CHENNAI: A few days back we chanced upon a black and white sketched cover of The Madras Magazine on Facebook. S Arun Prasath, the brainchild and editor of this magazine is currently pursuing his mass communication at Pondicherry University. “This is part of my specialisation project for the semester. Every student is expected to make a podcast, short film or film documentary.
My area of specialisation is print media and I had this idea of a magazine since the first year of post graduation,” says the 23-year-old, who was born in Kanyakumari and raised in Dindigul. Arun has been frequently visiting the city for the past five years. He currently lives in Pondicherry. “ My friends stay all around the city and my grandfather stays in Madipakkam. Whenever I visit, it’s a ritual to go for a ride from Kathipara junction to Sir Thomas Munro statue.
I was influenced by author Pudhumaipithan’s story titled Kadavukum Kandhasami Pillayum. The storyline is about God meeting Kandhasami and having a conversation near the junction between Broadway and NSC Bose Road. The cover of the book is sketched in such a way that the colour transforms from sepia to a pop of bright colours indicating the evolution of the city over the years,” he says. The 80-page magazine has chapters revolving around history, culture, fiction, movies and photo essays.
Arun believes in giving opportunities to budding artists and writers to publish their short essays and research works themed on Madras. Some of the chapters include — To Whom Does Chennai Belong? by Mayilai Seeni Venkatasami; From Homo Erectus to IT Expressway: A Short Biography of Madras by Nivedita Louis; Ecology and Wildlife by Theodore Baskaran; Karunanidhi and My Chennai Experience by Santanu Sengupta; Theatres of Mount Road and its Audience by Kannan; The Notable History of the Red Building by Saravanan; Madras: Through the Eyes of an Outsider by Gopalakrishnan Krishnasamy; and Bus Travels in Chennai: A Potpourri by Ragavijaya Govind. The book will also feature two poems — Through Pondy Bazaar by Yuma Vasuki, and Madras: the City of Salt and Some by Mahi Adhiran.
“Of all the topics, ‘More than a Sport: Football in North Madras’ by Sukumaar Thangaraj and ‘Music of Modern Madras: A Contemporary Scenario’ by Srinivasan R seem to have a different perspective. We also have a photo essay captured during a train journey from Tambaram to Marina beach by Nanda Kumar. I’m also working on a blog series on Tamil movies in Madras and the shoot locations from the city featured in films. Of all the authors who have contributed stories, I knew only two of them personally. I met the others on social media.
They’ve all been actively involved in sharing posts and tweets on their topics. I kept track of them and decided to use their creativity through the magazine to reach others. The tool is helpful for modern-day journalists. I never expected an overwhelming response. More than 60 people have placed orders for print versions,” he says.
The online version of The Madras Magazine will be released on November 8. The printed version is expected to cost around Rs 150. For print versions, mail your addresses to magazine. madras@gmail.com before November 4.
For details call: 9894533396