Is Madurai a Village ? - Change your Wrong Perception

Hi Friends, I am happy to revive my blogging interest !! Good to see you all again !!

I'd come across many in my life blaming Madurai as a Big Village, which in turn cost us much in terms of our Industrial growth. Tamil Cinemas, for its part, always portray Madurai as a heaven for rowdies, Illiterates, Murders, Aruvals and many which prevails in almost every place in India in various forms.

Most of the Kollywood directors think that Madurai sees people speaking English as Aliens.They must know that the most Companies in Metros are using the Brains of Southern TN people only for their development, especially in IT. Madurai receives approximately 1300 foreigners per day as tourists with whom our people're blending their life everyday. Madurai's Contribution to Tamil Cinema is Very big and most of the legends like TMS, Maniratnam, MS.Subbulakshmi, Cheran etc belong to Madurai soil.

I hope, reading my blog,many will change their perceptions over Madurai and Kollywood will not damage Madurai anymore.I thank Mrs.Padmini Sivarajah madam from "Times of India" , Madurai Mosaic writer Mr.Abraham Mills sir and my friend Mr.Shrikumar Arjunan from "The Hindu-Metroplus" who took pain-taking efforts to collect all the details to prove the Cosmopolitanity of Madurai.Let me share their collections with you all !!

In the times, the entire world is calling Madurai as a "Big Village", the temple city silently remains a Cosmopolitan, giving shelter for Multi-lingual communities from various parts of India.

Madurai remains home, not only to its native Tamil people, but also to :

1. Marathis
2. Sindh
3. Telugu people
4. Saurashtrians
5. Gujaratis
6. Malayalees
7. Rajasthanis
8. Kannadians (Uduppians)
9. Urdu Muslims
10. Anglo-Indian Christians
11. The Halai Memons
12.Srilankan Refugees
13. Bengalis
14. Haryanis (Agrawals & Maheswaris)
15. Punjabis 

and Labours from :

1. Assam & North-east
2. Bihar and
3. Orissa are being the main work-force in Granite Industries, textile Industries and hotels.

When people think Madurai, they think temples and everything religious. But Madurai, now is beyond all that. Growing to be more than just a temple town, this city has flourished, bringing about a cosmopolitan feel to it with each day. 

This year, youngsters seemed to have discovered a whole new perspective of the city. From classy vintage car collectors to fossil enthusiasts, Madurai had it all! Pets stole the limelight as well with the opening of pet hostels and the new-found pug craze. Banumathy Mathiharan, a professor was more than relieved about this new development. "Whenever I visit her in the hostel, she jumps out with joy and greets me. After all, my dog also needs some socialization with her fellow mates. She feels comfortable and I am contented to give her a balanced life," says she. Antique markets have a unique charm about them. Perhaps the sole reason why they gained popularity in the city. Malathy M, an antique lover says," I have purchased a peculiar type of gramophone that is adorning my living room corner. Also, I have come across a very old system of lock that has the 'Made in Britain' seal and that dates back to the previous century. The shopkeepers keep us well informed about such arrival of antiques to the market." 

Interestingly, Madurai this year was more than just the Jikarthanda and the aruvals. With a history so rich, we focussed on the old theatres here and the quaint flea markets and book shops. Bibliophiles in the city must have had a field day, picking out books and adding more to their collection.Madurai also saw the ladies making quite an impact with women entrepreneurs setting up business and showing off their marketing skills. The city witnessed a whole new set of activities that the adrenaline junkies could indulge in with bird watching, bike treks and film festivals. 

You know it's a sign of progress when we have something as massive as the LGBT movement making news in the city. This year, Madurai had its first Rainbow Pride Festival which also include a film festival and seminars on gender identity issues. Gopi Shankar, Director of Srishti says "This place is a collective village. Earlier there was so much ignorance. Now we have evolved. We plan to provide moral support to all those who seek our help." Youngsters also turned environment friendly with the growing trend of terrace gardening, and corporate social responsibility. 

So, Madurai has changed, yes, but most importantly, it's identity remains the same. The people are still affable and affectionate, the food delicious and the sights and sounds still something to savour.

As Maduraiites will vouch for,Namma city dhan top always! Enna solrenga?