A Treasured Reminiscence

The aroma of freshly brewed filter coffee, the gorgeous azure bay of Marina, the finest dainty little cafés of beasant nagar crouched by the sea, the pleasant devotional songs that are played in those ancient temples, “The Higginbothams”- the book house that is known to hold almost every book from nook and corner of the world, the central railway station, a coat of arms since early British period in madarasapatinam, known for its infamous crowd and noise now, the hustle and bustle of the Koyembedu market and mainly chicken 65 (why? Because the recipe originated in Chennai😉) and what not.? The list is extensive to be penned down on a piece of paper or a blog! The aforementioned scrap the surface barely amongst the multitudinous things that flash in my mind when I hear the word Chennai, or rather Madras.! 

Being ruled by the British for almost over two centuries, the English men had truly left their influence upon the city through their colonial grandeur and a melange of architectural elements that give buildings of Madras, a historical aura with the antique touch of the British! Be it the Madras high court, or the St. George's Fort, the first English British fortress built in India or one of the archetype examples of neoclassical architecture, the Ripon building, the cathedral built by the Portuguese, the famous San Thome Basilica or the ever dynamic Spencer plaza, where everyone bounces along for shopping ( the one which you're going to hear about). 

When someone states that it is difficult to find your way out of the mall, I would bet a dime on it confidently! Being built in Indo-Saracenic style of architecture, Spencer Plaza is nothing short of a maze! I have been to that plaza innumerable times, yet I would stammer when asked for directions in a jiffy!! 

There was a time, not so long ago, when this mall was the only mall and the most happening place in the city! It grew to be the most loved hangout spot for “the madrasis” (as always addressed by the rest of the states) and slowly developed to be the entry point of discussion on the advent of Western culture in the city!

This mall housed the shops of almost all prominent brands including that of foreign brands way back in late 1990s and early 2000s. It had these countless tiny shops that were confusingly laid out across the walls selling antique silver earrings, quirky nose pins and so on. There were also shops that sold imported leather goods at affordable prices that catered to all classes. The mall also had Kashmiri handicrafts sold across the mall. Along with some emporia, pashmina shawls, small wooden carvings and rug carpets. Gujrati handicrafts and Kutch pieces also would line the windows if several shops. 

What would welcome us at the entrance of the mall would be large air-conditioned doors with a gush of fresh air. Many a weekend or rather majority of my holidays were spent wandering through its castle like labyrinthine corridors, sitting in the atrium and devouring Bombay/Calcutta chat items, engaged in some wide eyed window shopping; Sometimes it would be jay walking through the book stores with my sister and cousins or lazing around the basement and queueing up for sloppy softy cone ice creams enjoying its warm, vintage charm. The plaza holds numerous memories that everyone who had visited the mall would hold as souvenirs. I guzzled up my first pizza rich with cheese there; My first jaw-widening burger bites were in the mall; My first escalator ride was also in the same plaza. 

The interior of the mall used to be filled with lovely people, who are neat, well mannered, gentle and pretty helpful that one can’t help but fall in love with each one of them instantaneously. One can effortlessly spot NRIs and foreigners who never cease to pause and smile back at us or even have a chit chat at any given point of the day for it was their go-to places in Madras. 

Weekends used to be chaotic. The guards used to shut the gates of the entrance and open only at regular intervals because the mall used to get over crowded instigating intervention of police a lot of times. Harry Potter books were launched there and countless music albums were released at the same plaza including the film openings that used to come there for movie promotions. Cricket teams used to stay in a nearby star hotel called Taj Coromandel and would visit the mall to shop!

Just when people were lazing in the fame of the mall, it had a major fall. Newer, fancier and larger malls mushroomed across the city in a span of 3-5 years, making the major brands and retailers move their businesses out of the mall in the wink of an eye. In addition to this slow decline, there was a major power crisis in the city that brought the mall all negative publicity, which the mall wasn't prepared for (since it was built many years ago, and it had no alternative situation for that kind). 

Time whizzed away, most of the mall's gleam were lost, with the place even considered bordering on dodgy.

I still believe, till today, there are things over there that are commendable but gets obscured by whatever gold painted coals are laid around!

The mall that was once a totem, that once had only foreign visitors right after they land in Chennai, has lost its lustre! The lesson that everyone can infer along with its memories and sail-through epoch would be that everything fades away eventually; the name, the fame and the honour if not valued in the most pious manner is bound to be whisked away like a will-o’-wisps.