CHENNAI: It’s 3 pm, and Vivekanandar Illam is closed — the very mansion where Swami Vivekananda stayed for a week in 1897, during his visit to Madras. It stands stunning, in front of the Marina Beach. Painted pink, it bears an eye-catching look and simultaneously depicts tranquillity. On special permission, we enter the mansion.
History has it that Vivekananda stayed here from February 6 to February 15, 1857. The Illam was then named Castle Kernan. Built in 1842 by Frederic Tudor, it is a tower-like edifice. In the 1880s, the house was sold to lawyer Biligiri Iyengar, who later went on to become a disciple of Swami Vivekananda.
Apart from the fact that it housed the spiritual leader, Vivekanandar Illam is the only one of the three Ice Houses constructed by the British in India (Bombay, Calcutta and Madras), which continues to survive till date.
In 1902, after Biligiri passed away, the Ice House was auctioned. It was purchased by Ankhitam Venkata Jaggaiah Rao, a zamindar from Andhra Pradesh, and in 1917, the castle went back to the hands of the British who purchased it from Rao at `79, 794. The British renamed the Ice House to Marine Mansion and sold the building to Sister Subbulakshmi who ran a hostel there for widows for many years. This marked the initiation of Sarada Vidyalaya, a famed institution that caters to women’s education in the city till date.
It was in 1963 that the then State Government renamed the mansion as Vivekanandar Illam. The house, however,was open to public from 1999. Presently, the basement of the house portrays a brief history of the Ice House. A picturesque exposition along with effigies that silently speak about Indian culture, adorn the first floor, whereas the second floor takes one through an array of photographs that showcases the life and times of Swami Vivekananda. A room in the third storey, where Swami Vivekananda stayed, is now used for meditation.
Vivekanandar Illam is currently given on lease by the Government of Tamil Nadu to the Ramakrishna Math.