CHENNAI : The storytelling session on MLS — Memories, Literature and Stories was hard to miss. Lavanya Srinivas, founder of Kadhai Kamamishu, along with her team of storytellers took us through the early days of Madras. The unmistakable visual appeal and voice modulation took us back in the past. “Kadha kelu, kadha kelu (listen to the stories),” began Lavanya Srinivas. “MLS has been there for 200 years. From the outside, it looks like a majestic two-storied building. But the minute you step in, you learn about the practice of high ceilings and windows for ventilation on all sides in the architecture.
Despite residing in Chennai, I failed to learn much about this space. The library truly is a remarkable space that runs on membership and functions with an effective team of volunteers,” shared Lavanya. The building houses over 80,000 books. Some of the rare first-edition books, journals and literature are stacked neatly. The spiral staircase leading to the racks is one of its beauty. In 1812, gaining popularity, the Madras Literary Society, along with Bombay and Calcutta literary societies, joined the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland. The Britishers in those days would rejoice and enthusiastically await the new stocks of books. Unfortunately, most of the books now have crumpled papers with smudged inks.
Alongside, Srividya Veeraraghavan shared her experience of learning about the heritage of the building. “I happened to chance upon the MLS store at a Lit Fest. It had an attractive hoarding that read ‘Adopt a book’. This triggered my curiosity. But not many people paid attention, and casually walked past it. I decided to use my skills to gather a crowd. As I hummed the tune of Malgudi Days a huge line gathered outside the shop. This was how many people got to know about the library’s initiative.” Adopt a book is an idea where an individual takes care of the cost of maintaining the book.
Adding visual elements, artist Sharada Lakshmanan sketched some of the iconic spots of Chennai. The list included Chennai Central station, interiors of MLS, and an outside sketch of Connemara library. The storytellers used art as a medium to inculcate interest in kids as they painted them in colours.