Chennai: With water on streets, memes flood social media

Along with requests seeking help and information, the various social media platforms like Twitter, Facebook and TikTok, and messaging services like WhatsApp are flooded with hilarious memes that poke fun at Smart City in T Nagar (one of the worst-hit areas in the city) and ‘Illam Thedi Vellam’ or floodwater at your doorstep, a pun on the Illam Thedi Maruthuvam and Illam Thedi Kalvi programmes announced recently by the State government.

Some of the creators have selected films like Life of Pie and Titanic, a Charlie Chaplin classic that has the comedian diving into shallow water, and evergreen comic sequences by actors Vadivel and Goundamani to troll the politicians who are involved in flood relief works. Many of these videos have statements made by Chief Minister MK Stalin, BJP State president K Annamalai, and Opposition Leader Edappadi K Palaniswami. Beyond the laughs, the social media is also filled with angry comments by residents, who are battling waterlogging and power cuts for more than three days, and complaints to the civic body and various agencies to bail out water, clear waste and unblock the sewers. Some are also trying to initiate serious discussions on finding a permanent solution to the monsoon woes that affect life in Chennai almost every year.