Hidden hotel

A guidebook published in 1987 contains a "Where to Stay" list for Madras, in which 'Hotel Admiralty' is listed in the 3rd place. One could assume that Hotel Admiralty was therefore functioning in 1987, but somehow the previous entry ("Hotel Holiday Inn Aya Gate") does not inspire much confidence in the veracity of this listing. It is however true that Madras had an "Admiralty Hotel" at one point in time. It was not always a hotel, though. In 1892, a naval officer acquired a garden house along Santhome High Road and named it Admiralty House, presumably after his line of work. Most likely his family did not want to stay on in Madras after his time, and the property was sold in 1914 to the Maharaja of Vizianagaram. During the Maharaja's time, it was known as the Vizianagaram Palace. It was in this palace that the Maharaja fell off a balcony and was fatally injured. After his death, the Palace acquired a reputation of being haunted and a place of ill-fortune.

With nobody from the family interested in living in the buildings, they were let out to AV Meiyappa Chettiar who took it on an interminably long lease at a rent of Rs.250/- per month. AVM - yes, it was he of the studio fame - had no intention of living there, either. The palace became the setting for a few of AVM's big hits: Sabapathy, Bhoo Kailas and Sri Valli. But somehow, AVM did not use the palace for any other movies. His successor as tenant to the property was a gentleman named Palliagraharam Kandaswami Pillai who announced that he would make a movie at the palace. Titled "A1" (not to be confused with "Ai", it was to be directed by Ellis R. Dungan, but it never saw the light of day. 

With that, film shoots at the Vizianagaram Palace came to a stop. It was then that the owners decided to convert it into a hotel. Recalling the property's earlier name, the Admiraly Hotel was opened here, The sign on its wall along Norton Road was originally unhindered by all those electrical equipment; and, it has remained unaltered over the years and looking quite new, even if it is hidden these days. But don't go looking for the hotel - it has long ceased to function and the buildings on the property are now used as office space!

First shot

Movie makers are by and large very superstitious and do not take many chances in the way of their movies being successful. Almost every film starts with a puja, which has become an event in itself these days. It is the done thing to can a shot at the puja. Sometimes that shot may not even make it to the final version of the movie, but it has to be done. 

The AVM Studios had a pillaiyar under a tree, which over the years became the default location for puja shot. Much later, another pillaiyar was also added on. That was in 2005, when AVM Productions split (for the third time in their 55-year history). And so this temple came up; apart from the pillaiyar as 'Selva Vinayagar', there is also a Durga and Murugan with his consorts.

When you enter the studio, this new shrine is the one that you get to see first. The split meant that it would be more convenient for each part of the studio to have a puja spot of its own!

Landmark

The building is called Cine City Hotels, firmly establishing the connection that this area has to the film world. If that is not enough, it has named its restaurant 'Kollywood Kitchen'. Kollywood, of course, is the moniker for the Tamizh movie industry, because it is centered around Kodambakkam. This hotel is right there in the middle of Kodambakkam; it has come up in the place where there used to be a landmark for movie makers, mostly from Kerala - Uma Lodge.

At the edge of United India Colony, Uma Lodge was close enough to the studios at Vadapazhani, without being so close as to the studios' presence overwhelming it. It was therefore a favourite spot for several young men - almost never women - aspiring to make their mark in the movie world. And many did make it big, even though there are likely several who continue to be on the fringes. It is not often that those who made it big talk about their time in Uma Lodge - but if I remember right, the movie Udhayananu Tharam makes a passing reference to it.

The list of Malayalam film makers who spent time at Uma Lodge, if it can be reliably compiled, will be long and distinguished. From what I have heard, it will include Srinivasan, Raveendran, Cochin Haneefa, Adam Ayub (and maybe Priyadarshan and Mohanlal as well?) and several other technicians. In the early 1970s, one of the residents of Uma Lodge - who had bagged a role in Thikkurissi Sukumaran Nair's 'Urvashi Bharathi' - would regale the others with his anecdotes from the sets; he was one of the earliest 'graduates' from Uma Lodge, who moved to a different orbit, going on to become not only a well-known actor, but, in the elections of 2014, a member of the country's Parliament - Vareed Thekkethala Innocent!

This month's theme is "Landmark": and Uma Lodge was certainly a landmark in its heyday. For landmarks from other cities around the world, head over to the CDP Theme Day Page!

Golden hero

The month of October is special for fans of 'Sivaji' Ganesan, the Nadigar Thilagam (the crown jewel of actors?) of Tamizh cinema. The first of the month is the birth anniversary of Villuppuram Chinnaiahpillai Ganesan, who went on to rule the Tamizh screen for over four decades between the 1950s and 1990s. He had many awards to his credit, including that of Best Actor at Afro-Asian Film Festival in Cairo in 1960 - the first Indian actor to win that award in an international festival.

That career started with the film "Parasakthi", made by AVM Studios in 1952. The script was by Mu Karunanidhi. Questioning the social mores of the day, the film's dialogues were quite fiery; quite a bit into its making, A.V. Meyyappan, the studio owner (and co-producer), as well as Krishnan-Panju, the co-directors, had doubts about the young man who was making his debut in the role of Gunasekaran, the lead character of the film. It was Mrs. Meyyappan and P.A. Perumal of National Pictures, the other co-producer, who backed Ganesan - and the rest, of course is history; not just for Ganesan, but also for the scriptwriter who would go on to become the state's Chief Minister. Parasakthi set the tone for a new kind of film-making.

It was on October 17, 1952 that this landmark of Tamizh cinema was released. 50 years later, this memorial to the movie was inaugurated inside the AVM studios. Apparently, it was initially placed a little way away from its current location, but was later shifted to the spot where Sivaji Ganesan delivered his first shot of the movie. At the bottom of this stand-up plaque, there is another shaped liked a book, listing the names of the people who had worked on the film: writers, lyricists, music director and technicians. The entire monument is topped off with the image of Sivaji delivering the first word of his first shot. Prophetic it was, for what he said was - "Success!"!

What street?

There are only two ways to answer that question about what street this is. One is to know your Chennai absolutely inside out, for this street is not on any map. (Even the streets of Fort St George were marked on maps, but this is surely not). The other way is to make sure you follow this blog, for a similar scene has featured here.

Anyway, I am going out in a hurry, for I have to get to a different 'street': Montieth, for an alumni gathering!

Old car

The first motor car was seen on Madras' roads in 1894 - so the story goes. But that is an unverified statement and the more verifiable date of a motor car being used in Madras is placed as 1901. That car was used by A.J. Yorke, who was a Director of Parry & Co. The motor car must have got him to work before anyone else, even though he lived in Adyar and his office was in 'Town'. By all accounts, Yorke's car was un-numbered, probably pre-dating the need for such registration of vehicles. 

The first registered car in Madras belonged to (later Sir) Francis Spring, who was then with the Madras Railway Board. It was registered with the very original MC-1 number. Of MC-2, there is little information to be found, but the first car registered by a 'native' came in as MC-3. That belonged to the master builder of Madras, Namberumal Chetty. 

This one - MSC 3738 - was seen at another Chettiar's property. This one parked inside AVM Studios and is probably taken out twice a year, during vintage car shows. It is a Vauxhall 14, dating back to 1938. The registration number, however, must have been made later; the MS series of numbers were in use in Madras even in the late '60s, before giving over to the TM series; and I can remember the schoolboy challenge - if the car 'TMS xxxx' sings, it is only because 'MSV xxxx' is making the music!