At a centenary celebration of poet and freedom fighter Rabindranath Tagore, hosted at the iconic Woodlands Hotel in 1961, an unusual congregation is spotted. Stalwarts of the Indian film industry including director Satyajit Ray, and producers AV Meiyappan and B Nagi Reddy sit together and chat as old friends. In 1973, inmates of Madras Central Jail are photographed on Good Friday, sitting in rows to listen to spiritual teacher Kirupanandha Variyar preach about well-being.

These monochrome photographs make up Madras on Stage, an archival photo exhibition drawn from The Hindu‘s vast archives at the newspaper’s headquarters on Anna Salai from August 14 to September 10. Part of The Hindu’s annual Made of Chennai campaign, the exhibit, now in its fourth year, is a staple part of the exercise, where guests from the city are invited to the campus of the legendary Art Deco office building, and sift through old photo prints collected over generations.

Bringing together decades of photojournalism, the exhibition traces Chennai’s cultural life through performances, conversations, festivals, and everyday gatherings. Moving beyond celebrated artistes and familiar stages, it turns its attention to the streets, neighbourhoods, and community spaces. The exhibition marks the beginning of month-long celebrations for Chennai’s 387th year.

“All these years, we looked at performers on stage. This time, we wanted to look beyond the stage, at how Chennai’s beaches, parks, and other public spaces also became places for performances, gatherings and cultural exchange. It’s about the many ways culture unfolded across the city,” says Thirupurasundari Sevvel, who put the exhibit together with the help of The Hindu’s library team.  

But Madras on Stage is only a sliver of what the archives holds. With more than 20 lakh photographs spanning decades, every exhibition is shaped as much by what is left out as what makes it onto the gallery walls. “Whatever topic you choose, the archives only offer a glimpse. Every time we begin looking, we discover photographs we didn’t know existed,” she says, adding that the attempt has been to pick pictures that are often never been seen before, and bring together an unexpected group of people from different walks of life.

Many of the exhibition’s most compelling photographs lie not in grand events but in unexpected encounters. A 1934 still from the shooting of SM Sriramulu Naidu’s Pavalakodi offers a glimpse into the early years of Tamil cinema. Others capture theatre stalwarts such as Sivaji Ganesan, MG Ramachandran and SS Rajendran before they became household names. More than 120 photographs from as far back as the 1930s, will be on display.  

Madras on Stage is one of several events marking Chennai’s 387th birthday under the Made of Chennai banner. Among the annual highlights is Moonlight Cinema, where classic Tamil films are screened against the backdrop of the Bay of Bengal, turning the city’s beaches into an open-air theatre for the evening. This year on August 16, Kamal Hassan’s 2022 hit film Vikram will be screened along with Theri, starring actor-turned-politician C Joseph Vijay, the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu.  

Readers can get in on the celebrations too, with the Made of Chennai reader engagement contests, a series of quizzes that put their knowledge of the city to the test. The first, a trivia quiz, runs from August 11 to 20 and covers Chennai’s cultural heritage, arts, traditions and the people and places that have shaped the city. From August 21 to September 10, the photo quiz will take participants back in time, challenging them to identify some of Chennai’s significant milestone moments through archival photographs.

For a glimpse into Chennai’s early years, head to Royapuram railway station, the city’s first, on August 23. The heritage celebration will take visitors through the historic station with a photo walk and discussions led by historian Thirupurasundari, offering a closer look at the building, its history, and the stories surrounding one of Chennai’s oldest surviving railway landmarks.

For those looking to celebrate more actively, the Made of Chennai run returns this year on August 23, in both 5k and 10k categories. The route loops through Besant Nagar — beginning and ending near the Dindigul Thalappakatti Restaurant. Participants will run past Aavin junction, Olcott Memorial Higher Secondary School, Third Avenue, and Third Main Road, among other scenic routes, ending victoriously with a breakfast from Murugan Idli. There will also be a 1k saree run/walk at the Besant Nagar beach.

The month-long celebrations culminate in the Food and Music Festival on August 29, bringing together food, live music and family-friendly entertainment. The festival will feature a wide range of food brands like Ciclo Café, Oye Hoye, Batter Ice Cream, Ricky’s Cookies and Bien Butter, among many others. There will also be a giant game zone with interactive games designed for families, children and groups.

“Every year, we curate the food and music festival based on what the current trends are like. It depends on the customer’s preferences. This year we have seen that smash burgers and Milo are trending so we’re planning things around that,” says Shabman Banu, food curator, adding that the usual hits like Gopaul Bun Butter, Kuhiraman Ice Cream, and the unusual delicacies like paaya biryani, and Mannady nonbu kanji will be present.

There will also be a recreation of the Mannady Ramzan street food experience at the festival.

For a city that has never quite stood still, perhaps the best way to mark another year is to step outside and be part of it. Over the next few weeks, Chennai’s streets, beaches, old buildings and public spaces will fill with people revisiting familiar memories and making new ones.

This is after all, less a date on the calendar, and more an excuse to spend a time romanticizing the city.

To register for events by Made of Chennai, log on to newsth.live/MOC2026ED or scan the QR code

Made of Chennai events

Published - August 12, 2026 05:32 pm IST