Alwarpet, a neighbourhood etched in quiet legacy

CHENNAI: Alwarpet is one place that is not much talked about when compared to other areas like T. Nagar or Mylapore, next to it. Since the area does not have any ancient temples with inscriptions engraved in them providing information about the locality, British records are the only early documents that mention it.

Most of the infrastructure in Alwarpet was developed by the British. Many places in this locality were bought by wealthy Britishers during the colonisation period, who named the land after themselves. On old Madras maps, many places in Alwarpet are marked with the names of their owners and some of these old names still exist.

Richard Yeldham, who was the last Mayor of Madras, bought one and a half acres of land in 1803 and named it Yeldham’s Garden. Over time, Yeldham became Eldams Road. The current TTK Road, called Moubray’s Road earlier, was a cart track in the early 18th century. It was once one of the most beautiful highways in Madras, named so because it led to the garden of government accountant George Moubray.

Keith Murray, who was the Collector of Madras in 1822, lived in Dunmore House. Murray Gate Road is named after him. Likewise, many freedom fighters like Ambujammal and Ma Po Sivagnanam have also resided in Alwarpet.

The Sadr Court of the East India Company once functioned in Alwarpet; as a remembrance, the Sadr Gardens in Alwarpet still survive. Several High Court justices and advocates have lived here and have streets named after them. Bashyam Basheer Ahmed Street honours advocates Bhashyam Iyengar and Basheer Ahmed Sayeed. Likewise, famous advocates like CP Ramaswamy and Desikachari also have roads named after them.

Kamal Haasan is a longtime resident of Alwarpet; the head office of his Makkal Needhi Maiam party is also situated here. His fans enjoy calling him ‘Alwarpet Aandavar’ (meaning Alwarpet God). However, the actual famous god of Alwarpet is the Alwarpet Anjaneyar, located on Luz Church Road. At the corner of Luz Church Road, where the Lifestyle store currently stands, there used to be a priest with a bunch of neem leaves who attracted crowds from all nearby areas.

Poet Kannadasan wrote many of his famous film songs and books in the large premises of his Kavitha Hotel, situated next to the Alwarpet flyover. In the same lane, veteran actress Vyjayanthimala’s residence is also located. Actor Muthuraman had a marriage hall in the same lane, named MGM Kalyana Mandapam.

At one point in time, before the big malls and commercial complexes began to rise in Madras, the Moogambigai Complex in Alwarpet was one such early structure. Before the complex came up, the area had small hotels that were very famous. From British records, we understand that Alwarpet once had several conspicuous trees. But now, the place once known for its garden houses has, after commercialisation, lost most of its greenery.

- Not just an avid kolam artist, the writer is passionate about Tamil Nadu’s history and stories