On the East Coast Road

A Sunday on the ECR route...

The first was taken at the Cholamandalam Artists' Village near Injambakkam, where we went after the Sunday mass and Mira's vidyarambam. Cholamandalam, an old village shot to fame after some artists decided to set up camp there. Once upon a time, people dreaded to take the lonely stretch but now you have people streaming to that area. Like an American couple (judging from their Embassy car) before us. Who came out of the art gallery looking surprised and disappointed. We found out why soon after - the prices of the paintings on display ranged between Rs. 10,000 and 60,000.

We couldnt meet the artists nor visit their studio since it was a Sunday and also lunch time. I had hoped to see artists living in romantic looking huts, but instead saw many gated bungalows in that serenely quiet colony. Some new houses were coming up. We spent some time at the open space with a few sculptures, amphitheatre and many tamarind trees (see pic).

The second pic was taken at Basera restaurant nearby where we went for a lunch of mutton biriyani and raita. The kids enjoyed themselves in the play area.

The third is a shot of the Prarthana drive-in theatre, which had a plant nursery in the premises. Leaving the kids and maid to stroll in the parking bays, we shortlisted saplings of jasmine, hibiscus, bougainville and other flowering plants which I hope will enliven my drawing room balcony.

V promised us that we will come for a movie some time later. The first show starts at 7 p.m. The last I went to a drive-in theatre was in Tanzania.

Before heading home, we also bought a pair of terracotta horses, a sungod to hang outside the door and an agarbathi stand - all in terracota.

p.s. I had written a wholly different post, which I lost probably because I gave a wrong html link. Anyway I have spared you all the boredom of going through a very lengthy post. Not that this is any less short.

sunday vidyarambam