Chennai was founded as Madras on August 22, 1639. The ongoing Madras Day celebrations are running in the city from August 21-28. The idea of Madras Day was brought together by three people put together – the city’s famed historian, S Muthiah, journalist Sashi Nair and publisher Vincent D’ Souza. Later, they have been joined by three others – senior journalist and editor Sushila Ravindranath, journalist and website entrepreneur Revathi R and entrepreneur and writer-historian V Sriram. Since then, Madras Day celebrations have been held every year without fail, its highlights being exhibitions, lectures, film screenings and quizzes.

Participants will get to try around nine-10 dishes, he adds. Don’t miss the thattu idlis at Vaishnavaa’s, a crowd favourite, and the murukku sandwich served with gulab jamun at Jagdish.

The city's many monuments have much to say about the rich legacy as well. A heritage walk by Pradeep Chakravarthy, a history buff who runs Mystical Palmyra, is an ideal way to explore the city and explore its unseen stories.

“Did you know there was a thriving Jain population in Thiruvanmiyur back then? We will explore the history, songs and architecture,” he says.

The 45-minute walk is on August 27.

Last but not the least, spare a moment for the city's love for art. Several art galleries across the city have the best of their Tamil masters on display and makes for a worthu=y visit to understand how the city has grown from being just a sliver of land to the megacity it has become today.

Happy Birthday Chennai! Wish you many more happy years ahead.