BHARATHI MEMORIAL HOUSE
Bharathiyar memorial house lies among residential houses on the street behind the Parthasarathy temple.
Though private cars have been parked in front of the homes, the metallic letters on the building tells you that it’s the treasure of the great Tamil poet. The house looks as simple as the man himself. A government reference library and a huge hall are additional attractions of this house. It has housed rare pictures of the poet and his hand-written poems. The first pages of magazines and newspapers run by him have also been exhibited.
His hand-written English language dictionary is the cynosure of eyes. The number of visitors is not less than 80, according the caretaker. If maintained properly this memorial house will surely attract more people.
KAMARAJAR MEMORIAL HOUSE
Though the memorial house of this Kingmaker stands on a busy road in T Nagar, one can revel in the silence once you enter the house. There is a brief biography of him at the entrance and one can also get a glimpse of the room where he slept his last night. Nobody would say he was a padikkatha methai if one looked at the books he used in his lifetime.
All the visitors are asked to enter their names in the register book before visiting the two-storey treasure house of this simple-yet-powerful man. “More than 50 people visit this place daily and on special days such as his birthday which falls on 15th July, we expect more people to come,” said Seetharaman, caretaker of this home.
MGR MEMORIAL HOUSE
Though MGR memorial house is situated at T Nagar, far from the memorial on the Marina beach, his name still spells magic. The house is maintained by the MGR Memorial Charitable trust and according to them the patronage exceeds 500 during weekends.
The expense of the house is met, as per MGR’s will, from the revenue from his Alandur fish market.
Various awards and mementos embellish the house while famous songs of this veteran actor and former chief minister are heard in the background.
His gym equipment and a lion statue are the cynosure of the visitors and the in-house photographers are ready to click you with any of his assets.
ANNA MEMORIAL
This small museum of CN Annadurai at Marina beach hosts the highest number of visitors. Former chief minister of the state, he was fondly called Aringar Anna. Marvellous architecture and one of the longest coasts nearby make the Anna memorial a perfect tourist spot. And most of the visitors don’t fail to get a glimpse of this great memorial.
“We couldn’t count the exact number of people as they come in groups and it’s difficult to make note of their names in the register book,” said the caretaker of museum.
Interestingly, his name is Aringar Anna too. Rare photographs of Annadurai with other leaders taken at different meetings adorn the museum walls. His attires, spectacles, pens and particularly his nasal snuff box have been treasured safely and exhibited inside crystal boxes.