Before Chennai tells you where to go, it tells you how to feel. In a city where a morning can begin with a raga, stretch into a long vazhai ilai lunch conversation, and end over filter coffee and debate, culture is not curated, it is lived. This idea anchored the final session of the Tourism Summit 2026 at ITC Grand Chola on Friday, which explored Chennai’s soft power through art, music, food, and everyday cultural experiences through a panel discussion.
The conversation opened with how travel itself has transformed. Travel blogger and data science manager Karthik Murali noted that post-pandemic tourism has shifted from “revenge travel” (Travel that follows a period of being unable to travel) to micro travel (two-to-three-day or weekend trip) to experiential travel currently. Travellers today, he said, are increasingly drawn to hyperlocal stories — food trails, craft clusters and neighbourhood rhythms, instead of generic sightseeing. He added, cities are now shaped as much by perception as by infrastructure. In that context came a line that stayed with the audience: while other Indian metros resemble professional or dating apps, “Chennai is Spotify,” Karthik shared.
That metaphor found its fullest expression in the rise of live music tourism. Singer Kavya Ajit observed that concerts have become collective journeys rather than performances. “Who knew that music could actually make us get out of our beds, pack our bags and make us travel across not just cities or towns, but across countries and continents?” she asked. Audiences no longer want to merely listen, but want to experience music with all their senses. She noted that Chennai’s Margazhi season emerged as a defining example, where sabha concerts and their famed canteens together create a complete cultural immersion.
The discussion also turned to experiential and sustainable tourism. Tour curator Naina Shah spoke about how travellers encounter sharply different cultures as they move across India, making every region a distinct experience. From chulha-cooked meals served on stitched leaf plates to palace stays and heritage train journeys, she said meaningful travel lies in engaging local communities. “It’s not about bringing everything from outside, but giving local people work and growing the community economically,” she noted, calling India a “living history” rather than a culture locked in museums.
Writer Liliam Mariana Boti Llanes, who has lived in Chennai for four years, offered an outsider’s lens shaped by deep affection. Drawing parallels with her home country, she said, “In Cuba, we had a saying — you have to know Cuba first, and then you should travel abroad. Sixty years later, that idea is still part of our culture. Travelling inside the country becomes a patriotic act. When I came to Chennai, I felt something similar.” Adding that she likes living in Chennai for “the warmth of the people”, she called for a more nuanced global portrayal of India.
The session concluded with Kavya performing live, followed by a vote of thanks by Lakshmi Menon, CEO of The New Indian Express, leaving the sense that Chennai’s soft power lies not in spectacle, but in experience.