The Hindu Festival of Chennai wraps up on a high note

The Hindu Festival of Chennai celebrated Chennai's culture with a 45-day campaign featuring an Archival Photo Exhibit, music performances, film screenings, a run, heritage walks, and more. Over 10,000 people attended the Food and Music Festival, which featured traditional Carnatic music, gaana paatu, and hip-hop artists. 40 stalls offered a variety of food, and the event was supported by various government and private organisations.

The Hindu Food and Music Festival’s final day kicked off with the city embracing the traditional notes of Carnatic music by Srivatsan Santhanam at Island Grounds on Sunday.

The performance was followed up by people cheering and dancing to the gaana paatu of Gaana Balachander, Gaana Vinoth, and Gaana Vimala. While the audience were enjoying the lip-smacking food from over 40 stalls at the festival, hip-hop artists NAVZ-47, Mapulz Rac, Iykki Berry, and Milton Dance Crew took over the stage.

The food variety was thoughtfully curated, keeping in mind the flavours and cuisines that define Chennai. Some of the stalls included the famous Gapaul Dairy, Mex It Up, Mylai Cofee, Oye Hoye, Madarassi Adukkala, and Layalee. With over 10,000 people coming to the event, the festival came to an end with an exhilarating performance by IndoSoul, a Chennai-based band.

The event was organised under The Hindu Festival of Chennai, an ode to Chennai city and its people by The Hindu. Festival of Chennai started with an Archival Photo Exhibit at the Ripon Buildings, The Hindu office on Mount Road and eight other Metro Rail stations. The photos were taken from the 144-year-old library index of The Hindu.

Following the excellent response from the public, over 30 musical performances by indie bands were held at parks, Metro stations and other public places in the city. In the innovative ‘Music on Wheels’ event, renowned artists like Rajhesh Vaidya, R.P. Shravan, Sai Vignesh, among others were invited to perform on a bus. The vehicle also hosted a part of The Hindu’s Archival Photo Exhibit.

Simultaneously, The Hindu catered to the city’s undying love of cinema by giving people a first-of-a-kind experience by showcasing four popular Tamil films – all of which featured the city prominently. Madras, Madarasapattinam, Irudhi Suttru, and Chennai 600028 were played to over 10,000 people at Thiruvanmiyur and Elliot’s Beach over the last 2 weeks.

This event was followed by The Hindu ‘Made of Chennai Run’, in which over 2,500 people participated. The run had two categories – 5 km and 10 km – for both men and women. It was flagged off from Swamy Sivananda Salai and ended at Island Grounds on September 3.