was a poll, a ‘lot’ of people voiced negative opinions about the city and it ended up at #7. To have a poll itself is ludicrous in the first place. Lets forget that.
The fact that the negatives outweighed the positives needs to be looked at. I think Krish Ashok hit the nail by saying this city needs “I heart NY” style of marketing. Chennai is hardly promoted as a brand. Mumbai/Bombay has its “spirit of the people” jingo-ism. Bengaluru has its “Cool-n-happening-IT-hub” bragging. Delhi – well, its the power-capital.
What does Chennai do? Humility has been its sole claim to fame. Only those that have lived here can start appreciating the city for what it is.
All of us can bad-mouth the Lonely Planet fellows for overlooking plenty of things in Chennai (they deserve it, no doubt). But lets not forget there certainly are those that despise the city. Find out what they dislike, fix it… for Madras!
October 21st, 2009 at 9:07 pm
LP seems to be getting it quite a few chennaites… they need to do some research before writing…
October 22nd, 2009 at 2:11 am
would love it if we were to debate on stuff other than a travel magazine talking about the size of chennai other than talking about:
cleanliness?
slums?
the really great smell that you can’t get rid of in most of the city
the…
October 22nd, 2009 at 12:55 pm
Hmmm, I have lived there and in a few other cities as well. Chennai has it’s charm, no doubt. Chennai has a lot of history, there are pockets of culture, prosperity, and even beauty (more artificial though – having a form, but no comparable function). I love Satyam theater, amethyst, Mocha, Karpagaambaal mess, the beaches, cozee, roasted corn cobs, Vani Mahal, Music Academy, Santhome Basilica, the innumerable temples + the therumoolai vinayakars (yeah- this is something very original and lends to the city’s charm), broken bridge, the hangouts at Ascendas, city center, ECR, star rock, Tic tac, the saravana bhavans, drive-in (non existent now, though).. I love the mobility I have in Chennai, and the fact that I can bribe the traffic policeman to drive without license. I love it that Kamal haasan, mani ratnam, MS Swaminathan, R.K. Narayan (was), and others of similar ilk are chennai residents. I am proud that hema malini and Rekha were brought up there and that we guys speak english almost like a native, and are very adaptable to anything in life.
The LP writer will love staying at our homes, watch ER, friends and Seinfeld and make small talk over masala chai/filter coffee and pakoras that the mom makes.. she will enjoy the Evam’s play you take her to, and wear your sister’s salwar to go to Kapaleeswarar kovil..
While the foregoing is true of the elite part of Madras, what meets the eye is the slapdash work that the post-independence city planners have done. It is aggravated by the total lack of sensitivity and cynicism of its general public. Yes, you can be fond of the city, but not to a fault. I object to LP’s subjective take in rating the city, but I don’t see Chennai faring any better if there were to be an objective rating. You can probably argue that there are african cities in much more deplorable states than what Chennai is in, but while you are doing it, you shouldn’t ignore that we are rating the city as tolerable (comparing it as being better than filthier places), and not welcoming. Aren’t we being defensive? Do we note that we act like schizophrenic paranoids, in attributing a motive to the LP writer and LP?
Instead, why don’t we benchmark ourselves against better cities around the world. Why don’t we employ, once again, the most beaten case for comparison – China and it’s cities.
I don’t suggest we improve the city’s status, it’s probably beyond the reach of our concerted efforts and time. Accept criticism and reality, and if the criticism is incisive and you do have a problem with it, strive to bring to fore the hidden charms and fix what’s wrong with the city.. else, move on.
_____
Aside: I had mentioned about form and function – When I see just the form and an absence of full fledged function, it reeks of low self esteem, confused identity and an ass-licking attitude. Parquet flooring, for instance, thatched roof, shrits by westside that have the facade of a sweater with the button-down shirt’s collar sticking out.. who the fuck would wear it in Madras?
October 25th, 2009 at 6:13 pm
[...] My brother, Seshadri, comments on the post about LP’s rating of Chennai. [...]
December 31st, 2009 at 11:59 pm
As Sheshadri points out we should aim to match with China’s cities instead of comparing ourselves with Indian cities. “Ulluvathellaam uyarvullal”