“I was born, raised, educated and shaped entirely in Chennai. Every milestone of my life happened in this city. From school to my master’s degree, Chennai has quietly been the force behind who I am today. I now work as a manager in one of India’s prestigious companies, but the journey really began here.
After my undergraduate degree, I had plans to pursue my master’s in Germany. I was learning the language, preparing for exams and getting ready to leave. But a sudden family situation changed everything and I had to drop those plans. At that time it felt like something I had worked so hard for had slipped away.
Around that same time, I wrote the TANCET exam just for fun with my friends. I had absolutely no expectations. But I ended up scoring well and got into the main campus of Anna University. I never planned for it, yet it became the turning point of my life. Those two years reshaped my path and opened doors into civil engineering that I might never have found otherwise.
Life has a strange way of closing one door only to quietly open another.
A huge part of my story also belongs to Triplicane. Growing up there meant living inside a world full of character. Every street had its own rhythm and fragrance. Temple flowers in the morning, biryani being cooked somewhere down the road, festival chaos, busy markets and prayers of different communities. It was a beautiful mix of cultures, people and traditions that shaped the person I became.
To me, Chennai gave more than education or opportunities. It gave me the spirit of enjoying cultures through performing arts, the understanding that food is one of the purest forms of love, and a community that helped me grow into who I am today. Chennai is not just a place. It is a culmination of countless little intricacies that stay with you.
I have lived in other cities for work, but every time I return, something shifts inside me. I feel like the happiest dog with its head out of a car window, wind on my face, pure joy. Once when I returned from Delhi at two in the morning, I made my mother take me straight to Buhari Hotel for biryani before even going home. After that we drove past Marina Beach, and that breeze felt like life returning to me.
Even during Covid, when restrictions eased a little, we would simply drive around the city just to feel lighter.
Somehow Chennai has always been like a friend. The kind that calms you down when life feels uncertain, pushes you to grow, and reminds you that you are capable of more than you think.
For me, Chennai is not just a city.
It is peace.
And if you have ever walked through Triplicane, you would understand why.”