| Thiruvallikeni | |
| — neighbourhood — | |
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| Coordinates | |
| Country | India |
| State | Tamil Nadu |
| District(s) | Chennai District |
| Subdistrict(s) | Mylapore-Triplicane |
| Parliamentary constituency | Chennai Central |
| Planning Agency | CMDA |
| Civic agency | Chennai Corporation |
| Time zone | IST (UTC+05:30) |
| Website | Chennai District website |
Triplicane (Thiruvallikeni)(Tamil: திருவல்லிகேணி), situated about a half km from the Bay of Bengal coast and Fort St George, is one of the oldest central business districts of Chennai, South India.
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Triplicane owes its name to its Puranic existence as Tiruvallikeni or Tiru-Alli-Keni (Sacred Lily Pond in Tamil) denoting the pond in front of the famous Parthasarathy Temple located there. The place was also referred to as Vrundha-raNyam (beautiful garden) in Puranic scriptures.
Also it is one of 108 very holy shrines (Divya desams) of Sri Vaishnavites who are ardent worshipers of Lord Mahavishnu. Thiruvotriyur, Thiruvellikeni, Mylapore and Thiruvanmiyur were Coastal villages that predate Chennai by at least a couple of Millennia. Amir Mahal the seat of Prince of Arcot belonging to the Nawabs of Arcot Lineage is located here. Triplicane High Road is one of the roads that had a tram line running through it during the British period.
Triplicane is known for "Ondikudithanam" where families of different sect stay in row houses together. This community living with each family supporting the other during critical situations has vanished with the new Flat system houses. Zam Bazzar is one of the spawning places for Madras Bashai.
Triplicane is called the Bachelors Paradise of Chennai. The locality has a large number of mansions - a local synonym for guest houses. Many of these are suitable for students, single professionals and visitors. Walking around the lanes of Triplicane during evening time, one is apt to come across hosts of youngsters conversing in a babel of languages - English, Tamil, Hindi, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam and Urdu. Triplicane has a sizable Islamic community in peaceful coexistence.
Triplicane is also famous for the various personalities it has produced over the years. Mathematician S Ramanujam, Writer Sujatha Rangarajan, and cricketers M.J. Gopalan, Krish Srikkanth and W.V. Raman all hailed from Triplicane. Nobel prize winner Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar attended the Hindu High School (1922–1925) in Triplicane. Subramanya Bharathy, the freedom fighter and poet, lived his last years in a house opposite the parthasarathy temple's western entrance; the house has since been bought and renovated by the Government of Tamil Nadu (in 1993), and named Bharathiyar Illam (Home of Bharathiyar). The famous writer Ramasubramanian had lived in Kwality Guest House in Pycrofts Road, Triplicane for one year.
Chepauk Cricket Ground, the only International Cricket stadium in Tamil Nadu, is located in Triplicane. Kalaivanar Arangam is a theatre that has seen many venerable leaders. It was demolished in 2009, to pave way for the new Legislative assembly complex. Adam's market near Walajah Road and Barathiyar Salai (Pycroft's Road) are popular shopping areas. The place is known for its educational book stalls and used bikes.
The Kamarajar Salai known as Beach road hosts a line of statues starting from Uzaipalar Silai to Gandhi Statue. It runs alongside the Marina Beach that hosts many open air gatherings and Naval shows. The road leads up to the Napier's Bridge, which along with LIC building and Madras Central Railway station symbolizes Chennai in movies. Queen Mary's college, Director General of Police office and Madras University are located on Beach Road. Vivekananda House (formerly Ice House) located here was once used to store Ice brought in from London during British Raj.
The famous Parthasarathy(Arjuna's Charioteer) temple dedicated to Lord Sri Krishnan is the heart of Triplicane. It was originally built by the Pallavas in the 8th century and then later refurbished by the Cholas and the Vijayanagara kings. It is dedicated to Lord Vishnu. One of the distinguishing features of the temple is that it contains the deities of the 3 avatars of Vishnu: Narasimha(lion), Rama, and Venketakrishnan(Parthasarathy himself).[1] Triplicane also has Ellamman temple in SMV Koil street and Sundaramurthy Vinayagar temple.
There are many restaurants and cafes in Triplicane serving a variety of foods - Tamil Nadu styles (Chennai, Chettinad, Karaikudi), Bengali, Gujarati, North Indian and Keralite. Amongst the oldest restaurants is Ratna Cafe famous for its idli-sambar since 1970s. Murugan Idli Shop of Madurai fame has also opened an outlet in Triplicane. Beach Road has one of the largest Aavin parlour that sells milk and milk products.
Since the majority of the population of Triplicane are bachelors, the region is filled with a lot of eateries popularly known as 'mess'. A mess is usually a single family business, who migrate as a single family, rent a house, get labor, modify the hall to accommodate 20 seats and serve fresh, hot meals in a homely environment. A well known mess is Kashi Vinayaka Mess, where long queue waits for the next available table, running since 1973. There are many messes that serve young bachelors, at low prices, pure and wholesome hot meals prepared in Andhra style.
Other popular dishes in this area include Vegetable biryani with pickle, coffee, tea, bread omelette and French onion soup. Murukku and sundal are popular in the Beach area. Sunda kanji, a rice based liquor is popular among the local fisherfolks.
Triplicane assembly constituency is part of Chennai South (Lok Sabha constituency).[2] MLA's Hostel is located on Wallajah Road. Rajaji Hall in the same campus used to have a role in state administration but it been doing duty as an Exhibition hall and Cinema Shooting spot for a long time.
| Chintadripet | Chepauk | Marina Beach / Bay of Bengal | ||
| Royapettah | Marina Beach / Bay of Bengal | |||
| Triplicane | ||||
| Mylapore | Santhome | Marina Beach / Bay of Bengal |
| Tiruvallikeni | |||
| Next station north: Chepauk |
Chennai suburban railway : MRTS | Next station south: Light House, Chennai |
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| Stop Number:6 | KM from start:5.84 | ||
| These are the stations of Chennai suburban railway - MRTS |
| Chennai Beach | Chennai Fort | Park Town | Chintadripet | Chepauk | Tiruvallikeni | Light House | Mundagakanniamman Koil (u/c) | Thirumayilai | Mandaiveli | Greenways Road | Kotturpuram | Kasturba Nagar | Indira Nagar | Thiruvanmiyur | Taramani | Perungudi | Velachery |